Cruise Ships Seized Brief Hormuz Reopening To Flee Persian Gulf

April 19th, 2026

By Laura Alviž and Julian Lee

Apr 19, 2026, 11:31 AM (Bloomberg) –Several cruise ships trapped in the Persian Gulf as a result of the Iran war raced to exit through the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, taking advantage of a brief reopening of the passageway.

Travel operator TUI Cruises said on Sunday that two of its vessels — Mein Schiff 4 and Mein Schiff 5 — had “successfully passed” the strait by early afternoon.

“The passage took place based on the relevant coordination and approvals from the authorities, in a controlled manner and with careful consideration of the security situation,” the company said in an update on its website.

The two ships traversed the waterway with a reduced crew, after passengers had disembarked in early March, a spokesperson said. The liners safely exited the danger zone and are now in international waters heading toward the Mediterranean, the spokesperson said.

Steamed at Speed

A total of four cruise ships steamed at speed just 45 minutes apart, hugging the Omani coastline as they rounded the tip of the Musandam Peninsula on Saturday, tracking data compiled by Bloomberg showed. A fifth had made the outbound trip on Friday.

The MSC Euribia, operated by MSC Cruises, passed safely through Hormuz after departing Dubai, also in close coordination with the relevant authorities, its owner said. It’s en route toward Northern Europe and is set to depart from the German port of Kiel on May 16 and Copenhagen on May 17, as originally planned, it said in a statement.

Two other ships — Celestyal Journey and Celestyal Discovery, owned by Cyprus-based Louis Plc — also departed, the tracking data showed. Celestyal Journey was among the four that left on Saturday, while Celestyal Discovery departed Friday. Calls to Louis and to Celestyal Cruises on Sunday went unanswered.

The transits were undertaken after Iran declared the strait open for commercial traffic on Friday, only to reverse its decision less than 24 hours later following a refusal by the US to lift its naval blockade of Iran’s vessels.

Observed transits of commercial ships through the strait have ground to a halt again, following a brief surge on Saturday, as tensions heightened and vessels came under gunfire in the waterway.

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This article contains reporting from Bloomberg, published under license.