Carnival Cruise Line is preparing a handful of ships for a possible resumption of sailings from US ports in July.
But the majority of the company’s cruises have been cancelled until July 30 due to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) no sail order.
Agents were notified of the cancellations by Carnival as it works towards plans for a possible July restart in the US by selected ships.
US lines are continuing talks with the CDC in a bid to find a route to allow a return to cruising in US waters after a Covid-19 ban was imposed more than a year ago.
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Carnival hopes to begin operating sailings on three ships from Florida and Texas, including Carnival Vista and Carnival Breeze from Galveston and Carnival Horizon from Miami.
Carnival Miracle will assume some of Carnival Freedom’s departures from Seattle if the line can find a solution to allow cruise ships to visit Alaska. Canada has banned large ships from operating until February 2022, affecting sailings to Alaska
“Given that there is still some uncertainty in our ability to operate these cruises, guests booked on those sailings who wish to make alternate summer vacation plans may cancel without penalty by May 31, 2021 and receive a full refund,” Carnival said.
President Christine Duffy said: “We continue to have constructive discussions with the CDC but still have many questions that remain unanswered.
“We are working diligently to resume sailing in the US and meet the CDC guidelines.
“We sincerely appreciate the continued patience and understanding of our guests and travel advisor partners and will share additional information as quickly as we can.”
Meanwhile, Carnival notified passengers last week that Carnival Splendor’s pause out of Sydney was extended another month, with sailings cancelled from August 19 to September 17.
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