Royal Caribbean will be taking part in the Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum, scheduled to take place 21-22 June 2011 at the Onassis Cultural Centre in Athens.  In preparation for the event, Royal Caribbean's Senior Vice President Craig Milan spoke a little about the company's view on the Eastern Mediterannean region.

“The Eastern Mediterranean has become increasingly popular for all three of RCI’s brands, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Azamara, prior to the political upheaval in many of the countries of North Africa this year, and we had been shifting more capacity to the region. However, these events have impacted on the demand for all sailings in the East Mediterranean, not only those which had scheduled calls in Egypt. We are hopeful that the demand improves as we move into 2012 and as such, we did not proceed with any changes in our planning for the next season. Looking towards the future, we have seen opportunity to develop some of the newer and smaller ports to enhance our itineraries in this area, especially in connection with the overcrowding that we are experiencing in Santorini and Mykonos. "

"The Black Sea is also interesting and we see opportunities for growth. Azamara at present has a limited number of sailings which are doing well. We would like to add some sailings for Royal and or Celebrity for 2013.”

Royal Caribbean Vice President John Tercek also commented by adding, "As we move forward, we are also keen to develop source markets for our products, with Greece and Turkey playing a leading role as operational hubs”.

Guests aboard the Splendour of the Seas received a letter in their cabins last week warning them to be extra careful if they were getting off the ship in Turkey to be extra careful because Turkey is experiencing "an increase in threats of terrorist actions" and "It is not recommended that guests travel alone, or visit any remote locations".  The warning was signed by the ship's Captain, Tommy Nyseter.

Splendour of the Seas distributed these letters at the port of Piraeus in Greece to a ship which had a majority of its cruising guests as Americans.  The letter hopes to warn its guests about potential risks found in the country that can be overlooked due Turkey's "warm and welcoming" residents.

The U.S. Department of State issued a warning to American tourists "to be alert to the potential for these types of incidents in urban and tourist areas" and Royal Caribbean's letter echoes the sentiment of this warning bu making in no uncertain terms a firm warning to be vigilant.

The country of Greece is trying to lure back companies looking to invest in the country by cutting bureaucratic red tape that can stall investment plans in the past.  Greece, a country mired by debt, wants to make things easier on companies like Royal Caribbean.  

Earlier this year, Royal Caribbean had plans to use the port of Piraeus as a hub in Greece, but after repeated strikes by unions left thousands of passengers and cruise ships stranded at ports, Royal Caribbean said last week it was dropping plans to use Greece's Piraeus Port as a hub.

Greece is seeking foreign investors to help spur its economy, expected to shrink by about 4 percent this year as it implements a draconian austerity programme to deal with the country's debt crisis.  But it carries an unenviable reputation as one of the most difficult places to do business in the western world due to a web of regulations, restrictive laws and combative unions.