Cruise giant Carnival Corp. & plc said it expects that over 50 percent of its total fleet will resume passenger operations by the end of October and nearly 65 percent will be carrying guests by New Year's Day.
To date, eight of the company's nine cruise line brands - Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, Costa Cruises, AIDA Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Cunard - have resumed guest sailings. The ninth brand yet to resume operations is P&O Cruises Australia.
By the end of October, those eight brands expect to be operating 42 ships.
Here is a summary of which brands have resumed passenger operations.
-Carnival Cruise Line plans to have 13 ships sailing in October and a total of 17 ships by year's end.
-Princess plans to have six ships sailing in October, with eight total ships in operation by the end of the year.
-Holland America Line plans to have four ships in operation in October, with a total of six in operation by year's end. Additionally, the brand announced plans for all 11 ships in its fleet to be in service by spring 2022.
-Seabourn plans to operate its full six-ship fleet by spring 2022, including a new expedition ship with its first sailing in April 2022.
-Costa plans to have five ships in operation in October, with a total of six ships operating by year's end.
-German brand AIDA plans to have eight ships operating in October and two more by Dec. 31.
-P&O Cruises (UK) will have three ships operating in October, with another by year's end. The brand plans to operate all five ships by spring 2022.
-Cunard plans to resume service with two ships by the end of the year, with its third ship returning to service in spring 2022.
Collectively, the corporation's brands are resuming operations in a gradual, phased-in approach, with sailings from ports in the U.S., Mexico, Caribbean, United Kingdom, Western Europe and the Mediterranean, among others.
The cruises operate with enhanced protocols developed in conjunction with government and health authorities. This includes operating with fully vaccinated passengers with updated testing and masking policies that follow the latest guidance.
"Based on our initial restart of guest cruise operations across eight brands, it is clear from our guests that there is tremendous confidence in our brands, our health and safety protocols, and the return of cruising as one of the world's most popular vacations," said Roger Frizzell, chief communications officer for Carnival Corp.
"As the restart of cruising continues to gain momentum and create positive economic activity for people who depend on our industry to make a living, we look forward to serving our guests with more than half our fleet capacity returning in October, while delivering a great guest experience and serving the best interests of public health. Our highest responsibility and top priority remains compliance, environmental protection, and the health, safety and well-being of our guests, our shipboard and shoreside personnel, and the communities we visit."
Additional information on protocols is available on the websites of each individual brand.
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