Icon of the Seas: Departure Delayed & Itinerary Changed!

Por Concord - Trabajo propio, CC BY-SA 4.0, Enlace
Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas had to postpone its scheduled departure on September 26, 2026, by one day due to necessary maintenance [cite: 1.1.1]. Despite the delay, the more than 5,600 guests still had to board on the original Saturday in Miami. Strict US customs regulations made it impossible to allow late arrivals to check in on Sunday.

All news also on X

Because the ship unexpectedly remained in port overnight, the onboard casino and duty-free shops had to stay closed for the time being. To make up for the restrictions, vacationers were allowed to go ashore in Miami again on Sunday morning. In addition, the cruise line generously credited between 300 and 800 US dollars per cabin directly to the passengers' accounts as compensation.

A lost day is not easily made up for at sea. The nautical management therefore decided to completely remove the planned stop in Costa Maya, Mexico, from the itinerary. Instead, the ship set a direct course for Roatán in Honduras, followed as planned by Cozumel and the private island Perfect Day at CocoCay. The costs for any booked excursions in Costa Maya were refunded immediately.

The background to the delay is the ship's highly complex technology. For safety reasons, work on the ultra-modern LNG engines or the Azipod propulsion systems can often only be carried out in port. The Icon of the Seas experienced similar problems back in September 2024. By cleverly moving the maintenance to the weekend in Miami, however, a complete cancellation of the cruise was avoided this time.