The blockades of the IJmuiden sea lock by  Extinction Rebellion which prevent cruise ships from docking in Amsterdam are causing financial damage of between €600,000 and €800,000 per ship, Amsterdam port authority has said.

On Monday, the Disney Cruise Line announced that cruise ship Disney Dream, which carries 4,000 passengers and was supposed to arrive on September 6, would skip the capital because of a potential blockade.

More cruise organisers may cry off, a spokesman for Cruise Port Amsterdam, told the Telegraaf. “We have been told companies are looking for alternatives but we there have not been more cancellations as yet,” he told the paper.

A cancellation means the port of Amsterdam will miss out on port fees but the impact is much wider, the spokesman said. “The total per ship can go up to €800,000, including port fees, terminal fees, tourist tax and passengers and crew spending. This also affects shopkeepers, taxi drivers, guides and security staff,” he said.

Amsterdam councillor Cas van Berkel (JA21), who has asked the council for answers, said the damage will run “into millions” if the campaign continues. What Extinction Rebellion is doing is illegal he said.

“They are blocking a major shipping route. They are attaching themselves to the lock and then a specialised police team has the dangerous job of removing them,” Van Berkel said.

Extinction Rebellion said the blockades have been a great success so far and that they “have their sights on on each and every cruise ship”, one activist wrote on X.

Despite an estimated revenue of €34 million for the city Amsterdam has already set a limit of 100 cruise ships from 2026, almost halving the current total. In addition, the city aims to close the Veemkade terminal altogether by 2035, and move all ocean-going cruises to a new location.

The ban on cruise ships is part of a broad package of measures to limit the growth of tourism and combat nuisance in the Dutch capital. City councillors voted in favour of the move last year.

“The city council wants a liveable, clean and sustainable city,” said council ports chief Hester van Buren. “Sea cruises are a polluting form of tourism and contribute to crowds and pollution.” The “balanced steps,” she said, “aim to meet what is reasonable and acceptable to everyone involved in the North Sea Canal Area”.