Princess Cruises’ newest and biggest ship, Sun Princess, is shifting her deployment plans a bit and her March 19, 2026 departure has now been cancelled.
Impacted guests have been notified of the cancellation, but without any details as to why the voyage will no longer take place.
“Please be advised that due to changes in our deployment program, your 6-day Mediterranean with France & Italy voyage on Sun Princess has regrettably been cancelled,” the notification read.
The 6-night cruise was to have departed Barcelona on March 19, following a brief maintenance dry-dock in Spain. Port visits to Gibraltar, Marseille, and Genoa were on the itinerary before Sun Princess was to have arrived in Civitavecchia (Rome) on March 25.
Because the cruise is now cancelled, guests are receiving full refunds of all money paid to Princess Cruises. Furthermore, they are also going to get an additional future cruise credit (FCC) equal to 20% of their original base fare.
The FCC does come with some pretty harsh restrictions, however. The new cruise must also be aboard Sun Princess on a Mediterranean itinerary between March 2026 and October 2026. Guests must also book their replacement cruise no later than April 30, 2025 to take advantage of the FCC.
Typically, when a cruise line must cancel a voyage and offers guests a future cruise credit or discount as compensation, they have more options for rebooking – at least on different ships or in different regions if they prefer.
Of course, cruise lines aren’t obligated to offer any credits or discounts at all in these circumstances. While the cancellation is unfortunate and is sure to be disappointing to guests who were looking forward to their cruise, only a refund is necessary.
The 178,000-gross ton Sun Princess first set sail in February 2024. She can welcome 4,300 guests aboard and is also home to 1,600 international crew members – no matter where and when she is sailing.
The ship has only recently arrived in Europe for her 2025 Mediterranean season, during which she is offering departures from Barcelona, Rome, Athens, Naples, and Istanbul.
Sun Princess will return to the US and her homeport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in mid-November. Through the winter, she is offering 7-night Eastern Caribbean and Western Caribbean itineraries.
What Is Happening to Sun Princess‘s Schedule?
The cancellation notification does at least provide clues about what is happening to the Sphere-class ship’s overall schedule.
Now, the ship will be offering a new 9-night Mediterranean & Greek Isles voyage departing Rome on March 19, 2026 – the same day the ship was to have been leaving Barcelona.
This indicates that the dry dock work is likely being moved forward or shortened and Sun Princess will be able to return to service sooner than originally anticipated.
No further details are available about the next cruise or two, which may be similarly impacted as the ship’s schedule is tweaked to accommodate her new out-of-service period.
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Guests booked on any adjacent voyages will be notified individually if their sailings must be adjusted or cancelled.
Sun Princess is not the only cruise ship to have her schedule adjusted recently due to dry dock changes.
Carnival Cruise Line recently announced that Carnival Magic is adding new sailings in November 2025. Carnival Magic was also scheduled for dry dock, but that schedule has now changed.
While shipyards do try to keep the schedules they have set, changes are inevitable as new ships are ordered, labor staffing changes, or emergency dry dock maintenance needs arise.
Both Princess Cruises and Carnival Cruise Line are owned by the same parent company, Carnival Corporation & plc.
Fortunately, the change to Sun Princess‘s deployment and the cruise cancellation is 11 months away, giving guests plenty of time to choose an alternative sailing or adjust their vacation plans.
In the meantime, the second Sphere-class ship and sister to Sun Princess, Star Princess, is under construction at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, and is scheduled to debut in October 2025.
