Carnival Cruise Line has made its first call to the popular Cayman Islands since the global pause in operations, now more than two years ago. Two Carnival cruise ships had the honor of being amongst the first to visit the port since it re-opened. Disney Magic was the first on March 21.
Carnival Paradise and Carnival Sunrise Visit Cayman Islands
Carnival Cruise Line made its first call to the Cayman Islands since the cruise industry shut down in March of 2020. Carnival Paradise and Carnival Sunrise had the honor and are the first of several Carnival Cruise ships visiting the island group in the next few weeks.
“We are delighted to return to Grand Cayman and to offer guests an opportunity to experience all of this port’s beauty once again,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “On behalf of Carnival, I would like to personally thank all our partners in Grand Cayman for working with us to make this opportunity possible.”
The cruise industry was welcomed back to the Cayman Islands by Tourism Minister Kenneth Bryan earlier this month, who highlighted the importance of cruise ships to the livelihood of many Caymanians:
“Cruise tourism makes up a significant portion of our tourism industry and the return of cruise passengers will bring welcomed relief to many Caymanians who depend on this industry for their livelihoods,” Bryan said. “Every cruise call that brings passengers to our shores is helping to support Caymanian employees and business owners that have been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Carnival Paradise is currently sailing a 5-days, round-trip Western Caribbean cruise from Tampa, Florida, with a call to the Cayman Islands and Cozumel. Carnival Sunrise is sailing a 5-day Western Caribbean cruise from Miami, Florida. Before returning to Florida, she will make a call in Ocho Rios, Jamaica.
Busy Weeks Ahead For Cayman Islands
There are busy weeks ahead for the Cayman Islands. Several more calls are scheduled for Carnival Cruise ships over the next few weeks. Carnival Glory will be the next ship to visit the Cayman Islands on March 24. On April 6, there will be three Carnival cruise ships in port simultaneously; Carnival Vista, Carnival Paradise, and Carnival Sunrise.
Other ships that will be calling in the Cayman islands for Carnival Cruise Line are Carnival Pride on April 8 and 12 and Carnival Horizon on April 13.
It’s not just Carnival cruise ships visiting the islands. Celebrity Cruises will bring four of its ships to the Cayman Islands in the next month. Celebrity Edge on April 1 & 13, Celebrity Equinox on April 17, Celebrity Apex on March 24 March & April 7, and Celebrity Reflection on March 30.
Ships from Disney Cruise Line, Holland America, MSC, and Princess cruises are also scheduled. Following Cayman Island’s government decision to lift the ban on cruise ships, a total of 21 ships will visit from Monday, 21 March, through April 17. At that point, the next phase for restarting cruise ship traffic will begin.
As part of the current regulations, all crew members must be fully vaccinated, and no positive guest, crew member, or close contacts will be permitted to go ashore. Local authorities will also assess any cases detected onboard ships and the measures taken.
