Following Virgin Voyages‘ recent announcement regarding the cruise line’s repositioning voyages, the company has now updated Resilient Lady‘s 2024/2025 season in Australia.
In a statement received by Virgin Voyages, the company said: “With the safety of our passengers and crew as our number one priority, Virgin Voyages recently shared a change of course for our early 2024 repositioning voyage from Australia to the Med. On the heels of these recent changes and based on the regional and government advice we have received, we remain very concerned about potential escalations in the Red Sea over the next 12 months. This significant and ongoing conflict puts unacceptable risks for safe passage through the region for our Sailors, crew and vessel (Resilient Lady). As a result, we have been left with no choice but to cancel our 2024/25 voyage season plans for Resilient Lady, impacting the late 2024 and early 2025 repositioning voyages between Europe and Australia and a second sailing season in Australian waters.”
“To say that we are disappointed to have come to this tough conclusion is an understatement. These adjustments are happening now in order to minimize potential future disruption to our passengers’ holiday plans knowing there is a high likelihood that changes would need to happen in the future.”
Impacted Sailors will have the option to rebook another voyage or opt for a full refund given the change in plans.
Resilient Lady will now complete her Mediterranean sailing season on October 20th, 2024 and divert course sailing to San Juan, Puerto Rico for a new Caribbean season offering 7, 8, 10 and 11-night voyages visiting St. Maarten, St. Vincent, Colombia, and Dominica.
Virgin Voyages is currently reviewing Resilient Lady’s repositioning routes from Athens to San Juan, and will share these as soon as they’re ready. The company has already announced the voyages will feature stunning ports including Catania, Casablanca, and Tenerife.
Virgin Voyages concludes: “We are currently working through options to return to Australia and the Asia Pacific region once regional repositioning opportunities become more tenable. We will share updates on future itineraries across the fleet as soon as possible, and in the event that we return for the 25’ season, existing booked Sailors will have priority to move onto these sailings. In the meantime, we know how much Aussie and New Zealand tourists enjoy visiting Europe and with two ships taking in standout destinations from our home ports in Barcelona (Spain), Athens (Greece) and Portsmouth (UK) we look forward to welcoming sailors to Europe so they can experience it the Virgin way.”
Contact us for additional information and to book your voyage with Virgin Voyages.