Key Aspects:
- The January 15, 2026 sailing of Carnival Elation from Jacksonville has been cancelled.
- The cruise line alerted guests of the need for a longer time in dry dock, necessitating the cancellation of the last cruise before the ship is out of service.
- Guests may rebook with fare protection on a comparable sailing and will receive a $50 per person onboard credit as incentive for booking a new cruise.
Guests booked on Carnival Elation for the last sailing before the 27-year-old ship enters dry dock in January 2026 will need to change their vacation plans.
Carnival Cruise Line has reached out to guests to alert them that the dry dock will need a bit more time than anticipated, and the ship’s January 15, 2026 sailing from Jacksonville, Florida has been cancelled.
The impacted cruise was to have been a 4-night Bahamas trip with visits to Celebration Key and Nassau. Following that cruise, Carnival Elation is scheduled to enter dry dock and will not resume service until February 9, 2026.
Guests are being offered the opportunity to rebook their sailing with some incentives, or else a full refund, including pre-purchased packages and tours as well as non-refundable deposits, will be provided.
“We have a variety of alternatives and are confident you will find another Carnival cruise that is filled with an equal amount of fun,” the email said.
If guests rebook on a “comparable sailing, in similar accommodations” their original cruise fare rate will be protected. The email does not specify if that new cruise must also be aboard Carnival Elation or the only other Fantasy-class ship in the fleet, Carnival Paradise, or if any 4-night Carnival sailing will be acceptable.
If guests do rebook, they will receive a $50 (USD) per person onboard credit for their new sailing, up to $100 per stateroom.
Carnival Cruise Line is also offering reimbursement of up to $200 per person for non-refundable air expenses or change fees. Guests must submit receipts and other documentation to qualify for that reimbursement if needed.
Carnival Elation is scheduled to return to service from February 9, 2026. That first sailing back is not comparable to the cancelled cruise, as it is a 7-night Eastern Caribbean itinerary. After that special voyage, however, Carnival Elation will resume her schedule of 4- and 5-night Bahamas itineraries at least through spring 2028.
Photo Courtesy: Carnival Cruise Line
At this time, there has been no notice of any impact to the February 9 departure and no changes to that itinerary following the ship’s refreshment.
Why Is More Dry Dock Time Needed?
Carnival gives no exact explanation for the extension of the dry dock window, only that “we have had to extend Carnival Elation’s 2026 dry dock period.”
This could simply be due to shipyard schedules in order to maximize the efficiency of when different ships are serviced. Labor shortages or supply chain issues could also impact the dry dock schedule.
It is also possible that additional work may need to be done on one of Carnival Cruise Line’s oldest ships, greater than what was initially presumed.
There have been no technical problems with the ship’s operation in recent weeks, and no systems or onboard activities have been compromised. It is not uncommon, however, for cruise ships – especially older vessels like Carnival Elation – to require technical work to comply with updated environmental and safety regulations.
This is not the first Carnival ship to have dry dock scheduling changes in recent months. In July 2025, the cruise line alerted guests that five sailings aboard Carnival Breeze had to be cancelled for a dry dock schedule change. Those cruises were in early 2027.
Twice, different cruises have had to be cancelled for Carnival Conquest to adjust to dry dock schedule changes, impacting a total of 11 different sailing dates in early 2026.
Because shipyard schedules can fluctuate for reasons far outside a cruise line’s control, any guests who book sailings right before or after a dry dock should be flexible with their travel plans in case changes are necessary.
Read Also: Why You Should Always Opt In to Carnival Cruise Line Text Alerts
The exact changes in store for Carnival Elation have not yet been announced. The ship’s most recent major dry dock was in 2020 at the Grand Bahama Shipyard in Freeport, which included adding the Alchemy Bar, the JavaBlue Cafe, and Bonsai Sushi Express to the onboard venues.
In 2023, a brief dry dock included general refreshment and aesthetic upgrades, including new carpeting and hull cleaning, as well as the new red, white, and, blue hull livery.
Appeared first on: Cruisehive.com
