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“One of the main strengths and differentiators in our industry is our ability to reposition our assets, which is what we’ve done with the heightened tensions in the Middle East,” Sommer said. Holland America Line’s Nieuw Statendam, meanwhile, had already docked in Israel and had sent passengers on tour when the conflict broke out. Replacement voyages for MSC Orchestra and MSC Sinfonia have not yet been announced. Each brand is offering affected cruisers a variety of compensation options, depending on the circumstances and whether their voyages are already underway.
Carnival Ship Rescues 27 People Adrift at Sea in the Caribbean
The small vessel cruise line has confirmed with Cruise Hive that two of its vessels will not be making scheduled visits to the country, This includes calls by Azamara Journey and Azamara Pursuit in October 2023. "If for whatever reason a passenger feels unsafe travelling on a pre-booked cruise, cancelling would be subject to the cruise's contract and the terms and conditions," Ms Roy said. Ms Roy said the company knew its ships couldn't pass under bridges following heavy rain, but didn't advise passengers of the change until they arrived ready to board.
What’s Next for Israel Cruises?
Tours and cruises canceled, clients depart -- travel's week after war broke out in Israel - Travel Weekly
Tours and cruises canceled, clients depart -- travel's week after war broke out in Israel.
Posted: Sat, 14 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The company said in a statement Thursday it “revamped” its 2024 schedule to replace ports of call in Israel, Egypt and Jordan. Silversea Cruises, one of five brands owned by Royal Caribbean Group and based in Monaco, also offers trips to Israel in several Mediterranean itineraries, according to the cruise line’s website. It is not immediately clear whether Silversea Cruises has changed or will change upcoming itineraries.
MSC Sinfonia Itinerary Changes
“It will be a while before people are comfortable going back to Israel which is why we are canceling all Israel calls in 2024,” said Harry Sommer, president and CEO, speaking on the company’s third quarter earnings call. As for next year, he quipped about the chances for a better cruise season to come, "Hopefully next season on Jewel will happen as planned, and there will come a moment again when our biggest concern will be 'is the deluxe package worth it'". Leeor Plotkin is an Israeli that had a cruise booked on Rhapsody of the Seas for the November 1st sailing and sees more important priorities at the moment than a cruise.
Cruising to Israel is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many travelers and while cruise lines always do their best to maintain original itineraries, the safety of the guests, crew, and ship are always the top priority. Royal Caribbean International has cancelled 7 sailings of Rhapsody of the Seas, which has been homeported in Haifa, Israel. Meanwhile, Odyssey of the Seas has port visits cancelled for Israel on two different sailings. Celebrity Apex, owned by the Royal Caribbean Group, has likewise cancelled port visits to Israel.
Windstar now plans to launch its Middle East season of sailings from Dubai and Muscat in November 2024, with additional cruises from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Aqaba, Jordan; and Haifa, Israel, into April 2025. Odyssey of the Seas, which TPG named one of the nine most anticipated new cruise ships of the year, isn't new to the disappointment of cruise cancelations. The ship was previously scheduled to sail out of Civitavecchia, Italy (the port for Rome) in May on a series of Mediterranean voyages. Those itineraries were scrapped because of travel restrictions for U.S. travelers to European countries. The cruises out of Israel were an exciting replacement for those who were eligible to sail. With no way to know how long the dangerous conflict in Israel may last, several cruise lines have taken steps to safeguard their passengers by cancelling sailings or adjusting itineraries to remove port visits to the country.
Celebrity Cruises Ship Cancels Israel Due to Developing Situation - Cruise Hive
Celebrity Cruises Ship Cancels Israel Due to Developing Situation.
Posted: Sat, 07 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Jewel of the Seas was slated to be homeported in Haifa, Israel from August to October 2024, with itineraries ranging from 3- to 10-nights. Royal Caribbean is asking those who had booked reservations for the expedition and are looking for a refund to call customer service or check their email for more information. Cruising to Israel with Celebrity offers you the chance to explore one of the world's oldest and most historic countries in luxury.
Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information. Whether you cruise multiple times per year or you're new to cruising, the goal of Royal Caribbean Blog is for it to be a useful resource for keeping up to date with what's new and exciting with Royal Caribbean. Started in 2010, Royal Caribbean Blog offers daily coverage of news and information related to the Royal Caribbean cruise line along with other relevant topics of cruising, such as entertainment, news, photo updates and more.
