Royal Caribbean cancels cruises until December, likely to start with ‘test cruises’
Royal Caribbean Group won’t resume U.S. cruises until at least December, the company announced Tuesday.
Cruises on its four brands — Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Azamara and Silversea — are canceled through Nov. 30 worldwide except for cruises from Hong Kong, which are on sale for November. The cruise industry first shut down passenger operations in mid-March amid outbreaks of COVID-19 on several cruise ships.
Last week the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended its cruise ban until Oct. 31. The CDC had planned to ban U.S. cruises until February 2021, but the White House overruled the agency.
Carnival Cruise Line canceled all U.S. cruises for November and December except for those that will leave from PortMiami and Port Canaveral, which are on track to restart Nov. 1. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, Disney Cruise Line and Virgin Voyages are selling cruises for December. MSC Cruises continues to sell cruises for November. Seabourn, owned by Carnival Corporation, canceled cruises on its ship Odyssey through Jan. 15, 2021, Ovation through April 18, 2021 and Encore through May 28, 2021.
At the SeaTrade Cruise industry conference on Tuesday, Royal Caribbean Group CEO Richard Fain said he is optimistic that cruises in the U.S. will resume this year. The company will likely restart with what he called “test cruises” and then build up slowly to short cruises, he said.
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“The objective is for you to have a lower risk than you do in your hometown,” he said.
Royal Caribbean Group and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings teamed up to hire a group of medical experts that last month published a list of recommendations for how to resume cruises. Protocols included testing all passengers for COVID-19 between 24 hours and five days before boarding.
During the cruise hiatus, Royal Caribbean Group has kept most of its fleet in and around U.S. waters and is still reporting illnesses on its ships to the CDC, unlike its competitors Carnival Corp. and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings. At least six Royal Caribbean Group passengers and 10 crew members have died from COVID-19, and at least 28 of its 51 ships have been affected by the virus, according to a Miami Herald investigation.
