Carnival-owned AIDA Cruises has delayed its return to service due to ongoing travel restrictions in Europe and official guidance from government health offices.
AIDA Cruises No Longer Returning in September
The cruise line was looking forward to resuming cruises in September but unfortunately, that has now been delayed until November. AIDA has announced that conditions suitable to reopen cruising are not currently in place in Germany’s neighboring countries including Denmark, Norway, and the Baltic states.
The Federal Republic of Germany has also issued a warning for many destinations outside Europe. Many countries have even banned cruise ships until 2021, which seems to be a growing trend with the global health crisis continuing.
Felix Eichhorn, president of AIDA Cruises, said:
“Even though it is currently not possible for cruise ships to call at Norway, which is so important for our voyages to the north, we are confident that the first AIDA ships from Germany will be able to travel to Northern Europe again at the beginning of 2021.”
As the first ship from the AIDA fleet to begin sailing, AIDAmar will set course on November 1, 2020, for seven-day voyages to the Canary Islands, a popular destination with German vacationers.
AIDAperla will follow on November 7, 2020, and will take over the travel program originally planned for AIDAnova. AIDAmar’s voyages will start and end in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. For voyages with AIDAperla, in addition to Las Palmas, AIDA Cruises will offer a second departure port with Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
In the western Mediterranean, AIDA Cruises will resume sailing operations with AIDAstella on December 12, 2020, where the ship will cast off from Palma, Mallorca, on seven-day cruises to some of the most beautiful cities in the region.
The treasures of the Orient take center stage during the seven-day AIDAprima cruises that will be offered starting December 11, 2020, from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) and from December 15, 2020, from Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates).
Also Read: How to Social Distance Effectively on a Cruise?
AIDA Cruises is in close contact with the responsible authorities and airlines in order to prepare for the restart of its voyages in November and December. The cruise line was previously scheduled to begin cruising from September 6 with AIDAperla to the Norwegian Fjords but now that will not happen. Stay tuned to Cruise Hive for additional updates on this and other cruise lines as cruising operations resume or extensions are continued.