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Cruise lines monitoring Ensenada after one-day security alert

PHOTO: ANNE KALOSH CRUISE_Ensenada.jpg
When Ensenada recently popped up in a US Department of State travel advisory, it was cause for particular concern since the port is key for cruise ships based in Southern California.

The weekend before last, an alert about gang violence in Baja California had Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean International skipping calls at Ensenada. The State Department had issued a 'shelter in place' warning for its employees Aug. 13, citing fires, roadblocks and police activity in five Baja cities, including Ensenada.

Carnival Radiance and Navigator of the Seas skip a call

As a result, Carnival Radiance and Navigator of the Seas skipped Ensenada Aug. 14.

After the US warning was lifted Aug. 14, both Carnival and Royal Caribbean subsquently resumed calls.

Monitoring the situation

'After communicating with officials and evaluating the situation, we resumed normal operations and Carnival Radiance made its Ensenada stops as scheduled on Wednesday, Aug. 17, and Sunday, Aug. 21. The safety of our guests is our priority and we will continue monitoring for any developments, as we do every day for all the ports we visit,' a Carnival spokesperson said.

Likewise, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson said that after monitoring the situation and working with local authorities and its own security teams, the line resumed calls.

The situation involving Ensenada was over quickly but it was unsettling given the destination's prominence in the cruise charts. 

Busy winter schedule

Carnival Radiance and Navigator of the Seas are the only cruise ships scheduled for the next few weeks, however more lines and ships are to arrive later in September, with calls climbing as the winter season gets under way.