River cruise lines suspend Nile voyages, Middle East land tours through March

Viking has cancelled its Nile River cruises through the end of March as conflict continues between the U.S., Israel and Iran.

Other river cruise operators are also scaling back in the Middle East. Avalon Waterways has halted its Egypt sailings for the month, while Tauck has suspended its Egypt land tours, including those that feature river cruise segments.

Its Egypt: Jewels of the Nile itinerary is expected to resume after March 15, while the Jordan & Egypt: Petra to the Pyramids tour is paused for the month of March.

AmaWaterways said Tuesday that it has suspended its Jordan land extension and Dubai programs through March 31.

The company said its March river cruises in Egypt will proceed as planned, however.

“Our operations in Egypt remain supported and stable,” the river line wrote in a statement posted to its website.

Guests currently in Egypt have also indicated they strongly wish to continue their trips, the company wrote.

Additionally, any guest scheduled for a March cruise who prefers to change their plans may rebook without incurring any penalties.

AmaWaterways has also suspended its optional four-night post-cruise land package in Israel indefinitely.

Guests with the post-cruise Israel package scheduled to depart on Secrets of Egypt & the Nile itinerary starting in Cairo will be refunded for the Israel land portion as well as the Cairo to Tel Aviv airfare.

Global Affairs Canada’s travel advisory for Egypt is to ‘Exercise a high degree of caution” due to ongoing tensions in the region, the unpredictable security situation and the threat of terrorism.

Viking made its decision just hours after its call to review fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings, during which executives said they were closely monitoring the situation.

The company currently has guests in Egypt and said it is arranging transportation to move them out of the country.

Viking’s Egypt fleet represents about two per cent of its overall capacity, but the company has been expanding in the market and has previously said it hopes to have a dozen ships operating on the Nile by next year.

Tour ops press pause

The river updates for Egypt come as tour operators temporarily suspend itineraries to various regions in the Middle East.

Intrepid updated its travel outlook on Tuesday (March 3), cancelling all departures to Egypt, Jordan, Oman and Saudi Arabia from March 4 up to and including March 31, 2026.

G Adventures says it will suspend all trip departures in Jordan scheduled to depart between March 3 and March 15, 2026.

Globus family of brands has cancelled March departures to Dubai, Qatar, Egypt and Jordan

Collette, too, has also cancelled tours in Dubai, Egypt and Jordan through March 21.

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