ALLURE OF THE SEAS: Photos from inside the Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL) ship.
CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Royal Caribbean International has adjusted several of Allure of the Seas’ Caribbean itineraries because of a propulsion issue that’s forced the massive vessel to slow down.
Given its reduced speed, the ship, which sails from Port Everglades, Florida will now call at San Juan, Puerto Rico rather than St. Thomas on these departures: September 20, October 18, November 15, December 13 and January 12.
In addition, the January 21, 2018 sailing has been cancelled, so the ship can enter drydock for a week to fix the propulsion problem.
“Royal Caribbean International has scheduled a seven-day drydock for Allure of the Seas at the Grand Bahamas shipyard in The Bahamas beginning January 21, 2018,” RCCL said. “The drydock will allow for the cruise line to conduct standard maintenance work. As a result of this, the sailing scheduled to depart Fort Lauderdale on January 21, 2018 will be cancelled.”
“We understand that our guests’ vacation time is precious and the inconvenience this may cause. Those affected by the cancelled sailing will be provided with alternative options to make the most of their vacation time. We pride ourselves in always delivering the highest standards of quality and service and look forward to welcoming our guests when the ship has emerged from her drydock on January 28, 2018.”
Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL) has notified the Virgin Islands Port Authority that mechanical issues with its MS Allure of the Seas cruise ship has forced itinerary changes that resulted in five cancelled calls to St. Thomas, V.I.P.A. announced Friday.
VIPA said that it received notice from Frederico Gonzalez-Denton, associate vice president of government relations for RCCL, that these five calls to St. Thomas have been cancelled.
“Mr. Gonzalez-Denton said that the Allure ship has an issue with its propulsion system, which makes it very difficult for the ship to travel to certain distances due to speed restrictions. RCCL was forced to cancel these five calls to St. Thomas and shifted the ship to San Juan, Puerto Rico,” Mapp said.
Mapp added that he knows that these cancellations will adversely effect the territory’s tourism industry.
Because of that he said that he is arranging a meeting with the cruise line to discuss possible calls to St. Thomas by other RCCL vessels that may be in the region during the period in question.
David Mapp, Gov. Kenneth Mapp’s brother, said that he is hopeful that additional visits will be added in the future to offset these missed calls.
The Allure of the Seas is one of the world’s largest cruise ships and has the capacity to bring up to 6,296 passengers plus 2,384 crew to the shores of St. Thomas, according to VIPA.