On Friday, German cruise line TUI Cruises started cruising once again and it might offer a preview of what a Royal Caribbean could look like when they restart.
Royal Caribbean is a 50% owner of a joint venture that operates TUI Cruises, and the Mein Schiff 2 set sail on Friday with about 1,200 passengers onboard.
The ship sailed with about 60% capacity onboard in order to promote social distancing, a concept Royal Caribbean has said they will initially implement on its ships when they start sailing again.
USA Today reported passengers and crew onboard are required to stay five feet away or wear protective masks and won’t serve themselves at the ship’s buffet. All passengers filled out a health questionnaire before boarding and had temperature checks.
In addition, TUI Group (parent company to TUI Cruises) noted they had "implemented comprehensive health and safety protocols on board."
The itinerary for this sailing was a departure from Hamburg, Germany that would sail to no ports, before returning to Germany on Monday. This is an intentional move to stick to short and restrictive sailings.
Germany is now in the process of reopening its economy, with strict guidelines on social distancing, mask use and personal hygiene measures.
