NEWS the efforts being made to hasten the safe resumption of operations. Ian Taylor reports


‘UK cruises could resume between April and June’


C Jo Rzymowska


ruises from the UK could restart in the spring despite the continuing ‘no sail’ order, according to Carnival UK chairman David Dingle, who forecast sailings would


resume “sometime between April and June”. Speaking at a Travel Weekly Insight Report launch event,


Dingle said: “We’ve agreed a phased restart so the early cruises operate only in EU waters close to home. “We have a plan to prove the concept before we start


taking ships beyond this country. “Remember, it takes between eight and 12 weeks to get


a ship recommissioned and ready to start, to bring crews back and get crews trained in the new protocols. “We would like to think the first phase of the restart,


purely in UK waters, calling at UK ports, may be a month. Ten we can start taking ships to nearby European ports within the travel corridors and build up from that so ultimately British cruise passengers can sail in any part of the world. But that is some months away. “If we can get the travel advisory changed, we may be


able to do the UK waters [phase] in a test period sometime in March – certainly for cruise lines able to get their ships ready to sail quickly. But we have to be realistic. We’ll be looking at some time between April and June on average.”


or ‘should not be singled out’


do. They need to give us a start date for us to be able to plan.” The government’s Global Travel


Taskforce concluded in November that “now is not the time” for a cruise restart, but laid out plans for a three-stage resumption. Cruises will initially resume in UK


waters with UK-only port calls. A second phase will see cruises begin and end in the UK but call at EU ports subject to Foreign Office advice and the travel corridors list, and a final phase will bring open sailing. Rzymowska said: “We’re lined up to do


some trial cruises, but we need very quickly to be opened up to Europe and beyond. “We’re cautiously optimistic because


the vaccine can change things significantly.” Dingle noted: “Tere will be some prevalence of


vaccination by the time we start. A good number of people, particularly the older age groups, will have that protection.” He said: “Our maritime minister [Robert Courts] is


working hard to get the obstacles [to restarting] shiſted, but they are proving hard to shiſt. “I can’t help worrying about the speed at which the government is working.”


P&O Cruises’ Aurora


‘We also want to make sure guests have great holidays’


Cruise line bosses believe passengers’ experience will be unaffected by Covid protocols once sailings can resume. Celebrity Cruises UK managing director Jo


Rzymowska insisted the experience would match customer expectations, saying: “We want everybody to be safe, but we also want to make sure they have great holidays. That is really important. All the work we’re doing is to make sure guests have a great time. “Technology is a key part of that. Everything is


through our app, from opening your door to using the remote control in your room for lighting, for TV, for booking restaurants. Everything is as touchless as possible, but the human interaction is still there.” Rzymowska told a Travel Weekly Insight Report launch event: “We’re not going to be at full capacity


travelweekly.co.uk


to start with so that allows greater physical distancing. Guests will have a great holiday. And we’re working with destinations to look at ‘bubble’ excursions.” Carnival UK chairman David Dingle said “there will


be face masks in public places” and capacity reductions, and “a number of cabins held off sale in case they are required for isolating a positive case”. He insisted: “The experience won’t be that different [for passengers].” Dingle noted cruising “has already started in Germany


and Italy” and “about 200 cruises” had operated by December, with “extremely positive” feedback.


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‘Welcome back on board’


Produced by Travel Weekly, with exclusive consumer research 7 JANUARY 2021 13


ravel Weekly Insight Report


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