The ongoing Red Sea crisis continues to impact Royal Caribbean's operations in the Middle East.
Passengers booked on Voyager of the Seas' October 25, 2025, sailing received confirmation that the 14-night one-way cruise from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to Singapore, Singapore, has been canceled.
"To avoid the continuing unrest in the Red Sea area, and after exploring all options, our upcoming October 20, 2025, Voyager of the Seas sailing has been redeployed," reads an email sent to guests.
It's unclear where Voyager is being redeployed to. However, the 137,276 gross registered ton (GRT) vessel is scheduled to begin sailing from Australia on December 13, 2025, following a 12-night cruise from Singapore to Brisbane departing on December 1.
She'll remain in Brisbane, Australia through 2026, offering 3- to 9-night cruises to Australia and the South Pacific.
Alternative options for passengers
Royal Caribbean isn't leaving these guests stranded and provided a few options for those impacted by the canceled voyage.
"Every aspect of your time with us should be enjoyable, so we’ve put together some alternative options that we hope will work for you and those in your party," the email continues.
The first is to re-book one of two 7-night itineraries on Voyager of the Seas.
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The earlier of the two departs on September 29, 2025, from Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy, and cruises to Naples, Italy; Sicily (Messina), Italy; Santorini, Greece; Ephesus (Kusadasi), Turkey; and Mykonos, Greece, before disembarking in Athens (Piraeus).
The second option is a brand-new itinerary on October 20, 2025. This one-way cruise sails from Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy, to Barcelona, Spain, calling at Naples, Italy; Sicily (Messina), Italy; Florence/Pisa (La Spezia), Italy; Cannes, France; and Provence (Marseille), France.
Passengers who re-book one of these cruises will have their original stateroom price protected at the original rate or reduced to the current fare, whichever is less. Those who already paid their booking in full will receive a refund if the chosen cruise fare is lower.
The second option is to re-book on any other Royal Caribbean International sailing and have the non-refundable deposit change fees waived. With this choice, guests are responsible for paying the difference in price for the cruise fare, taxes, fees, gratuities, and other non-cruise fare items.
However, like option 1, passengers who paid their cruise off will receive a refund if their new chosen fare is lower than their original booking.
The third option lets guests cancel and receive a full refund of any paid portion of the cruise fare, including non-refundable deposits and pre-paid add-ons, to their original form of payment.
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If a future cruise credit (FCC) was used, Royal Caribbean will refund any money paid in addition to the certificate amount and issue a new voucher.
Passengers have until October 22, 2024, to call 888-281-9344 to inform them of their decision. If Royal Caribbean hasn't heard from guests by October 22, their reservation will automatically be canceled and refunded.
Cruise ships have been affected by the Red Sea crisis since last year
The most notable, perhaps, was Royal Caribbean's Ultimate World Cruise. Instead of sailing through the Red Sea, the 2,143-passenger ship was rerouted around Africa after allowing guests to vote on a new itinerary.
The "Immersive Africa" option was the more port-intensive of the two, whereas the second, "Africa & Greece," had more days at sea to catch up with the originally scheduled ports in Egypt and Greece.
In the end, "Immersive Africa" won, taking passengers to ports like Pointe Des Galets, Reunion Island; Port Elizabeth, South Africa; Cape Town, South Africa; Walvis Bay, Namibia; and Dakar, Senegal—all to avoid the ongoing geopolitical conflict.
Earlier this year, Royal Caribbean also canceled a cruise aboard Anthem of the Seas scheduled for October 14, 2024. Instead of sailing through the Suez Canal, Anthem is to sail around Africa without any guests onboard.
Anthem wrapped up her European season on October 2 after a 12-night cruise to the Canary Islands, Portugal, and Spain. Her next sailing isn't scheduled to depart until November 7, cruising from Dubai to Singapore.
She'll remain in Asia until April 2025, when she'll reposition to Alaska for the summer season.
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