Week in Review – June 7, 2013

storm cloudsEurope topped the news this week as heavy flooding disrupted travel across the region.

Heavy rains and record flooding affected the Czech Republic, Austria, Germany, Hungary and Poland. In Prague, the famous Charles Bridge was closed and the city’s metro system was shut down.

The flooding also impacted European river cruise lines as they were forced to cancel or alter cruises to avoid swollen river conditions. Avalon Waterways, Viking River Cruises, AmaWaterways and Uniworld have all issued updates regarding their itineraries. Additionally, Scenic Cruises has issued an update on its Danube itineraries.

In other cruise news, industry reaction to the fire on Royal Caribbean’s Grandeur of the Seas continued this week as we spoke to top agents and industry leaders for their take on the company’s response to the incident.

Celebrity Cruises suffered a setback when the Celebrity Xpedition had its permit to enter the Galapagos National Park temporarily suspended by the local authority, prompting the line to cancel its June 2 cruise. The Galapagos National Park had cited Celebrity Xpedition for transporting and storing frozen lobster tails in the Galapagos while out of season. "While we anticipate that our license to sail in the Galapagos will be restored shortly, the situation is still fluid," the line said in a statement.

In Alaska cruises, tragedy struck when one passenger was killed and five injured in a shore trip accident. The passengers from the National Geographic Expeditions Sea Bird had been on a float plane trip that crashed into a mountainside near Petersbrug, AK. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.

Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for the latest travel industry news, trends and updates.