Travel Industry Cuts Flights, Cruises and Tours to Russia

While not quite as emphatic as its counterparts in the sports world, the travel industry has coordinated its own response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In a growing number of countries, the travel sector was given little choice in the matter. The U.S. State Department issued a Do Not Travel advisory to Russia, citing “the unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces in Ukraine, the potential for harassment against U.S. citizens by Russian government security officials, the embassy’s limited ability to assist U.S. citizens in Russia, Covid-19 and related entry restrictions, terrorism, limited flights into and out of Russia, and the arbitrary enforcement of local law.” The agency offered a similar warning to travelers considering a visit to Russian ally Belarus. The U.S. Embassy in Moscow, meanwhile, has warned U.S. citizens to leave as soon as possible. All 27 members of the European Union have banned Russian planes from their airspace. A total of 37 nations have closed their skies to Russian aircraft, including the United States and Canada. That’s led Russian airline Aeroflot to cancel numerous flights to Europe and North America. Snap Halts All Ads in Belarus, Russia, Ukraine The airlines' answer The United States hasn’t outright banned Russian flights, preferring a private-sector approach to the matter. Delta Air Lines suspended its codesharing services with Aeroflot, noting that it “removed our code from Aeroflot-operated services beyond Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport and removed Aeroflot’s code from Delta-operated services from Los Angeles and New York-JFK.” Alaska Airlines, meanwhile, suspended its partnership with Russian Airline S7 and suspended relations with both S7 and Aeroflot. https://twitter.com/AlaskaAirNews/status/1498742330555342859 None of the above halts flights or prevents them from entering the U.S., and it falls well short of European Union President Ursula von der Leyen’s plainly stated criteria: “Our airspace will be closed to every Russian plane—and that includes the private jets of oligarchs.” With Delta, American Airlines and United all vowing to avoid flying over Russia, the U.S. eventually imposed a ban of its own—as announced by President Joe Biden during his State of the Union address. In Ukraine, We as Creatives Now Have One Assignment: Defend Our Land and Stop the War Altering tourism Cruise lines and tour companies have also taken direct action, canceling Russia-related trips and skipping Russian destinations. Seattle based tour provider and travel personality Rick Steves announced in a blog entry entitled “Comrades No More” that his company, Rick Steves’ Europe, will cancel upcoming tours to Russia. Steves’ company just reintroduced tours in February after a lengthy pandemic-induced hiatus. “Our mission at RSE is to help Americans better know and understand our neighbors through travel,” Steves said on his blog. “But when we bring travelers to another country, we also bring their dollars—dollars that would support Putin’s aggression.” No safe harbor Cruise lines, which were especially hard-hit during the pandemic, joined Steves in removing Russia, Ukraine and Black Sea trips from their itineraries. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings—parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises—removed stops in St. Petersburg from more than two dozen itineraries in 2022 and has excised other destinations in Russia and Ukraine. Carnival Corporation—which owns Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America, Costa Cruises, Aida Cruises, P&O Cruises, Cunard Line and Seabourn—also announced that its itineraries will be avoiding Russia for the near future. https://twitter.com/CarnivalPLC/status/1497671488991907849 MSC Cruises, the fourth-largest cruise line in the world, will be skipping St. Petersburg in 2022 as well. Windstar, Viking, Atlas Ocean Voyages and Saga are among cruise lines that have altered itineraries featuring Russian destinations, according to both USA Today and The Points Guy. Celebrity Cruises, in a statement to Adweek, said it will “continuously monitor world events, including the current situation in Ukraine.” Though it isn’t currently sailing in the region, the cruise line “will evaluate whether or not we will visit St. Petersburg, Russia, as scheduled for sailings starting in May,” with alternate ports already in place as a contingency plan. The Client: Ukraine. The Brief: Prevent World War III

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Travel Industry Cuts Flights, Cruises and Tours to Russia

Russian airlines have been banned by nearly 40 nations, while ships and guided groups skip St. Petersburg and other stops

Jason Notte

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Jason Notte