Royal Caribbean has closed capacity for its cruises through mid-January, in order to reduce the number of people on board during outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness. The cruise line is encouraging passengers to postpone their trips until then and are offering a refund.
Royal Caribbean has closed bookings to reduce capacity following outbreaks and reduced the number of sailings it will offer in 2019. The company is asking customers who have made reservations for sailings through mid-January to contact the company for a refund or an alternative trip. Read more in detail here: royal caribbean reduced capacity.
Bookings for Royal Caribbean International are blocked until early January. What is the goal? As the country — and the cruise industry — grapples with an increase of COVID cases, capacity will be reduced.
“There Have Been No Sailings Cancelled”
The Royal Caribbean Blog (which is unaffiliated with the cruise company) was the first to discover that some sailings seemed to be sold out. In response to an inquiry from a visitor, the line’s official Twitter account verified the news and explained why by Wednesday evening.
Hello once again! I received further information on this and wanted to keep you informed. We halted bookings until early January to guarantee that visitors who had previously made reservations may have even more room and peace of mind while aboard. There have been no cancellations of sailings or clients who have made bookings. -Brit
December 22, 2021 — Royal Caribbean (@RoyalCaribbean)
“We did close reservations until early January to guarantee passengers who are already booked may enjoy even more room and peace of mind while aboard,” a representative tweeted. “No sailings or visitors who presently possess bookings have been canceled,” the notification said.
While the company states that room adjustments and upgrades are still available depending on availability for the sailings in question, further reservations for those sailings are closed.
FlowRider is a FlowRider is a (Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean)
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Why Is This A Good Idea?
When the cruise industry resumed operations after the lengthy suspension, each line made it plain that they would be operating at a reduced capacity. However, as the effectiveness of the newly designed health and safety measures has been shown in the months afterwards, lines have gradually increased the capacity at which they sail.
Royal Caribbean International CEO Michael Bayley said during a third-quarter earnings call that at least one ship, the Freedom of the Seas, was cruising at around 85 percent capacity. At the time, the goal was to have all of the fleet’s ships fully operational by the summer of 2022.
However, this was before the current rise in COVID cases in general, and the Omicron form in particular. Despite being vaccinated, 55 guests and staff members onboard the Odyssey of the Seas tested positive this week. This happened after 48 passengers on the Symphony of the Seas is a cruise ship that sails around the world. tested positive for the virus.
In recent weeks, outbreaks have been reported on several cruise lines, including Norwegian Cruise Line’s Breakaway. Indeed, more than two dozen ships are presently classified with a Yellow status on the color-coded system used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to monitor COVID cases. This indicates that “the ship has reached the threshold for CDC inquiry,” according to the agency.
Symphony of the Seas
Health and safety regulations are being tightened throughout the cruise sector. Several lines have prohibited smoking in casinos, and the majority have made mask wearing more difficult while visitors are inside.
What remains to be seen is if other cruise companies will follow Royal Caribbean’s lead and reduce capacity to allow for more social separation and, therefore, reduce the danger of epidemics spreading.
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The “are cruises open for summer 2021” is a question that has been asked by many people in the past. Royal Caribbean has decided to close bookings through mid-January, due to outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness on their ships.
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