Virgin Voyages Swapped Mexico for California One Day Before Sailing

Virgin Voyages announced on October 16, one day before departure, that it had replaced every Mexican port on the Brilliant Lady’s seven-night sailing from Los Angeles. The ship was due to call at Cabo San Lucas on October 19, Mazatlán on October 20 and Puerto Vallarta on October 21. Instead it will visit San Francisco on October 19, San Diego on October 21 and Ensenada on October 22, and it still returns to Los Angeles on October 24.

The reason is Hurricane Trudy, which was roughly 200 miles southwest of Acapulco on October 16. The storm briefly reached Category 3 before weakening to Category 1 later that day, and the National Hurricane Center’s projected track runs north toward the same stretch of coast the ship was meant to visit. Virgin said that heading south could have placed the vessel on the stronger, more dangerous side of the storm, so it chose to avoid that risk entirely.

Passengers do get some practical help. Virgin excursions booked for the cancelled ports will be refunded automatically as onboard credit, and excursions for the new ports will be bookable through the Virgin app once aboard. Guests who bought tours from outside operators will need to contact those companies themselves. The cruise line also suggested packing warmer clothes, since the California stops are expected to be noticeably cooler than Mexico, particularly in the mornings and evenings.

This is the fourth Brilliant Lady sailing in a row to be disrupted by tropical weather, following changes on September 26, October 3 and October 10. Other lines are adjusting too: Norwegian Bliss has dropped its Acapulco call as the storm strengthened. Travelers booked on Pacific Mexico cruises in the coming days should check their cruise line’s app and email, because itinerary changes are being issued at very short notice.

Sources: Cruise Hive, Cruise Hive