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This was not how anyone expected their cruise to end. In the early hours of February 15, 2026, Celebrity Infinity has a power outage while sailing just off the coast of Piraeus.
And when I say lost power, I mean properly lost power.
At roughly 3am, the ship went dark. No lights. No air conditioning. No elevators. No running water. Toilets wouldn’t flush. No hot water. No coffee. Stress. Cabins became hot and stuffy very quickly.
To make things more unsettling, multiple tugboats could be seen approaching the ship, and at one point guests reported hearing “bravo, bravo, bravo” over the announcement system. That’s a maritime emergency code, usually linked to a fire or smoke situation, though no official cause has been confirmed.
Not exactly the announcement you want to hear in the middle of the night.
By 6am, the ship had been towed into port at Piraeus, which was at least a relief. I’m sure being close to shore made a huge difference, both practically and mentally.
Around 7am, the captain addressed guests, offering sincere apologies and explaining that the ship had suffered a serious power outage.
By about 8:30am, some basic systems were slowly coming back.
- Toilets could flush again
- Cold water was running through taps
- Still no electricity
- Still no hot water
At that point it was clear this wasn’t going to be a quick fix.
Shortly after, guests were informed that the cruise would end early and everyone would need to debark the ship in Athens.
Not ideal. Especially if you had flights, transfers, or hotels already lined up.
Similarly, these also happened onboard Celebrity Constellation not too long ago.
Compensation Offered by Celebrity Cruises
Celebrity Cruises shared compensation details with guests shortly after, and here’s what’s been outlined so far:
Financial support and refunds
- $300 USD hotel reimbursement per stateroom
- Flight change reimbursement
- $200 USD for domestic flights
- $400 USD for international flights
- Refund of one day of cruise fare, issued as a refundable onboard credit
- Prorated refund of one day of any beverage or Wi-Fi packages
- $100 USD per guest for incidentals like lunch or taxi fares
Tip: If this happens to you, it’s important to note that receipts are required for reimbursement, so don’t throw anything away.
What we know so far
The exact cause of the power outage hasn’t been officially confirmed yet. What has been confirmed is that the ship suffered a significant technical failure, needed tug assistance, and required guests to disembark early.
The next scheduled sailing has also been cancelled while repairs are carried out.
Worth noting too, this isn’t the first time Celebrity Infinity has had technical issues in recent years, which will definitely raise some eyebrows among frequent cruisers.
