Cruise line suspends all active volcano tours following White Island tragedy

Cruise line suspends all active volcano tours following White Island tragedy
By Alexandra Coulton


Royal Caribbean has suspended all tours visiting active volcanos after last week’s White Island tragedy.

The volcano on White Island, or Whakaari, erupted on Monday last week while the cruise line’s Ovation of the Seas was leading an excursion on the island.

The death toll climbed to 16 earlier this week, including 10 Australians.

At the time, Royal Caribbean told Travel Weekly that it was heartbroken by the details emerging from the island.

“We are communicating with our guests and their families. We’re making sure they are taken care of in terms of medical help, counselling, accommodations, and transport,” the spokesperson said.

“Our hearts go out to them, and we want to be as supportive as we can.

“We are grateful for the work of all the first responders and medical personnel. We also thank the prime minister and her team, the local authorities and everyone who has reached out to help with their kind thoughts and prayers.”

This morning, the cruise line confirmed it would be suspending all tours visiting active volcanoes but declined to comment further on the matter.

Royal Caribbean spokesperson Melissa Charbonneau told Cruise Critic “Several dozen” existing bookings would be impacted

Passengers onboard the Ovation of the Seas have expressed their disapproval with the way the cruise line handled the tragic event, with one father slamming the line’s lack of information and mental health support.

He said they were left completely in the dark and referred to the experience as a “prison ship“.

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