Cruise Companies are cancelling S Korean ports - does anyone have info on this?

Not great news -it appears that some cruise companies have started to cancel stops in South Korea: Seoul and Jeju.

 

Does anyone have any news on this? I understand that it affects Carnival cruises including Costa and Princess. Also, RCCL, not heard about Celebrity though.

 

Global cruise giants Carnival Corp (>> Carnival Corp) and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (>> Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd) will cancel South Korean port visits from their China-based cruises after Seoul deployed a U.S.missile defense system, raising tensions between the two countries.

 

Global cruise giants Carnival Corp (>> Carnival Corp) and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (>> Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd) will cancel South Korean port visits from their China-based cruises after Seoul deployed a U.S.missile defense system, raising tensions between the two countries.

In a post on its Chinese website, Royal Caribbean said it would remove visits to popular South Korea sites due to "recent developments regarding the situation in South Korea".

Carnival's Costa Cruises said it was working with tour operator partners to adjust its offering for Chinese clients.

"Costa Cruises will remove calls to South Korean ports for our upcoming cruises home ported out of China, replacing them with cruising at sea or calls to destinations in Japan," it said in a statement.

The plans mark the first time major travel firms have publicly stopped or restricted trips to South Korea after media reports last week that Beijing had given guidance to tour operators in China to stop selling trips to the country.

A South Korean government document seen by Reuters said China gave a "7-point" verbal instruction to travel firms regarding a ban on trips to South Korea. One point blocked China-based cruise ships from docking in South Korean ports.

In a notice posted on Thursday, Royal Caribbean detailed changes to itineraries for cruises leaving from Chinese ports. These removed visits to South Korean destinations such as Busan, Jeju and Seoul, replacing them with visits to sites in Japan.The firm did not respond to requests for further comment on Thursday.

The squeeze on Korean firms underlines Beijing's anger over a joint plan by South Korea and the United States to set up the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) missile system in South Korea. Seoul and Washington say it will defend against nuclear-armed North Korean missiles, but Beijing says its far-reaching radar is targeted at China.

The crackdown has sent a chill across South Korea's retail and tourism sectors, which rely heavily on China trade. Chinese shoppers are big consumers of South Korean products from cosmetics and television dramas to vacations and music.

The number of Chinese tourists to South Korea has nearly quadrupled to 8 million over the past five years, accounting for nearly half of foreign visitors, Korean government data showed.

South Korea has said it will consider filing a complaint against China to the World Trade Organization over what it described as trade retaliation over the THAAD deployment issue.

 

 

It reads as if it applies only to cruise ships permanently based in China, but not sure. We cruise in just over 2 weeks time, so would be interested in any information. Our TA is contacting Celebrity.

I am on Seabourn (owned by Carnival) next month scheduled for Busan and Inchon (port for Seoul) April 9-12 and haven't heard anything. Will post if I do. (One of our excursions is to DMZ.)

 

 

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Sorry to learn about this, but as tourists, whether on a cruise or land-based visiting South Korea, my feeling is that you will just have to acknowledge and respect the decision of the cruiseline in cancelling the port, going elsewhere - safety and security come first and foremost.

 

Did an escorted land-based tour for a week in 2015, from Seoul to the East Sea and back, spend 1/3 of a day in the DMZ area - and, even then, the military presence and tension were seen & strongly felt. Riding thru towns with military police directing traffic, fully armed soliders riding convoys alongside tanks & M16's pointing, etc. - realizing that Seoul, the Capital is less than 90 minutes from the heavily guarded border. The river at low tide is as narrow as 3/4 mile or less separating both sides of the DMZ. NK and SK are still at war, with the ceasefire in place and being honored ... one of my grand-uncle was a KW veteran on the frontline and used to tell his stories in my youthful days then. Here's a dozen photos from our SK collection I assembled, best seen & explored on a longer land-based tour to experience.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/109650591/2015%20Taiwan%20%26%20So.Korea/So.Korea-DMZ-Seoul-n-DMZ%232C.jpg

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/109650591/2015%20Taiwan%20%26%20So.Korea/So.Korea-DMZ-Overlook-2015-condensed.jpg

 

Do consider a future trip to better explore with a land-based package. Airfares from North America are very good these days ... we flew KE, the flagship carrier on the A380 - 13 hours non-stop from NY's JFK, excellent 2 meal services and 34" seat pitch in basic economy class.

We go on Holland America in less than 2 weeks out of Hong Kong. We have one stop in Seoul. I have not heard anything from Holland America

 

 

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Some of the "current" unrest has to do with the impeachment of their President, 70% of SK wanted to see that - there're demonstrations from her supporters but also big crowds "cheering" her removal ... still facing possible criminal charges. Police are out but the gatherings are peaceful, orderly & non-violent. Cruises playing it safe, just in case, I believe. But, the military presence & tension at the border are real, and, lately at all-time high, on a short fuse with latest U.S. missile defense system newly deployed on station ... scheduled trips, some required specific approval & strict escort, to DMZ are always subject to last minute cancellation. It's less than 90 minutes drive from downtown Seoul, depending on traffic. JeJu is the island resort at the southeast tip of the Korea & very different, it's about a 4 or 5 hour drive down the capital - that should be fine & very safe to visit, regardless.

 

BBC News is what I tune to when traveling not that I don't watch CNN but coverage isn't as good on the go.

 

Good luck & enjoy your cruise / visit - South Koreans are very friendly & vocal, except most don't speak English - exception being those of college age and the younger ones working for major corporations in big cities ... where, you will find branches of Citi (bank) and use your ATM, just like home. 3/4 of a day visiting is just not enough but a good introduction.

My sense is that this is a political issue between China and S. Korea. That's why RCI and Princess changed the ports for their CHINA-based ships from Korean to Japanese ports. I haven't read anything about ships who passengers demographics are not Chinese changing at all.

This is a political issue between China and the USA.

The USA has placed THAAD missiles in South Korea to counter North Korean missile launches.

The Chinese believe that these THAAD missiles are endangering China.

 

The Chinese Government has informed cruise lines that begin cruises in China that their ships may not call at South Korean Ports if they want to return to Chinese ports.

It's very similar to the US ruling for the past 50 years that cruise ships that visited Cuba could not visit US ports.

This is a political issue between China and the USA ... The Chinese Government has informed cruise lines that begin cruises in China that their ships may not call at South Korean Ports if they want to return to Chinese ports ...

Well, there is truth to this - exercise economic sanctions indirectly against SK via travel restrictions. I know they're directed their boycott within PRC against retailers behind Lotto and urging their nationals to not shop and buy, eat, etc. Chinese consumers have been powerful in terms of duty-free shoppers making runs to SK and spending, these measures are hitting the corporations and the employees working in retails, not necessary leveraging directly at the SK government, now that their first female president has been impeached and forced out for wrongdoings. Not doing anything to protect the homeland against "Fat Boy" in NK is irresponsible for its people, would China sit there and do nothing if NK continue to aim their missiles at them (besides, tanks & cannons are within range of Seoul) instead.

 

Not turning OP's questions or hijacking it for discussion of military-economic-political analysis of north Asia, aside from the fact that this is leaving those cruiselines helpleless and their stockholders' arms in the air. NCL, one of our favorite cruiselines, are deploying new and building more ships catered to the Chinese market in Asia - I don't think they appreciate being told how and where to sail in a (semi) free market economy abroad. Yikes !

And the cruise lines sailing from US Ports did not appreciate being told - by the US Government - for the past 50 years that they could not sail to Cuba. But they got over it.

RE: Potential Korea Port Changes

 

Cruise Port Navigation is participating in the annual cruise industry conference this week including various sessions where the topic of China’s new rule regarding Korean ports was addressed by top executives of various cruise lines and Korean ports.

 

Here is what we were able to confirm.

 

1) There is NO kind of "political unrest" or demonstrations in Seoul that would cause a call on Incheon to be canceled. On the contrary, there is general relief that the impeachment process has concluded. [However, we can tell you from previous experience in general that since docking in Incheon requires passing through locks, weather conditions such as strong winds or compromised visibility can cause a ship to have to abort its planned call. This has happened more than once to us when I was onboard a cruise ship scheduled to call on Incheon.]

 

2) The new "rule" only applies to China BASED ships from March 15. So, if you are on a ship like the Volendam or Diamond Princess that is cruising the region but does not have a predominantly Chinese passenger base, your ship will NOT be redeployed to another port. It will call on Korean ports as planned. If there happens to be a few Chinese passengers onboard, it will be up to them to decided how they want to handle going ashore (or not) when calling on Korea.

 

3) This situation is not going to change soon. At the very least, nothing can be negotiated until after a new South Korean president is elected in May. However if previous spats between China and its neighbors is any indication, it may take a couple of years before the situation returns to normal.

 

We hope this helps everyone who may have made independent arrangements shore, etc., in knowing how best to plan.

Hi Heather,

Does #2 apply to RCL Ovation of the Seas?

On April 14 2017 it leaves Singapore (not China).

Will it stop in South Korea?

Some? refer to Ovation of the Seas as "China-Based"

I'm confused after reading may news reports and ANY confirmed info would help.:)

THANKS!!

Hi Heather,

Does #2 apply to RCL Ovation of the Seas?

On April 14 2017 it leaves Singapore (not China).

Will it stop in South Korea?

Some? refer to Ovation of the Seas as "China-Based"

I'm confused after reading may news reports and ANY confirmed info would help.:)

THANKS!!

 

Funny you should ask. One of the panelists was a senior international VP with Royal Caribbean. When clarifying this issue, he specifically cited Ovation of the Seas as an example of a ship that would NOT be redeployed. So, I feel pretty confident that this information is correct as of yesterday. The rule was effective March 15. It's possible the cruise line may run into issues regarding how the "rule" is interpreted, but I haven't heard of this being an issue for any ship--so far. Therefore, barring any unforeseen development, I think you can count on enjoying you cruise itinerary as planned--unless you are a Chinese citizen. Those individuals will need to stay on the ship when docked in Korean ports, because China will not reauthorize reentry if their passport says they went shore in S. Korea.

My guess is they are referring to the China based ships which are the ones sailing round-trip out of Boashan/Shanghai. Most of the guests on those itineraries are from China. Some of those same ships will sail out of Singapore too - predominantly with international guests, so these itineraries are likely to stay as planned. Hope that helps.

 

 

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FYI - just received an e-link to a developing news story from my Hong Kong, PRC contacts (article in traditional Chinese ... sorry, can't find an equivalent one in English) quoting their CCYIA trade group source - http://std.stheadline.com/instant/articles/detail/365978

https://jingdaily.com/making-sense-chinas-booming-cruise-industry/

In brief, between 3/15 and end of 2017, over 300 cruises based in China scheduled to call on South Korea ports affecting over 1 million (mostly Chinese) visitors are being affected by the latest actions taken by the government's call to leverage their boycott/sanctions against SK.

 

Royal Caribbean immediately announced changes to 36 of their itineraries and calling on other ports instead ... thus, please check with your favorite cruise lines and TA.