Another Royal Caribbean cruise ship has been overbooked, and the cruise line is actively looking for passengers willing to take one of their tempting offers.
This time, it’s the 4-night Navigator of the Seas cruise on June 2, 2025. This sailing from Los Angeles (San Pedro) to Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico, currently has more passengers booked than available cabins.
A Familiar Request from Royal Caribbean
This situation isn’t entirely new for Royal Caribbean. The cruise line recently made similar offers for an Allure of the Seas cruises that has already sailed last week, and for an upcoming Liberty of the Seas trip on May 24, 2025.
For the Navigator of the Seas overbooking, Royal Caribbean sent an email to affected guests. It stated:
“Ahead of your Navigator of the Seas, June 2, 2025, sailing, we are looking to see if you and your travel party have flexible travel plans.”
The message then advised that if plans were “set in stone,” guests should simply “mark this email as ‘Read,’ and gear up for your upcoming adventure.” However, for those with flexibility, a “special offer” was waiting.
Options for Cruisers on the Overbooked Sailing
Royal Caribbean has given cruisers on this sailing two choices, both of which effectively provide a free cruise in exchange for a change of plans:
- Option 1: Switch Dates, Sail for Free: Guests can move their booking to another 4-night Navigator of the Seas cruise to Catalina and Ensenada later in the summer. Royal Caribbean has pre-selected dates including June 30, July 21, July 28, August 4, August 11, and August 25, 2025. As an incentive for changing plans, passengers choosing this option will receive a full refund of their original fare. This means the new voyage will cost them nothing.
- Option 2: Cancel Now, Get a Future Free Cruise: For those wanting more flexibility, the option to cancel their original booking entirely is available. In return, passengers will receive a full refund of their original fare and a future cruise credit equal to the value of their original fare. This credit can be used for any other Royal Caribbean cruise embarking on or before June 2, 2026. This option also results in a free cruise but gives passengers the freedom to pick their replacement trip later.
Why Overbooking Happens (and Why Some Aren’t Happy)
It might seem unusual, but overbooking is fairly common in the travel industry. Companies use this strategy to protect against “no-shows” and still be able to sail near full capacity—or at least double-capacity with every cabin in use.
Studies have shown that when a ship is fuller, individual passengers tend to spend more on that cruise, as odd as it may sound.
Most of the time, passengers have no idea that their cruise was ever overbooked and there are enough cabins for everyone.
But, in situations like this Navigator of the Seas sailing, there just weren’t enough passengers that decided to cancel their cruise at the last minute.
Despite these options given to impacted travelers, some cruisers have voiced concerns about this practice. As I noted in my previous article about the Allure of the Seas situation, some passengers are simply not happy that overbooking occurs at all.
Some comments to the story said things like, “After that? I wouldn’t trust them.”
They question the practice itself, feeling that even with compensation, it creates uncertainty and inconvenience, suggesting that cruise lines shouldn’t be overselling staterooms in the first place.
With the summer travel season now in full swing, it’s very possible we’ll see more of these overbooking offers from Royal Caribbean and other cruise lines in the near future.
But for passengers with flexible plans, these overbooking scenarios are proving to be amazing opportunities.
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