CDC Issues First Acceptance for Simulated Cruise from U.S. Port

May 27 ------ The efforts to resume cruising from U.S. ports took a step forward with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issuing its first provisional acceptance letter for a simulated cruise. The trip, which is scheduled to depart from Miami in mid-June, marks the first cruise to depart from a U.S. port since March 2020.

Royal Caribbean International received provisional acceptance from the CDC to operate a simulated cruise aboard the line’s 156,271 gross ton ship the Freedom of the Seas between June 20 and 22, 2021. The company’s president and CEO Michael Bayley announced the news in a social media posting saying, “After 15 months and so much work by so many during very challenging times. To all our colleagues, loyal guests and supporters all over the world I am proud and pleased to share some bright and wonderful news! Boom! Onwards and upwards team!” The line has permission to operate the trip provided they meet CDC requirements, including green or orange status for the ship meaning that crew movements and potential exposure to COVID-19 have been limited under the CDC’s rules. The line has to advise the volunteer passengers that they are on a test cruise and inform them of the CDC’s travel notices and requirements before the trip.

The purpose of the simulated cruise is to test the ship’s health and safety protocols and document to the CDC the operations as well as any deficiencies. The ship must carry at least 10 percent of the maximum number of passengers the line plans to carry when it returns to service and all the passengers and crew have to agree to COVID-19 testing before and after as well as post cruise tracing to ensure no one is infected with the virus. In normal operations, the Freedom of the Seas carries 3,943 passengers (double occupancy) or a total of 4,553 passengers plus 1,447 crew. While the provisional acceptance of the request to conduct a simulated voyage marks a milestone in the cruise industry’s efforts to restart cruises from U.S. ports, the line must satisfy the CDC that the protocols are working, and only then will they be granted a Conditional Sailing Certificate to resume revenue trips. The CDC accepted Royal Caribbean’s port agreements as required in Phase 2A of the Conditional Sailing Order, which mandated that the line have plans and agreements with the ports to manage a potential outbreak of the virus aboard the ship and how passengers or crew would receive medical treatment.

Royal Caribbean elected to operate the simulated voyage as opposed to certifying to the CDC that 95 percent of passengers and 98 percent of the crew were fully vaccinated on each cruise. The current issues of availability of the vaccine for children would have meant the cruise line would have to exclude children from its commercial voyages until they were able to be fully vaccinated. Each of the cruise ships Royal Caribbean plans to return to service sailing from U.S. ports, including the two ships planned to sail for Alaska starting in late July and August, are required to go through the same process with port agreements and simulated cruises. The ship that Royal Caribbean chose to operate its first cruises, the Freedom of the Seas, had received a $116 million modernization completed weeks before the pandemic causes the suspension in cruising. The line added new water park and entertainment features as well as enhanced dining options for passengers during the renovations.

Source: maritime-executive.com