Costa and AIDA cancel 2026/27 Middle East cruises as ships redeploy to Europe

Costa Cruises and AIDA Cruises have confirmed that they will not operate cruises in the Middle East during the 2026/27 winter season, with both brands adjusting their deployment plans and repositioning ships to alternative regions.

Costa said that its LNG-powered ship Costa Smeralda will no longer sail in the Arabian Gulf as previously scheduled. Instead, the vessel will operate a programme in the Canary Islands and Madeira, introducing a new seven-day itinerary between the two archipelagos.

“With this decision, Costa intends to provide clarity and planning certainty for all guests and travel partners at an early stage,” Costa said.

“As the outlook in the Middle East remains uncertain for the winter season 2026/27, Costa will not operate itineraries in the area for the upcoming season to ensure every Costa voyage is always relaxing, enjoyable and worry-free,” the company added.

Under the revised deployment, Costa Smeralda will operate the Canary Islands programme following a planned drydock. Costa said the ship’s new schedule will significantly increase the company’s guest capacity in the region.

The redeployment also affects Costa Pacifica, which had originally been scheduled to operate cruises in the Canary Islands and Madeira. After its own drydock, that ship will instead be repositioned to the Western Mediterranean.

From there, Costa Pacifica will operate a combination of seven-day itineraries visiting Western Mediterranean destinations and longer voyages covering parts of Southern Europe and North Africa. The company also indicated that new extended itineraries are planned as part of the programme.

The changes mean that the previously scheduled repositioning voyages for Costa Smeralda between Europe and the United Arab Emirates will not take place. Passengers booked on those sailings, as well as guests booked on the cancelled Middle East cruises, will be able to transfer to other Costa sailings.

Costa said affected guests may choose another cruise and will receive €200 in onboard credit per cabin, equivalent to €100 per person for two guests sharing a cabin. Passengers booked on Costa Pacifica’s former Canary Islands programme will be transferred to the new Costa Smeralda itineraries under the same conditions.

New itineraries for both ships are expected to open for booking before the end of March.

AIDA Cruises has also announced that it will suspend operations in the Middle East for the 2026/27 winter season. The brand had previously planned to deploy AIDAprima in the region during that period.

“AIDA Cruises will not offer any cruises in the Middle East during the winter of 2026/27 as the situation in the region remains uncertain and cannot be reliably predicted for the foreseeable future,” the company said.

As part of the decision, repositioning voyages for AIDAprima that were planned to sail around Africa en route to the Gulf have also been cancelled.

Passengers booked on those sailings will be contacted directly by the cruise line and travel agency partners will also be informed of the itinerary changes.

Guests affected by the cancellations will be able to rebook an alternative AIDA cruise by May 10th, 2026, with onboard credit of €200 per cabin for double occupancy or €100 for single occupancy.

The company said the revised winter deployment for AIDAprima will be announced soon, with bookings expected to open from mid-April.

Despite the cancellation of the 2026/27 season, AIDA Cruises indicated that it intends to return to the Middle East in the following winter, with AIDAperla scheduled to operate itineraries in the region during the 2027/28 season.