Key Aspects:
- Two one-way cruises on Navigator of the Seas are switching which homeport the ship will use in Tokyo, Japan.
- Debarkation for the ship’s February 13, 2027 sailing is impacted, as well as embarkation for the February 25, 2027 sailing.
- Instead of the Yokohama (Tokyo) terminal, the ship will use the Tokyo International Cruise Terminal that day due to port availability.
Royal Caribbean has reached out to guests booked on two upcoming sailings of Navigator of the Seas to alert them to a homeport change. The impacted cruises are the ship’s one-way voyages between Singapore and Japan, the first departing Singapore on Saturday, February 13, 2027. The very next sailing is the return trip, departing Tokyo on Thursday, February 25, and is also impacted.
Guests on the February 13 departure have been alerted that they will now arrive at a different port than originally scheduled when they reach Tokyo.
“Due to port availability and to enhance your experience, we’ll now arrive in Tokyo, Japan on debarkation day in place of Tokyo (Yokohama), Japan,” the email confirmed. “We will still arrive at 5:30 AM as planned.”
While both cruise ports are in the same metropolitan area, they are technically in different cities and roughly 20 miles apart.
The Tokyo International Cruise Terminal is further north and closer to the downtown area of Tokyo, in the Aomi part of the city. The Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal is further south and in the city of Yokohama, in the Tsurumi Ward. Driving time between the two ports is approximately 30 minutes, depending on traffic.
Because Navigator of the Seas will be debarking at the Tokyo International Cruise Terminal on Thursday, February 25, guests likewise boarding the ship that day also need to be aware of the port change and have received their own notifications.
“Due to port availability to ensure a seamless boarding day, embarkation will now take place in Tokyo, Japan instead of Tokyo (Yokohama), Japan,” the email to guests on the February 25 departure explained.
Guests on the sailing from Tokyo to Singapore also need to be aware of a time change, as Navigator of the Seas will now set sail from Tokyo at 4:30 p.m. Originally, the ship was scheduled to depart at 5 p.m.
There are no other changes to the itinerary schedule for either sailing. The 3,368-guest ship will still visit Hong Kong, Taipei, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, and Kagoshima on her trip to Japan, as well as Nagoya, Osaka, Okinawa, Ishigaki, and Hong Kong on her return to Singapore.
Why Is the Ship Changing Ports?
Royal Caribbean has not offered specific details for why Navigator of the Seas will be using Tokyo rather than Tokyo (Yokohama) as the Japanese homeport for these sailings, only that the change is “due to port availability” on February 25, 2027.
On that day, there are no other cruise ships currently scheduled for the Daikoku Pier Cruise Terminal, but it is possible that port construction, harbor dredging, or docking needs other than cruise ships are impacting the port’s availability at that time.
Navigator of the Seas will also be the only cruise ship at the Tokyo port on February 25, so guests will not have additional congestion or terminal crowding that could be caused if there were multiple ships in port.
This is not the first time a cruise ship has had to change ports for embarkation or debarkation on different sailings.
Cruise Hive reported in April 2026 that the new Norwegian Aura, which will debut with her May 2, 2027 voyage, shifted from Barcelona, Spain to Tarragona for her May 28, 2027 debarkation and subsequent embarkation due to port availability.
Likewise, for the August 10, 2026 departure of Brilliance of the Seas, the ship had to embark in Trieste, Italy rather than Ravenna due to construction delays.
Such homeport switches are not common and fortunately, guests looking forward to sailing onboard Navigator of the Seas have several months to adjust to the change.
