Anthem of the Seas becomes the first Royal Caribbean cruise ship to restart operations in the UK in more than a year. The Quantum-class vessel departed the Port of Southampton today to kickstart the cruise line’s operations in the UK, and it follows the recent restart in the U.S.
The ship first arrived in Southampton on June 29 in preparations of resuming operations.
Anthem of the Seas Resumes Cruises
UK cruisers can now begin to enjoy Royal Caribbean cruises on board Anthem of the Seas as the ship has finally departed on the first voyage back. The ship is sailing four-night ocean getaways and 5- to 8-night British Isles cruises, including visits to Liverpool in England, Belfast in Northern Ireland, and Kirkwall in Scotland.
As Cruise Hive previously reported, the ship is sailing with a total of 999 special workers between multiple sailings from the UK. The workers are varied from emergency services, NHS, social care sector, and armed forces.
Ben Bouldin, vice president, EMEA, Royal Caribbean commented:
“We are delighted to once again sail from the UK, and it’s an honour to host some of the country’s many key workers on board our first sailings. It’s thanks to these individuals, who have worked so hard to see our country through this tough time, that this moment is finally here. I have no doubt they will have an incredible and well-deserved break aboard our UK-favourite, Anthem of the Seas.”
Anthem of the Seas UK sailings are only available for UK residents 18 years or over and fully vaccinated. Vaccinated guests must still bring a negative PCR test result taken within three days before departure. You can read the full details here.
Children under the age of 18 can also cruise but must also have a negative test result. There are no testing requirements for those under the age of 2. All the crew members are already fully vaccinated as Royal Caribbean has been working hard on a fleetwide vaccination program.
Related: Royal Caribbean Cruise Update on Ships and Protocols
While guests are on board, there is so much to enjoy, but with protocols in place to make sure everyone remains safe. Those 11 years and older must wear a mask in all indoor spaces. Masks will also have to be worn outdoors only in a crowded setting.
There is spaces seating in places like restaurants and bars. Guests will need to make reservations for many venues to limit the capacity. Anthem of the Seas will also have the new Muster 2.0 concept, which means no more annoying safety drills as it’s all done through the Royal Caribbean App.
Also Read: Reasons to Cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas
Anthem of the Seas is 168,666 gross tons with a guest capacity of 4,180 at double occupancy, along with 1,500 international crew members. The ship follows restarts with Freedom of the Seas out of Miami in Florida and Adventure of the Seas out of Nassau, Bahamas. Jewel of the Seas became the first ship in the fleet to resume Mediterranean cruises out of Cyprus with a preview cruises that departed on July 6.
