A hurricane-like storm that was off the coast of the eastern United States led to the cruise industry suffering the most as it caused a slew of delays to four ships in New York.

The cruise companies that suffered the most were the major ones like MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International, and Hapag-Lloyd as the very low pressure forced the area ports to close.

One of the ships from Royal Caribbean, Symphony of the Seas, faced serious consequences because of the mentioned issues. The vessel was supposed to be in Cape Liberty on Sunday, the day when the seven-night Bahamas cruise was to start. Yet, due to heavy winds and the port’s closure, the ship had to remain at the dock for an additional three days before it could finally depart on Tuesday morning.

So instead of full itinerary virgins, the ship will go straight to the Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas; the planned stops at Port Canaveral and Nassau have now been canceled because the ship’s prolonged stay resulted in the change of the itinerary.

Royal Caribbean informed the passengers that the company’s meteorology team which is headed by Chief Meteorologist Craig Seltzer had been monitoring the storm very closely. The cruise line said that, even though they kept communicating with the port officials all the time, the port had to remain closed for security reasons.

To compensate for the trouble, the cruise line gave guests who bought the beverage packages a $35 non-refundable onboard credit and free drinks for the day at 50% off. Besides, a Future Cruise Credit equal to the cost of two days of the cruise was also issued to the passengers. This credit is valid on any Royal Caribbean ship sailing before October 12, 2026.

The postponements were not limited to the one ship only. Both MSC Meraviglia and Norwegian Getaway of Norwegian Cruise Line had to delay their New York trips by two days, thereby affecting both MSC voyages. The tramper of Hapag-Lloyd’s Europa towards the European continent was also delayed.

The ships are finally on the move again, and cruise lines are trying to adjust their itineraries to bring guests back to the original plans after the rough start.