Carnival to resume some North American cruises in August
8 ships from Miami, Port Canaveral and Galveston will resume operations
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Carnival Cruise Line is slated to resume some of its North American trips this summer after the cruise industry suspended nearly all operations due to the coronavirus pandemic.
On Monday, Carnival Corp announced that eight of its ships from Miami, Port Canaveral and Galveston will resume operations starting Aug. 1. However, cruises in all other North American and Australian markets will remain suspended until Aug. 31.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CCL | CARNIVAL CORP. | 25.43 | +0.29 | +1.15% |
All cruises prior to this date will remain canceled. In April, the cruise line had hoped to resume some of its North American operations by June 27.
CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES EXTENDS CORONAVIRUS-RELATED CANCELLATIONS
A week prior to the announcement, Carnival CEO Arnold Donald told FOX Business' Liz Claman that he was unsure when the cruise industry would recover from the cancellations caused by the pandemic.
View from onboard Carnival Liberty as Carnival Victory Cruise Ship departs the Grand Turk Cruise Terminal in the Turks and Caicos Islands on April 3 2014.
Cruise lines were among the first to take a hit during the pandemic as travelers canceled or delayed trips and governments restricted travel to mitigate the spread of the virus.
The State Department advised against any travel on cruise ships, particularly for those with underlying health conditions. The advisory said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has noted an "increased risk of infection of COVID-19 in a cruise ship environment."
In response, the top cruise lines, including Carnival which had a few vessels become hot spots for the virus, offered full refunds or travel credits for travelers to use on future trips.
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Months after trips were halted, travelers are now getting the chance to redeem those credits.
"We are committed to supporting all public health efforts to manage the COVID-19 situation," the company announced Monday. "We are taking a measured approach, focusing our return to service on a select number of homeports where we have more significant operations that are easily accessible by car for the majority of our guests."
The following ships will resume operations on Aug. 1.
- From Galveston, Texas: Carnival Dream, Carnival Freedom and Carnival Vista
- From Miami: Carnival Horizon, Carnival Magic and Carnival Sensation
- From Port Canaveral, Florida: Carnival Breeze and Carnival Elation
Guests whose trips have been canceled, as well as their travel advisers, are being notified by email, according to Carnival. The email contains options for a combined future cruise credit and onboard credit package, or a full refund.
CARNIVAL TO 'FULLY COOPERATE' WITH CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE INVESTIGATION BY CONGRESS
The company plans to continue to engage with officials on additional protocols and procedures to protect the health of its guests and crew members as it works to navigate the situation.
"We appreciate the understanding and support of our guests and travel agent partners and look forward to welcoming them on board as the environment for travel and tourism improves," the company added.
Carnival did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for additional comment.
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