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Norwegian Sun Sailing Gets Late Adjustment Due to Propulsion Issues

Key Aspects:

  • Norwegian Sun experienced a loss of propulsion during its current 9-night sailing from Denmark to Finland.
  • The NCL ship was forced to skip its visit to Stockholm, Sweden, on June 22, but did make its visit to Tallinn, Estonia, on June 23.
  • At this time, the technical difficulties are not expected to impact the following voyage, which embarks on June 24.

Norwegian Sun’s current 9-night Baltic sailing is ending on a low note due to technical difficulties impacting the ship’s propulsion.

Reports have surfaced on social media indicating that the planned visit to Nynashamn, Sweden, which provides access to Stockholm, was cancelled on June 22, 2026, due to propulsion issues.

“Currently on NCL Sun and will be missing our port call in Sweden today due to lack of propulsion. Trip had been going great until now. Weather is gorgeous here too which adds to the sting,” one of the up to 1,878 guests onboard posted on Reddit on June 22.

“Looking out the window now and it seems we are dead in the water as we make our way to Estonia,” the current guest continued.

The news was also confirmed by another current passenger on Facebook.

Prior to the cancelled call in Stockholm, the 78,309-gross ton vessel successfully visited Oslo, Norway; Warnemunde-Rostock, Germany; Gdynia-Gdansk, Poland; Klaipeda, Lithuania; and Riga, Latvia.

According to cruise tracking data, the NCL ship was also able to make its final call on the itinerary as planned to Tallinn, Estonia, on June 23.

At the end of her visit, she departed on time at 8 p.m. As of the time of this writing, the cruise ship is sailing toward Helsinki, Finland, at speeds of 7 knots.

But while this seems slow, Helsinki is quite close to Tallinn with only around 40 nautical miles between the destinations. The ship should arrive in Helsinki on time for disembarkation on the morning of June 24.

Will the Next Itinerary Be Impacted?

At this time, there is no known impact to the next cruise, which is the reverse of the sailing the Sun-class flagship will have just completed.

The June 24 cruise will sail from Helsinki back to Copenhagen, Denmark, which is where the current June 15 voyage embarked, over the course of nine days.

Norwegian Sun Cruise Ship
Norwegian Sun Cruise Ship (Photo Credit: Felipe Sanchez)

At this time, there have been no public announcements indicating that itinerary changes will be necessary or that repairs will need to be completed in port before heading back out to sea. It’s also not known what caused the propulsion issues in the first place.

Sometimes the onboard engineers can fix the problem mid-voyage, while more complicated issues may require the ship to stay in port to finish the work.

Cruise Hive reached out to Norwegian Cruise Line for more information about the situation, but did not receive a response in time for publication.

Are Propulsion Problems Common?

Propulsion issues aren’t exactly common, but they do happen from time to time. With ships essentially operating 24/7, 365 days per year, sometimes onboard systems simply get out of whack.

But with several propulsion issues recently making the news, it can feel like this is a situation that is getting more common. 

For example, Cruise Hive has covered propulsion issues for Norwegian Bliss, Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas, and Holland America Line’s Zaandam in the past month alone.

“Is it just me or is ‘loss of propulsion’ becoming a more common issue? Or is this just something to be expected on older ships,” the Reddit user inquired.

It’s important to acknowledge that there are hundreds (if not thousands) of sailings that don’t become headlines because everything is operating normally.

And to Norwegian’s credit, the cruise company does its best to maintain its fleet. Even though Norwegian Sun is an older ship with a 2001 launch year, she visits dry dock routinely and was most recently refurbished in 2024.

In her decades at sea, the ship has only ever experienced propulsion or power issues in 2011 and 2023, so technical difficulties are clearly few and far between.

Berthing Conflicts Force Celebrity Summit to Drop Two Ports

Key Aspects:

  • Celebrity Cruises removed Key West from Celebrity Summit’s November 1, 2026, sailing, and replaced it with a port call in Cozumel, Mexico.
  • The ship has also removed Costa Maya, Mexico, from its November 22, 2026, voyage, replacing it with a stop in George Town, Grand Cayman.
  • November 8’s sailing has also been modified, but is keeping all original scheduled port calls.

For Celebrity Cruises passengers looking forward to strolling along Duval Street, visiting the Southernmost Point in the US, or sampling the food and drinks at Sloppy Joe’s, an itinerary update may come as disappointing news.

The cruise line has informed guests sailing aboard Celebrity Summit on November 1, 2026, that the ship’s planned call in Key West has been removed from the itinerary and replaced with a visit to Cozumel, Mexico.

