Virgin Voyages is canceling plans to sail the Resilient Lady in Australia in late 2024 and early 2025, opting not to cruise through the Red Sea to get there from the Mediterranean. Virgin cited geopolitical tensions in the Red Sea.
Following its Mediterranean season on Oct. 20, the ship will reposition to Puerto Rico, sailing seven-, eight-, 10- and 11-night cruises from San Juan that call in St. Maarten; St. Vincent; Cartagena, Colombia; and Dominica.
The line has not yet released an itinerary for the repositioning cruise from Athens to San Juan. John Diorio, Virgin's vice president of North America sales, said the line is reviewing possible routes, which could include calls at Catania, Sicily; Casablanca, Morocco; and Tenerife in the Canary Islands.
The news comes a little more than two weeks after Virgin announced it would sail around Africa in March to reposition the Resilient Lady from Australia to the Mediterranean, avoiding the shortest route through the Red Sea and Suez Canal.
Virgin Voyages sailed its first Australia/New Zealand cruises this year. The line is considering options to return to Australia and the Asia-Pacific region in the future, but that appears to hinge on when Virgin deems the Red Sea to be safe for cruise travel.
Impacted guests have the option to rebook another sailing or receive a full refund. In the event the line can return to Australia for the 2025 season, booked guests will have priority to book those sailings.
Virgin Voyages is the latest line to make itinerary adjustments because of attacks by Houthi militants in Yemen on shipping vessels in the Red Sea. Several cruise lines and shipping companies have rerouted their ships away from the region.