How the European Migrant Crisis Affects Mediterranean Cruising
Photo Credit: Ruby Princess in Mykonos, Greece. Flickr / Raging Wire
Skift Take
Cruise lines have spent most of the year dealing with economic and geopolitical crises in Europe, so they're prepared to make a profit regardless of continued chaos in the Mediterranean. A worst-case scenario is a messy incident involving a cruise ship and migrant vessel, however, that could scare the public away from European cruises.
Migrants and refugees fleeing chaos in the Middle East have become a major geopolitical challenge to countries in the European Union, and cruise lines have shifted itineraries away from affected ports in order to avoid the crisis.
Lines sailing the region have pulled ships from port calls at the Greek island of Lesbos, which has received more than 20,000 refugees in the last few months. Lesbos has become a de facto entry point for migrants into Greece, due to its location six miles off the coast of Turkey.
If the migrant crisis continues and begins to affect the navigability of the Mediterranean, the public could move its bookings away from European cruises. Cruise ships
