Impact of the war on international tourism

10-10-23

Cruise lines with scheduled calls in Israel are changing their itineraries after Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, launched a surprise attack on Israel over the weekend. The fighting quickly escalated to retaliatory attacks in the Gaza Strip.  

About a dozen cruise lines were scheduled to call in Israel over the next month. While several lines said they are closely monitoring the situation since fighting broke out Saturday morning, several have begun altering itineraries. 

On an 11-day sailing from Rome to Istanbul that departed Oct. 1, the Norwegian Gem did not call in Ashdod, Israel, on Oct. 8. The ship instead spent the day at sea before continuing its originally scheduled call to Limassol, Cypress, on Oct. 9. 

The Norwegian Jade, which departed Oct. 8 on a roundtrip cruise from Athens, has canceled calls at Israeli ports Ashdod and Haifa on Oct. 11 and Oct. 12. Instead, the ship will visit Turkish ports Bodrum and Marmaris on Oct. 10 and 11. It will spend a day at sea on Oct. 12. 

The Oceania Nautica, which was on an 11-day sailing from Haifa to Rome that began Oct. 6, was still in Haifa the day fighting broke out. The ship departed Israel on Saturday, nixing its scheduled call in Ashdod. All guests and crew were accounted for.

The Oct. 14 sailing of the Oceania Sirena from Athens to Istanbul was scheduled to spend three days in Israel -- two in Haifa and one in Ashdod. The ship will now spend those days in Santorini, Heraklion and Mykonos, Greece. 

The Oceania Marina's Nov. 1 itinerary includes two days in Israel. The line is in the process of reviewing its itinerary options for those days. 

Regent Seven Seas Cruises has amended the Seven Seas Voyager's Oct. 3 and Oct. 15 itineraries. The Voyager's call at Haifa on Oct. 14 and 15 has been canceled and the ship will instead sail to Istanbul, where the sailing will conclude. 

The ship's Oct. 15 itinerary will begin in Istanbul instead of Haifa. The ship's calls to Ashdod on Oct. 16 and 17 will be canceled and the ship will instead sail directly to Cairo and arrive on Oct. 18 to resume its previously scheduled itinerary. 

Celestyal said it will temporarily suspend calls in Israel until the end of November. "On the advice of our internal teams and the relevant authorities, we have decided to temporarily remove Israel from our Three Continents itinerary until the end of November this year," said CEO Chris Theophilides.

Royal Caribbean International has canceled cruises on Rhapsody of the Seas due to the events in Israel. The line has canceled its four-day Oct. 9 Greek Cyprus sailing and its five-day Oct. 13 Greek Isles cruise. Both were to depart from Haifa.  

The Odyssey of the Seas is replacing calls to Haifa on its Holy Lands cruise with calls in Greek isles Crete and Rhodes and Bodrum, Turkiye. The impacted sailings, which both sail from Rome, include a 13-day Oct. 2 cruise and a 12-day Oct. 15 sailing.

The Celebrity Alex is replacing Israel and Egypt visits on 10-day sailings departing Oct. 6 and Oct. 16. It is instead calling at Greek islands Santorini, Mykonos and Rhodes and Bodrum, Turkiye.

U.S. airlines suspend flying to Israel

The three global U.S. airlines have suspended flying to Tel Aviv due to the war between Israel and Hamas. 

United was flying four routes to Tel Aviv prior to Saturday, when an attack on southern Israel by Hamas sparked war, including an Israeli bombing campaign targeting Gaza.

Delta on Monday said it was canceling Tel Aviv flights through Oct. 31, and said it would assist customers trying to depart Israel via seats that become available on partner airlines. 

"We continue to monitor the situation with safety and security top of mind and will adjust our operation as needed," said American in its statement. 

The FAA also issued an advisory on Saturday, urging U.S. airlines and pilots to use caution when flying in Israeli airspace. 

Israel flagship airline El Al continues to operate flights from Tel Aviv, including to and from the U.S.

Numerous other foreign carriers have suspended Israel flying, but some have continued service, notably Turkish Airlines.

U.S. travelers can request a refund for flights canceled by their airline. Delta, United and American have also issued travel waivers for more flexible rebooking of flights to Tel Aviv. The United waiver also includes travel to nearby Amman, Jordan.