Cruise lines cancel scheduled Bali stops
Concerns regarding the threat of terrorism have caused a number of cruise lines to cancel scheduled port calls to Bali, as numerous travel advisories warn of potential terrorist attacks.
Royal Caribbean Cruises and Celebrity Cruises have both announced they would be leaving the Indonesian island off itineraries for the Radiance of the Seas and Celebrity Millennium cruises.
The Celebrity Millennium cruise was due to spend a night in Bali on March 16 and the Radiance of the Seas had originally planned to dock at the island on the following day.
Royal Caribbean Cruises apologised to guests of the cruise in a statement, “Our guests’ vacation time is precious and we did not take these decisions lightly. The safety of our guests and crew is always our foremost concern. We will continue to monitor the security situation in Indonesia and will notify guests or their travel agents if there are changes to future sailings that visit Indonesia.”
Royal Caribbean’s Radiance is set to remain at sea for an additional day as part of the revamped itinerary, and the Celebrity Millennium will spend an extra day in Singapore and another in Darwin.
The terrorists Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is currently warning tourists to exercise a high degree of caution when visiting areas of Indonesia that includes Jakarta, Bali and Lombok, due to the relatively high threat of terrorist attack.
According to the Australian government’s Smart Traveller resource, “Recent indications suggest that terrorists may be in the advanced stages of preparing attacks in Indonesia (see Safety and Security). The overall level of advice has not changed. We advise you to exercise a high degree of caution in Indonesia, including Bali.”
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