Virgin Voyages cancels Dubai cruise, will reposition via Cape Town due to Red Sea crisis

Virgin Voyages is joining nine other cruise lines in cancelling or amending itineraries that were due to sail through the Red Sea in the coming weeks, on the back of an ongoing security crisis in the region.

Virgin Voyages’ vessel Resilient Lady was due to depart Sydney on March 25th bound for Europe, sailing via Singapore and Dubai, offering both ports as embarkation points for shorter legs of the voyage.

The cruise line has now amended the itinerary to sail for Europa via South Africa, meaning that Durban and Cape Town have been added as ports of call, while Dubai and other Asian and Middle Eastern destinations have been dropped.

The decision comes in the wake of an ongoing security crisis in the Red Sea, which connects the Indian Ocean to the Suez Canal, which in turns provides access to the Mediterranean. 

Houthi rebels in Yemen have been firing on ships passing through the Bab Al Mandeb Strait (‘Gateway of Tears’ in Arabic), using drones and missiles, in alleged retaliation for the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, which was itself a retaliation for the October 7th, 2023 terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas.

Although no cruise ships have been targeted, more than 100 cargo vessels have been struck, and at least nine cruise lines have cancelled or amended itineraries passing through the region as a result.

“We remain concerned about potential escalations in this part of the world over the next 12 months and the risk that this presents for safe passage through the region,” Virgin Voyages said in a statement. 

“As a result, we have been left with no choice but to make changes to Resilient Lady’s repositioning voyage taking place on March 27th,” it added. “In place of her former repositioning voyages, the award-winning Resilient Lady will now be departing from Sydney, embarking on an iconic, once-in-a-lifetime sailing around the coast of Africa with a brand new route.”

Resilient Lady will now instead call in Eden and Fremantle (Perth) in Australia, Port Louis (Mauritius Islands), Durban and Cape Town (South Africa), Walvis Bay (Namibia), Praia (Cape Verde), Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Spain), Casablanca (Morocco), Barcelona (Spain), Valletta (Malta), as well as Santorini and Piraeus (Athens) in Greece.

The original repositioning voyage was split into three separate legs: Sydney to Singapore, Singapore to Dubai, and Dubai to Piraeus (Athens).

Resilient Lady will now offer the cruise segments as Sydney to Cape Town (March 27th), Cape Town to Barcelona (April 17th), and Barcelona to Piraeus (Athens) departing May 4th.

“All passengers on these former three legs of the repositioning voyages will have guaranteed spots on these sailings at no additional cost and a price protection commitment in place,” Virgin Voyages said in its statement.

It added that if the dates for the revised itineraries are not convenient, passengers can receive a Future Voyage Credit based on their paid balance or a full refund. 

The cruise line further announced that it is reconsidering its future repositioning cruises via the Suez Canal, suggesting it may change the itineraries of the 2024 Australia repositioning voyages, which are currently still due to sail via Dubai and the Red Sea.

“With the very likely continuation of this escalated regional conflict top-of-mind, and in an effort to minimise further disruptions to our passengers’ future vacation plans, Virgin Voyages is now conducting a full review of other geographically similar repositioning voyages and linked sailings,” the cruise line said. 

“We will provide an update in the coming weeks on any further changes we will need to make.”