Canada cruise ship ban extended

If you were thinking of taking a cruise from Vancouver towards Alaska this autumn forget it.

The Canadian Government is extending its ban on cruise ships through February 2022 because of Covid-19.   

The decision is another setback for an industry trying to get back in business after being in dry dock for almost a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Alaska is one of the industry’s top destinations – it attracted a record 1.33m cruise guests in 2019 – and the ban will also affect New England cruises that travel north to Montreal and other stops.

“This extension, if not amended as pandemic conditions improve, or through action by US authorities, would potentially require our brands to cancel our Alaska and Canada/New England cruise vacation seasons this year,” Carnival Corp, the largest cruise operator, said in a statement.

Another problem is that maritime law bars foreign-flagged ships from transporting passengers directly between two US ports, so Alaskan voyages typically make stops in Canada. This also happens with return trips from Los Angeles to Hawaii with a Mexican call necessary on the return leg.

Alaska represents about 5% of the global cruise-line deployment, according to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA).  

https://cruising.org

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