Press update | m/v Hondius: 9 May 2026, 23:00 hrs CET | News

9 May 2026, 23:00 hrs CET

Oceanwide Expeditions continues to work towards a conclusion to the medical situation on board m/v Hondius.

For a detailed update on the medical situation of passengers and crew, both currently aboard m/v Hondius and those receiving medical care in several countries, we kindly refer to the WHO: https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2026-DON600. A statement from Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the WHO, is found below: https://www.who.int/news/item/09-05-2026-message-by-the-who-director-general-to-the-people-of-tenerife-regarding-the-hantavirus-response

The vessel is scheduled to arrive at the port of Granadilla, Tenerife, on Sunday, 10 May, at 05:30 AM local time. All guests and a limited number of crew members are expected to begin to disembark from m/v Hondius in managed groups at Granadilla, from around 08:00 AM local time. Once disembarked, they will be transferred immediately to their allocated aircraft.

Oceanwide Expeditions is not involved in the planning and facilitation of guest screening and repatriation. As outlined by the WHO, in partnership with a number of international organizations and governments, guests will be transported by air to their respective countries, where they will enter quarantine procedures. These procedures are determined by respective national authorities. No quarantine of non-Spanish nationals will take place in Spain.

Disembarkation will take place using either the Zodiac craft of m/v Hondius, or launch boats, with a maximum of 5 passengers per Zodiac or 10 passengers per launch boat in accordance with defined health protocols. The sequence of disembarkation will be coordinated with arriving repatriation flights. Luggage of all guests will remain on board m/v Hondius. Oceanwide Expeditions is in contact with all guests regarding the process for returning all luggage safely to them.

After the guest and limited crew have disembarked, m/v Hondius will bunker and take on necessary supplies at Santa Cruz, Tenerife. Following this, the vessel will transit to the port of Rotterdam, the Netherlands with the remaining crew members aboard. Further details regarding the vessel's arrival in Rotterdam will be provided when available. The expected sailing time to Rotterdam is around 5 days.

For all inquiries relating to shore processes, we refer to the WHO.

We would like to issue a confirmation of the following list of nationalities as being on board m/v Hondius in April. Of the 114 guests that departed Ushuaia, Argentina with m/v Hondius on April 1, there were 3 guests traveling having already traveled with m/v Hondius from 20 March - 31 March (Ushuaia-Antarctica-Ushuaia): 1 Greek national and 2 Dutch nationals. All three individuals have not developed symptoms.

All media inquiries should be directed to: Mrs. Kiki Hirschfeldt: [email protected]

For all other matters, we refer to our previous press updates. The unchanged list of previous official communications is as follows:

9 May 2026, 13:30 hrs CET

https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/press/press-update-m-v-hondius-9-may-2026-13-30-hrs-cet

8 May 2026, 19:00 hrs CET

https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/press/press-update-m-v-hondius-8-may-2026-19-00-hrs-cet

7 May 2026, 17:15 hrs CET

https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/press/press-update-m-v-hondius-7-may-2026-17-15-hrs-cet

7 May 2026, 11:30 hrs CET

https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/press/press-update-m-v-hondius-7-may-2026-11-30-hrs-cet

6 May 2026, 22:45 hrs CET

https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/blog/press-update-m-v-hondius-6-may-2026-22-45-hrs-cet