UPDATE:
Carnival Cruise Line has now released a statement via Carnival Ambassador John Heald which confirms the temporary suspension due to the coronavirus. The cruise line has also posted a release that states operations will immediately come to a halt across the ships which are based in North America. Cruises will resume on Friday, April 10, 2020.
Carnival Cruise Line is temporarily pausing service effective with sailings departing Saturday, March 14 through April 09, 2020 across its fleet of North America based ships. We will resume service on April 10. COVID-19 has now turned into a global pandemic and we are committed to doing our part to support public officials in their efforts to manage and contain this unprecedented public health situation.
All affected guests will be receiving an email with our compensation offer. We extend our sincere apologies for the disruption to your vacation plans and look forward to welcoming you on a future Carnival cruise.
Carnival will be contacting booked guests directly regarding their cruise options moving forward. The vessels which are currently sailing will end their itinerary as scheduled.
PREVIOUSLY:
Carnival Cruise Line has apparently suspended all cruise operations and joining the growing list of cruise lines that have already done so.
Carnival Cruise Line Suspends Sailings
According to President Donald Trump, all the major cruise lines have agreed to suspend cruises for 30 days and that includes Carnival Cruise Line. However, nothing official has yet been announced from the cruise line just yet.
The cruise lines have been in communicating with the government in how ways to help stop the spread of the deadly virus and protect everyone onboard the ship. Well, it seems the result is to cancel all cruises.
Even though Carnival Cruise Line has not yet announced anything its sister lines owned by the same parent company have. Princess Cruises was one of the first operates to cancel operations and that is from March 12 to May 10, 2020.
As of writing this, Cruise Hive understands that an announcement is being made onboard cruise ships shortly and this is believed to confirm that Carnival will be halting cruises. Current sailings could be immediately suspended and will have to head back to their homeports or they could be allowed to continue to end their itinerary as normal.
The Cruise Lines International Association has also confirmed that its members will voluntarily and temporarily suspend operations from and to U.S. ports for 30 days. The pages on cruises will begin from midnight tonight.
Kelly Craighead, President and CEO, CLIA, said:
“CLIA cruise line members are voluntarily and temporarily suspending operations from the U.S. as we work to address this public health crisis.”
“This is an unprecedented situation. Our industry has taken responsibility for protecting public health for more than 50 years, working under the guidance of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and prides itself on its ability to deliver exceptional vacation experiences for guests, as well as meaningful employment opportunities for crew. This has been a challenging time, but we hope that this decision will enable us to focus on the future and a return to normal as soon as possible.”
This comes as all major cruise lines have now announced a suspension including Royal Caribbean, Costa Cruises, Princess Cruises, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line and many more. The industry will come to a halt to help stop the spread of coronavirus.
Full Cruise Line Coronavirus Coverage:
- Royal Caribbean Suspends Cruises for 30 Days in the U.S.
- Norwegian Cruise Line Brands Suspend All Voyages Due to Coronavirus
- Costa Cruises Halts All Operations Globally
- Virgin Voyages Delays Inaugural Season, Maiden Voyage Set for August
- Disney Cruise Line Suspends Operations Through End of the Month
- MSC Cruises Stops All Sailings Based in the U.S. for 45 Days
The industry has already been impacted by cruise ports denying ships over coronavirus fears and President Donald Trump already banning all travel from Europe. Cruise lines including Carnival have implemented strict cruising health measures and new cancellation policies but that is not enough in this current situation it seems.
