Dear Celebrity Cruises - What´s you position on ports in Israel?

Dear Celebrity:

We are booked for the Oct. 4th "Holy Land Cruise" visiting Ashdod and Haifa.

With the situation in Israel deteriorating fast, a lot of us registered in the roll call for that cruise are wondering if there is going to be a change or if there is any effort to find alternative ports.

Many are unhappy with the non-existing communication, a few already cancelled the cruise. With the final payment day getting close, I fear there will be more cancellations.

Some information about the issue would be helpful and maybe keep some of us from cancelling the cruise.

Best regards,

Oliver

Twice I was on Celebrity cruises that were scheduled to visit Isreal. We made it once, we didn't make it once. Istanbul was substituted when we could not visit. Anyone booking a cruise to a dangerous part of the world should realize that the ports might be changed. It's about safety and Celebrity would be irresponsible to place their passengers in harms way. There have been many threads on this topic in the past and a search will yield many, many comments and opinions.

Why in heavens name are you sending a letter to Celebrity through here? You aren't going to get an answer.

As a matter of fact, it's highly unlikely home office is going to give you an answer right now. You're cruise is what, 75/90 days out? Everything can change during that time.

You will have to do what you think is best for you. Celebrity and all cruiselines will do what they must to keep their passengers, crew and ships safe.

You are asking am impossible question to answer at this time.

@Orator

We do understand that a possible change of ports would be for our own safety.

Although, of course, the ports in Israel are probably the main reason to book a "Holy Land Cruise", Celebrity is in no way responsible for the situation - no blame here!

All we are asking for is some information. Just as you probably do before your cruises, we would like to plan excursions, get information about what to see and so on.

No complaining about a possible change! We are just trying to make the best out of it - and in order to do so, we need to know what´s going on.

BTW: Istanbul would be a great alternative;)

There is no way to know this far in advance. If it is a deal breaker for you, cancel cruise.

Why in heavens name are you sending a letter to Celebrity through here? You aren't going to get an answer.

 

As a matter of fact, it's highly unlikely home office is going to give you an answer right now. You're cruise is what, 75/90 days out? Everything can change during that time.

 

You will have to do what you think is best for you. Celebrity and all cruiselines will do what they must to keep their passengers, crew and ships safe.

 

You are asking am impossible question to answer at this time.

Celebrity will wait until the last possible minute to announce a change. They kept us well informed while on the ship. The situation can change very quickly. In our case it was the Port Authority in Israel that said we couldn't enter since there were unexploded munitions. The vast majority supported the decision and praised the Captain for his efforts. Of course a small, vocal minority thought that we should have ignored the Port Authority and docked anyway. If you are afraid cancel. If you believe that your cruise will be ruined by missing Israel, cancel. If you don't have faith that Celebrity will do everything possible to protect your safety, cancel. If you want a wonderful cruise, take the cruise.

Why in heavens name are you sending a letter to Celebrity through here? You aren't going to get an answer.

...

Let´s wait and see... If we don´t get a response, we did not lose anything, did we?

BTW: If you are not affected - why do you bother?

Celebrity and all cruiselines will do what they must to keep their passengers, crew and ships safe.

...

100% true! Did I say different?

However, keeping their passengers informed does not contradict that, does it?

I have done this cruise a couple of times, once with Azamara. We were able to dock when with them but not the other one. My point, you are barking up the wrong tree if you truly think you may get an answer on cruise critic from Celebrity. That is not going to happen.

At best, one or two weeks out depending on what is happening in the region, Celebrity and any other cruiseline due there will maybe make a decision to pull out. Then again and the most likely decision, will be made onboard after sailing - at least that is when it will be announced.

I'm just saying to you, you have to make your own decision based on what may or may not happen.

What could they possibly say now other than we are aware of the situation in Israel and will carefully monitor? Check their website for updates. People would yell if they cancelled now and the situation was resolved, as many pray. The tour operators are well aware of the situation as this is not new or rare. The reliable operators don't require advanced payment, so you lose nothing if you miss the ports. Panic on a Roll Call may create negativity that can destroy a cruise!

AIDA has stopped port calls in Israel due to one of their ships taking on shrapnel while in Asood ( I believe this is the correct spelling ) earlier this week. Thank God no one was hurt and the ship suffered no damage.:eek:

:confused:

1) Celebrity has answered on CruiseCritic before - so let´s wait and see.

2) Did I mention I would cancel?

3) Did I mention that I am worried about losing money?

