Cruises that stop in Israel

[Eli_6]

Has anyone heard how far out these are being canceled or itineraries being changed?

[butterfly4108]

6 minutes ago, Eli_6 said:

Has anyone heard how far out these are being canceled or itineraries being changed?

I was told by a cruise representative yesterday that it's thru the end of October so far....

[cruisefamilyholiday]

Not true. It depends on the cruise line and if it was an embarkation / disembarkation port. 

 

Even the now cancelled Royal Carribbean cruise that avoided stopping at Ashdod, stopped at Haifa. That too when things were very active, albeit far to the south of the port. 

[cruiselover108]

Does anyone know if Acaba (Petra) port is affected?

[butterfly4108]

10 minutes ago, cruiselover108 said:

Does anyone know if Acaba (Petra) port is affected?

As of right now no....

[Lois R]

On 10/9/2023 at 11:04 AM, cruisefamilyholiday said:

Not true. It depends on the cruise line and if it was an embarkation / disembarkation port. 

 

Even the now cancelled Royal Carribbean cruise that avoided stopping at Ashdod, stopped at Haifa. That too when things were very active, albeit far to the south of the port. 

It may be far but I cannot imagine any of the cruise lines are going to Israel right. And yes, I know Haifa is in the north but it is a very small country (I lived there before). My sister is leaving on a cruise this coming Sunday out of Rome and Israel was on the itinerary but it has been taken off and they are going elsewhere.

[cruisefamilyholiday]

Which ship the Musica?

 

 

[cruiselover108]

1 minute ago, cruisefamilyholiday said:

Which ship the Musica?

 

 

What port(s) did they add?  Is Aqaba(Petra) one of them?

[cruisefamilyholiday]

4 minutes ago, cruiselover108 said:

What port(s) did they add?  Is Aqaba(Petra) one of them?

No. Rhodes. On the Musica anyway. 

Edited October 10, 2023 by cruisefamilyholiday

[IgKh]

On 10/9/2023 at 1:57 PM, Eli_6 said:

Has anyone heard how far out these are being canceled or itineraries being changed?

Currently it would appear that cruise lines are removing port calls and cancelling cruises that embark here for the next two weeks or so. However the situation here is entirely unprecedented and rather dire. This is not your average periodical flare up, it is much much worse. While I truly hope otherwise, it is likely in my opinion that tourism here will not be advisable for the rest of the year.
 

On 10/9/2023 at 7:05 PM, cruiselover108 said:

Does anyone know if Acaba (Petra) port is affected?

No reason for it to be. It is far from the war and beyond the reach of Hamas rockets. Any port calls to Eilat however are probably out of the question however.

[IgKh]

1 hour ago, Lois R said:

It may be far but I cannot imagine any of the cruise lines are going to Israel right. And yes, I know Haifa is in the north but it is a very small country (I lived there before).

Right, Haifa is out of the question too. Even if a cruise line does want to dock there (which I doubt, as any sane insurance company will not cover it), the logistics simply don't allow it at the moment. The country is mobilized - everything non essential is closed (which includes almost all tourist sites), there are no buses available to run tours, many restaurants are only working to prepare food for the reserve forces and evacuees, etc.

[richmke]

On 10/9/2023 at 9:57 AM, Eli_6 said:

Has anyone heard how far out these are being canceled or itineraries being changed?

NCL has cancelled the debarkation/embarkation in Haifa for the Epic. No info on alternative, or if they will cancel the two cruises.

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, cruiselover108 said:

What port(s) did they add?  Is Aqaba(Petra) one of them?

All Israeli ports (except Eilat) are on the Mediterranean. Getting to Aqaba would mean leaving the Mediterranean, which is presumably where the other ports are. (Getting to Aqaba would require going through the Suez Canal.)

Edited October 10, 2023 by gnome12

[cruiselover108]

13 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

All Israeli ports (except Eilat) are on the Mediterranean. Getting to Aqaba would mean leaving the Mediterranean, which is presumably where the other ports are. (Getting to Aqaba would require going through the Suez Canal.)

Excellent point.  Reason I asked is that we are on Silverseas going to Egypt, SA, and Petra and my better half is concerned that Petra may be eliminated from the itinerary which is the primary reason we booked this cruise.

[cruisefamilyholiday]

2 minutes ago, cruiselover108 said:

Excellent point.  Reason I asked is that we are on Silverseas going to Egypt, SA, and Petra and my better half is concerned that Petra may be eliminated from the itinerary which is the primary reason we booked this cruise.

Jordan is not at war. Enjoy your cruise. 

[cruiselover108]

9 minutes ago, cruisefamilyholiday said:

Jordan is not at war. Enjoy your cruise. 

Thanks.  I just need to calm down “nervous Nellie”…

[cruisefamilyholiday]

10 minutes ago, cruiselover108 said:

Thanks.  I just need to calm down “nervous Nellie”…

It is understandable. You would not believe the predicament I have found myself in. 

[Badatz2]

13 hours ago, richmke said:

NCL has cancelled the debarkation/embarkation in Haifa for the Epic. No info on alternative, or if they will cancel the two cruises.

I believe that the Epic is in the Med in October and is only leaving from Rome to Israel on Nov 8th and returning from Haifa on Nov 20th.  

These cruises are still showing on the NCL site.

[Cruise_Context]

Travel.state.gov is the US Government site that guides some of the decisions and timing of cruise line itinerary changes, hence the lack of announcement regarding changes to most itineraries for November.

 

The levels are: 

1. Exercise normal precautions

2. Exercise increased caution

3. Reconsider travel

4. Do not travel

 

For your situational awareness, while many on here are mentally and emotionally at level 4+, in actuality the US has Israel listed currently at level 2 (same as it was before the current conflict), except for Gaza, which is clearly a 4, pasted here: 

 

 

 

Edited October 11, 2023 by Cruise_Context

[GonzoWCS]

Thanks for the information so far.

 

Cheers

[cruisefamilyholiday]

https://www.cruisehive.com/msc-cruises-safely-brings-800-israeli-citizens-home/112817

 

Some information on the MSC Haifa changes for October 

[Cruise_Context]

(Piraeus/Athens Port Authority Cruise Terminal)

https://www.olp.gr/en/services/cruise-terminal

 

The calendar updated October 10 is a PDF here:  https://www.olp.gr/en/services/cruise-terminal/item/download/13194_45bd47ed1d67095acdc1738108c42c3d

 

Note that Piraeus/Athens now shows the Epic arriving there Monday November 20.  This is about as strong a hint as we can discover at the moment.  Whether it's NCL's actual plan or backup plan to disembark there instead of Haifa, I can't say for certain, but I'm starting to check flights home from Athens just in case.

 

 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by Cruise_Context

[Cruise_Context]

[kathy49]

On 10/9/2023 at 1:04 PM, cruisefamilyholiday said:

Not true. It depends on the cruise line and if it was an embarkation / disembarkation port. 

 

Even the now cancelled Royal Carribbean cruise that avoided stopping at Ashdod, stopped at Haifa. That too when things were very active, albeit far to the south of the port. 

that had to to disembark passengers....they are gone from there now.

[kathy49]

interesting replies here...not sure most are watching the news. This will not be short term...the actions taken above by NCL will be followed by all cruise lines. Israel off the program for 2023 and many are also cancelling Egypt, This could be a regional war as things get going. Lots of moving pieces and Israel has not even unleashed the massacre they promise. I would not consider an itinerary in this area for quite some time and sure to be daily itinerary changes.