Cruise Lines Reroute to Avoid Israeli Ports

From cancelling cruises from Ashdod and Haifa to hasty departures as bombs were falling, cruise lines have had to quickly retreat from Israel due to the sudden eruption of a devastating war. Here’s a look at what we know so far:

Celebrity Apex skipped planned calls in Haifa and Ashdod and the ship’s future cruises calling on Israel will be will be rerouted as well, the line said.

Holland America Line’s Nieuw Statendam dropped a planned call at Ashdod and rerouted to Alanya, Turkey instead. HAL says that was its last visit to Israel this year and 2024 cruises that stop at Israeli ports are under review.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings has cancelled and redirected all calls to Israel and the surrounding region for the rest of 2023. The company is dropping all Israel calls in 2024. Oceania Cruises‘ Nautica had departed Israel ahead of schedule in October and  Sirena was rerouted to the Greek Isles. 
Regent Seven Seas Cruises replaced Israel calls on Seven Seas Voyager.

MSC Cruises has cancelled winter sailings of  MSC Sinfonia and MSC Orchestra which had been scheduled to sail from Haifa. Orchestra will have new itineraries in the Mediterranean. 

Royal Caribbean cancelled calls in Haifa by Rhapsody of the Seas and Odyssey of the Seas. Rhapsody had just completed a cruise and disembarked passengers in Haifa just before the war started. Both of the line’s ships will be shifting schedules to Greece and Turkey. Two October  cruises of Rhapsody of the Seas had been cancelled and the ship was used to evacuate a number of American citizens from Israel to Cyprus.

Windstar Cruises re-routed  Star Legend sailings, substituting Santorini and a sea day for calls at Ashdod and Haifa. For the winter season, it has shifted to the western Mediterranean, with open-jaw cruises between Civitavecchia and Barcelona, calling on Livorno, and Marseille, with overnights in Civitavecchia, Barcelona and Monte Carlo. 

Azamara has replaced all calls in Israel with alternative ports. 

Record cruise numbers in Israeli ports had been forecast in the coming year as several lines committed to homeporting in Ashdod and a new cruise terminal that is being developed in Haifa. 

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