“Due to berthing availability in Key West, Florida, we’ve replaced this stop with a visit to Cozumel from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Day 3,” Celebrity Cruises said in a letter sent to booked guests.

The revised schedule now calls for the 91,003-gross-ton Celebrity Summit to visit Cozumel on November 3, followed by Bimini on November 5, and Nassau on November 6 before returning to Tampa, Florida, on November 8.

The 7-night voyage, which had previously been marketed as a “Key West & Bahamas” cruise departing roundtrip from Tampa, now includes a sea day on November 4, replacing what had originally been the Key West port call.

“We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and have no doubt your time with us will be nothing short of amazing,” the cruise line said.

Celebrity Summit Cruise Ship
Photo Credit: Carlos Yudica / Shutterstock.com

Celebrity Cruises said guests who pre-purchased shore excursions through the cruise line for Key West will automatically receive refunds to their original form of payment. Passengers who booked shore excursions separately are advised to reach out for cancellations and refunds.

Read Also: Cozumel Cruise Port: Terminals, Piers, and Getting Around

Guests interested in booking activities in Cozumel will be able to browse available shore excursions through the Celebrity Cruises app and website. However, the company also warned that bookings may be temporarily unavailable for up to 10 business days while the itinerary updates are finalized.

Additional Celebrity Summit Itinerary Changes

The November 1 departure is not the only upcoming Celebrity Summit sailing to undergo changes. Celebrity Cruises has also notified guests booked on the ship’s November 8 and November 22, 2026, departures of itinerary adjustments affecting ports in Mexico, Belize, and the Cayman Islands.

For the November 8 sailing, the cruise line cited another berthing conflict as the reason for modifying the itinerary to “ensure your experience remains seamless and enjoyable.”

The 2,218-passenger ship’s sea day has now been moved up to November 10, with calls scheduled for Belize City on November 11, Cozumel on November 12, and Costa Maya, Mexico, on November 13.

Shore excursions booked through the cruise line are automatically being updated to align with the revised schedule, but passengers who booked their own activities are advised to reschedule to match the itinerary.

Celebrity Summit has also removed Costa Maya entirely from its November 22 departure after reviewing port operations at the Mexican destination.

To replace the cancelled stop, Celebrity Cruises added George Town, Grand Cayman, on November 27. The ship will spend the previous day at sea before arriving in the Cayman Islands from 7:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.

“While our itinerary has been adjusted, the incredible experience of your journey remains unchanged,” said the cruise line. “These updates allow us to uphold the integrity of our itinerary and ensure smooth operations.”

Guests who pre-purchased shore excursions in Costa maya will receive automatic refunds to their original form of payment. It will be opening shore excursions for George Town in the next 10 days.

Crew Member’s Body Recovered After Cruise Ship Overboard Near Oban

Key Aspects:

  • The body of a crew member overboard from Hebridean Princess has been found near Oban, Scotland.
  • The overboard occurred on Tuesday, June 16, just after 8 p.m. in the evening.
  • No details of the crew member’s identity or position have been made available, but the incident is not considered suspicious.

There is now an unfortunate and tragic conclusion to an overboard incident from the luxury ship Hebridean Princess last week. On Tuesday, June 16, 2026, a crew member was reported to have fallen from the 48-guest small ship in the Sound of Mull, near Oban in western Scotland.

At the time of the incident, just 38 guests were aboard. The ship is also home to just over 30 crew members. While the local coastguard rescue team responded and search efforts commenced shortly after 8 p.m., the search was initially unsuccessful.

Now, however, the male crew member’s body has been located near Corran Esplanade, roughly a half mile north of the docking areas in Oban.

“The individual’s next of kin have been informed, and our thoughts are with their family, friends, and colleagues,” a spokesperson for Hebridean Island Cruises told the BBC.

No further details about the crew member, such as name, age, or position, have been released. This is standard procedure to protect the individual’s privacy and the privacy of their family members, friends, and colleagues.

Local authorities are conducting a complete investigation and the cruise line is fully cooperating.

“We are supporting the relevant authorities in their inquiries,” Hebridean Island Cruises confirmed.

A Police Scotland spokesperson did note that the death is not being treated as suspicious. Full investigations are normal under these circumstances.

Hebridean Princess is one of just two vessels operated by Hebridean Island Cruises, offering intimate explorations around Scotland to ports larger ships cannot visit.

Read Also: What Happens When Someone Goes Overboard on a Cruise Ship?

Prior to the incident, the ship had most recently visited Barra, the Isle of Harris, the Shiant Isles, Stornoway, and other unique destinations. Hikes, museum visits, local foods, church visits, and other activities are favorites in ports of call.

