Royal Caribbean has cancelled an upcoming Anthem of the Seas sailing from Sydney after the ship developed a technical issue that required urgent maintenance. The cancelled cruise was scheduled to depart on January 27, 2026, for a 10-night New Zealand itinerary.
According to Cruise Industry News, Royal Caribbean told booked guests the ship experienced a technical issue on its previous sailing and could not complete the required repairs before the next departure.
Why the sailing was cancelled
Cruise ships run on tight turnaround schedules. Once a ship arrives in port, crews must complete inspections, refuelling, cleaning, luggage handling, food loading and passenger boarding in a limited window.
When a technical issue delays that process, the schedule can quickly become unworkable. In this case, Royal Caribbean chose to cancel the sailing so maintenance could be completed before the ship returned to service.
What passengers should do now
Affected guests should save the official cancellation notice, check refund details, and contact airlines, hotels or travel insurers as soon as possible. Travellers with non-refundable bookings should keep receipts and written proof of any extra costs.
For another recent cruise disruption, see this Royal Caribbean Alaska cruise change involving more than 8,000 guests.
The main priority now is documentation. Passengers should keep all emails, invoices and cancellation records in one place while waiting for refund or rebooking updates.
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