Carnival Corp monitoring Middle East developments, says CEO Josh Weinstein

Carnival Corporation is closely monitoring the rapidly evolving situation in the Middle East, but says the ongoing Israel–Iran tensions have not yet had any material impact on its operations. 

CEO Josh Weinstein addressed the issue directly during the company’s second quarter 2025 earnings call this week, noting that events are developing too quickly to make any definitive projections.

“The escalation of the past two weeks, culminating over the last few days, has been swift,” Weinstein said. “While we certainly hope for a quick and peaceful resolution, it has not yet had any discernible impact on our business. This is all unfolding too quickly in real-time to try to project how it could impact our future business.”

Weinstein confirmed that Carnival is maintaining a close watch on developments in the region. “Like many others, we will actively monitor the situation over the coming days and weeks to evaluate its potential effects on our business and provide updates as needed,” he said. 

“In the interim, our thoughts and prayers are for the safety of all innocent civilians and for the brave men and women of the U.S. Armed forces, who work tirelessly to protect the United States of America.”

Although major changes are not currently planned, Weinstein acknowledged that certain itineraries could be impacted if tensions continue to rise, particularly in the Gulf region.

“We really only have a couple of ships at the very end of this year and for the winter, a few months into 2026, that would potentially have their itineraries impacted, and that’s because they go and base themselves out of Dubai,” he explained.

Dubai has become an increasingly important homeport for Carnival brands such as Costa Cruises and AIDA Cruises, which have announced winter Gulf sailings through early 2027, and the cruise company has its regional hub at Dubai Harbour.

However, escalating regional instability—particularly involving strategic chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz—has prompted cruise lines to begin reviewing contingency options.

“We obviously have mitigation plans, and we’re looking at this, and we’ll make the right decision at the right time,” Weinstein added.

As previously reported by Cruise Arabia & Africa, analysts have warned that further escalation in the conflict could prompt more widespread itinerary changes and insurance implications across the Eastern Mediterranean and Arabian Gulf. For now, however, most major cruise operators appear to be adopting a wait-and-see approach.