You don´t have to recheck. The answer to 2 and 3 is NO!

Look, if Celebrity was to say that they are aware of the situation and that any decisions have yet to be made, fine!

Up until now all efforts made by quite a number of people from various regions of the globe booked on the cruise to contact Celebrity by email, letter etc. did not get any reply whatsoever.

I love cruising with Celebrity and with the RCI-family and I am going to enjoy my cruises - no doubt. But it is not asked for too much to get a response to a question. Even if the response is that they are evaluating the situation.

Anyway... as I said, if you are not affected by this issue, why are you "barking up the tree"?

If we receive an answer by Celebrity we would appreciate it and you might be suprised. If not, neither you nor I are going to be seriously hurt ;)

So let´s just leave it at that ...

AIDA has stopped port calls in Israel due to one of their ships taking on shrapnel while in Asood ( I believe this is the correct spelling ) earlier this week. Thank God no one was hurt and the ship suffered no damage.:eek:

Correct!

And they have cancelled Ashdod (that´s the name) and all other ports in Israel for the next three months before they reevaluate the situation. I am really not a fan of AIDA. However, they have made a fast and wise decision... in a situation worsening day by day you might not want to wait until something happens.

Interestingly, my boss just got back from a three week trip to Israel, where his daughter has just spent a year. He commented on how safe it was, how the armed forces have locked down the country, and how people are foolish to be apprehensive about visiting there.

That was the day that the death of the 3 Israeli kids in Palestinian territory was reported, and look what's happened since! Just goes to show you, things change very quickly and this may be resolved very quickly as well--October is a long way off. . .

It is way too early for Celebrity to make any decisions about an October cruise. Things in the Middle East change daily. One cannot predict is the situation would escalate or deteriorate by October. They will do whatever they need to do to protect the passengers, but will not make any announcements until the time gets much closer, so a rational decision can be made depending on the situation nearer the cruise date.

We were due to stop in Ashdod in June 2001 and it was changed a few weeks before to Cyprus.

OP is seeking an answer from X but not sure they will have one at this time

But why not switch to another itin while you can....no way anyone can predict situation that far ahead, or if and when cruise line will change the itin

you can enjoy a calmer part of the world and go back to Israel another time if it becomes less volatile.

Things change - for better or worse... true!

Thanks to our regulations in Europe and my travel insurance I do not have to be worried. In situations like this I could cancel without cost at any time. However, I understand many of the people registered in our roll call. They are deeply invested with booked airline tickets and a cruise which did not come cheap.

All of you giving "good" advise: try to understand their situation. They have to make a decision before final payment next week! A decision based on no information! They do not have the luxury to wait and see - it could and would cost them any way you put it.

I wonder how cool some of you would be in the same situation...

Things change - for better or worse... true!

 

Thanks to our regulations in Europe and my travel insurance I do not have to be worried. In situations like this I could cancel without cost at any time. However, I understand many of the people registered in our roll call. They are deeply invested with booked airline tickets and a cruise which did not come cheap.

 

All of you giving "good" advise: try to understand their situation. They have to make a decision before final payment next week! A decision based on no information! They do not have the luxury to wait and see - it could and would cost them any way you put it.

 

I wonder how cool some of you would be in the same situation...

I HAVE been in the same situation TWICE! I understand that people handle problems in a variety of ways that reflect their different personalities. Some people are fairly easy going and remain calm just going with the flow. Others go into panic mode quite easily.

Celebrity will make a decision when appropriate for them to make a decision. They will announce their plans when they are ready to announce their plans. Some people will cancel and their cabins will be filled by others who got a bargain price by waiting for panic to set in.

I went to your Roll Call and read what you said. Your post was very reasonable and I agree with you that many would be upset if Celebrity cancelled too far in advance. Hopefully for all involved there will be peace and you will enjoy your trip to Israel.

Hopefully for all involved there will be peace and you will enjoy your trip to Israel.

You know, that would be the best thing to happen. All we have to loose is a cruise - many innocent people are loosing their lives.

I appreciate and enjoy the exchange with reasonable people just as you seem to be. Being a CC member for quite some time I knew that some of the answers given to a question not even asked were to be expected. Some folks can´t read but they can shout ;)

Celebrity will wait until the last possible minute to announce a change. They kept us well informed while on the ship. The situation can change very quickly. In our case it was the Port Authority in Israel that said we couldn't enter since there were unexploded munitions. The vast majority supported the decision and praised the Captain for his efforts. Of course a small, vocal minority thought that we should have ignored the Port Authority and docked anyway. If you are afraid cancel. If you believe that your cruise will be ruined by missing Israel, cancel. If you don't have faith that Celebrity will do everything possible to protect your safety, cancel. If you want a wonderful cruise, take the cruise.

