Port Closure Delays Celebrity Cruise Ship, Embarkation Impacted

Celebrity Millennium was delayed returning to Yokohama, Japan on Wednesday, August 6, 2025, reportedly due to a sunken ship in the harbor.

This required underwater inspections to ensure a safe path for the 91,000-gross ton cruise ship to enter the harbor without risk of colliding with any debris.

Celebrity Millennium is homeported from Yokohama, which meant both debarking and embarking guests were delayed. The ship’s passenger capacity is 2,138 per sailing, so more than 4,200 guests may have been impacted.

Onboard, crew members kept guests informed throughout the 3-4 hour delay. Extra activities were added while guests waited for clearance to debark.

For those expecting to board the ship, Celebrity Cruises sent notifications as soon as possible when the delay was confirmed.

“Our arrival time remains fluid, and we kindly ask that you delay your arrival to the port until we advise you of your new arrival time,” the initial email read. “This adjustment is necessary to ensure a safe and comfortable arrival experience, and to help prevent overcrowding at the terminal.”

“We are committed to remaining in contact every hour so you can plan your arrival appropriately.”

It wasn’t long before Celebrity Millennium was able to proceed to the terminal. At that time, incoming guests were apprised of their adjusted arrival times.

Arrival windows were shifted three hours later, with the exception of the last three arrival windows, which had less of an adjustment.

For example, guests who had selected to arrive at the cruise terminal at 11 a.m. were asked to delay their arrival until 2 p.m. Likewise, guests planning to arrive at 1 p.m. were asked to delay arriving until 4 p.m.

The 2 p.m., 2:30 p.m., and 3 p.m. arrival times were all asked to arrive no later than 5 p.m. In general, those last arrival times are typically less popular and therefore process fewer guests.

“All guests should be checked-in and onboard by 6:00 PM and we’ll set sail at 7:00 PM, so please plan to arrive no later than 5:00 PM,” the cruise line emphasized.

To be clear, there is no damage to Celebrity Millennium and the ship is operating normally, without any technical issues or other cause behind the delay.

Celebrity Millennium has just finished a 12-night Best of Japan itinerary and is beginning another 12-night sailing to top Japanese ports, including Shimizu, Osaka, Hiroshima, and others, as well as Busan, South Korea.

Why Was the Port of Yokohama Closed?

Celebrity Cruises has not officially confirmed why the port was closed and inspections were needed prior to the ship’s arrival.

It is likely, however, that the temporary closure was related to an incident on August 4, when two barges carrying fireworks for a summer festival burst into flames in the harbor.

According to The Straits Times, five workers had to abandon the barges into the sea, but no injuries have been reported with the fiery fiasco.

Nevertheless, debris from the incident could easily impede harbor operations, requiring safety inspections for larger vessels.

It is also possible that cleanup efforts or other adjustments from the recent tsunami in the region could also have had an impact on how quickly Celebrity Millennium could be cleared to enter the harbor.

Similar closures have happened at other homeports. In June 2023, for instance, two boats collided in the Government Cut at PortMiami, closing the channel and delaying multiple cruise ships until the wreckage could be cleared.

Only Celebrity Millennium is at Yokohama on August 6, and the next ship will be Diamond Princess on August 15.

Melissa Mayntz

Melissa has been offering her expertise on cruises since 2017 and reporting on cruise news since 2021. her work has been featured in newspapers, blogs, and websites on a wide range of subjects, but cruises remain her favorite topic to cover. She has been on more than 40 voyages to the Caribbean, Mexico, Alaska, Hawaii, and more, and always has at least one more sailing booked on the horizon.