The Great Big LinC Cruise Thread

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[SkyMan 26,989]

Heard anything about cruises lately? 

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18 hours ago, SkyMan said:

Heard anything about cruises lately? 

Most cruise lines are sailing again, but under CDC Guidance.

However...

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CDC’s Rules For Cruise Ships Are Set to Expire November 1. What Then?

By Tanner Callais - October 15, 2021

In just weeks, the CDC’s rules that govern the return of cruise ships are set to expire, opening up the possibility of changes in the sailing experience for cruise passengers.

The Centers for Disease Control’s Framework for Conditional Sailing Order (CSO) for Cruise Ships lays out the requirements for cruise lines in order to sail again. The order was first published in October 2020, along with three different possibilities for when it would expire:

The Centers for Disease Control’s Framework for Conditional Sailing Order (CSO) for Cruise Ships lays out the requirements for cruise lines in order to sail again. The order was first published in October 2020, along with three different possibilities for when it would expire:

• The expiration of the Secretary of Health and Human Services’ declaration that COVID-19 constitutes a public health emergency,
• The CDC Director rescinds or modifies the order based on specific public health or other considerations, or
• November 1, 2021.

Now nearly a year later the health crisis continues to be an issue, but the November 1 deadline is fast approaching.

How the Order Impacts Cruising
The CSO has been instrumental in the return of cruising. The order replaced the previous “No Sail Orders” issued by the CDC that halted cruising altogether. Instead, the order laid out a pathway for ships to resume service with passengers.

Under the framework, everything from simulated voyages to medical facilities required to testing, masks, and social distancing are addressed. In short, this order provides the foundation for cruise ships having the CDC’s blessing to sail again and keeping passengers safe.

While initially frustrated at the slow roll-out of instructions accompanying the order, cruise lines seemingly have come to embrace the Conditional Sailing Order.

In fact, lawsuits filed by the state of Florida against the order turned the extensive rules from requirements into only recommendations for cruises from that state. Even so, cruise lines have continued to follow the CSO on a voluntary basis when sailing from Florida.

Signs of Sailing Safely Under the Order
There are signs that the rules put in place by the CSO and cruise lines are working well. Just like on land, there have been cases on cruise ships. But despite setting sail right at the start of the rise of the Delta variant — and with dozens of ships now carrying passengers — cases on ships appear low in number and quickly contained when found.

Royal Caribbean Group CEO Richard Fain shared a few weeks ago that his cruise line sailed with more than 500,000 passengers and only had 141 cases among guests (stats on crew member cases weren’t shared). And while official case numbers are not announced by the CDC, when word does come of cases on a ship, they are typically among only a handful of people.

As well, industry group Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) told Cruzely in a statement that worldwide over 2 million passengers have sailed since summer 2020, “with a lower incident rate than we are seeing on land.”

(Note: Ships sailing outside the United States are not subject to the CDC’s Conditional Sailing Order.)

Furthermore, the CDC tracks cruise ships sailing in U.S. waters, which provide daily reports to the health agency regarding possible cases on board. From there, a color status is given to the ship based on the conditions during the seven days. The color status varies from green (indicating no possible cases) to orange, yellow, and red. A single case is enough to change the color status of a ship from green to another color.

Currently, around 75% of cruise ships have green status. No ship has received red status, indicating a sustained outbreak onboard.

What the CDC and Cruise Industry Say About the Nov. 1 Deadline
So what will happen come November 1? We contacted both the CDC and the Cruise Lines International Association for any insight.

The CDC simply told us that they “do not have any updates at this time” and to “follow the CDC newsroom” for the latest.

CLIA — which represents the vast majority of cruise lines — didn’t specifically address the November expiration, but told us that its members have “demonstrated time and again their ability to proactively and successfully deploy protocols and response measures to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 amongst cruise passengers, crewmembers, and the communities they visit.”

“Together with our members, CLIA remains engaged with the U.S. Government, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and will continue to be led by the science and recommendations of public health experts in this dynamic moment, as we have done throughout the pandemic,” a spokesperson told Cruzely.

At least for now, it seems cruise passengers have to wait to see what will become of the order as we approach November.

