Key Aspects:
- There will be a slight delay to Carnival Jubilee‘s December 27 embarkation schedule.
- Refueling operations and USCG regulations require the delay, but the itinerary is not changed.
- Guests should heed their revised arrival times so they are not turned away at the terminal.
Carnival Cruise Line has reached out to guests booked on the December 27, 2025 departure of Carnival Jubilee to let them know about embarkation time changes in Galveston.
There are no changes to the 7-night Western Caribbean itinerary, but guests will be embarking the ship somewhat later than expected due to essential refueling operations.
“The entire Carnival Jubilee team is looking forward to ringing in the new year with you, but ahead of that we have an update that requires your attention and full cooperation,” the notification email explained.
“As directed by the United States Coast Guard, refueling operations on Saturday, December 27, must begin before we can start embarkation.”
Carnival Jubilee is powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), which requires specialized refueling procedures.
For safety and security, guests may not be embarking the ship until the connections are in place for refueling. This will cause a bit of a delay in embarkation times, but guests will not need to wait until refueling is complete before boarding the ship.
As soon as regulations permit, embarkation will begin and there are no overall changes to the cruise terminal check-in or embarkation process.
Guests are advised, however, that they will not be able to be accommodated ahead of their revised embarkation timeframe. If guests arrive early, they will be asked to return at the later designated time.
“All guests must be on board by 3:45 PM,” the email noted.
This means Carnival Jubilee will be departing slightly later than her originally planned 3:30 p.m. departure time, but the delay will not significantly impact the overall itinerary.
The current flagship of the Carnival fleet, Carnival Jubilee can welcome 5,228 guests at double occupancy or up to 6,631 guests when fully booked. Also onboard are roughly 1,700 international crew members, representing more than 50 nations from around the globe.
Always a Balance With Port Operations
While no detailed explanation other than “refueling operations” has been given for the slight change to Carnival Jubilee‘s schedule on December 27, it isn’t unusual for port operations to impact the exact timing of embarkation and debarkation.
Not only does refueling impact a cruise ship’s timing, but the availability of harbor pilots, loading and unloading crews, check-in staff, customs officials, and other personnel can affect the ship’s schedule, as can planned inspections or other unexpected disruptions.
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There are no technical or mechanical issues reported with Carnival Jubilee and she should set sail as planned without difficulty for guests to enjoy their New Year’s cruise.
New Year’s Cruise Unchanged
Carnival Jubilee will depart Galveston, Texas on Saturday, December 27 and the next day is a full day at sea. This will give the 183,500-gross-ton, Excel-class ship plenty of time to make up for the slight departure delay the day before.
The ship is scheduled to spend Monday, December 29 visiting Cozumel followed by Tuesday, December 30 in Costa Maya.
New Year’s Eve will be in Roatan, Honduras, though Carnival Jubilee is scheduled to depart at 5 p.m. well ahead of the evening’s festivities to ring in 2026.
Among those special activities is a New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner with special selections in the ship’s Main Dining Rooms, including lobster and shrimp bisque, maple-clove spiced baked ham, and a pina colada cheesecake.
Carnival Jubilee, along with all ships in the Carnival Cruise Line fleet, will also offer a free champagne toast at midnight as guests and crew members join together to ring in the new year with a phenomenal deck party and sounding the ship’s horn after the new year countdown.
