In the U.K., "staycation" cruises confined to UK waters and ports started in May on board the MSC Virtuosa. MSC Cruises is now also operating ships in European destinations including Spain, Croatia and Malta. Italian domestic cruises have been operating since then, navigating the choppy waves of the pandemic and the occasional Italian lockdown-enforced pauses along the way. There's a lot riding on cruise ships remaining virus-free, navigating the red tape, restoring their reputation and returning safely to the seas.Ĭelebrity Edge - owned by Royal Caribbean Group's Celebrity Cruises - might be the first cruise to depart from the U.S., but it's not the first vessel to start sailing in the wake of the pandemic.Ĭruising's post-outbreak return came in August 2020 when MSC Cruises' flagship Grandiosa departed the Italian port of Genoa for a seven-day Mediterranean voyage with comprehensive health and safety measures in place. The departure of Celebrity Edge, a 1,004-foot ship with a pre-COVID capacity of 2,918 guests, marks a significant step for an industry that has hemorrhaged thousands of jobs and millions of dollars a day during cruising's suspension. Now, the first cruise ship carrying fare-paying passengers to depart U.S.
Newsletter sign-up: Get The COVID-19 Brief sent to your inbox.Most vessels were laid up, and some were sold off for scrap as the industry struggled to survive financially. By summer 2020, the world's cruise ship fleet was essentially out-of-action. The world's cruise ships were once titans of the oceans, raking in billions in profit as their city-sized passenger populations traveled across the globe.īut last year, many of these floating palaces became coronavirus epicenters, turned away from port after port as COVID-19 cases rose on board and the pandemic escalated on land.įirst passengers, and then crew members, struggled to get home.
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