Explore the ancient sites, cities, and historic ports of the Holy Land on a luxury cruise to Israel with Celebrity. Visit sacred temples, awe-inspiring museums, and natural wonders like the Dead Sea. Enjoy delicious cuisine that blends multiple cultures together with the bounty of the Mediterranean, and take in the breathtaking views of the sea as you do so.
Destination-focused, port-intensive European line Celestyal Cruises has canceled port visits in Israel through the end of November. A port call in Ashdod, for day trips to Jerusalem, had been part of the line’s seven-night Three Continents itinerary on the 1,260-passenger Celestyal Journey. The itinerary also includes Alexandria, Egypt, and calls in Cyprus, Greece, and Türkiye.
All were scheduled to make two stops in Israel, in Ashdod and Haifa, according to CruiseMapper, which tracks ship locations and itineraries. With fighting between Hamas and Israel showing no signs of abating, some cruise lines have made the decision to remove all Israeli ports of call from their 2024 itineraries. Luxury line Silversea canceled a 17-night voyage from Mumbai to Athens aboard Silver Whisper, citing the geopolitical situation in the Red Sea region. The vessel, the 2,666-passenger Nieuw Statendam, halted disembarkation, recalled passengers who had already left on tours and headed out to sea by the evening. Celebrity was among the first lines to cancel calls in Israel, rerouting its 2,910-passenger Celebrity Apex away from the country within hours of fighting erupting on Saturday. The ship skipped calls scheduled for Sunday and Monday at Haifa and Ashdod, respectively.
Windstar Cruises is the only cruise line to have cancelled cruises to or from Dubai thus far. Dubai is the primary cruise port in the Arabian Gulf and widely considered to be the most stable, secure and safe city in the Middle East, and one of the safest in the world. Royal Caribbean’s cancellation of its cruise season in Israel is also reminiscent of a similar move made in 2021 during the last bout of fighting when Odyssey of the Seas was pulled out of Israel.
Others, like Costa, have elected to sail ships empty through the Suez Canal en-route to their spring European cruise seasons. For the most part, the lines canceling calls in Israel are substituting extra sea days or stops in additional ports in Greece or Turkey. Norwegian Jade replaced planned visits to Ashdod and Haifa on Wednesday and Thursday with stops in Bodrum on Tuesday and Marmaris on Wednesday. The ship, which is on a weeklong round-trip sailing from Athens, will spend a day at sea Thursday. If choosing not to rebook, Royal Caribbean will provide a full refund of the paid portion of the cruise fare (including non-refundable deposits), as well as any pre-paid amenities to the original form of payment. After suspending all of its remaining sailings from Haifa in 2023, the U.S.-based company also cancelled its 2024 program out of the port.
For the winter season, Celebrity Apex will be homeported from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, offering a variety of 7-night Caribbean itineraries visiting top destinations such as Key West, Belize, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, and more. In May 2024, the ship will again move to Europe for the summer season, this time homeporting from Southampton. The Israel conflict has also impacted broader cruises to the Middle East area beyond just its Israel stops, the company said on its earnings call.
The line has canceled three repositioning ‘Grand Voyage’ sailings in April from South Africa and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Europe. MSC Cruises has become the first cruise line to cancel cruises due to the ongoing risks to shipping in the Red Sea. Cunard Line informed guests it will re-route its World Cruise aboard Queen Mary 2, changing a full month of the planned voyage itinerary in order to bypass the Red Sea and Suez Canal in favor of transiting around the horn of Africa. We will keep tabs on the situation as it develops, but if you have a cruise booked in this region it is best to reach out to your cruise line for all the latest information on changes and cancellations. The canceled Israel calls were the last scheduled for any Holland America ship this year. "We are in close coordination with the authorities, and the safety, security, and comfort of our guests remains our utmost priority," Celestyal CEO Chris Theophilides said in a statement sent to TPG.
Guests affected by this change are offered full refunds, and arrangements are underway to repatriate Israeli travelers. The MSC Musica, initially scheduled for 7-night Mediterranean cruises, disembarked Israeli passengers in Limassol, Cyprus, who were then transported to Israel on a chartered cruise ship. Celebrity Apex was en-route to Haifa before altering course to dock in Limassol, Cyprus. Passengers on the sailing that departed October 16, 2023 had received notice of itinerary changes that replaced calls in Ashdod and Haifa with stops in the Greek ports of Santorini, Mykonos and Rhodes before the ship continued on to Port Said, Egypt as planned. MSC is offering passengers the option to move to a new sailing or cancel for a full refund.
