Empress of the Seas return postponed for another month

oyal Caribbean International has canceled seven additional cruises scheduled on Empress of the Seas to do more work on the ship in drydock.

Previously, Royal had canceled six short cruises from Miami on the Empress, which is migrating back to Royal after sailing for sister brand Pullmantur.

Departure dates on the newly canceled cruises are April 25 and 30, and May 5, 9, 14, 19 and 23.

In a statement, Royal said that as work progressed in drydock, it discovered the need for more significant infrastructure and physical improvements across galleys and provisioning areas.

“We decided that instead of simply repairing the five galleys, we would completely rebuild them, starting from scratch with entirely new infrastructure and all new equipment at a cost of $10 million,” the statement said.  

Royal is providing refunds plus 50% future cruise credits to those booked on the April 25 and 30 cruises, and refunds plus 100% credits for anyone on the original six canceled sailings who was rebooked on a newly canceled sailing.

Guests can also rebook on several other Royal ship at favorable terms.