- No major US cruise line will be setting sail around the country until, at earliest, March.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommends avoiding cruise trips as the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage on.
- These are the updated 2021 sailing plans for cruise lines like the Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Disney Cruises.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Bad news for any eager cruisegoers: cruise lines are continuing to extend cruising suspensions into 2021 as the Covid-19 pandemic continues.
The cruising industry initially saw a quiet period after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted and extended its no-sail order as the coronavirus pandemic began surging in 2020. But after months of waiting, in October, the CDC replaced its mandatory sailing pause with the "Framework for Conditional Sailing Order," a list of rigorous requirements needed for cruise lines to continue operating again.
Despite this order, and the impending debut of several cruise ships over the next few years, the return of cruising still remains in limbo. Presently, no major US cruises will be setting sail until March at the earliest, but many cruise lines are now continuing to push back sail dates as the coronavirus pandemic continues to surge around the US.
Keep scrolling to see the updated sailing suspension dates for several major cruise lines:
Norwegian Cruises
According to a suspended sailings update on December 29, 2020, Norwegian has hit the pause button on all of its cruises that were set to sail through March.
Princess Cruises
Princess Cruises originally paused its trips through March, according to a notice posted on November 20, 2020. However, on 6 January, the cruise line extended this timeline, announcing it would halt further sailings through 14 May.
The Princess Cruises has also paused all sailings through 1 November that were set to be longer than seven days going to and from US ports, and any trips sailing to and from Japan through 25 June, according to the November notice.
"We continue to prepare our ships for our return to service and we are eager to see our guests back on board to create summertime memories," Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises' president, said in a statement.
When the cruise line resumes sailing, several ships - including the Diamond Princess and the Grand Princess - will have Princess' MedallionClass Experience. This "experience" includes new health protocols and contactless features, to name a few details.
Carnival Cruises
A full list of suspended sailing dates per ship is available on Carnival's website. According to this list, no Carnival cruises will be setting sail until after 31 March, although several ships will stay docked even further into the future, according to a 6 January news release.
For example, according to a press release posted on 9 December, 2020, Carnival has set up dry docks for the Carnival Magic, Carnival Paradise, and Carnival Valor, therefore halting any of the ships' embarkments through 24 September, 31 May, and 11 September, respectively.
"We are sorry to disappoint our guests, as we can see from our booking activity that there is clearly a pent-up demand for cruising on Carnival," Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, said in a statement on the news release.
The upcoming inaugural Mardi Gras trip was also pushed back as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Royal Caribbean
Royal Caribbean will be suspending any cruise trips through 28 February, according to a 17 December, 2020 update. The two exceptions to this are Australia-based sailings, which will stay suspended until 30 April, and the new Odyssey of the Seas ship, which will stay docked until 26 March.
According to a press release from 2 December, Royal Caribbean's Celebrity Cruises has also halted its trips through 28 February, with a further suspension extension on South American sailings through 7 April.
Royal Caribbean's Silversea Cruises brand will stay suspended until 1 April (with the exception of the Silver Origin cruise, which will have a 6 February trip). Royal Caribbean's Azamara line will remain suspended through 20 March.
The earliest Royal Caribbean ship to resume sailing will be in China with the Spectrum of the Seas. This particular ship will only be suspended through 20 January.
Celebrity Cruises
Celebrity Cruises has suspended all trips through 28 February, and South America sailings with the winter 2021 program through 7 April, according to a travel alert posted on 2 December.
Holland America Line
Holland America will be pausing all cruise trips through 30 April, according to an update on 6 January. Alaska cruises originally set to depart through mid-May have also been canceled, although some will be halted even further into June.
Several international trips - specifically ones in Canada and the Mediterranean - will be frozen even longer with a pause extension through August for select trips. You can find the pause timeline on Holland America's website.
Disney Cruises
According to a travel alert posted on 11 December, 2020, Disney Cruises has halted all trips through 28 February. Cruises longer than seven nights have been suspended even further. See the full list of suspended Disney Cruises here.
MSC Cruises
MSC released a list of cancellation dates per cruise ship. Trips on the MSC Armonia, for example, have been canceled until 28 February, while the MSC Divinia won't see any sailings until after 27 March.
P&O Cruises
P&O has halted all trips through April.
Read more: Carnival's CEO reveals the advice he would give to his 25-year-old self
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