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Credit: DisneyRoyal Caribbean, one of the largest Cruise companies, has announced that they will begin sailing again this summer — will Disney Cruise Line follow?
We know that Disney has recently announced their summer 2022 sailings, and the itineraries are fantastic. It seems as if Disney is ready to make triumphant comeback a lengthy period of no sailing, and 2022 will bring a lot of excitement to Disney Cruise fans.
However, Disney CEO Bob Chapek has said he believes that Disney Cruise Line could start sailing sooner than 2022. Chapek said during a shareholder meeting that he was hoping for a fall 2021 return to cruising, even if it was in a limited capacity.
Now that Royal Caribbean, a major competitor for Disney Cruise Line, has announced that they will be returning to cruising in June with advanced health and safety measures, could we see Disney do the same?
Notably, Royal Caribbean is requiring all adult passengers age 18 and older — as well as all crew members — to be vaccinated in order to board the ship. If you are younger than 18, you must provide proof of a negative coronavirus test before you board.
While these measures may seem extreme to some, COVID-19 has the potential to spread rapidly to passengers onboard a cruise ship, as evidenced by past outbreaks. It appears that Royal Caribbean is asking for passengers to be vaccinated out of an abundance of caution, and they will have other health and safety measures in place aboard their ships that align with recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in order to help their sailings run smoothly.
USA Today reported the following details:
Michael Bayley, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean International, said in a statement that the company is looking forward to returning to the Caribbean “gradually and safely.”
“The vaccines are clearly a game changer for all of us, and with the number of vaccinations and their impact growing rapidly, we believe starting with cruises for vaccinated adult guests and crew is the right choice,” Bayley said, noting that as things progress, vaccine requirements and other safety measures are expected to evolve.
Royal Caribbean is the first major cruise line to bring cruises with passengers back to the U.S. We anticipate more cruise lines will follow their lead.
Along with the continued successful rollout of the various coronavirus vaccines that have been developed, we have seen Disney be able to announce a reopening for the theme parks of the Disneyland Resort. Disneyland which has had the door shut to Guests for a year is finally reopening them on April 30. Perhaps a smooth reopening of Disneyland after a year-long closure will help push Disney toward reopening sailings on the Disney Cruise Line before fall.
Disney has yet to make an announcement on when Disney Cruise Line will return, though we will update our website when a confirmed return date has been announced for Disney Cruises.
Would you get a vaccine in order to take a cruise? Let us know in the comments!