Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings has announced today that Florida Judge Williams ruled in its favour granting a preliminary injunction which paves the way for the company’s three brands to require documentation confirming a guest’s vaccination status prior to boarding for cruises departing from Florida.
“The health and safety of our guests, crew and the communities we visit is our number one priority, today, tomorrow and forever. It’s not a slogan or a tagline, we fiercely mean it and our commitment to these principles is demonstrated by the lengths our Company has gone through to provide the safest possible cruise experience from Florida. We want nothing more than to sail from Miami, the Cruise Capital of the World, and from the other fabulous Florida ports and we welcome today’s ruling that allows us to sail with 100% fully vaccinated guests and crew which we believe is the safest and most prudent way to resume cruise operations amid this global pandemic,” said Frank Del Rio, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings.
“The public health environment continues to evolve around the globe and our robust science-backed health and safety protocols, with vaccines at its cornerstone, allow us to provide what we believe is the safest vacation experience for people who long to get back to their everyday lives and explore the world once again.”
The company’s first sailing from Florida is scheduled on August 15, 2021, on Norwegian Gem departing from Miami.
“We are pleased that Judge Williams saw the facts, the law and the science as we did and granted the Company’s motion for a preliminary injunction allowing us to operate cruises from Florida with 100% vaccinated guests and crew,” said Daniel S. Farkas, executive vice president and general counsel of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings. “While litigation is a strategic tool of last resort, our Company has fought to do what we believe is right and in the best interest of the welfare of our guests, crew and communities we visit in an effort to do our part as responsible corporate citizens to minimize, to the greatest extent possible, further spread of COVID-19 as we gradually relaunch our vessels.”
As Celebrity Cruises plots its return, with new sailings announced for the Caribbean, European and UK waters this summer, president and chief executive Lisa Lutoff-Perlo tells Tom Parry how the line is looking beyond the pandemic.
“I honestly don’t know if I can put it into words,” beams Lisa Lutoff-Perlo.
Despite the early morning interview, the excitement from Celebrity Cruises’ president and chief executive seems to fizz through her video screen – and for good reason.
Within a matter of weeks the line has revealed restart plans for the UK, Europe and Caribbean – including the launch of its second Edge-class ship, Celebrity Apex, out of Athens.
In the UK, Celebrity Silhouette – fully “revolutionised” after a multimillion-pound renovation infused with Kelly Hoppen redesigns and the British debut of its Always Included all-inclusive fare – will cruise from Southampton in July.
When we meet over Zoom in the last week of March, Silhouette has just joined an ever-growing fleet of ships due to sail UK shores this summer.
But Lutoff-Perlo, rather aptly clutching an Edge-branded mug as she chats, says she is confident Celebrity’s offering will stand out in the “crowded space”.
“The brand we’ve built up and our positioning of ‘new luxury’ – I think the British consumer really understands that. We’re not worried about all the other brands out there. Celebrity is a special brand that stands for a lot and that will serve us well this summer.”
Silhouette will cruise from Southampton in July as Celebrity makes its UK restart
SAFETY FIRST
One obvious point of difference compared with other lines is Celebrity and sister line Royal Caribbean International’s vaccination policy for these summer sailings. Unlike other lines, both require adults to be fully vaccinated, while under-18s must provide negative PCR results.
Lutoff-Perlo says the approach – backed by Royal Caribbean Group’s Healthy Sail Panel – is “something that’s important right now” to instil confidence.
“We’re trying to be agile and do what we believe is the right thing to do at this time, so we can start up and everybody can have a wonderful vacation and feel like they’re in a healthy and safe environment”, she adds.
Lutoff-Perlo has herself recently received her second vaccine dose.
“When I got my second shot, I felt liberated. I carry my little vaccination card around with me – it’s like a badge of honour,” she grins.
