Bahrain’s cruise industry has been left reeling after it was revealed that the major cruise lines have dropped the destination from their tour programmes for the remainder of the current season, in response to ongoing civil unrest in the Gulf state.The decision is expected to cost Bahrain’s tourism industry at least $5 million directly, while accounting for the loss of 50,000 tourists.”The last cruise liner, Aida from Germany, came in on February 15, a day after the unrest began and that visit passed off peacefully,” Mathias Tourism managing director Richard Mathias told Gulf Daily News.Mathias added that Costa Cruises also decided to cancel its cruises to Bahrain.”Estimates are that each tourist spends at least $125 in the country and that translates to a huge sum,” he said.A spokesperson for Costa Cruises told the Gulf Daily News that the cruise line would resume calling at Bahrain only when the relevant international authorities and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs have declared stability and safety has been restored.The Middle East’s other major cruise operator, Royal Caribbean, earlier dropped Bahrain from its schedule, citing rising fuel costs. It replaced the destination with an overnight stay in the Omani capital, Muscat.
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