It's way too early for Celebrity to make any sort of announcement.

LuLu

 

All of you giving "good" advise: try to understand their situation. They have to make a decision before final payment next week! A decision based on no information! They do not have the luxury to wait and see - it could and would cost them any way you put it.

 

I wonder how cool some of you would be in the same situation...

Many of us have been in similar situations -- it is one of the risks of cruising (or traveling for that matter) to some locations. I have been in a situation where it was unclear if Egyptian ports would be made, and I very nearly booked a Black Sea cruise this year which many folks posted about, agonizing whether to cancel or not cancel. Not to mention previous travel to Syria and Lebanon which we felt could be yanked at any time.

The fact is that if they keep their reservation, they will get a cruise -- maybe not to all the ports they would have wanted, but they will not be left with nothing. As I said before, this is a risk of travel and if people cannot live with the uncertainty, they can take steps to cancel the cruise and plan something else.

(Even cruises to "routine" destinations can have hiccups. I was on a Med cruise two years ago where strong winds and heavy seas prevented us making port in Civitavecchia, for Rome. The port was actually closed, so there was no second-guessing the decision. Some people aboard must have been mightily disappointed not to get to a port that was surely viewed as a highlight on the cruise. Yet everyone took it in stride quite well. No shipboard credit or refund was offered -- or thought necessary, so far as I know.)

It's way too early for Celebrity to make any sort of announcement.

LuLu

This is the biggest advantage of booking your air travel with Celebrity.:cool:

OP, so sorry for the dilemma! I agree your approach is reasonable, but as an experienced CCer, you can understand that those seemingly less sympathetic responders aren't shouting, really, they are sighing, because a cruise is NOT the mode of travel anyone should choose if they MUST go to a certain port to attain their trip goal. Missed portside weddings are always the first thing that come to mind, but all variety of heartbreaking missed port stories abound (as cited above--missing Rome, ouch!). And so it is with any cruise to the Middle East, a region sadly characterized by war, not peace, throughout man's history.

X is between a rock and a hard place--I imagine it will hold out hope for peace and a safe call as long as is practically possible. Even then, there is no guarantee peace will endure through the call date.

Best wishes as you all deal with the uncertainty.

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

... because a cruise is NOT the mode of travel anyone should choose if they MUST go to a certain port to attain their trip goal.

I generally agree with you! We have also had port changes and sea days because of bad weather before - I am the first on to shrug things like that off. After all I am on vacation...

This cruise, however, is specifically sold as "Holy Land Cruise" - not much left if you take the holy out of that. So Israel was probably the main reason for most of the people to book this cruise. Each person has to make the decision to cancel or not for himself - I also agree on that. Most are just asking for some information on which they can base their decision.

Most of the things mentioned by others here are last minute changes due to bad weather etc. - unpredictable situations.

Turn on the news! American, European, Israeli news... feel free to choose.

If one is realistic, he will realize that it is more predictable that the situation will not improve within less than two months but probably get worse than to guess it would improve.

Then ask yourself. If you had to decide now to make changes while there are still opportunities with an 80% chance of things not improving would you make a decision or hesitate until the last moment?

The way it is now, most of you are saying passengers should make a decision while Celebrity does not have to make decisions? :confused:

As some here correctly mentioned, Celebrity has a responsibility. Responsibility and leadership is also about making decisions... you will always step on someone´s toes, no matter how you decide. However, in regards to safety of passengers, ship and crew and economic reasons, the wise decision would be to step forward and create an alternative which is attractive enough for passengers to stick with this cruise.

And again: I was not even asking for a specific decision when I addressed Celebrity, I just asked for some information...

So, again, let´s wait and see

We went on this Holy Land cruise 2 years ago. The night before we were to stop at Ashdod, the captain announced that it was unsafe to do so since Hamas were firing rockets into Ashdod. Instead, we docked in Haifa for 4 days. All of the tour companies were aware of this change and met us in Haifa. The only problem was that it made travelling down to the south of Israel a longer trip, but we did manage to get to the Dead Sea and Masada and spent one day in Jerusalem. We also got to Tel Aviv, Safat and Cesaerea (sp). We felt very safe.

Shelley