The Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) and Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) have confirmed that U.S. ports remain open to returning cruise ships amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
"U.S. ports are open to returning ships, and passengers are able to disembark and fly home as confirmed by a National Interest Exemption issued by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on March 13, 2020. This includes passengers who are U.S. citizens, legal permanent residents, and foreign diplomats. Non-U.S. citizens will be able to fly home to their home countries," the associations said in a statement issued Sunday.
"As a result of this Exemption, CLIA and FCCA have requested that all ports in the Caribbean, South America and other areas keep their ports open to cruise ships sailing on itineraries related to U.S. ports to allow passengers to return as soon as possible to their homes."
The FCCA and CLIA stated that approximately 40 ships and 90,000 passengers were at sea as of the voluntary and temporary 30-day suspension of ocean-going cruise line members on Friday. Eleven of these 40 ships will complete their sailings by Monday while the remaining have various dates of return through the end of the month.
The 30-day suspension, which took effect on March 14, is expected to impact at least 500 cruises and 1.2 million passengers.
Guests who are booked on cruise itineraries impacted by this decision are encouraged to contact their travel advisors or reach out to their cruise lines directly for more information.
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