Royal Caribbean Extends Haiti Port Cancellations Amid Unrest
Royal Caribbean has suspended all visits to its private destination in Labadee, Haiti, through October, citing persistent safety concerns. The decision affects 23 separate itineraries and is a direct response to the U.S. State Department’s Level 4 “Do Not Travel” advisory for the country, which warns of civil unrest and gang violence.
The itinerary changes will impact sailings on five ships: Adventure, Freedom, Icon, Oasis, and Radiance of the Seas. This move extends a series of cancellations that began in the spring. While some of the affected cruises will substitute the stop with visits to other ports, such as Nassau or Grand Turk, others will be modified to include an additional day at sea. For many passengers, who often select cruises based on specific destinations, such last-minute changes can be a significant disappointment.
In other industry news, environmental protesters in Amsterdam targeted a Celebrity Cruises ship, highlighting growing tensions over cruise tourism in the city. Activists from Extinction Rebellion used small boats and inflatable unicorns to block the Celebrity Eclipse, which was carrying nearly 2,800 passengers, from docking at the city’s cruise terminal. The protest caused delays before police cleared the waterway and made five arrests. The activists are demanding a complete ban on cruise ships in Amsterdam, citing environmental harm, which reflects a wider local movement to relocate or limit cruise operations away from the city center.
Meanwhile, Carnival Corporation has lost a major legal appeal in Australia concerning a COVID-19 outbreak on the Ruby Princess in March 2020. An Australian court upheld a ruling that found the company was negligent and misleading for allowing the ship to sail despite knowing the associated risks of the virus. The Ruby Princess became a primary source of Australia’s early COVID-19 cases, with over 660 passengers infected and 28 deaths linked to the voyage. The court’s decision affirms a class-action lawsuit, and Carnival could now face millions of dollars in passenger compensation payouts.
