Tag: Carnival

Cunard to extend pause in operations amid ongoing travel restrictions

Cunard, the British luxury cruise line, and part of Carnival Corporation, has said that it has extended its pause in operations due to the ongoing travel constraints across the world.

According to the cruise line, voyages departing on board Queen Mary 2 up to and including May 28, 2021, and on-board Queen Elizabeth up to and including June 4, 2021, have been cancelled. Departures on Queen Victoria remain unaffected and are scheduled to resume May 17, 2021.

Customers who have had their voyage cancelled will receive a 125 percent Future Cruise Credit, providing an additional 25 percent on any amount paid, to redeem against a future voyage. The 125 percent Future Cruise Credit can be used on any new booking made by the end of December 2021 and on any voyage available at the time of booking. Voyages are currently available through to early 2023. Guests preferring a refund should complete the form on Cunard.com.

Cunard President Simon Palethorpe said: ‘Our extension to the pause in operations is the result of the ongoing restrictions on cruising in the UK and around the world, and recognizes the significant lead times to return to service once those restrictions are lifted.

‘We are extremely sorry for the disappointment we know this will cause. We know how much careful consideration goes into planning a holiday and apologize that our guests now have to wait a little longer to travel once again with Cunard.

‘Guests are able to use their enhanced 125% Future Cruise Credit to book for later in 2021 or for one of our newly announced 2022 voyages. The tremendous response already to our 2022 voyages, put on sale just a few weeks ago, clearly demonstrates our guests are eagerly anticipating travelling again with us. We’re equally looking forward to the time when we can welcome back our guests.’

P&O Cruises extends delay in sailing until October 15, 2020

P&O Cruises has announced an extension to a delay in its sailing operations until October 15, 2020 as it works with all relevant public health agencies to approve health and safety protocols.

P&O Cruises president Paul Ludlow said: ‘We are working with government and industry bodies at the highest possible level, such as Public Health England (PHE) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to review every aspect of a holiday with us and establish a framework of policies and procedures. Our aspiration is to be adopting best practice in managing COVID-19 within the travel industry.

‘Unfortunately, as the world continues to adapt to this global crisis, we have made the decision, difficult as it is, to extend our pause in operations for all sailings up to and including October 15, 2020. We are so sorry for the disappointment this will cause to so many of our guests.’

All guests who were booked on these cancelled sailings will receive an enhanced Future Cruise Credit (FCC), which will include an additional 25% on top of the amount paid for the holiday. FCCs may also be used to upgrade or for a second cabin for any existing booking and also may be gifted or transferred to someone else. This option will also be available until the end of December 2021.

Expanding on the likely protocols Ludlow said: ‘We have for years had in place many of the protocols now considered advisable for other social gathering venues, such as hand-sanitizing stations and rigorous cleaning and disinfecting procedures. We also have for years gone beyond those protocols by having guests complete a health declaration form and having a comprehensive medical facility on board each ship providing 24/7 medical care and treatment. During the recent crisis, we added robust health screening upon embarkation, starting with thermal scanning of guests and crew.

‘Along with the rest of the world, we will adapt. We will work closely with medical experts and global authorities to help us determine the best way to move forward while honouring our highest responsibility – the health, safety, and wellbeing of our guests, crew and communities we visit, along with compliance and environmental protection.

‘When the time is right, we will be ready to resume our tradition of providing amazing holiday experiences for our guests.’

P&O Cruises is also introducing a 5% deposit for new bookings made between 27 May and 29 June 2020. The offer is available on applicable Early Saver and Select Price holidays of 19 nights or fewer from January 2021.

P&O Cruises visits over 200 destinations worldwide and offers itineraries generally ranging from two to 17 days and an annual world cruise. P&O Cruises sails to Australia & New Zealand, Baltic, the British Isles, Canada, Spain, Portugal & the Canary Islands, the Caribbean, Central America, Dubai & the Arabian Gulf, the Far East & Asia, the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean, Scandinavia, South America, the South Pacific, the United States and Western Europe.

Carnival to spend £500 million on fleet review

Carnival Cruise Lines, a British-American owned cruise line based in Florida, USA, is to spend up to £500 million on an operational review of its fleet.

The company intends to review 101 ships across its ten brands following a number of reported technical problems and the widely publicised engine fire on the company’s ship, Carnival Triumph, in February this year. Improvements are already in hand for £200 million of improvements to Carnival Cruise Lines’ 24 ships, with emergency power capabilities, new fire safety technology and operating backup all benefiting from enhancements.

According to Carnival, the work should not affect its scheduled cruise itineraries beyond the cancellations that have already been announced for the damaged Carnival Triumph and delays to the rebuilding of Carnival Sunshine.

Micky Arison, chairman and chief executive of Carnival Corporation, said, ‘The investments announced today for Carnival Cruise Lines, and those we will continue to make, will reinforce our ability to consistently deliver the customer experience that 10 million people every year have come to expect from us across our fleet of 101 ships. Absolutely nothing is more important than the safety and comfort of our guests and crew, and we will use the full resources of our company to meet that commitment.’

Gerry Cahill, president and chief executive of Carnival Cruise Lines, said, ‘All of Carnival Cruise Lines’ ships operate safely today. Each vessel already has effective systems in place to prevent, detect and respond to emergency situations, and we meet or exceed all regulatory requirements. However, by applying lessons learned through our fleet-wide operational review after the Carnival Triumph fire and by taking advantage of new technologies, we have identified areas for enhancement across our operations.’

 

Carnival cancels cruises to address propulsion problems

Carnival Cruise Lines, a British-American owned cruise line with its headquarters in Florida, USA, has cancelled more cruises while it addresses problems with its vessel’s propulsion systems.

The 12 cancelled sailings that have just been announced include 10 that were scheduled for the Carnival Triumph, the ship that suffered an engine room fire that left it stranded in the Gulf of Mexico last month, and 2 that were scheduled to be the debut voyages of the Carnival Sunshine, the former Carnival Destiny that is being renamed following a USD155 million refit. The cancellation of voyages to Barcelona and Venice aboard the refurbished ship means that it will now not commence its service until May 5 this year.

The cancellation package on offer to disappointed Carnival Sunshine passengers includes a full refund, the reimbursement of any travel costs that are not refundable and a 25 percent discount on a future cruise.

The 10 latest cancellations to affect Carnival Triumph take its total of cancelled voyages to 22, with 12 having already been announced. A cancellation package similar to that offered to Carnival Sunshine’s passengers is also available to those that were to travel on the sister vessel.

Gerry Cahill, the company’s president and chief executive said, ‘The changes we are implementing are focused primarily on improvements to better support continued power and hotel services should unexpected issues arise.

‘Going forward, the review will focus on the balance of our fleet. While this process will take time, it is our highest priority and has the full support and resources of Carnival Cruise Lines and Carnival Corporation.’

A Carnival statement said, ‘The cruise line is making significant investments to enhance the level of operating redundancies and the scope of hotel services that can run on emergency power, and further improve each ship’s fire prevention, detection and suppression systems.

‘Given the necessary lead time to source needed materials and implement the enhancements, Carnival will extend the current out-of-service period for these two ships.’