Article from BTNews 22 MARCH 2021
Cruise start dates
Cruise lines have been making announcements regarding a return into service following a positive statement by transport minister Robert Courts at a virtual meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Maritime and Ports Group (APPMPG). This was previously reported by BTN (15 March) Cruise ships return?
Regular cruisers will know that prior to the pandemic cruise ships have always prioritised hygiene on board with hand sanitisers by the gangway and at the entry to dining points. With Covid-19 this is being upgraded with pre-cruise and social distancing arrangements once on board. Whether guests will have to wear masks all the time we wait to see.
All the three- and four-day voyages noted below are coastal trips without port calls.
20 May MSC MSC Virtuosa from Southampton with a three-night cruise. Since August MSC has been operating a series of cruises from Genoa and has now carried over 50,000 passengers.
22 May will see the brand-new Viking Venus departing Portsmouth for a seven-night trip which includes Liverpool, the Scilly Isles, Falmouth and Portland.
27 June sees Spirit of Discovery return into service with the maiden voyage of Spirit of Adventure set for 26 July, both from Southampton.
27 June is the start of the season for P&O with Britannia also departing Southampton, the first of three- and four-night cruises through to September. The brand-new Iona leaves the port on 7 August bound for the Scottish island after which she is named with the promise of a special party into the sunset.
5 July Fred Olsen’s Borealis takes a three-night maiden voyage from Liverpool.
31 July Regal Princess leaves Southampton for a three-night cruise.
For the cruise line management the crisis is far from over with deep sea trips still banned and a big question mark over a welcome at continental ports?
BTN plans a full comprehensive update for its normal monthly cruise issue 5 April.
Here is a list of sea and river cruise lines offering a service for UK customers. For up-to-date information please click on the company’s website.#####
Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA)
OUR READERS' FINEST WORDS (All times and dates are GMT)
All comments are filtered to exclude any excesses but the Editor does not have to agree with what is being said. 100 words maximum
Paul Kay, London, UK
..."Don't go around in circles fretting about what cruise to take...join me on the Thames in my one oared rowing boat"... Doh!!
Jill Jones, Liverpool
I am (or was) a solo elderly cruiser. The idea acting as a sort of Dick Turpin does not appeal. Chatting people up was part of the fun of the holiday. Now it can’t be done.
Bill & Joan Smith, London
We are looking forward to our first cruise since January 2020. What’s the weather going to be like around the British coast this summer and more to the point are we going to enjoy walking around with masks all day?