Norwegian brands cancel 2020 sailings
Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises cancel cruises until new year.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, which operates Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, has announced an extension of its suspension of global cruises to include all voyages embarking between December 1 through December 31, 2020.
The company said it will continue to work in tandem with global government and public health authorities and its Healthy Sail Panel expert advisers to take all necessary measures to protect its guests, crew and the communities visited.
Guests who are currently booked on cancelled voyages are asked to contact their travel agent or the cruise line for more information.
It comes as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the US health body, changed its ‘no sail’ cruise order to a ‘conditional sailing order’.
The move means that, in theory, cruises are no longer banned in the United States. However, cruise lines will need to work with the CDC before their ships can begin sailing.
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“The initial phases will consist of testing and additional safeguards for crew members,” the CDC said. It has been reported that initial cruises will not have paying passengers on board, to prove to the authorities that they can be run safely.
“CDC will ensure cruise ship operators have adequate health and safety protections for crew while these cruise ship operators build the laboratory capacity needed to test future passengers. Subsequent phases will include simulated voyages to test cruise ship operators’ ability to mitigate Covid-19 risk, certification for ships that meet specific requirements, and a phased return to cruise ship passenger voyages in a manner that mitigates Covid-19 risk among passengers, crew members, and US communities.
“These phases are subject to change based on public health considerations and cruise ship operators’ demonstrated ability to mitigate Covid-risk. CDC will issue additional orders as needed that will be published in the Federal Register and technical instructions that will be subsequently posted on CDC’s website.”
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