Mooring News — Sunday, October 18, 2026
Updated: Oct 20
CRUISE SEA-KERS · MOORING NEWS
Bahamas Plans, Canadian Weather—and a Few Surprises at Sea
A weather detour raises a travel question, river cruises reach beyond the river, and our shark correspondent is still awaiting her departure.
By Sheryl · October 18, 2026 episode
From the Mooring News archives: Adapted from the October 18 episode. Plans and assessments below reflect that reporting date. A subsequent Oasis schedule update is identified separately.
Hello, everyone, and welcome to Mooring News! I’m Sheryl with Cruise Sea-kers. This edition brings a Bahamas cruise with a Canadian twist, a river vacation that reaches Machu Picchu, mermaids with movie careers and ships changing neighborhoods.
If you packed for the Bahamas, find a sweater
Royal Caribbean Blog reported that Oasis of the Seas’ October 18 Cape Liberty sailing swapped its Bahamas itinerary for Halifax because of East Coast weather. The initial notice scheduled arrival at 6 p.m. October 20 and departure at 8 a.m. October 21. Reported benefits included refundable onboard credit, a 50% future cruise credit and canceled cruise-line excursion refunds. Check the passenger notice: cash-refund eligibility and future-cruise credit are different things.
Later update, October 19: Cruise Hive subsequently reported that Halifax departure was extended to 6 p.m. October 21. The 8 a.m. departure above was the original announced plan.
An unexpected Canada stop—and an old DUI
A weather diversion can change more than your packing list. Canada says an impaired-driving conviction can make a foreign visitor inadmissible. An old conviction is not automatically cleared simply because ten years have passed.
For offenses committed before December 18, 2018, Canada assesses admissibility using the penalties in effect at the time. Some travelers may qualify for deemed rehabilitation after at least ten years following completion of their sentence, depending on their record and other requirements.
“I’ll just stay aboard” is not an automatic solution. Canadian border procedures allow officers to examine passengers who do not plan to disembark. Officials can also direct someone to remain aboard; travelers cannot assume that arrangement will apply.
I found no published blanket exemption for past DUIs simply because a ship diverted for weather. That also does not establish that a traveler will automatically be arrested or removed.
If this happens, speak privately with Guest Services promptly. Ask for the person coordinating immigration clearance to obtain instructions from Canadian border authorities. Keep relevant court records or Canadian approval documents available, answer questions truthfully and wait for clearance before going ashore. A qualified Canadian immigration lawyer can assess an individual record.
PortMiami: choose your entrance before you leave
PortMiami’s October 16 announcement anticipated 81 days in the 2026–27 high season with seven to ten ships calling on the same day. Its directions are worth checking before your driver pulls away from the hotel:
Passenger terminalRecommended entranceAA, A, B, C or DPortMiami TunnelE, F, G, J or VPortMiami Bridge
Allow time for transportation, then follow your assigned embarkation time. If thousands of passengers all decide to arrive early, we’ve simply moved the waiting room into traffic.
Colombia by river, then Machu Picchu
AmaWaterways announced a six-day Peru land extension following its Magic of Colombia itinerary, beginning with selected April 2027 departures and planned for every departure of that itinerary in 2028.
After disembarking in Cartagena, travelers fly to Lima and continue to an itinerary featuring Cusco, the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu. The program includes a guided Machu Picchu visit and travel aboard either the Belmond Hiram Bingham train or first-class Inca Rail, with two hotel collections offering different accommodation choices.
The riverboat isn’t sailing from Colombia to Machu Picchu! This is an additional land-and-air journey after the cruise. Compare the complete package, including exactly which flights and services are included. The announcement had already received coverage earlier in the week before the October 18 report.
Wellness, with room for a croissant
Tauck’s October 14 announcement introduced optional wellness programming on two 2027 departures of its ten-day Rendezvous on the Seine itinerary through Paris and Normandy.
The July 28 and October 11 departures aboard Serene are to feature wellness coach Nikki Polos, with movement, nutrition, mindfulness and relaxation fitted around the regular sightseeing. Five more wellness departures are planned for 2028.
The word I like is optional. One traveler can join a fitness session while a companion chooses something else. You can work on your well-being without someone confiscating your croissant.
The announcement listed starting fares of $7,490 per person for July and $9,190 for October, based on double occupancy, plus airfare. Those are historical advertised starting prices, subject to availability; obtain a current quote and inclusions before booking.
