Even though some cruise lines have already resolved their staff shortages, for Princess Cruises, the situation has forced the cancellation of 11 voyages.
The cruise line has announced that a limited number of cruises are canceled for the Diamond Princess cruise ship on the U.S. west coast, resulting in a delayed return to service.
Diamond Princess Cruises Canceled
Princess Cruises has been forced to cancel a limited number of voyages for the Diamond Princess cruise ship, which includes departures out of San Diego, California. It comes as the cruise line is dealing with labor shortages while occupancy levels rise across its ships.
Princess Cruises stated, “Over the past year we have operated hundreds of cruises thanks to the tens of thousands of our Princess team members that have rejoined our fleet to deliver exceptional Princess vacations. However, like others in the global travel industry we have experienced some labor challenges.”
It does mean that the cruise line has canceled a total of 11 voyages for the Diamond Princess cruise ship out of San Diego, California, from September 1, 2022 through November 13, 2022.
Princess wants to make sure the guest experience onboard remains exceptional and by canceling the voyages, it allows more time to increase the crew levels.
The cruise line continued to state, “With rising occupancy levels on the ships that have already returned to service and our commitment to guarantee the Princess experience is exceptional, Princess has made the difficult decision to cancel a limited number of voyages (11 sailings) on the Diamond Princess beginning September 1, 2022 through November 13, 2022.”
Replacement Voyages for Impacted Guests
The good news is impacted guests have the option for a replacement voyage departing in 2022 or 2023 but departing out of Los Angeles, California, rather than San Diego.
The cruises would also be offered not with the Diamond Princess, but with Discovery Princess or Crown Princess.
Guests who choose to transfer their booking to one of the replacement voyages will have $100 onboard spending money per person, and the added benefit of knowing their current cruise fare will be protected.
Any pre- or post-cruise transfers between the airport and pier will automatically be transferred to the replacement voyage. Any other pre-packages not purchased with the cruise fare will automatically be refunded.
Read Also: Princess Cruises Announces Brand New 2023-2024 Itineraries
Alternatively, guests can choose to receive $100 of onboard credit along with accepting a 100% future cruise credit that can be used to book another Princess cruise that departs by December 31, 2023.
There is also the option for a full refund which must be requested using an online form by September 8, 2022.
Diamond Princess Await to Return
The Princess cruise ship that dominated the headlines when the global pandemic started to impact the cruise industry nearly 2020, is still awaiting to make a return to cruising.
The vessel has already been on pause for more than two years, and before the announced cancellations, the ship was scheduled to resume sailings with guests on September 1, 2022, from San Diego. This included that first five-night voyage that included visits to San Francisco in California and Ensenada in Mexico.
The ship’s first return voyage will now depart San Diego on November 13 on a seven-night itinerary including calls to Loreto, La Paz, and Cabo San Lucas.
The Diamond Princess is 115,875 gross tons and has a guest capacity of 2,670 at double occupancy, along with 1,100 crew members.