RC postpones launch of new ship, cancel upcoming sailings due to surge of Omicron

More sailings have been cancelled by Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises, making them the latest cruise lines to be affected by omicron.

Wednesday, 19th January 2022

RC postpones launch of new ship, cancel upcoming sailings due to surge of Omicron

More sailings have been cancelled by Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises, making them the latest cruise lines to be affected by the recent omicron-led increase of COVID-19 cases. Celebrity Cruises, which is owned by the Royal Caribbean Group, has delayed its Celebrity Eclipse ship because the liner wants to concentrate on its voyages in the Caribbean and the new launch of a ship in April 2022. The Celebrity Eclipse was supposed to be launched at the end of March. Besides this, four previously scheduled Pacific Coast sailings are also affected by the cancellation. Affected passengers can either obtain a full refund or rebook on a similar Pacific Coast trip later this year. According to the cruise line, all passengers who are eligible to board the cruise must be vaccinated and produce documentation of a negative COVID-19 antigen or PCR test taken within two days of embarkation. According to Royal Caribbean, the Jan. 22 sailing of its Independence of the Seas ship has been cancelled owing to "ongoing COVID-related conditions around the world." Royal Caribbean already announced that sailings on four of its other ships, the Serenade of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas, Jewel of the Seas, and Vision of the Seas, would be halted. "Any public space where people meet has an inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19," the corporation noted in its advisor "Some onboard and destination experiences, products, features, or itineraries may not be available during your cruise due to developing health protocols, may vary by ship and destination, and may be subject to change without notice." Royal Caribbean recently revised its mask policies, requiring face coverings to be worn indoors, in addition to delaying some of its sailings. Guests aged 12 and up must also be inoculated before boarding. Last month, the company also decided to temporarily halt new bookings for vacations departing in early January "since our ships will continue to sail with a limited capacity to accommodate physical distancing," according to the company. The cruise lines are the most recent victims of the omicron variant of the coronavirus pandemic. Norwegian Cruise Line also cancelled cruises on eight of its ships earlier this month, including one that was forced to return to port due to a COVID-19 outbreak on board.