Royal Caribbean Group said the Omicron variant of Covid-19 has hit bookings for the first half of the year and is likely to delay its return to profitability.
The cruise giant expects a net loss for the first half of 2022 and a return to profitability in the second half.
For the full year in 2021, it has reported a net loss of $5.3 billion compared to $5.8 billion in 2020.
Jason Liberty, president and chief executive of the group – which includes Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises – said the timing of Omicron was “particularly unfortunate” for H1 2022 bookings and will “likely delay our return to profitability by a few months”.
But he does not expect it will have an impact on the group’s overall recovery and the strong demand for cruising.
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“During 2021, we made significant progress toward our recovery, with over 85% of our capacity returning to operations,” he said.
“We expect 2022 will be a strong transitional year, as we bring the rest of our fleet back into operations.
“Omicron created short-term operational challenges that have unfortunately weighed on close-in bookings.”
Since the resumption of cruises, the group has carried 1.3 million passengers, with 2,500 testing positive for Covid – about 0.19%.
The surge of Omicron led to the cancellation of several sailings but the group expects to operate approximately 95% of its planned capacity in the first quarter of 2022.
Omicron also meant bookings decreased in December but are now back to pre-Omicron levels.
Wonder of the Seas (pictured), the world’s largest cruise ship, was delivered in January 2022 and Celebrity Beyond will make its maiden voyage from Southampton in April.
Australia is anticipated to open for cruising for the country’s summer season – which is winter in the northern hemisphere.
China remains closed, and the company has redeployed ships planned for China to other core markets to capitalise on strong pent-up demand.