Norovirus Sickens 125 on Ruby Princess Alaska Voyage
Crew scheduled deep cleaning for all 1,542 guest cabins over June 16 and 17, with crew-served buffet stations and added handwashing reminders during the voyage.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a confirmed norovirus outbreak aboard Princess Cruises’ Ruby Princess during a 20-night Alaska voyage from San Francisco. By July 1, 102 of 3,032 guests and 23 of 1,144 crew members had reported gastrointestinal illness. The guest cases represent 3.4% of passengers onboard, above the CDC Vessel Sanitation Program’s public reporting threshold.
The outbreak is Princess Cruises’ third CDC-reported norovirus event in 2026. No other line has more so far this year. Princess has recorded 478 sick passengers and crew members across the three outbreaks.
Cleaning measures changed onboard operations
The CDC identified norovirus as the causative agent after samples were collected. Ruby Princess crew members increased cleaning and disinfection, isolated ill passengers and crew members, and consulted with the Vessel Sanitation Program during the voyage.
Princess also moved to cabin-level sanitation early in the sailing. A June 15 letter delivered to guests said, “some guests have reported experiencing gastrointestinal symptoms,” and told passengers the ship would begin an enhanced cleaning and disinfection program. Ruby Princess has 1,542 guest cabins, and stateroom deep cleaning was scheduled over June 16 and 17.
Other onboard changes included crew-served buffet stations and added handwashing reminders before buffet entry. Crew stepped up cleaning of high-touch areas such as railings, elevator buttons and door handles. Morning stateroom service was suspended during the two deep-cleaning days, while evening turndown service continued.
The ship’s activities, entertainment and shore tours continued, and no itinerary changes had been made at the time. Ruby Princess called or was scheduled to call at Alaska ports including Ketchikan, Wrangell, Juneau, Skagway and Valdez during the summer solstice voyage.
Princess has three CDC-listed norovirus outbreaks this year
The Ruby Princess outbreak follows a May norovirus outbreak aboard Caribbean Princess that sickened 160 people and a March outbreak aboard Star Princess that sickened 193. The only other cruise operator with more than one CDC-reported gastrointestinal illness outbreak in 2026 is Lindblad Expeditions, which had two norovirus outbreaks aboard National Geographic Sea Bird in one month.
The CDC has logged seven cruise ship gastrointestinal illness outbreaks in 2026. In 2025, norovirus accounted for 17 of 23 cruise ship gastrointestinal outbreaks reported by the agency.
How the CDC counts cruise ship outbreaks
Under the Vessel Sanitation Program, cruise ships with foreign itineraries that include U.S. ports report acute gastroenteritis cases to the CDC before arriving in a U.S. port and update the agency when illness rates rise. The CDC publicly lists outbreaks when 3% or more of passengers or crew report gastrointestinal symptoms to the ship’s medical staff.
Norovirus typically causes vomiting and diarrhea and can spread through contaminated surfaces or food, according to the CDC. The agency says the virus can survive on surfaces for days or weeks.
The illness totals are cumulative for the full voyage, meaning the 125 reported cases do not necessarily represent people sick at the same time. The CDC count may rise after final onboard medical reports are reconciled when Ruby Princess returns to San Francisco on July 2.
