Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Oct 07, 2025

US authorities halt cruise travel for another 100 days

US authorities halt cruise travel for another 100 days

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have extended a 'no-sail order' for cruise ships by 100 days or until COVID-19 is no longer an emergency.

The extension followed a CDC ruling that passengers or crew arriving in the US from a cruise ship will no longer be able to board commercial flights.

The share price of Carnival Corp. fell sharply on Monday, after the cruise operator announced, in response to the CDC ruling, that it has cancelled all North American cruise itineraries through 26 June. Carnival also cancelled all trips out of New York until the end of this year.


Cayman first banned cruise ships starting 16 March.

The first ship scheduled to sail to Cayman is now the Carnival Vista, which is set to depart Galveston, Texas, on 27 June. The Carnival Paradise and the Carnival Sensation are set to leave from Tampa and Miami, respectively, on 29 June.

While the CDC ruling eliminates any ambiguity for US cruise schedules, it is not certain that these international travel dates are realistic. Even if US-based cruise lines were allowed to sail again in US waters when the CDC order expires, it is not clear that they will be allowed to land in Cayman.

At a press conference last week, Premier Alden McLaughlin called earlier cruise schedules indicating a return to Cayman by the end of May “premature”.

The CDC said, despite the existing restrictions on foreign travel, cruise ship travel markedly increases the risk and impact of the COVID-19 outbreak within the US.

At least 10 cruise ships reported crew or passengers that either tested positive or experienced respiratory symptoms or influenza-like illnesses.

The CDC estimates there are approximately 100 cruise ships at sea off the US East Coast, West Coast, and Gulf Coast, with nearly 80,000 crew on board. In addition, there are 20 cruise ships at port or anchorage in the US with known or suspected COVID-19 cases among the crew who remain on board.

“There are several public health concerns when crew members become ill while on board the cruise ships,” the CDC said. “As we have seen with the passenger illness response on cruise ships, safely evacuating, triaging, and repatriating cruise ship crew has involved complex logistics, incurs financial costs at all levels of government, and diverts resources away from larger efforts to suppress or mitigate COVID-19.

“The addition of further COVID-19 cases from cruise ships also places healthcare workers at substantial increased risk.”

The CDC order requires that cruise lines develop operational plans to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic and include medical screening of passengers and crew, as well as the training of crew members to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and deal with any outbreaks on board.

The no-sail order remains in effect for at least 100 days, unless the US secretary of health officially declares COVID-19 is no longer a public health emergency or the CDC director rescinds or modifies the order.

Cancelled trips are a major drain on the cash reserves of the main cruise lines – Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian. Carnival is offering passengers between US$300 and US$600 added credit to future bookings, if they do not request a cash refund. Royal Caribbean is offering 125% credit on new bookings to avoid a full refund.

Last week, Carnival revealed in a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that support of the industry is unwavering, with almost half of the passengers who saw their cruise cancelled choosing to sail with the cruise line at a later date.

When contacted by Carnival, 45% of passengers opted for added credit to a future sailing, and 55% requested a refund.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
×