After canceling all June 2021 cruises out of U.S. ports, Carnival Cruise Line has threatened to move their ships out of U.S. waters.
Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, had the following to say in a statement.
While we have not made plans to move Carnival Cruise Line ships outside of our U.S. homeports, we may have no choice but to do so in order to resume our operations which have been on ‘pause’ for over a year.
This statement comes on the heels of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) releasing additional information and instruction last week for the cruise industry’s return to sailing.
The cruise industry has been shut down in U.S. waters since March of 2020, while other travel sectors such as airlines and theme parks have been allowed to continue to operate or reopen with health and safety modifications in place.
Carnival spokesperson Vance Gulliksen confirmed that the company has 14 homeports along the east and west coasts and the Gulf of Mexico in the U.S.
On Tuesday, Norwegian Cruise Line announced its official return to service would begin in July in Europe and the Caribbean. And last month, Royal Caribbean International announced sailings in Israel, Bermuda and the Bahamas and its sibling line, Celebrity Cruises, added itineraries for St. Maarten – all with specific vaccine requirements.
As we previously reported, the Disney Magic will begin sailing again this summer out of the ports of London Tilbury, Newcastle, Liverpool and Southampton. The cruises will only be open to U.K. residents, and will be 2-, 3-, and 4-night experiences at seas, without stops at ports of call.
For comparison purposes, it’s important to note that as of September of 2020, Carnival Cruise Line had a fleet of 23 ships. Disney Cruise Line only has 4 ships, soon to be 5, with the Disney Wish on the way for 2022.
Source: USA Today
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