Another Carnival Ship Cancels Sailing for Extended...

Key Facets:

• The January 15, 2026 crusing of Carnival Elation from Jacksonville has been cancelled.
• The cruise line alerted visitors of the necessity for an extended time in dry dock, necessitating the cancellation of the final cruise earlier than the ship is out of service.
• Company might rebook with fare safety on a comparable crusing and can obtain a $50 per individual onboard credit score as incentive for reserving a brand new cruise.

Company booked on Carnival Elation for the final crusing earlier than the 27-year-old ship enters dry dock in January 2026 might want to change their trip plans.

Carnival Cruise Line has reached out to visitors to alert them that the dry dock will want a bit extra time than anticipated, and the ship’s January 15, 2026 crusing from Jacksonville, Florida has been cancelled.

The impacted cruise was to have been a 4-night Bahamas journey with visits to Celebration Key and Nassau. Following that cruise, Carnival Elation is scheduled to enter dry dock and won’t resume service till February 9, 2026.

Company are being supplied the chance to rebook their crusing with some incentives, or else a full refund, together with pre-purchased packages and excursions in addition to non-refundable deposits, can be supplied.

“We’ve got a wide range of alternate options and are assured you’ll discover one other Carnival cruise that’s stuffed with an equal quantity of enjoyable,” the e-mail mentioned.

If visitors rebook on a “comparable crusing, in comparable lodging” their unique cruise fare price can be protected. The e-mail doesn’t specify if that new cruise should even be aboard Carnival Elation or the one different Fantasy-class ship within the fleet, Carnival Paradise, or if any 4-night Carnival crusing can be acceptable.

If visitors do rebook, they may obtain a $50 (USD) per individual onboard credit score for his or her new crusing, as much as $100 per stateroom.

Carnival Cruise Line can also be providing reimbursement of as much as $200 per individual for non-refundable air bills or change charges. Company should submit receipts and different documentation to qualify for that reimbursement if wanted.

Carnival Elation is scheduled to return to service from February 9, 2026. That first crusing again just isn’t similar to the cancelled cruise, as it’s a 7-night Jap Caribbean itinerary. After that particular voyage, nonetheless, Carnival Elation will resume her schedule of 4- and 5-night Bahamas itineraries at least through spring 2028.

At the moment, there was no discover of any influence to the February 9 departure and no modifications to that itinerary following the ship’s refreshment.

Why Is Extra Dry Dock Time Wanted?

Carnival offers no precise clarification for the extension of the dry dock window, solely that “now we have needed to prolong Carnival Elation’s 2026 dry dock interval.”

This might merely be as a result of shipyard schedules to be able to maximize the effectivity of when completely different ships are serviced. Labor shortages or provide chain points might additionally influence the dry dock schedule.

It’s also attainable that further work might must be finished on considered one of Carnival Cruise Line’s oldest ships, better than what was initially presumed.

There have been no technical issues with the ship’s operation in latest weeks, and no techniques or onboard actions have been compromised. It’s not unusual, nonetheless, for cruise ships – particularly older vessels like Carnival Elation – to require technical work to adjust to up to date environmental and security rules.

This isn’t the primary Carnival ship to have dry dock scheduling modifications in latest months. In July 2025, the cruise line alerted visitors that five sailings aboard Carnival Breeze needed to be cancelled for a dry dock schedule change. These cruises had been in early 2027.

Twice, different cruises have had to be cancelled for Carnival Conquest to regulate to dry dock schedule modifications, impacting a complete of 11 completely different crusing dates in early 2026.

As a result of shipyard schedules can fluctuate for causes far exterior a cruise line’s management, any visitors who e book sailings proper earlier than or after a dry dock needs to be versatile with their journey plans in case modifications are essential.

Learn Additionally: Why You Should Always Opt In to Carnival Cruise Line Text Alerts

The precise modifications in retailer for Carnival Elation haven’t but been introduced. The ship’s most up-to-date main dry dock was in 2020 on the Grand Bahama Shipyard in Freeport, which included including the Alchemy Bar, the JavaBlue Cafe, and Bonsai Sushi Categorical to the onboard venues.

In 2023, a short dry dock included common refreshment and aesthetic upgrades, together with new carpeting and hull cleansing, in addition to the new red, white, and, blue hull livery.