MSC’s ships are changing neighborhoods
MSC Virtuosa was nearing the end of its Southampton season, with a November 7 departure scheduled for a 25-night repositioning voyage to Santos, Brazil, via the Mediterranean, Canary Islands and Brazil.
The plan called for a winter sailing from Brazilian ports and a return to Europe for a Western Mediterranean season in 2027. Southampton service was to continue with MSC Preziosa over winter, followed by MSC Meraviglia’s first UK season beginning May 18, 2027.
If you loved Virtuosa from Southampton, next summer’s choice becomes the same ship or the same departure port. And remember: a repositioning cruise usually finishes somewhere different from where it starts. Give the flights home as much attention as the cruise fare.
Virgin’s mermaids get their close-up
Virgin Voyages’ Mermaid Origins project gives the characters associated with Scarlet, Valiant, Resilient and Brilliant their own stories. Four short films and a behind-the-scenes documentary explore those worlds, with artists using creative artificial-intelligence tools.
Virgin’s own October 15 article describes the film series and its collaboration with Native Foreign. This is a marketing and storytelling project; it is not an announced onboard attraction.
Apparently, having a ship wasn’t enough. Now the mermaids need movie careers.
Bukangi’s extended port stay
In October 18 reporting from Busan, South Korea, fisheries researchers confirmed damage to Bukangi’s right pectoral fin, possibly from rubbing against the canal wall. No bleeding was observed, and researchers did not consider the injury a major health concern at that assessment.
Monitoring was continuing for the fin and an existing snout injury. At the time of this episode, we had no successful release to report. The focus remained her welfare and a safe way back to sea.
A young voice in Caribbean tourism
Amarni Webster of Anguilla, age 15, won the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s Regional Tourism Youth Congress, held October 8 in Guyana. Cruise Industry News covered the event on October 17.
Students presented ideas about tourism’s future in their communities. Carnival Corporation sponsored the congress and, with a partner, provided the winner a laptop.
We often talk about destinations through visitors’ experiences. It’s worth hearing from the people who live there—and the young people who will help determine what comes next.
Whether your next trip involves a Canadian detour, a river cruise or an Atlantic crossing, look beyond the headline and make sure the details fit the vacation you want.
I’m Sheryl with Cruise Sea-kers.
Until next time, I’ll be haze gray and underway.
Sources and further reading
Royal Caribbean Blog, October 18: Oasis diversion and reported passenger benefits — secondary reporting quoting the passenger notice; the notice was not independently obtained for this post.
Cruise Hive, October 19: subsequent Halifax departure update
Government of Canada: impaired-driving convictions · Deemed rehabilitation · CBSA: cruise ship clearance procedures
Cruise Industry News, October 18: AmaWaterways Peru extension · Seatrade Cruise News, October 14: earlier coverage
SBS, October 18: Bukangi fin assessment, citing Yonhap and researchers
Cruise Industry News, October 17: Regional Tourism Youth Congress
IMAGE CREDITS — MOORING NEWS, OCTOBER 18 EPISODE
All three image file pages explicitly permit free reuse, including commercial reuse, under the listed terms. Verified October 20, 2026. Originals are supplied without cropping or retouching. Keep the linked credit and license with each photo when posting.
Oasis_of_the_Seas.jpg
Oasis of the Seas in Nassau, photographed in 2010. Archive image; not the October 2026 diversion.
Photo: Baldwin040, Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 3.0. Unmodified.
Machu_Picchu.jpg
Machu Picchu, Peru. Destination photograph; not an AmaWaterways excursion photograph.
Photo: Jeison Spaniol, Wikimedia Commons — CC0 1.0. Unmodified.
MSC_Virtuosa.jpg
MSC Virtuosa at Southampton on May 17, 2025. Archive image.
Photo: BWard 1997, Wikimedia Commons — CC BY 4.0. Unmodified.
Oasis: CC BY-SA requires any adapted image to use the same or a compatible license. Keep attribution and disclose changes if you crop or edit it. This condition concerns the image; this is not a blanket license for the blog text.
MSC: CC BY requires attribution, a license link and disclosure of edits.
Machu Picchu: CC0 has no mandatory attribution requirement; a courtesy credit is included.
No news-agency photograph of Bukangi is included because a free-use license was not confirmed.
These are archive/destination photographs; none depicts the October 2026 events themselves.
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