Another Itinerary Changed for Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship

Another sailing of Royal Caribbean International’s Anthem of the Seas has been altered, with one significant port change and two other ports adjusted with different times.

This is the latest in several such changes for the Quantum-class cruise ship impacting a variety of different sailings.

Anthem of the Seas Itinerary Change

The January 18, 2024, sailing of Anthem of the Seas has been adjusted, with one port of call swapped for another, a second port shortened, and a third port lengthened to compensate. Guests booked on the impacted sailing have been contacted about the changes.

“To maintain a safe and comfortable speed along our journey, we’ll now visit San Juan, Puerto Rico instead of Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic,” the email read. “Additionally, we’ve adjusted our arrival and departure times for Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, and Basseterre, St. Kitts & Nevis.”

The January 18, 2024 cruise is an 11-night roundtrip sailing from New York, a Southern Caribbean getaway in the midst of winter.

The time in port for San Juan is 4-11 p.m., rather than the originally scheduled 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. that was to have been spent in Puerto Plata.

While the hours spent in port is the same (7 hours), the evening call in San Juan may not be as enjoyable to many guests, as beach excursions will not be as long, and shore tours can interfere with onboard dining times, production shows, and other activities.

Read Also: Things to Do in San Juan, Puerto Rico for Cruisers

The ship will then call on Charlotte Amalie, the capital of the U.S. Virgin Islands, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., two hours longer and a slightly different window than the originally scheduled 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

“We’ve added an extra two hours in Charlotte Amalie so you can explore everything this beautiful destination has to offer,” the email explained.

The next two ports of all, Philipsburg in St. Maarten and Castries in St. Lucia, remain unchanged from the original itinerary, but the time at the final port of call, Basseterre in St. Kitts, has been shortened by 2.5 hours – 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. instead of the originally planned 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

In total, guests on this cruise are only losing 30 minutes of port time. The five total sea days on the itinerary – two southbound and three northbound – as well as the ship’s departure and arrival times from New York, remain unchanged.

Several Itineraries Already Changed

Several upcoming cruises for Anthem of the Seas have already been altered in similar ways, with port times shortened and in some cases, ports of call dropped in favor of sea days.

The January 29, 2024 departure, for instance, is an identical 11-night sailing, but for that cruise, Puerto Plata has been dropped with no replacement port, and the times in port have been changed for every destination.

Two sailings in June 2023 also have adjustments, and in early March, another sailing was altered with port time adjustments.

While no detailed explanation has been forthcoming for so many adjustments months before planned cruises, the more recently changed itineraries have been attributed to “engine issues” that affect the ship’s top speed.

No hotel, restaurant, or safety operations are compromised in any way, and all onboard services are continuing as normal.

The 168,666-gross-ton Anthem of the Seas is the second ship in Royal Caribbean’s Quantum class, having debuted in 2015. She can welcome 4,180 guests at double occupancy, or up to 4,905 passengers when fully booked.