Paying big to evacuate Lebanon on a yacht

Beirut [Lebanon], October 6: The 24-meter-long, $1.3 million Princess 2010 cruise ship used to cater to guests who wanted to experience the Lebanese coastline , with tickets costing $600 per person. However, since the outbreak of the Hezbollah-Israel conflict and Tel Aviv's recent escalation of attacks on Lebanon, the cruise ship has changed its mission to ferry families out of Beirut to Cyprus.
Bottles of champagne have now been replaced by hastily packed suitcases. To board the Princess cruise ship to Cyprus , each person must pay $1,800 (more than 44 million VND). This is not cheap, but the demand is still very high, as people are looking for any opportunity to evacuate, according to The Guardian on October 5.
"The trips are fully booked, we have done about 30 trips on two boats since the bombing started on September 23," said broker Khailil Bechara, who works with boat captains to bring people to Cyprus.
Huge explosions were heard near Beirut's main airport on October 4. Although the airport remained operational, only the national airline , Lebanese Air, was flying in. Residents of the Lebanese capital struggled to get tickets to leave, while embassies prioritized sending private planes to pick up their citizens.
Most Lebanese cannot afford a place on a luxury cruise ship and many do not have visas to enter Cyprus, making it an unviable option for many, while the limited number of flights makes it even more difficult for people to leave.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper