Surprise! The most popular, hottest cruises right now are selling out quickly despite not sailing until August of 2026. What? These are cruises that will be sailing during the August 2026 total solar eclipse. And cruise lines are announcing new total solar eclipse 2026 cruise sailings daily. Many that have been announced are already fully booked.
An eclipse is a life-changing event.
Why is this the Hottest Cruise Right Now?
For a long time, solar eclipse cruises were something only done by small, boutique cruise lines or charters at exceedingly high prices. However, the 2017 eclipse that went across the USA sparked a real interest in people. Then, a few lines did an eclipse cruise for 2024, which we were a part of, and it was a smash hit. Now many cruise lines are unveiling total solar eclipse cruises for August 2026.
Seeing the growing popularity of eclipse cruises, they’ve become the hottest cruises on the market, with several lines, such as Princess, already selling out. These are cruises are likely to increase in cost the closer they get to sailing, so if you are interested in doing one, you’ll want to get a deposit in as soon as you can.
Important!
The best way to secure the best price is to book now but with a REFUNDABLE deposit. For those most part, prices will increase significantly. In the rare event the fare goes down, having a refundable deposit make it easier to reprice to the lower cost.
The 2017 eclipse that started the craze.
What Cruises are Available?
Here are some of the announced total solar eclipse sailings for August 2026. Since this is the hottest type of cruise right now, we expect more to be coming.
Azamara Eclipse cruises. Azamara, known for longer experiential port callings and smaller ship luxury, has three sailings.
Virgin Voyages has two 2026 solar eclipse cruises. One sails for 12-nights from Barcelona to Rome and the other sails 15 nights roundtrip from England with visits to Scotland and Iceland.
Cunard will have three solar eclipse sailings, and we have special pricing on two of them. We have arranged special group pricing on two Cunard eclipse sailings. These groups allow us to hold prices even if the standard price goes up.
Finally, two of the smaller cruise lines, Atlas Ocean Voyages and Windstar Iceland have sailings. They are a boutique and luxurious experience small ship experiences.
As we said before, Princess Cruises, who we sailed with for the April 2024 eclipse and helped cement solar eclipse cruises as the hottest cruises right now. On August 12, 2026, Sky Princess will sail directly into the “path of totality” on a special 14-night Total Solar Eclipse Cruise which also visits France, Spain and Portugal. The cruise departs Southampton August 8, 2026. It is currently sold out but you may be able to snag a wait-list spot.
How Do I Get in on the Hottest Cruise Right Now?
If you want to learn more about what sailing a solar eclipse cruise is like, and why it’s one of the hottest cruises right now, check out our blog post of our experience on Princess Cruises off Mexico’s coast.
While we expect other lines might join in on the eclipse craze, these are available now. They are all selling out quickly. So, if you are even thinking about this, consider reaching out to us to help get pricing and put down a refundable deposit to lock in your cruise now!
