No Tunis stop; Messina Instead

[austinetc]

The itineraries for 2015-2016 season cruises have replaced Tunis with Messina. No surprise.

[Shoalwater]

This cruise substituted Trapani, Sicily for Tunis and Palma de Mallorca for Algiers. Would have liked to visit the No. African ports but........

[comcox]

We just booked Grand Mediterranean for Feb. 2017 because we wanted the Tunisia and Algiers ports very much. Any word on Viking already changing plans then as well?

I agree with Shoalwater that those two subs would be a huge disappointment, especially Mallorca.

[austinetc]

In my group of eight, all four women were firm that the most they'd do in Tunis is touch the ground with a toe, just to say they'd been in Africa. I had a desire to visit Carthage, but I can't argue with any of the Cruise Lines backing out.

 

I do wonder about their possible savings (in insurance if nothing else) and if any of those savings will come back to the customer. (And the Cruise Lines murmur "Yeah, right. Like THAT's gonna happen.")

[roothy123]

This cruise substituted Trapani, Sicily for Tunis and Palma de Mallorca for Algiers. Would have liked to visit the No. African ports but........

 

Other than wanting to go to Africa because I've never been, I've never had any great desire to go to Tunis. I know plenty of other people who feel the same way. Sicily, however, is quite pretty, and we had a great time in Palma (rented a car and drove around - it's not just a classy beach island). Therefore, based on my experiences, these substitutions sound great to me!

[Floridiana]

We just booked Grand Mediterranean for Feb. 2017 because we wanted the Tunisia and Algiers ports very much. Any word on Viking already changing plans then as well?

I agree with Shoalwater that those two subs would be a huge disappointment, especially Mallorca.

 

I am sorry but Mallorca is not really a disappointment. Nobody forces you to stay in the beach hotel area of Palma directly. The island has a beautiful coast. Messina is full of history and close to Aetna.

[Vineyard View]

As I posted on the other thread, this in my opinion is the most responsible choice - and I applaud Viking for making the changes. Plus.....having been to Naples and Sicily multiple times, I have to say that they would be hard to disappoint....a wide range of options in these ports.