What We Think Will Happen
In our opinion, however, there are some clues that point to what we think might happen.

First, while the November date is fast approaching, the pandemic is still ongoing. Despite vaccines, cases are still high.

This is similar to what we saw during 2020 where cases were a continual issue. At that time the CDC issued its “No Sail Order” that began in March 2020. It was later extended three more times during the year, with each time the new extension coming just days before the previous one was set to expire.

In other words, given that COVID continues to be an issue, an extension of the Conditional Sailing Order by the CDC wouldn’t be unprecedented.

As well, despite the CSO now being a recommendation in Florida, no cruise line has opted out of complying with the order. So while the opportunity is there for ships to sail without the Conditional Sailing Order, cruise lines have shown they prefer to go along with the oversight and working with the CDC.

Given the current success of returning to sailing under the CSO, we see little reason for cruise lines to “rock the boat” and move away from the requirements.

Bottom line: Don’t be surprised if the CDC’s orders are extended closer to the November 1 deadline. Even if the Conditional Sailing Order is allowed to expire, we’d expect cruise lines to continue to follow the health protocols put in place that have so far allowed cruises to return to sailing safely.

https://www.cruzely.com/cdcs-rules-for-cruise-ships-are-set-to-expire-november-1-what-then/

 

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[mikecon3 739]

Speaking of, my daughter is going on a 5 day cruise during Spring Break next week, from Charleston to the Bahamas. She hasn't filled me in on what Covid requirements she has to deal with, but they must not be bad or she would be complaining about it!

[SkyMan 26,989]

My daughter just started her dream job. She works backstage with costume design/dressing players/makeup, etc. Just starting 6 months on the Norwegian Epic. One of their largest.

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BREAKING NEWS: CDC Drops COVID-19 Travel Health Notice For Cruises

March 30, 2022 | Fran Golden

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has eliminated its pandemic-related Cruise Travel Health Notices for cruise passengers. The agency's travel notice for cruises has been in place at various levels since March 2020.

The agency had a warning level of "high risk" for contracting COVID-19 on a cruise ship for much of the pandemic. Earlier this month, the threat level was lowered to Level 2, meaning moderate threat.

The elimination of the warnings altogether was promptly praised by cruise lines.

"The CDC's removal of its health notice related to cruise travel is an important step forward in recognizing the work we have done to protect our guests," Holland America Line President Gus Antorcha said. "At Holland America Line, we continue to operate vaccinated cruises and have created a safe and healthy environment for our guests, our teams, and the communities we serve, helping to ensure cruising is among the safest forms of socializing and travel."

"We're absolutely thrilled to see that the CDC recognizes that it's time to remove the Travel Health Notice website," said Tom McAlpin, CEO of Virgin Voyages. "While we feel this was a long time coming, we recognize this move as a demonstration of all of the hard work this industry has done to ensure that we're offering the safest way to travel. It's refreshing to see them meet us where we're at, and clearly where our consumers are at considering the major uptick in demand we've seen."

While eliminating any cruise travel warning, the CDC did not declare cruising risk-free.

"While cruising will always pose some risk of COVID-19 transmission, travelers will make their own risk assessment when choosing to travel on a cruise ship, much like they do in all other travel settings," the agency said in a statement. "CDC will continue to provide guidance to the cruise ship industry to operate in a way that provides a safer and healthier environment for crew, passengers, and communities through CDC's COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships."

The agency also suggested cruise passenger should "make sure they are up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines before cruise ship travel and follow their cruise ship's requirements and recommendations."

The CDC continued to post recommendations for cruise travelers on its Cruise Ship Travel During COVID-19 webpage. These recommendations include such areas as vaccinations, mask-wearing and testing, before, during and after cruises.

The agency also said it would continue to update its color-coded ship directory, which shows any outbreaks and investigations of COVID-19 among passengers and crew on cruise ships operating in U.S. waters.

The Cruise Lines International Association, the industry's largest trade association, said the CDC's removal of the health notice "is a step in the right direction and recognizes the leadership and effectiveness of the cruise sector’s health and safety protocols that are unmatched by virtually any other commercial setting."

https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/6859/

 

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