Will Carnival Follow Royal’s.Lead with Cruises Restarting Someplace Else

[Oldsweets]

Be interesting to see what if anything Carnival is working out to restart Caribbean Sailings.  This should be a wake up call to the CDC and obviously most concerning to US PORTS and employees. 

[sunonfire]

Cozumel is trying to get the cruise lines to sail from their port. 

[bar1068]

Looks like Celebrity is going to start a few cruises out of St. Martin in June.

 

https://cruiseradio.net/celebrity-cruises-to-sail-from-st-maarten/?fbclid=IwAR33AwQZrnWf0Cg1Ln-FI4tCEAgNMXuSUWG48rIytt0fcg16UXfnUDWTDkY

 

[Jamesatgsu]

I wonder how long it will take for RCL cruises to sell out? I'm assuming the demand will be massive. Hopefully Carnival will follow suit so I can use my FCC instead of spending even more money.

[BlerkOne]

31 minutes ago, Oldsweets said:

Be interesting to see what if anything Carnival is working out to restart Caribbean Sailings.  This should be a wake up call to the CDC and obviously most concerning to US PORTS and employees. 

CDC is probably loving it. So by June, Royal will be having "test" cruises and if something goes wrong, the CDC isn't on the hook. If not, CDC can relax the guidelines.

 

Will Carnival follow? Would they really need to? Probably not. Let someone else be the guinea pig. Carnival (Princess) was the scapegoat last time.

[dallasdan]

2 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

CDC is probably loving it. So by June, Royal will be having "test" cruises and if something goes wrong, the CDC isn't on the hook. If not, CDC can relax the guidelines.

 

Will Carnival follow? Would they really need to? Probably not. Let someone else be the guinea pig. Carnival (Princess) was the scapegoat last time.

I don't think these cruises will count as test cruises in the eyes of the CDC because they didn't sail from a US Port.  I think the big 3 are waiting out the CDC because the return to sailing rules are too restrictive.

[sarmat1]

7 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

Will Carnival follow? Would they really need to? Probably not. Let someone else be the guinea pig. Carnival (Princess) was the scapegoat last time.

 

I would think that Carnival would follow.  Both Celebrity and RC are going with fully vaccinated adults/tested kids to significantly mitigate risk.  Why wouldn't Carnival want to re-start their revenue stream homeporting outside the US with the same rules?  Would seem to be a no-brainer assuming Carnival felt they had proper protocols in place.

Edited March 19, 2021 by sarmat1

[BlerkOne]

3 minutes ago, sarmat1 said:

 

I would think that Carnival would follow.  Both Celebrity and RC are going with fully vaccinated adults/tested kids to significantly mitigate risk.  Why wouldn't Carnival want to re-start their revenue stream homeporting outside the US with the same rules?  Would seem to be a no-brainer assuming Carnival felt they had proper protocols in place.

 

Carnival hasn't said vaccines will be required. If Carnival is in a position to do test cruises from the US, Carnival might be better prepared to be the first cruise line to restart from the US.

 

Royal wasn't the first to announce cruises from the Bahamas, but that seems to already be forgotten.

[BlerkOne]

Just an observation - I see Royal will be using one of their rust buckets for the experiment and not one of their newer ships. At least Carnival has some Fantasy class ships they could use, should they choose to.

 

It will be interesting to see what kind of proof Royal accepts for proof of vaccination.

[sarmat1]

2 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

 

If Carnival is in a position to do test cruises from the US, Carnival might be better prepared to be the first cruise line to restart from the US.

 

 

And they still might be.  That's not mutually exclusive from also cashing in on a homeport outside the US.  This summer is effectively gone as far as US homeport sailing unless regulations change imminently.  No reason Carnival couldn't both wait out CDC for US sailing while simultaneously putting a ship in a Caribbean homeport.  Clearly RC/Celebrity think it's doable.

[BlerkOne]

2 minutes ago, sarmat1 said:

 

And they still might be.  That's not mutually exclusive from also cashing in on a homeport outside the US.  This summer is effectively gone as far as US homeport sailing unless regulations change imminently.  No reason Carnival couldn't both wait out CDC for US sailing while simultaneously putting a ship in a Caribbean homeport.  Clearly RC/Celebrity think it's doable.

I'm not sure of the ability of the Bahamas or Cozumel to provision homeported cruise ships, much less multiple cruise ships. Then there is the capacity question of flights, hotels, etc.

 

No, it isn't mutually exclusive, but it might strain cruise line resources to attempt to do both well, especially if there are different requirements.

 

I'm not convinced cruising is gone this summer, but an outbreak on a Bahamas cruise could seal that fate.

[ProgRockCruiser]

I am wondering if this is the cruise industry starting to apply a bit of pressure to the US (Federal) regulators, by basically saying "we're going to start cruising again, and if we have to rework our logistics so that we homeport outside the US, well, that will probably hurt you more than us...".

 

Desantis here in FL is proposing Fed stimulus dollars to be used to help the ports.  The Mayor of Miami is petitioning to talk to the CDC.  I see a political push to get things opened up fairly quickly.

 

I just hope it isn't too quickly - an outbreak on board would be a real disaster.

