All cruise ships originally scheduled to stop in Nome this summer have been canceled.
City Manager Glenn Steckman gave the announcement at a June 14 city council meeting.
“Our cruise ships have canceled out for the rest of the year,” Steckman said. “We were holding out hope, but Robin Johnson (of Nome Discovery Tours) told us it was not going to happen, and it was confirmed by (Harbormaster Lucas Stotts.)”
Steckman said Nome’s five cruise visits, each with 100 to 150 passengers on board, were all canceled.
Jen Martin with Lindblad Expeditions said the cancellations were caused in part by issues with docking in Provideniya. Russia’s ports are currently closed to tourists for the summer season. Unable to find an alternative itinerary, Lindblad canceled their Nome visits, which included the National Geographic Orion.
“We tried extremely hard to make these voyages happen but found ourselves with no alternative options,” Martin said.
Lindblad Expeditions said these cancellations likely will not change next year’s expected cruise schedule for Nome.
