Cruise travelers avoiding Baltic region due to Russia-Ukraine war
Major cruise lines have already canceled trips to ports in Russia
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While many travelers and business owners were hoping to see a return to normalcy this summer, the Russia-Ukraine war has likely upended those plans.
Major cruise lines have made adjustments to their itineraries to avoid Russian ports, and it appears that travelers are altering their plans now.
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Norwegian Cruise Line has canceled stops at ports in Russia after the country invaded Ukraine. (iStock)
Norwegian Cruise Line CEO Harry Sommer said on Tuesday that there has been hesitation among cruise travelers to book trips to the Baltic region right now, Travel Weekly reports. Some guests are switching their bookings to 2023 while others taking Mediterranean trips instead.
Fox Business previously reported that Royal Caribbean and Viking Cruises canceled planned trips to Russia in the coming months. Celebrity Cruises, a cruise line owned by Royal Caribbean, announced that it was removing trips to the port at St. Petersburg in Russia for upcoming trips.
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Other major cruise lines, including Royal Caribbean, have also canceled stops at Russian ports. (iStock)
Cruises scheduled to visit the port will instead stop at other Scandinavian locations instead.
The previous week, Norwegian Cruise Line also announced adjustments to its itineraries and canceled scheduled stops at ports in Russia. The cruise line is planning to replace these stops with other ports in the Baltic region.
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Some travelers are now altering or canceling trips to Europe in response to the invasion of Ukraine. (iStock)
St. Petersberg is a popular destination among travelers, and it appears that some guests would rather just wait for 2023 than to take cruises that skip the popular port.
Norwegian Cruise Line execs said that they had noticed an impact on European bookings as well, although they did also state that plenty of travelers are still booking these trips.