Royal Caribbean Provides Update on COVID-19, Omicron Impact
Royal Caribbean Group has commented on the status of its business and the impact of the new Omicron coronavirus variant today, December 30.
According to the company’s latest press release, Royal Caribbean Group has welcomed 1.1 million guests onboard its ships since June of 2021. The number of positive COVID-19 cases since then is 1,745, a positivity rate of 0.02 percent. Of those people, 41 needed hospitalization. Guests who have been infected with the Omicron variant showed no or only mild symptoms thus far, though the variant has been shown to be more contagious.
The corporation did not provide data on the number of crew members testing positive for the virus.
Following the Omicron variant’s rise to dominance in countries like the United States, Royal Caribbean Group saw a rise in cancellations and decline in bookings for sailings for the first half of 2022, but this rise in cancellations and decrease in bookings wasn’t as dramatic as it was when the Delta variant was discovered. According to the group, sailings for the second half of 2022 remain in high demand.
The press release also mentioned that the disruptions by air transport and service providers are also impacting the cruise corporation’s ability to sail effectively, having canceled or modified 16 of its 331 destinations because of a decrease in labor as more individuals everywhere test positive with COVID-19.
“Omicron is having a big short-term impact on everyone, but many observers see this as a major step towards COVID-19 becoming endemic rather than epidemic,” said Richard Fain, Chairman & CEO. “We don’t like to see even one case, but our experience is a fraction of the comparable statistics of virtually any other comparable location or industry. Few businesses are subject to such intense scrutiny, regulation, and disclosure requirements by so many authorities, and we welcome that scrutiny because of our commitment to safety.
“We intend to maintain our goal of delivering the safest vacation on land or sea and will constantly adjust our procedures to accomplish this even in the face of Omicron’s amazing transmissibility,” continued Fain.
The cruise industry has seen an unprecedented number of outbreaks onboard cruise ships in the past month, Royal Caribbean included, with one of the most recent being the forty-four people who tested positive on the Symphony of the Seas in the beginning of December. Every guest and crew member who tests positive on a cruise is quarantined in a cabin, tested each day and provided with medical assistance by the ship’s medical team.
The infections, mostly among fully vaccinated individuals, have prompted Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line to reinstate the indoor mask mandate for all guests earlier this month.
On December 26, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced it would investigate the new outbreaks onboard ships to determine the reasons as to why these breakout infections could be occurring.
For now, Royal Caribbean Group’s cruise lines, along with other major cruise lines, have continued sailing using the same COVID-19 precautions and protocols they began this summer, adapting as necessary.