In the new guidance, the CDC said cruise ships that have 98% vaccinated crew members and 95% vaccinated passengers could restart sailings and bypass the required simulated test voyages carrying volunteers and jump to sailings with paying passengers.
It is not clear yet if Royal Caribbean will move in this direction, nor when any restart might commence yet.
Also included in the report are five points of clarification that give cruise lines better insight into the CDC's expectations for a restart.
5 reasons why what happened to cruise ships in 2020 will never happen again
In the early days of the global health crisis, the cruise industry was caught off guard with a new health threat which was unfortunately seen in the public eye in the case of a few high profile ship quarantines.
More than a year later, memories of what happened to those cruise ships in early 2020 still dominate the narrative for many people and the fear of allowing something like this to happen again is enough to compel some to not want cruise ships to sail again.
A lot has been happening over the last few weeks with various statements, injunctions, and legislation aimed at getting cruise ships sailing again. This week, Matt talks about how he sees things moving, and what it all means.
Please feel free to subscribe via iTunes or RSS, and head over to rate and review the podcast on iTunes if you can! We’d appreciate it.
New RCB Video: My favorite Royal Caribbean cruise hacks
Quite often you will see an email or social media post advertising discounts to take advantage of, but like so many things, it depends on how much it may actually save you.
The key is to track prices, and reprice when possible.
Help Corner: How to contact Royal Caribbean for help with a cruise cancellation or refund
These days, it seems we all have various billing questions to decipher.
With all of the cruise cancellations over the last year, there is a good chance you may have a future cruise credit, onboard credit, or upcoming booking that you are trying to balance.
Here are some easy steps for getting answers if you are trying to sort out options, or get an update on your refund status.
Happy weekend! I hope Spring is starting to arrive where you live. Regardless of the weather, it is time to sit back, relax, and check out the latest in Royal Caribbean news!
Senators from Florida and Alaska sponsored a new piece of legislation that would allow cruise ships to start sailing without the CDC's interference.
Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan, along with Florida Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio, announced a bill that is aimed at overriding the CDC’s current framework for getting cruise lines back to sea. In this new legislation, called the CRUISE Act, or Careful Resumption Under Improved Safety Enhancements, lawmakers are calling on U.S. health officials to change current guidelines.
The purpose of the bill is to end the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC)'s Framework for Conditional Sail Order (CSO) by July 4, 2021 so that cruise lines can restart sailings from the United States.
Royal Caribbean Group CEO sees signs "We Are Approaching The End" of cruise shutdown
Royal Caribbean Group Chairman and CEO Richard Fain thinks cruise ships being able to sail again may be up next.
In his latest video update, Richard Fain sees a lot of key milestones happening now that point to the fact things are moving in the right direction.
Included in his comments was mention of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recent update to its Framework for Conditional Sail Order (CSO), which Mr. Fain characterized as, "tougher restrictions on cruising out of U.S. ports."
Florida Governor Ron Desantis announced on Thursday the state is filing a lawsuit against the federal government, United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and CDC, demanding cruise ships be reopened immediately.
The CDC has been blocking most cruise vessels from sailing in U.S. waters since the coronavirus outbreak was declared a pandemic in March of 2020, citing COVID-19-related risks.
Instead of beginning cruises from Los Angeles, California in June 2022, Royal Caribbean has moved up the start date to November 2021.
Navigator of the Seas will operate short three- and four-night sailings calling on Ensenada, Mexico, and Catalina Island. There will also be several five-night sailings that will also include a stop in Cabo San Lucas, and select weeklong voyages will include an overnight stay.
In this episode, Matt breaks down the announcement that Adventure of the Seas and number of other ships will start sailing again this summer from new homeports outside the U.S.
Please feel free to subscribe via iTunes or RSS, and head over to rate and review the podcast on iTunes if you can! We’d appreciate it.
New RCB Video: Why you shouldn't book a flight on same day of your cruise!
Test cruises are the next phase of the CDC's plan for restarting cruises
While the U.S. Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) release of technical instructions this week left many cruise fans less than enthused, the good news is test cruises are theoretically next on the agenda.
The CDC confirmed that the next phase once ships complete the new technical instructions is to conduct simulated (trial) voyages that will demonstrate the new protocols and health rules.
There is no timeline given when that may occur, but the possibility of test cruises on the horizon gives hope change is on the horizon.
Vision of the Seas will sail from outside the United States so that it can offer cruises sooner and without approval from the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC).
Just like Adventure of the Seas, sailings on Vision of the Seas will require all adults above the age of 18 to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19.
Adventure of the Seas will offer 7-night cruises from her new homeport of Nassau, Bahamas between June and August 2021.
All crew and guests above the age of 18 will need to be full vaccinated in order to come onboard. Children under the age of 18 with proof of negative COVID-19 test results are able to sail as well.
The new cruises on Adventure of the Seas will go on sale beginning March 24, 2021.
The new sailings will vary between 3-, 4- and 5-night itineraries to Catalina Island, California and Ensenada and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico – plus, select winter holiday 7-night sailings will feature overnights in the popular resort city.
Royal Caribbean’s new year-round adventures from LA will open for sale the week of March 29, 2021.
Odyssey of the Seas will enter service in May 2021 with cruises from Haifa, Israel on a variety of 3- to 7-night sailings that visit the Greek islands and Cyprus.
These cruises are only available to be booked by residents of Israel, and all guests above the age of 16 will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
In this episode, Ashley and Matt talk about the first ships to restart cruises are all from non-traditional cruise ports. Is this a coincidence or new trend?
Please feel free to subscribe via iTunes or RSS, and head over to rate and review the podcast on iTunes if you can! We’d appreciate it.
New RCB Video: Where are Royal Caribbean's cruise ships right now?
Happy Sunday, and I hope you had a great week. It was a busy week of Royal Caribbean fun, and I have a round-up of all of it in this hand-dandy blog post.
We might finally be getting close to test sailings beginning.
Mr. Bayley said that Royal Caribbean has been in "regular communication" with the CDC and expects to get technical instructions on what each ship needs to do in order to prepare itself for test cruises.
"We're literally expecting the technical specifications any day soon," Mr. Bayley told investors.
Royal Caribbean Blog is an unofficial fan blog written for other fans of Royal Caribbean International. The Royal Caribbean Blog is not affiliated with Royal Caribbean International
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