Cruising into summer? Carnival delays, cancels trips out of US ports for 9th time
Cruises out of Charleston might start feeling like a distant fever dream soon. Carnival Cruise Line announced it has pushed back its trips out of U.S. ports another month, to at least April 30.
It marks the ninth round of delays and cancellations for the cruise line since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Trips on large cruise ships will have been stalled for more than a year by the time Carnival sets sail at the end of April — if that happens.
The coronavirus pandemic has hit cruise lines harder than any other sector of the tourism industry. While international travel, including flights, has been able to restart, cruise ships have been remained stuck at shore for nearly a year. The hallmarks of sailing — close quarters, limited medical support and interactions with thousands of people outside of one’s household — present particularly difficult challenges to resuming travel without risking massive COVID-19 outbreaks.
Carnival previously delayed trips from U.S. ports until March 31 earlier this month. That delay resulted in the cancellation of a trip out of Charleston scheduled for March 1.
“Our guests and travel agent partners continue to express their loyalty to Carnival and their desire to get back on our ships as soon as they can, and we are heartened by the booking demand and activity we continue to see,” Carnival Cruise’s president Christine Duffy said in a statement. “We are certainly committed to welcoming them back as quickly as possible, but unfortunately we have determined it’s going to take a while longer, and the situation in Europe will also impact Mardi Gras’ departure to the U.S., and Carnival Legend’s itineraries in Europe.”
A Carnival Cruise spokesman said planned sailings out of Charleston were affected by the latest delay but did not specify how many.
Guests who had booked any trips affected by the delay have the option for a full refund or “generous future cruise credit and onboard credit package,” the company said in a press release.
Major cruise lines face hefty barriers to restarting travel. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released dozens of pages of healthy and safety requirements each line must meet before it can even perform a “test trip.” If these test trips, which might not even include leaving port, are successful, then the CDC will allow them to set sail once again.
Have you been affected by cruise cancellations? We want to hear from you. Email ckaracostas@thesunnews.com with details about how decisions by Carnival and other lines have affected your vacation plans.
This story was originally published January 22, 2021 at 2:40 PM with the headline "Cruising into summer? Carnival delays, cancels trips out of US ports for 9th time."
