Due to the coronavirus, Riviera Travel has suspended all holidays up to and including 23 April 2020.

For customers departing on holidays booked before that date, a member of the company’s team will be in contact.

In a statement by national sales manager, Thomas Morgan, it said: “Given the challenging and rapidly changing situation with covid-19 we have decided to suspend all our holidays up to and including departures on 23 April 2020.

“So what happens now? If they have not already done so, a member of our reservations team will contact you directly to discuss the alternatives available to your customers.

“As I’m sure you can imagine, our phones are very busy so please bear with us as we contact travel agents in departure date order.”

For bookings departing from 24 April onwards, the company has introduced a new temporary flexible booking policy.

It added: “Currently we plan to resume operating again from 24th April. However, as you will appreciate, nobody really knows how things will evolve and we understand your clients may have some concerns about their booking.

“Rest assured if circumstances do change such that their holiday is impacted in some way, then we’ll contact you directly.”

Many cruise lines have suspended sailings until at least April in an effort to control the outbreak of the virus.

Released today, a report showed that the virus survived in cabins for up to 17 days on Diamond Princess, the first cruise ship quarantined.

To discuss any bookings, agents can ring one of Riviera’s travel specialists on 01283 744370, or email [email protected].

Visit gov.uk for the latest coronavirus travel updates.

Our view:

The cruise industry is facing an unprecedented and ever-changing situation, and we are committed to keeping you informed with the most up-to-date news. However, we firmly believe that the cruise industry will bounce back. When it does, we’ll be on hand to help you get back to selling the cruises that people love.