Some exciting headlines yesterday when Royal Caribbean announced new home in June for two of its cross lines. In two separate announcements, Celebrity Cruises will depart from the Dutch Caribbean island of St. Maarten, while Royal Caribbean will depart from the Bahamas.
The news comes after the announcement of Crystal cruises which will also starting from the Bahamas.
It then seems that the sailing lines believe that we can sail safely and securely. The move to announce homes outside the U.S. will be seen as a showdown, as the cruise industry has traditionally made a major contribution to the U.S. economy and Florida in particular.
As Cruise Hive reported yesterday, the mayor of Miami-Dade is really trying to reopen the industry.
Why is this happening?
The cruise industry has been hit hit after hit for the past twelve months. The voyages stopped voluntarily for the first time last year to sail in a sign of benevolence.
Despite the enormous contributions the cruise industry has always made to the U.S. economy, the CDC appears to have little motivation for a rapid start to shipping.
This is in stark contrast to many other countries that are actively restarting a sail within their borders, acknowledging the financial implications of not doing so.
The United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Israel, Singapore, the Bahamas, and Sint Maarten all eagerly accepted the ships within their borders. With major health constraints, we need to add. At least PCR tests of ships must be done, and in some cases guests must be vaccinated in full.
Read also: MSC Cruises starts from May with a series of UK cruises
But the countries accept the ships to sail and acknowledge that the results of the past few months aboard Royal Caribbean, Dream Cruises, MSC, Costa, TUI ships, etc., are currently a testament to the safety of sailing. Something the CDC seems to be rejecting.
Is it a permanent thing?
Moving away from American homelands will not be permanent. We can expect the ships to return to the States as soon as the opportunities are there. The infrastructure that exists in the States can not be repeated anywhere else, at least not within a few months.
However, it would appear that the CDC missed an opportunity to give the right tone. As it stands now, they are behind the facts. The CDC could and should have played an active and leading role in the return of the voyage to COVID.
This would have made sure that the cargo lines sailed according to US policy guidelines. However, the cruise lines now all have their own policies. So the CDC missed an amazing opportunity.
So where can we sail?
Several crossroads have announced various port ports in the Caribbean and elsewhere, including Europe, the United Kingdom and Singapore. In the last days, it looks good for those in the US who want to sail this summer:
Famous cruises
Celebrity Cruises is getting back with the Celebrity Millennium passenger ship. The vessel will be housed in the popular eastern Caribbean port of St. Maarten. There will be two different itineraries in the Caribbean Celebrity Millennium will present.
A week-long itinerary will include calls to Aruba, Curacao, and Barbados. The other itinerary will include visits to Tortola, St. Lucia and Barbados include. See here for more information on Celebrity Cruises from St. Maarten.
Royal Caribbean
Royal Caribbean is back with cruises in the Caribbean from June! Adventure of the sea will be based out of Nassau in the Bahamas, and she will host 7 nights of cruises.
From 5 June, the Royal Caribbean cruise ship has two rugby days on the cruise line’s private island Perfect Day by CocoCay, a chance to explore Grand Bahama Island, and a visit to Cozumel, Mexico. More information here!
Crystal Cruises
Crystal Cruises’ “Bahamas Escapes” are offered on the Crystal Serenity luxury cruise ship from July to October.
The seven-night cruise will have two ports of departure from Nassau and Bimini, offering a further choice for those in the US who want to fly. The line even offers special flight packages. More information can be found here.
We can see that more cruise lines are moving the same to travel from different Caribbean ports. MSC and Royal Caribbean have been linked with Cozumel for the past few weeks Barbados has always been a popular home port for much smaller voyages. The wait could very well be over if this trend continues!
Top Photo Credit: Ruth Peterkin / Shutterstock.com
