Covid-19 has obviously had a dramatic impact across all businesses, including of course the cruise industry.
The health, safety and well-being of our guests and crew are of paramount importance and, when we resume service, our onboard experience will be different with new protocols in every aspect of our operations, from the time guests arrive at the terminal until they are on their way home.
After a year like no other, TradeWinds asked 40 shipping industry stakeholders what they see for 2021 after a year beset by the coronavirus, and how the pandemic will shape shipping's future.
Pre-Covid-19, cruising already had some of the most stringent health, safety and sanitation protocols in the travel and transportation sector, and we are taking extraordinary measures to enhance our procedures. While we await the distribution of promising vaccines, we will be implementing protocols to enhance physical distancing, expand medical capabilities, implement more touchless and digital interaction, and expand our comprehensive sanitation protocols.
In the short-term, the shipboard experience may change, but we will offer the same welcoming atmosphere created by the friendliest, hardest working team in the travel industry. Our crew is truly the secret to our success. It is what differentiates a Carnival cruise from any other vacation.
In terms of our resumption of cruises in the US, we have been planning in earnest with all of our teams across the organisation and in partnership with Carnival Corp. As we’ve stated previously, we will take a gradual phased-in approach to resuming cruising in the US, complying with all guidelines put forth recently by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
We’re seeing pent-up consumer demand for all of our cruise products in 2021 and beyond. Carnival is well positioned once we begin sailing again, as we have the widest array of convenient, close-to-home homeports in North America — and consumers’ ability to drive to their embarkation port is a significant advantage for us.
We are also the leader in Caribbean cruising, including short island getaways, which is perfect for those consumers who are looking for [a] “fun in the sun” vacation so closely associated with the warm-water cruising.
On a personal note, I want to express my most sincere thanks and appreciation to our guests, travel agent, port, destination and industry partners, and employees, both on board and ashore, for their incredible patience and support over the past several months. I visit our ships regularly — it’s my favourite part of the job. I am as eager as anyone to get on board and thank our amazing crew in person.
