Oct. 20, 2009 (United Press International) -- Cruise ships on the Pacific Coast of Mexico were forced to change schedules Tuesday as Tropical Storm Rick headed toward the mainland.

Cabo San Lucas on the southern tip of Baja California closed the port because of the storm, USA Today reported. Two ships, the Mariner of the Seas operated by Royal Caribbean (NYSE:RCL) and the Norwegian Sun, skipped stops at Cabo San Lucas.

Several other ships changed their itineraries to avoid the storm. For example, passengers on board the Sapphire Princess, which left Los Angeles Sunday, headed for San Francisco, Catalina Island and Ensenada, Mexico, instead of Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas.

Rick, once a Category 5 hurricane, is far weaker than it was two days ago. The National Hurricane Center in Miami reported that at 11 p.m. EDT, Rick's maximum sustained winds were 65 mph, with tropical storm winds extending 140 miles from the center.

The eye was 145 miles south-southeast of Cabo San Lucas and 240 miles southwest of Mazatlan, moving northeast at about 12 mph. An increase in forward speed was expected until the storm makes landfall, and Rick was expected to remain south of Baja California before reaching mainland Mexico Wednesday, forecasters said.

A tropical storm warning was posted for southern Baja California and parts of the mainland coast.