Celebrity Cruises’ Constellation encountered a loss of both hotel and propulsion power for approximately two hours on the evening of August 2, 2025, while navigating the Ionian Sea toward Messina, Sicily.
The technical malfunction left 2,170 guests without lighting, air conditioning, or functioning toilets during the height of an August evening in waters roughly 25 nautical miles east‑southeast of Crotone, Italy, causing the ship to drift at barely 1–2 knots—well short of its usual 24‑knot cruising speed.
The blackout occurred just after 3:00 a.m. local time and while repairs were underway the vessel coasted slowly amid warm temperatures. Guests were served only cold food, and one guest remarked that conditions felt overheated inside just an hour into the loss of ventilation.
Once partial power was re-established, the ship remained sluggish before regaining more normal speed, allowing Constellation to reach Messina as scheduled the following morning without publicly acknowledged itinerary alterations.
In place of a direct guest statement, a Royal Caribbean Group spokesperson conveyed that technical teams had swiftly addressed the malfunction and that updates were being shared continuously with guests on board—an effort intended to reassure while troubleshooting continued.
Constellation—one of Celebrity’s Millennium‑class ships launched in 2002—was en route from Ravenna to Rome on an 11‑night Mediterranean voyage when the incident occurred. Starboard tracking data captured the ship's slowed movement, indicating a brief drift rather than navigation under emergency power.
Emergency protocols aboard cruise vessels typically include automatic transfer to backup generators capable of powering essential systems, though these are not designed to support full hotel operations such as climate control or galley services. In this instance, auxiliary systems restored sufficient power to resume propulsion and basic navigation before normal operations resumed.
No injuries or serious malfunctions were reported in the aftermath.
For more Celebrity Constellation incidents and accidents see the ship's CruiseMinus page.