US cruise operations suspended until November
The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) members have voluntary agreed on all the suspension of all US cruise operations until 31 October; while two more cruise voyages report Covid-19 cases
The voluntary suspension comes after CLIA had pledged to voluntarily suspend operations up to 15 September. Extending this to the end of October marks CLIA members actively choosing to extend the suspension of cruise operations beyond the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) no-sail order (which runs until 30 September).
Royal Caribbean Group - which includes Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Azamara and Silversea, all CLIA members – has announced the suspension of its US operations in line with the latest CLIA announcement, saying that the health and safety of its guests, crew, and the communities it visits, was its top priority. Although it noted that its cruises from China and Australia were exempt from this.
This is a difficult decision as we recognise the crushing impact this pandemic has had on our community and every other industry
“We believe it is prudent at this time to voluntarily extend the suspension of US ocean-going cruise operations to 31 October,” CLIA said. “This is a difficult decision as we recognise the crushing impact this pandemic has had on our community and every other industry. However, we believe this proactive action further demonstrates the cruise industry’s commitment to public health and willingness to voluntarily suspend operations in the interest of public health and safety, as has occurred twice prior.”
CLIA noted that members would continue to monitor the situation and that it would consider and earlier restart ‘should conditions in the US change and it becomes possible to consider short, modified sailings’.
New Covid-19 cruise cases
Elsewhere, and following the news that Norwegian cruise liner the MS Roald Amundsen (operated by Hurtigruten) and Pacific liner the Paul Gauguin (operated by Ponant) – were both forced to suspend sailings due to Covid-19 cases, it seems two more ships have since suffered the same fate.
SeaDream Yacht Club’s SeaDream 1, also hailing from Norway, was forced to detain over 200 passengers in the Norwegian harbour of Bodoe Ida Pinneroed after a passenger from a previous trip tested positive for Covid-19 upon returning home to Denmark.
"We sincerely hope that there is no Covid-19 on board, and we are not aware of any other guests or crew who are infected or have any symptoms, but we are taking all necessary precautions," SeaDream Yacht Club said in a statement.
A statement issued by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) states that the Danish passenger is currently asymptomatic and had been so during the entire cruise. The health authority has also received passenger lists and are contacting the municipalities that might have been exposed.
Meanwhile, it has been reported that a river cruise ship in Russia was detained in the city of Nizhny Novgorod on Saturday after nine crew members tested positive for Covid-19. Three of them were hospitalised, and all the passengers on board were bussed home, local authorities said.
ITIJ imagines that reports of new Covid-19 case numbers on these recent sailings will cause a downturn in traveller confidence, and so probably affect an increase in the number of scheduled cruise passengers seeking refunds for cancellations – one can only hope that they have travel insurance policies with sufficient cover should they choose to do so.