• Three Royal Caribbean ships were affected, specifically the Vision Class vessels Rhapsody, Enchantment and Grandeur of the Seas
• The Port of Tampa Bay was temporarily shut down on Saturday, December 6, due to dense, low-visibility fog, preventing safe entry.
• Significant delays occurred for disembarkation and embarkation, with ships waiting offshore for up to eight hours and new guests waiting ashore for revised evening appointments.
• The cruise line emphasized passenger safety and maintained communication via email while advising travellers to avoid the terminal until instructed, highlighting the importance of flexible travel planning.

A dense blanket of chilly winter fog unexpectedly enveloped the west coast of Florida on Saturday, December 6, causing a major disruption at the Port of Tampa Bay. Port authorities were forced to temporarily suspend all maritime traffic through the early afternoon due to the low visibility, which made safe navigation impossible. This closure resulted in significant delays for three Royal Caribbean cruise ships—Rhapsody, Enchantment and Grandeur of the Seas—all belonging to the Vision Class fleet. The vessels remained waiting offshore for several hours past their scheduled arrival times, some for more than eight hours, causing anxiety and uncertainty among the passengers.

The operational halt created a cascading effect, delaying both the disembarkation of arriving guests and the embarkation of new passengers for the subsequent sailings. New guests waited ashore for hours, while those onboard could not leave until late afternoon or early evening. Royal Caribbean maintained communication with guests via emailed advisories, stressing that passenger safety was the primary concern and that operations would resume only once the fog lifted and the port reopened.

The cruise line adjusted embarkation windows, with some new appointments shifted to the evening. This incident highlighted the vulnerability of coastal Florida travel plans to weather-related constraints, particularly during transitional seasons, serving as a reminder for travellers to maintain flexible schedules. Once the fog cleared in the late afternoon, port activity gradually resumed, and both crew and port staff worked diligently to process the backlog and maintain a professional presence.