Carnival suddenly cancels over one month of cruises, disappointing thousands

Thousands of cruisers planning to sail this fall aboard one of Carnival’s newest ships received an unexpected cancellation email from the cruise line. 

Guests booked on 11 voyages on Carnival Firenze departing Long Beach, California, between October and November 2026 were impacted.

"We have made some changes to the itinerary plans for Carnival Firenze and, unfortunately, your cruise has been cancelled," reads the email shared on Facebook by Ken Martin. 

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The canceled sailings include 3- and 4-night cruises to Baja Mexico departing from Oct. 12 through and including Nov. 16, 2026.

Continuing on, the email says, "We sincerely apologize for this change and thank you for your understanding. We look forward to having you sail with us." 

Based on the communication, Carnival didn't provide a reason for canceling the cruises. It's not uncommon for cruise lines to revise their schedules months in advance, though. 

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For example, last year, Royal Caribbean made major changes to its Puerto Rican deployment in 2026 and 2027. Brilliance of the Seas was initially scheduled to offer Southern Caribbean cruises from San Juan. However, the Radiance Class ship was swapped with Vision of the Seas, an Enchantment Class vessel that launched in 1998. 

Additionally, Radiance of the Seas was supposed to offer cruises from Puerto Rico, but Royal Caribbean moved the ship to Tampa, Florida, and replaced the planned itineraries with Rhapsody of the Seas.

At the time of publication, Carnival's website had removed the fall sailings aboard Carnival Firenze and had yet to list replacement voyages for those dates.

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The vessel is likely heading into dry dock before repositioning to Florida, though this hasn't been confirmed. Carnival Firenze is set to embark on three epic one-way cruises from California to Chile, then from Chile to Argentina, and finally from Argentina to Florida. The first is scheduled for Jan. 4, 2027, with Carnival Firenze arriving in Miami on Feb. 18. 

A dry dock in the fall would make sense, giving Carnival time to complete routine maintenance and necessary technical upgrades, and to refresh public spaces before heading to the East Coast. 

Carnival offers compensation to impacted cruisers

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Impacted cruisers booked on Carnival Firenze have two options:

• Re-book any other Carnival sailing, with a protected cruise rate, in similar accommodations. Those who select this option will receive $50 USD (up to a maximum of $100 per cabin) of onboard credit.
• Receive a full refund of any paid portion of the cruise fare, along with any pre-purchased add-ons. This also includes non-refundable deposits. 

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"If you wish to rebook an alternative Carnival cruise, please call our Guest Services department at 1-800-CARNIVAL, your Carnival Personal Vacation Planner at 1-800-819-9302, or your travel advisor by March 25, 2026," the email says. 

Read more: I paid $846 for a cabin with 2 beds and no window on Carnival Firenze