[Oldsweets]

We have talked with our TA about booking one of these Royal’s because it’s 7 days and would certainly talk about doing a Carnival as long it wasn’t a short trip.  Too far to go to do a short trip and for us we believe the safest time is at the beginning when all eyes in the world are focused on your success or failure.  Just imagine the damage to any cruise line brand with a major rollout failure.  The management focus and resources being applied to ensure success gives us comfort.  While we will try and snag a room from any one of the possible lines we suspect we will get shutout by a shear demand.    

[RD64]

These cruises will require a flight and a passport, not to mention a vaccination. Carnival does very well with the drive to market. The added cost of a flight would be enough to deter many passengers. Also, given the hesitancy of many on these boards to get a passport due to the financial cost, this would further serve to reduce the potential passenger demographic for Carnival.

 

[CruzCra-Z]

17 minutes ago, RD64 said:

These cruises will require a flight and a passport, not to mention a vaccination. Carnival does very well with the drive to market. The added cost of a flight would be enough to deter many passengers. Also, given the hesitancy of many on these boards to get a passport due to the financial cost, this would further serve to reduce the potential passenger demographic for Carnival.

 

I'm just curious, are you talking about the financial cost of getting a passport in Canada? Is it exorbitant? I'm not familiar with this topic.  Thanks

[Julienatul]

18 minutes ago, RD64 said:

These cruises will require a flight and a passport, not to mention a vaccination. Carnival does very well with the drive to market. The added cost of a flight would be enough to deter many passengers. Also, given the hesitancy of many on these boards to get a passport due to the financial cost, this would further serve to reduce the potential passenger demographic for Carnival.

 

Carnival has so many ships and demand for cruising is astronomical.  Thousands of US citizens have gone to Mexico over spring break despite passport, testing and flights.  I am sure they can more than fill one ship. 

[BoozinCroozin]

I can see all cruise lines doing it as long as the CDC puts unrealistic requirements on them. Why should they continue to lose money because of an organization that has miserably failed?

[BoozinCroozin]

1 hour ago, BlerkOne said:

Just an observation - I see Royal will be using one of their rust buckets for the experiment and not one of their newer ships. At least Carnival has some Fantasy class ships they could use, should they choose to.

 

It will be interesting to see what kind of proof Royal accepts for proof of vaccination.

RCL is using Odyssey of the Seas. I may be wrong, but that is the crown jewel of their fleet now. 

[BlerkOne]

16 minutes ago, BoozinCroozin said:

RCL is using Odyssey of the Seas. I may be wrong, but that is the crown jewel of their fleet now. 

If so, then the article was wrong (shocking).

 

"In an unexpected move, the line said that they will be operating two itineraries aboard the Celebrity Millenium. While this is the oldest ship in the current fleet, it recently underwent a multi-million dollar refurbishment. Bookings for the sailings will open on Thursday, March 25."

 

"Also today, Celebrity’s sister line Royal Caribbean International announced it will operate roundtrip cruises from the Bahamas from June through August. Adventure of the Seas will sail seven-night cruises from Nassau, some of which will include two consecutive days at Perfect Day at CocoCay. Other port calls will include Grand Bahama Island and Cozumel, Mexico."

[BlerkOne]

Adventure of the Seas it is

 

https://www.*****.com/2021/03/19/what-you-need-know-about-royal-caribbeans-new-cruises-the-bahamas

 

 

[BoozinCroozin]

Maybe I didn't specify enough though. Odyssey will be in Israel and sailing in June I believe.

[BlerkOne]

9 minutes ago, BoozinCroozin said:

Maybe I didn't specify enough though. Odyssey will be in Israel and sailing in June I believe.

Ah, okay. Israel is a leader in vaccinations and I believe those cruises will be limited to Israelis.

[ProgRockCruiser]

1 hour ago, CruzCra-Z said:

I'm just curious, are you talking about the financial cost of getting a passport in Canada? Is it exorbitant? I'm not familiar with this topic.  Thanks

That's not what was meant. Passports would be required for Canadians coming to the US (or going anywhere else).

 

The poster is talking about US citizens.  There is a significant portion of US cruisers who do not have a passport - they sail by using Drivers Licenses and Birth Certificates.  Many of those folks feel the cost of a passport, for each of their family members, is too high to be worthwhile, because they don't travel anywhere else.

Edited March 19, 2021 by ProgRockCruiser

[lazydayz]

3 hours ago, dallasdan said:

I don't think these cruises will count as test cruises in the eyes of the CDC because they didn't sail from a US Port.  I think the big 3 are waiting out the CDC because the return to sailing rules are too restrictive.

 

Agreed.  With Royal and Celebrity taking their balls elsewhere, the CDC should be under immense pressure to lighten up.  I noted on Celebrity all adults, including the crew, will have to be vaccinated.

 

The CDC sticking with their old order has forced the cruise lines to make other plans.   As more and more adults are vaccinated, the old rules should not apply anymore.

 

I fully expect to see similar announcements from Carnival and Norwegian about sailings from other ports in the Caribbean/Bahamas.  A business model without revenue doesn't make any sense.  

[BlerkOne]

44 minutes ago, lazydayz said:

I fully expect to see similar announcements from Carnival and Norwegian about sailings from other ports in the Caribbean/Bahamas.  A business model without revenue doesn't make any sense.  

 

Carnival Corp has other cruise lines and some are/will be sailing. P&O will be sailing UK coastal cruises starting in June, Aida is supposed to start Canary Island cruises tomorrow (!!!!), Costa is also supposed to restart this month.