Royal Caribbean’s Tours to and from Japan Cancelled on Nuclear Concerns

Royal Caribbean’s Tours to and from Japan Cancelled on Nuclear Concerns

Royal Caribbean has decided not to call at Japanese ports from April in the wake of the nuclear crisis triggered by the March 11 earthquake, its Japanese agency said Wednesday. Royal Caribbean International has cancelled all seven of the 70,000-ton ship's voyages through June that involved calls at Japanese ports. These include a nine-day itinerary to Shanghai and South Korea from April 30 that begins and ends in Yokohama. Almost all 1,800 berths had been booked.

Fifteen international container vessels have also canceled port calls during the two weeks from March 14 through Sunday following the magnitude 9.0 quake and ensuing tsunami, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

Royal Caribbean said in an announcement carried by the Japanese agency, Miki Tourist K.K., on its website that it has made the "difficult decision" after carefully following events following the quake. With no apparent prospects of the nuclear crisis being resolved in the short term, it said it could not guarantee the safety of passengers.

Other port calls that have been scrapped include those at Beppu in southwestern Japan, Aomori in northeastern Japan and Otaru in northern Japan, as well as stops at the major cities of Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka.