In response to the coronavirus outbreak, NYK Cruises Co. Ltd., part of Japanese shipping company NYK, announced it will cancel all cruises on Asuka II scheduled to sail in March.
The cancellation applies also for its 103-day world cruise, which was scheduled to depart from Japan on April 2 and return in July.
The 1990-built Asuka II offers short cruises within Japan, from Yokohama and Kobe.
The company noted it would refund all travel fees to passengers.
The announcement comes amid major disruptions to global trade, and to the cruise industry in particular, brought by the coronavirus globally.
In the latest of disruptions, Jamaican and Cayman health authorities have refused to let passengers disembark from cruise ship MSC Meraviglia, after a crew member was reported with flu symptoms. The ship carries more than 4,500 passengers and 1,600 crew members.