At the time of the overboard, the 2,112-gross-ton ship had just finished a 7-night “Footloose Over the Western Isles” itinerary that originally departed Oban on June 9. Because the incident happened late in the evening, however, it is possible it was the first night of the next sailing, also a 7-night cruise.

Crew Member Overboards Rare

It is a sad truth that crew member overboards do happen and are not confined to a specific type of cruise, ship size, or sailing region.

Cruise Hive has reported on different incidents, including a crew member overboard from Norwegian Viva in April 2026 while the ship was near Costa Maya, Mexico. Later that same month, another crew member went overboard from Norwegian Breakaway near Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Crew overboards have been reported in recent years from AIDA Cruises, Royal Caribbean, Princess Cruises, and other lines.

Working on a cruise ship can be a very stressful career involving long hours, heavy workloads, and being away from family members and friends for months at a time.

While Hebridean Princess is a small ship with just three dozen or so crew members, larger vessels often have hundreds or thousands of crew members onboard each sailing.

Cruise lines do provide support for struggling crew members, as well as counseling services as needed when tragic situations unfold.

Cruise Hive’s thoughts and condolences are with the family members, friends, and co-workers of the crew member during this troubling time.

Carnival Guests Notified of Itinerary Changes on Two Tampa Cruises

Key Aspects:

  • Small changes have been made to one sailing each for Carnival Paradise and Carnival Legend in the coming weeks.
  • The July 6 sailing of Carnival Paradise has shifted her visit time in Belize.
  • Carnival Legend will depart Tampa one hour later for the November 16 sailing.

Guests on two different Carnival cruises have now received notification of minor adjustments to their respective upcoming itineraries. The impacted ships are Carnival Paradise and Carnival Legend, both sailing from Tampa, Florida, and the change to one ship is fairly significant, while the other is just a minor tweak.

Carnival Paradise Itinerary Change

The July 6, 2026 departure of Carnival Paradise has a relatively large change. While the Fantasy-class ship will still be sailing her 6-night Western Caribbean itinerary out of Tampa to Belize, Roatan, and Cozumel, the time in Belize has been heavily shifted.

Originally, the 2,124-guest ship was to have visited Belize City, Belize, for a full day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 8, as the first port of call on the sailing. The day has not changed, but now Carnival Paradise will be in port from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

This is loss of a full hour of port time and the much later arrival may impact shore tours for many guests. If guests have booked any excursions through the cruise line, those tours with be changed accordingly.

“Where applicable, pre-purchased Carnival shore excursions will be automatically adjusted prior to sailing,” the notification confirmed.

Guests with independent tour arrangements will need to contact their tour operators for options to reschedule or cancel as necessary.

No explanation has been given for the change, but there is no indication of any mechanical trouble with Carnival Paradise that would require a slower sailing speed or other adjustments. Port schedules, berth availability, and other factors can all impact when a ship may visit a port of call.

Cruise Hive just reported days ago of a port cancellation for a harbor pilot shortage on Carnival Splendor, another type of situation that can create an itinerary change.

Carnival Paradise Docked in Cozumel, Mexico
Carnival Paradise Docked in Cozumel, Mexico (Photo Credit: denbaim)

Only the stop in Belize is impacted by this change. Carnival Paradise will still visit Roatan, Honduras on July 9 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., followed by Cozumel, Mexico on July 10 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The ship’s departure and return to Tampa are also unaffected.

One of the smallest and oldest ships in the Carnival fleet, the 71,925-gross-ton Carnival Paradise offers 4-, 5-, and 6-night sailings from Tampa year-round and is a favorite among many cruise guests who prefer the smaller, more intimate ship.

Carnival Legend Itinerary Change

The tweak to Carnival Legend is even simpler than the port adjustment for Carnival Paradise. For the 88,500-gross-ton ship, the only change is to her departure from Tampa for the November 16, 2026 sailing.

Now, the ship will set sail from the Sunshine State one hour later at 4:30 p.m. instead of 3:30 p.m. as previously scheduled.

No other changes have been announced for the 5-night Western Caribbean cruise, which will be visiting Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Likewise, the ship’s return to Tampa is not impacted and remains unchanged, which will be a relief to the 2,124 guests that may be aboard.

Carnival Cruise Line frequently makes these sorts of simple adjustments to various itineraries as port schedules and sailing routes are refined. Recently, Cruise Hive shared Celebration Key time changes for 50 sailings of Carnival Elation from Jacksonville.

Similarly, more than 90 sailings of Carnival Panorama out of Long Beach have also been adjusted in recent weeks.

Any booked guests (from any line, not just Carnival!) should always stay in close contact with their cruise line in case of itinerary changes, port swaps, departure updates, or other changes that may impact their vacation plans.