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If you love cruising, you may wonder if you will ever get to go on another cruise. You may also be wondering what changes will occur in the cruising industry now that COVID-19 has ravaged it.
Some Cruises Beginning
You may get lucky and your cruise vacation will not be canceled as some cruise vacations are beginning to happen. Even if they are not to your favorite destinations, they can hold important clues about the future. If you are looking for a Caribbean cruise destination, you may want to go to Papeete, Tahiti, where Paul Gauguin began cruising on August 1. Each passenger on the vessel must have a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of departure. Aranui Cruise Lines never stopped making cargo deliveries. They are now welcoming guests back aboard their vessels. Ships that also deliver cargo are already on the water, which means they will experience no delays in hiring and training staff before guests can travel. There are other options depending on your citizenship in Norway and Greece. Around-the-world, a vast amount of people will not be able to access these choices. Read on and we’re tell you more.
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River Cruises
The next wave of cruising that has opened and will continue to open up are river itineraries. Germany and Australia led the way with AmaWaterways became the first American-owned cruising company to set sail again when it started cruising in late July. These boats typically hold 150 passengers are only allowed to carry 100. Each passenger must answer a pre-boarding screening and submit to daily health checks. The crew must always wear masks, and guests must wear them when moving around the boat. Fan-coiled individual room air and heating systems have been installed to keep air from recirculating throughout the ship. New plexiglass shields have been installed in numerous areas, and each vessel must have a public health official. Frequent hand sanitizer stations are available, and most of these cruises include all of your activities. These are all changes that may happen on other vessels as travel resumes.
Cruising During the Pandemic in North America
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention issued a no-sail order on July 16, 2020, which will not expire until September 30, 2020. Many believe that the government entity will extend the no-sail deadline through the end of the year. Their decision has repeatedly forced cruise lines to alter their plans for North American itineraries during the pandemic. As of August 31, 2020, major cruise lines have made the following announcements:
Carnival Cruise Lines has canceled all North American itineraries through October 31. The company has also canceled all San Francisco and New York City trips through the end of the year.
Disney has canceled all itineraries through the end of October. They still hope to start sailing on November 2, 2020, on Disney Fantasy from Port Canaveral on November 2 with their other ships to follow in mid-November.
Princess Cruise Lines has canceled all North American itineraries until Mid-December. They have canceled most itineraries in Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, and European destinations through at least October 31, 2020, and have said they will not conduct their 2021 Around-the-world Cruise.
Royal Caribbean has canceled all North American trips through the end of October. The company has already resumed some itineraries from Chinese ports.
Cruise line officials continue to push back sailing dates. If you are looking for a cruise vacation, it may be much safer to wait to travel until the spring as the pandemic has knocked out most itineraries this year.
