Europe’s Unrest Has Travel Advisors’ Phones Ringing Off the Hook

From reassuring worried clients to handling cancellations, travel advisors are navigating a wave of concerns about European trips — and helping travelers decide whether to go, change plans, or stay home. 

When Ilana Schattauer boarded the Costa Toscana on Oct. 18 for a fam-and-press trip with about 50 travel advisors, she knew protests were planned at several European ports. She was particularly mindful of Marseille, but not concerned enough to cancel. 

As administrator of Life Well Cruised, a partner of MEI Travel, “it’s not the first time I’ve been in a situation where there was civil unrest,” Schattauer said. “I was keeping an eye on Marseille. But I figured we could trust the cruise ship not to go somewhere that is not safe.” 

The cruise proceeded smoothly, calling in Barcelona, Sardinia, Genoa, Naples and Rome. But on the final day, all excursions in Marseille were canceled, and passengers were advised that leaving the ship would be at their own risk. 

“No thank you,” Schattauer decided. “Our visit to Aix-en-Provence will wait for another trip.” 

She still plans to take her next Mediterranean cruise, booked for the spring, and hopes the unrest will subside. 

“I’m hoping this will die down, like many instances of volatility over the past couple of years,” she said. “It’s part of European culture to have strikes and protests.” 

Still, she acknowledged, this time seems “a little different.” 

And she is hardly alone in hearing that concern from travelers. 

Across the travel-advisor community, clients are calling with questions about unrest in European cities, disrupted itineraries and whether their long-awaited vacations should proceed as planned. At the same time, low water levels on European rivers and soaring airfares are adding to the challenges of managing trips across the Atlantic. 

For advisors, the response ranges from reassuring clients and consulting local contacts to rearranging itineraries, fielding cancellation requests and helping travelers consider destinations they might not otherwise have explored. 

Real-time Information Can Make the Difference

Sometimes, a conversation and reliable information are enough to keep a trip on track. 

When a group of six clients headed to Paris for Thanksgiving contacted Jeanne Polocheck of Well Traveled Texan, she consulted her local contacts before calling them back. “Speaking with hoteliers and our DMCs on the ground really helps get real-time information we can share with clients,” she said. 

The group is still planning to go. 

Robin Isquith took a similarly measured approach with clients scheduled to sail with Tauck from Paris in May. She addressed their concerns point by point, emphasizing that circumstances could change significantly over the next seven months and that their time in Paris would be limited to a day of touring before the ship continued to other ports. 

She also reminded them that Tauck could change the Paris touring arrangements if necessary and that their itinerary did not include Lyon or Marseille, where demonstrations were also a concern. 

Another recommendation: enroll in the U.S. Department of State’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), which allows U.S. citizens traveling abroad to receive relevant safety updates and helps the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate contact them in an emergency. 

The message: Stay informed, keep an eye on developments and make decisions based on the circumstances closer to departure. 

When Reassurance Isn’t Enough

For some travelers, however, the anxiety has proved too great to overcome. 

At Pineapple 7, Grace Yee got a call last Saturday when her clients in Florence received U.S. State Department alerts about the conflict. When stores and restaurants on the same street as their hotel began boarding up windows, they canceled the remainder of their independent vacation. 

Kim Kellar of Cohasset Travel Inc. has seen clients reconsider how they plan their trips, too. Her clients traveling in 2027 “have now agreed that DIY is not the way to go, and working with my recommended DMC partners for in-travel support is advantageous,” she said. 

But another client, who was in Normandy, canceled a three-night extension in Paris and flew home early. 

For Dillon Guyer of Guyer Travel, the impact is reaching beyond individual vacations. For the first time in five years, he has been unable to fill his annual student group to Europe. 

“The kids and families want domestic,” he said. 

Eileen Wolejsza of Eileen’s Escapes LLC also lost a potential booking when a prospective client interested in an escorted tour to London and Paris next year called to say she was no longer interested because “Paris is not an option at this time.”  

Amber Betts of Esteem Journeys LLC is concerned about the effect on upcoming holiday travel. Of two couples she booked on river cruises over Christmas, one has already canceled, and she worries the other may follow. A separate couple planning a 10-day stay in Paris in November also canceled. 

“It’s rough,” she says. 

At Cruise Planners, Ann Marie Vis is dealing with a Collette tour group that wants to cancel a trip scheduled to begin in Nice. 

“One of the travelers talked to someone who just got back and said the airport was blockaded and they almost missed their flights,” she said. “So now they all want to cancel.” 

Flexibility Is Part of the Story 

Not every advisor is seeing clients abandon their European plans. 

Stamie Turner of Her Dream Vacation, which specializes in small-group tours for solo women travelers, has lost just one traveler from her November Christmas Markets tour to London and Paris. She has focused on the benefits of traveling with a small group and the ability to adjust plans if circumstances change. 

“I completely understand the concerns surrounding the protests and unrest in Paris,” she said. “However, I believe experienced travelers recognize the importance of staying informed, monitoring developments, and making thoughtful decisions rather than reacting prematurely.” 

One of the advantages of small-group travel, she notes, is the ability to adapt itineraries, adjust activities and make alternative arrangements as needed. 

“Travel often requires a balance of awareness, preparation, and perspective,” she says. “While we will continue to monitor the situation closely, I don’t believe cancellation is necessarily the best response when we have the ability to remain flexible and make informed decisions as our departure approaches.” 

And for Rebecca Alesia of SmartFlyer, the key is helping clients make decisions without steering them toward any one option.  

“This is something we’re hearing about a great deal right now, both from clients planning a Europe trip for next year and from those who are about to depart,” she says. “Our approach is the same one we take with any destination where clients raise safety concerns. We stay calm and supportive, share the best information available, and help clients think through their options without pushing them in either direction.” 

For some travelers, that means keeping their plans while building in more flexibility. For others, it means postponing or rethinking the trip. 

“Both are valid choices, and our job is to make whichever one they land on as easy as possible,” she says. 

It also helps that she herself was just in Paris. “I mention that not to make any claims about safety, but because it’s a reminder of how quickly things change,” she says. “Only two weeks ago, everything was calm, and it may well be that way again in very short order. Helping clients keep that perspective is part of how to be a good advisor.” 

Looking Beyond Europe 

The uncertainty is also creating opportunities to introduce clients to destinations they might not have considered otherwise. 

“We’re seeing a lot of requests for Asia, including South Korea, which is newer for us, along with strong interest in South America,” Alesia said. 

“When you’ve been in this business long enough, you see that destination preferences are cyclical. Europe will always have its pull. But in the meantime, there’s a whole world out there.” 

For travel advisors, the challenge is not simply convincing clients to keep their European vacations. It is helping them navigate uncertainty, understand their options and make informed choices — whether that means proceeding as planned, adjusting an itinerary, postponing a trip or discovering somewhere new.