Virgin Voyages said it will reroute all future Red Sea-bound ships. (Resilient Lady’s sister ship Scarlet Lady is pictured). Credit: Virgin Voyages

Cruise line Virgin Voyages said it will reroute its Europe-bound vessel Resilient Lady to avoid the “current conflict in the Middle East” and the ship’s repositioning voyage will instead take it around the Cape of Good Hope and make stops in South Africa, Namibia and Cape Verde. 

The ship’s usual route would take it through the Suez Canal, via Safaga in Egypt and Dubai. 

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Virgin’s cruise ship is currently sailing from Sydney to Hobart, Australia, before beginning its journey to Europe on 27 March. 

The adult-only line said due to the ongoing violence in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait “we have been left with no choice but to make changes to Resilient Lady’s repositioning voyage.” 

Future sailings

The ship will still make its way from Sydney to Athens but with extended time at sea, according to Virgin Voyages. 

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It said that passengers with bookings on the amended trip will have the options of maintaining their reservations on the new route, swapping reservations for “future voyage credit”, or a full refund.  

The company said it would also protect the commissions of its travel advisors regarding the bookings already made. 

Although only one route has been affected so far, Virgin Voyages said would review all future voyages and communicate any future changes. 

“With the very likely continuation of this escalated regional conflict top-of-mind, and in an effort to minimize further disruptions to our passengers’ future vacation plans, Virgin Voyages is now conducting a full review of other geographically similar repositioning voyages and linked sailings,” a company statement explained.