Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas has been hit with technical issues and as a result, has been forced to dock in Vigo, Spain.
Navigator of the Seas Issues
Navigator of the Seas which is operated by Royal Caribbean has been hit with technical issues since last night. According to the popular Crew Center site, there was A Bravo Code announcement and one of the ship stabilizers broke and made a hole on the side.
Apparently, the problem was temporarily repaired but the Royal Caribbean cruise ship still needed to divert to Vigo, Spain on the Spanish west coast. The ship has been docked there ever since.
The ship captain has kept guests onboard informed and a newly revised itinerary will now take place. According to an update from a passenger, Navigator of the Seas will stay in Vigo until Monday afternoon and two port of calls including Madiera have been canceled. The revised itinerary is as follows:
- Fri, Oct 26 – Southampton
- Sat, Oct 27 – Sea Day
- Sun, Oct 28 – Vigo
- Mon, Oct 29 – Vigo (Depart at 2:00 pm)
- Tue, Oct 30 – Sea Day
- Wed, Oct 31 – Gran Canaria
- Thu, Nov 1 – Tenerife
- Fri, Nov 2 – Sea Day
- Sat, Nov 3 – Sea Day
- Sun, Nov 4 – Sea Day
- Mon, Nov 5 – Southampton
Navigator of the Seas departed her homeport in Southampton, UK on October 26 and is scheduled to sail a 10-night itinerary to the Canary Islands. Vigo is included in the itinerary but was supposed to happen on November 3 as the final port of call before heading back to the UK.
The ship is likely making urgent repairs while guests can head out and enjoy the cruise destination on the west coast of Spain. The first scheduled port of call was supposed to be Funchal, Madeira on October 29.
Royal Caribbean has given Cruise Hive the following statement:
Navigator of the Seas is making repairs to resolve a technical issue. The ship is fully operational with no impact on its maneuverability or the safety of our guests and crew. However, because of time needed to make the repair, it was necessary to modify her current itinerary.
Navigator will now call on Vigo, Spain for an overnight stay on Sunday, Oct. 28. It will then sail on to Gran Canaria, Canary Islands on Wednesday, Oct. 31 and Tenerife, Canary Islands on Thursday, Nov 1. The ship will return to Southampton, England on Monday, Nov. 5 as scheduled.
Guests have been offered compensation for the issue with 25% of the cruise fare refunded as credit on the onboard account. Guests are also receiving a 25% of the cruise fare for a future cruise credit.
Also Read: A Simple Guide on Royal Caribbean Ships by Size
This news comes after two Carnival cruise ships were hit with technical issues over the past week. Carnival Victory had to cancel ports due to a propulsion problem, and Carnival Sunshine had to cancel Grand Turk due to a mechanical problem.
Navigator of the Seas is scheduled to depart for her next cruise from Southampton on November 5. Let’s hope the sailing won’t be impacted and they can find a permanent fix. The ship is 142,000 gross tons and has a guest capacity of over 3,100 at double occupancy.
