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Carnival says most itineraries unchanged even as Omicron cases rise
Published by maria gbaf
Posted on December 29, 2021
2 min readLast updated: January 28, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
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Published by maria gbaf
Posted on December 29, 2021
2 min readLast updated: January 28, 2026
Carnival Corp reports most cruise itineraries unchanged despite Omicron surge, though some ports are reviewing protocols. CDC monitors over 85 ships.
(Reuters) -Carnival Corp said on Tuesday a majority of its ships’ itineraries were unchanged despite a surge in cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant, which has threatened to stall a recovery in the cruise industry.
The world’s largest cruise operator, however, said a few destination ports were reviewing their protocols and processes due to the fast-spreading new variant.
Many passengers and media reports, including those from CNN and Euronews, said authorities of a few ports in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico and Mexico disallowed passengers to disembark from cruise ships that were carrying active COVID-19 cases.
“Looks like my cruise this Friday is a cruise to no where,” wrote one Reddit user on a Royal Caribbean forum late Monday.
Carnival said on Monday it would find an alternative destination should it be forced to cancel a port.
Royal Caribbean Group did not respond to a Reuters request for comment, while Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd declined to comment.
“The cruise lines’ reaction to the substantial increase in COVID-19 cases caused by the Omicron surge is largely hit or miss,” said James Walker, a Miami-based maritime lawyer.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also identified more than 85 cruise ships with COVID-19 cases on board, the agency said on Tuesday.
On Monday, the CDC said 68 ships with COVID-19 cases had met its threshold for an investigation.
The Omicron variant has sparked concerns that U.S. health officials may reintroduce a temporary ban on cruising, just months after U.S. cruise operators resumed guest operations.
(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh and Praveen Paramasivam in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Maju Samuel)
The main topic is the impact of the Omicron variant on Carnival cruise itineraries and the cruise industry.
Some Caribbean ports are reviewing protocols and have restricted disembarkation for ships with COVID-19 cases.
The CDC has identified over 85 cruise ships with COVID-19 cases and is monitoring the situation closely.
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