What are the odds that HAL will skip Israel in October?

Having lived in Israel, in Jerusalem, both outside the Old City, and inside the Old City, which is where most people want to go, especially when on a cruise ship, I would say that the chances of even getting to the Old City from Haifa (the main port) is slim to none even if the ship did dock in Israel. The security would be tremendous around all of the holy shrines (Christian, Muslim or Jewish) and you'd spend an inordinate amount of time just getting in and out of the port for security reasons.

 

Whenever you board a vessel in Israel (coming or going) there is a tremendous amount of security and given the current situation, it would be far more intense adding to a longer delay. So a excursion, for example, of shopping and a visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulchure in the Old City (Christian Quarter) or the Western Wall (Jewish Quarter) would include security getting off the ship and into Israel and then getting back off the ship.

 

Pray for peace in the Holy Land as everyone suffers when there is trouble as you can see by all the disappointment by travelers who want to visit the wonderful sites in the Holy Land but can't.

Very, very helpful post.

I recall when we arrived in Haifa on Rotterdam (I think that was the ship), we experienced what you describe. Each person had to present themselves with passport to Officials and the procedure though handled very efficiently did take a bit of time. No one objected as we understood the need.

Indeed, Pray for peace in the Holy Land.

I agree, the cruise lines should advise passengers before boarding and let them choose to cancel if they wish so.

I don't know about canceling if they wish to. It's very clear in the contract you agree to that HAL has the right (and responsibility) to change the itinerary if there is unrest or danger in a port. You agree to that when you book each and every time. IMO, if you're going to book a cruise to an area of the world that's notorious for unrest and violence that clause in the contract should be a part of your decision process. "Would I be happy if such and such a place were removed from this itinerary?"

I don't know about canceling if they wish to. It's very clear in the contract you agree to that HAL has the right (and responsibility) to change the itinerary if there is unrest or danger in a port. You agree to that when you book each and every time. IMO, if you're going to book a cruise to an area of the world that's notorious for unrest and violence that clause in the contract should be a part of your decision process. "Would I be happy if such and such a place were removed from this itinerary?"

I agree with you (up to a point, which I'll get to below). Cruise lines often have to cancel a port due to reasons that vary widely from political unrest to strikes, to weather-related issues. I have always recommended to friends that if one port (or a couple of ports in one country) are of overwhelming importance to them, they are better off booking a land tour to ensure that they see the places important to them.

However, if ships have to do significant re-routing due to political issues (for example, a Holy Land cruise cannot make port in two Egyptian ports nor in Israel nor Jordan and can't transit the Suez Canal, for example), then the ship is no longer, IMO, selling the same product and they really should offer some option to folks already booked. Perhaps a transfer to a different sailing that appeals to them.

I agree with you (up to a point, which I'll get to below). Cruise lines often have to cancel a port due to reasons that vary widely from political unrest to strikes, to weather-related issues. I have always recommended to friends that if one port (or a couple of ports in one country) are of overwhelming importance to them, they are better off booking a land tour to ensure that they see the places important to them.

 

However, if ships have to do significant re-routing due to political issues (for example, a Holy Land cruise cannot make port in two Egyptian ports nor in Israel nor Jordan and can't transit the Suez Canal, for example), then the ship is no longer, IMO, selling the same product and they really should offer some option to folks already booked. Perhaps a transfer to a different sailing that appeals to them.

Agreed. From what I've seen on these boards, that's what HAL usually does. Significant changes usually result in OBC or offers of a different itinerary on a different ship.

We were on the Noordam last year, they cancelled Egypt a couple of weeks before sailing and replaced it with Israel and I thought at the time that was not a great idea, two days out they replaced Israel with a couple of extra ports in Greece and Turkey and gave us cruise credits towards another cruise of 900 dollars. So if things continue as they are I'd expect they will cancel and replace them with a safer port.