Canada Bans Cruise Ships Until October 31
In a press release issued this morning, the Canadian Minister of Transport, Marc Garneau, announced that cruise ships with overnight accommodations allowed to carry more than 100 persons are prohibited from operating in Canadian waters until October 31, 2020. The news comes as ot
Welcome Back! U.S. Virgin Islands to Reopen June 1
There’s good news from one of America’s most popular tourist destinations! The U.S. Virgin Islands will reopen its doors to leisure travelers on Monday, June 1, 2020. Though the island is reopening, Commissioner of Tourism Joseph Boschulte is still urging people to take personal responsibility w
CEO Carnival Corp Talks Future Of Cruising with Porthole Cruise
Earlier this month, Arnold Donald joined editor-in-chief of Porthole Cruise Magazine, Bill Panoff, to discuss the latest in cruise news and Carnival Corporation’s response to COVID-19. Here is the exclusive part 2 of that interview. You can watch part one of the interview with Carnival Corp CEO Ar
Virgin Voyages Announces New Return Date
Virgin Voyages announced today in a press release that they will begin sailing again on October 16, 2020 after pushing back their initial return date of late July. When the world first went into lockdown due to COVID-19, every cruise line had a difficult time adjusting. However, Virgin Vo
Windstar Cruises Announces Return Date
One of the foremost small ship cruise lines in the industry announced their date for return following the pause in operation due to COVID-19. Windstar Cruises will return to operation on September 3, 2020 when their motor sailing yacht Wind Spirit sets sail in Tahiti. The cruise line first
Puerto Vallarta Takes First Step Towards Economic Recovery
The beautiful and popular cruise destination of Puerto Vallarta is taking the first steps towards reopening today after months of shutdowns and social distancing. May 18th marks the start of ‘phase 0’ of the State of Jalisco’s plan to recover economically from COVID-19. This phase of the proce
Bookings Boom
We’ve been saying it since cruise lines began their pause in operation in March: there’s never been a better time to book a cruise. Well, apparently cruisers agree. When Carnival Cruise Line announced last week that they had a tentative plan in place to resume cruising on August 1st, it ma
Nevis Announces They’re COVID-Free
When COVID-19 first began spreading globally, the island of Nevis in the Caribbean took an aggressive approach to fighting the virus and it appears those measures have paid off. The island’s Ministry of Health has declared the island free from COVID-19 after all four cases have successfully recove
Blue Angels Salute COVID-19 Responders Over Miami
The sunny skies of South Florida were in for a treat today as the Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Squadron buzzed the skyline in a salute to COVID-19 responders working hard to flatten the curve and help those recovering from the virus. Operation “America Strong” flew over Jacksonville this mor
Carnival Corp CEO Talks COVID-19 Response with Porthole Cruise
How important is Carnival Corporation to the cruise industry? The conglomerate holds nine of cruising’s most recognizable brands and employs hundreds of thousands of people both here in America and on ships all over the world. That makes CEO of Carnival Corporation Arnold Donald one of the mo
Hotels May Provide Blueprint for Cruise Cleanliness
We’ve all seen articles about what cruising is going to look like in the aftermath of COVID 19. Precautions like doing away with self-service buffets, not filling ships to the max with passengers and even shorter itineraries where the only stops are cruise line private islands are all possibilitie
Carnival Cruise Line Releases Plan To “Phase-In” Service
In a press release this morning, Carnival Cruise Line released their plan to phase-in cruising operations beginning on August 1, 2020. This is the first concrete plan we’ve heard from any cruise line for a return to service. The line also acknowledged that all cruises until that time would be
Cruise Stoppage Costs Alaska $800 Million
The economic toll of COVID 19 on the cruise industry is devastating, but the people of Alaska may be the biggest losers in the whole ordeal. Mike Tibbles, a Cruise Lines International Association Alaska representative, spoke to the Alaska Board of Marine Pilots this week and explained that with the
Carnival Corp CEO Talks COVID-19 Response with Porthole Cruise
How important is Carnival Corporation to the cruise industry? The conglomerate holds nine of cruising’s most recognizable brands and employs hundreds of thousands of people both here in America and on ships all over the world. That makes CEO of Carnival Corporation Arnold Donald one of the mo
St. Thomas Eyes June 1st Return for Tourists
In an address to the people of the U.S. Virgin Islands yesterday, Governor Albert Bryan Jr. outlined a five-tier plan to reopen the islands for tourism by June 1, 2020. A stay at home order remains in effect until May 4 when things will begin to ramp up from a business and tourism standpoint.
Could Cruise Lines Make Passengers Wear Masks?
We’re starting to see what travel in a post-Coronavirus world will look like and for JetBlue passengers, that means masks are mandatory for all passengers beginning May 4th. In a press release, JetBlue became the first airline in America to institute a policy requiring face coverings, but chances
Cunard Line Extends Pause in Operations
Citing “the continued impact of COVID 19,” Cunard Line made the decision to pause their voyages further past the initial date of May 15, 2020 previously announced. The line also announced they have cancelled the entire Alaska season and all departures on Queen Elizabeth through
Happy Anniversary, HAL!
Social distancing is making celebrating a little different these days, but we wanted to give a big Happy Birthday shout out to Holland America Line, who turned 147 years old over the weekend! Way back in 1873, the Netherlands-American Steamship Company started sailing goods and people from the Nethe
Bahamian Prime Minister “We Will Not Open Our Beach”
In a nationally broadcast press conference on Sunday, Bahamian Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis spoke to his people about ongoing lockdown protocols to help prevent the spread of COVID 19. The Prime Minister was encouraged by the effectiveness of curfews and other social distancing measu
Holland America Line Extends Temporary Pause
Holland America Line followed suit with sister line Carnival in extending their pause on cruise operations until mid-summer. In a statement yesterday, company President Orlando Ashford explained the extension was due to a number of factors surrounding the COVID 19 pandemic, including the extension o
