Norwegian Cruise Line Ready to Restart from Greece

After well over a year, Norwegian Cruise Line is all set to return to service on board their ship Norwegian Jade! The ship is scheduled to set sail from Port of Piraeus outside of Athens, Greece on Sunday, July 25th on a seven-day itinerary to the Greek Isles with calls on Crete, Rhodes, Mykonos, Kefalonia, Corfu, and Santorini. The 25th of July marks exactly 500 days since cruisers last set foot on board one of the line’s 17 vessels. 

Norwegian Cruise Line President Harry Sommer said the line is ready to go with all health and safety protocols in place. 

“The last year has been an incredible journey, and we are beyond ready to welcome our guests back in just a few weeks when Norwegian Jade becomes the first ship in the fleet to return to service,” said Sommer. “Our return has been 500 days in the making, and now we are putting the finishing touches on every detail of the guest experience to ensure we come back in the best and safest way imaginable.”

Norwegian Cruise Line Safety Measures 

While we waited for cruising to resume once again, the team at Norwegian was hard at work developing a new set of health and safety standards for their fleet. Along with enhanced cleaning measures, advanced air filtration systems and improved shipboard medical facilities, Norwegian requires  all guests and crew to undergo health screening, as well as temperature monitoring throughout the cruise. 

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All guests and crew are required to be 100% vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to sailing which means the cruise experience will be very similar to the classic cruise vacation you know and love. 

Cruises to Alaska in August 

Not only is Norwegian Cruise Line resuming operation in Europe, the line is also scheduled to sail from Seattle to Alaska on board Norwegian Encore on August 7th. 

When the cruise line announced the sailing in May, Frank Del Rio, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, was thrilled not just for cruisers and his company, but also the people of Alaska who rely on tourism to make ends meet. 

“Cruise travel is vital to Alaska’s extensive tourism economy and we collaboratively worked alongside local, state and national authorities to find a path forward to resume cruise operations and provide much needed relief to the families, communities and small businesses who rely on cruise tourism for their livelihoods. We look forward to re-starting the broad cruise ecosystem which supports thousands of American jobs and welcoming our guests back onboard to create memories of a lifetime,” said Del Rio.

Are you booked on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship in the coming months? Let us know in the comments!