Andrea Zelinski
After a seven-month hiatus spurred by political instability in Haiti, Royal Caribbean International is scheduled to return to Labadee, its private destination there.
The first ship, the Adventure of the Seas, is expected to return today, followed by Symphony of the Seas on Thursday, the latter thanks to a Hurricane Milton-related itinerary change.
The return has been a long time quietly coming. According to the website Cruise Hive, it was a guest who noticed Labadee on their itinerary and took to social media, leading Royal to confirm the news.
Royal Caribbean suspended calls at Labadee in March in light of political instability in the country. At the time, gangs had carried out a series of attacks, including freeing prisoners from prisons. The U.S. and the United Nations began to withdraw staff from the country. Royal Caribbean also pulled out of Haiti, at first halting calls for a week at a time then for months at a time.
The line did not respond to a request for comment about what led it to return to Labadee now, although in a report about Royal's return to Labadee, the Street reported that, according to Royal, some airlines have resumed operations in and out of the country.
The Street report also pointed out that Labadee is fenced off.
But as Royal plans its return, tensions have erupted again, Reuters reported. Gang members on Friday killed at least 70 people in Pont-Sonde, which sits 100 miles (or what Google Maps determined is a four-and-a-half-hour drive) from Labadee.
A Royal Caribbean spokesperson said the line's Global Security and Intel Team has been closely monitoring the evolving situation in Haiti as it prepares for its return. "The safety and security of our guests, crew, and communities we visit are our top priority," the spokesperson said.
It will be interesting to see if Royal's return to Labadee sticks. While Labadee is situated in a small part of the northern coast of the country, the U.S. State Department's last advisory, issued Sept. 18, advises Americans against travel to Haiti.
Other ships scheduled to return through the end of the year include Explorer of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas, Grandeur of the Seas, Independence of the Seas, Oasis of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas.