Norovirus Outbreak on Celebrity Constellation: 100 Affected During Cruise

The Celebrity Constellation cruise ship experienced a significant norovirus outbreak, affecting 100 individuals, including 92 passengers and eight crew members. This incident occurred during a nine-day voyage that concluded on Friday, as reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The primary symptoms experienced by those affected were vomiting and diarrhea.

CruiseMapper, a tracking website, revealed that the Celebrity Constellation embarked on a round-trip journey from Tampa on January 3. The itinerary included stops in several notable ports such as New Orleans, Cozumel, Belize City, and Costa Maya.

In reaction to this health crisis, Celebrity Cruises took immediate action by implementing rigorous cleaning and disinfection procedures. Additionally, the cruise line isolated the ill individuals and collected samples for further testing, as per CDC guidelines. TravelPulse attempted to contact Celebrity Cruises for a comment, but the response was pending at the time of the report.

This outbreak marks a significant event as it is the first major

instance of gastrointestinal illness on a cruise ship in the current year that necessitated a public health notification and triggered a CDC investigation, according to USA Today.

The CDC recorded 14 outbreaks of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships in 2023, with three incidents involving Celebrity Cruises. This figure surpasses the count of such outbreaks during the pre-pandemic period between 2017 and 2019. Notably, norovirus was identified as the primary cause in all but one of the outbreaks last year.

Despite the frequent association of norovirus outbreaks with cruise ships, Ben Lopman, a professor of epidemiology at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health, emphasized in an interview with USA Today that cruise ship cases represent only a small fraction of total norovirus outbreaks. Most norovirus incidents actually occur in healthcare settings, like nursing homes, rather than on cruise ships.

This event underscores the importance of stringent health and safety protocols in the cruise industry, particularly in light of the higher incidence of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships in recent years compared to pre-pandemic levels.