While Carnival Liberty is already significantly delayed in her return to her Big Easy homeport, guests waiting to board the ship for the Sunday, December 1 departure received a further update in the afternoon that the ship would be arriving even later than anticipated.
This further delay – approximately another hour or slightly more, depending on guests’ terminal arrival appointment times – is not due to any problem with the cruise ship, but rather due to Mississippi River traffic.
“While the ship has the required speed to get into New Orleans at the time we had communicated Saturday evening, our journey up the river is being delayed due to unexpected traffic,” the new update explained. “As a result, we are now set to dock early evening, and we will need a little more time to debark incoming guests and get you on board.”
Before any delays, the first cruise terminal check-in appointments were scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on Sunday morning. Now, guests who had selected that earliest possible check-in are asked not to arrive to the cruise terminal until 8:45 p.m.
The latest appointments will now be checking in from 11:45 p.m. on Sunday night, and all guests must be checked in no later than 12:15 a.m. on Monday morning.
“As a reminder, we must allow debarking guests to leave the cruise terminal and parking facility before we can accommodate your arrival. We kindly ask for your cooperation with this revised schedule,” the notification continued.
The 110,428-gross-ton, Conquest class Carnival Liberty can welcome 3,756 travelers aboard for each cruise. This means that in the late evening hours, there may be 7,000 guests or more trying to move through the New Orleans cruise terminal.
It is vital that incoming passengers adhere to their appointment arrival times to minimize crowding and traffic snarls that would only exacerbate the difficulties.
To be clear, there are no further difficulties with Carnival Liberty. This second delay is due to marine traffic on the Mississippi River as the cruise ship has made her way through the delta to the cruise terminal. The first delay was due to an emergency debarkation in Key West as well as technical issues that have now been resolved.
From the coast, cruise ships must navigate up the river for approximately 120 miles to reach the Port of New Orleans. Along the way, cargo vessels, recreational boats, and other ships must all be carefully scheduled so all vessels have appropriate clearance. With Carnival Liberty‘s delay, some of that scheduling has been disrupted throughout the day.
The good news, however, is that there should be no delay to the ship’s 14-night Panama Canal Carnival Journeys cruise, a bucket-list sailing for many travelers.
Because the first two days of the cruise are days at sea, there should be ample opportunity for Carnival Liberty to make up the lost hours on her way to Grand Cayman, the first port of call.
Also on this cruise are top Southern Caribbean and Central American ports of call, including Oranjestad, Aruba; Willemstad, Curacao; Cartagena, Colombia; Colon, Panama; Puerto Limon, Costa Rica; and Cozumel, Mexico.
Carnival Liberty Compensation Provided
These multiple delays now mean that guests have missed their first day onboard, including entertainment and activities.
The main dining rooms and Lido Marketplace buffet will be open as guests board for open seating meals (assigned dining times will not apply), but for hundreds of guests boarding at 10 p.m. or later may mean they have dinner elsewhere in New Orleans before boarding the ship.
Carnival Cruise Line has provided $25 (USD) per person as onboard credit to compensate for the delayed embarkation, and all travelers will also receive a pro-rated one-day refund of their cruise fare.
Similarly, any pre-paid options, such as gratuities, drink packages, or onboard Wi-Fi packages will also be refunded at a pro-rated rate.
Read Also: What Is the Carnival Cheers! Drink Package?
Refunds will be processed back to the original form of payment but may take up to three weeks to process after the end of the cruise. Individual financial institutions may also have different processing times.
Cruise Hive hopes all aboard are able to enjoy their Carnival Journeys cruise, even with a messy first day and a much-delayed embarkation. Bon voyage!