The ship has been fully “revolutionised” after a multimillion-pound renovation
Capacity levels also reflect a cautious approach, with sailings starting at around 50% occupancy. “It will start lower than it will end,”
Lutoff-Perlo insists. “We’ll start to slowly but surely ramp up to somewhere in the 50, 60, 70% range.
“We want to prove that a cruise is a very controllable environment where people can have the healthiest and safest vacation in the world.”
She contrasts the onboard measures being prepared to wider tourism regulations in her resident state of Florida. “Tourists are not wearing masks; they don’t need to be vaccinated. I look at that and think: ‘This is OK?’ But yet it’s not OK for cruising to operate [in the US]…”
Her assessment of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) lack of progress in green-lighting sailings is admirably diplomatic amid growing frustrations from stateside cruise bosses and political leaders in recent weeks.
“I don’t believe [the CDC] are ignoring the industry on purpose as they’ve had so much to focus on, but I believe it’s time [to act], and they’re taking notice.”
TIME TO REFLECT
Talk of restarts is a welcome tonic compared with this time last year when Covid’s ever-tightening grip saw the March launch of Celebrity Apex in Southampton cancelled and its fleet begins a prolonged suspension.
I ask Lutoff-Perlo how she has coped during the enforced shutdown and where her and her team’s efforts have been focused. Echoing Royal Group chief Richard Fain’s “Never let a good crisis go to waste” mantra, she says she has coined one of her own: “Wake up and look for the silver lining in the Covid-19 cloud”.
For Lutoff-Perlo, this silver lining was having the time to explore and develop new strategies and onboard experiences.
“I thought, ‘we can’t just be focused on this pandemic, we need to focus on our future’. That was very different from what was going on in the rest of the industry – other brands were just focused on what it was going to take to come out of the pandemic.
“We were trying to say, ‘OK, we’re going to come out of this – but who do we want to be when that happens?’” Lutoff-Perlo admits her leadership style has also adapted to suit the challenges.
“Things that are innate in me as a leader have had to be amplified, and others de-amplified. I’ve always led with my head and a lot of my heart and I think those things have been inversed this past year.
Following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) updated Conditional Sail Order, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NCLH) has proposed its own plans to resume sailing from U.S. homeports on or about July 4, 2021, with full COVID-19 vaccinations required of all guests and crew. This applies to the corporation’s three brands — Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises — and is consistent with the Biden administration’s targeted reopening of the country. Norwegian agrees with the CDC “that vaccinations are the primary vehicle for Americans to get back to their everyday lives,” said Frank Del Rio, president and CEO of NCLH, in a press release. However, the company requests that the government agency no longer limits cruise travel, as mandatory vaccine requirements exceed safety measures in the Conditional Sail Order, thus eliminating the need for it.
“Our robust and comprehensive SailSAFE health and safety program extends well beyond the proto-cols of the travel, leisure and hospitality sectors, all of which have already reopened, including hotels and resorts, casinos, restaurants, sporting venues, theme parks and airlines,” Del Rio said. “With vaccine mandates and strict health and safety protocols in place, we believe we can provide a uniquely safe and healthy vacation experience.” Del Rio has issued a letter to Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, director of the CDC, requesting permission to sail accordingly, citing the Healthy Sail Panel, developed in conjunction with Royal Caribbean Group and led by Michael Leavitt, former Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, and Dr. Scott Gottlieb, former Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The proposal includes required vaccinations, as well as SailSAFE health and safety protocols such as COVID-19 testing, physical distancing, reduced capacity (60% to start and increasing by 20% every 30 days) and face coverings, for the time being. Vaccines will be required until at least October 31, 2021, when the company will reevaluate its requirements based on the latest science.
“We can create a safe, ‘bubble-like’ environment for guests and crew.”
“These stringent requirements will remain in place until public health conditions allow for the im-plementation of more lenient protocols,” reads the letter to Walensky. Until then, passengers must show proof of full FDA-, EMA- or WHO-approved COVID-19 inoculations no less than two weeks prior to embarkation. Since vaccines are not currently approved for children, kids will not be permitted to sail during this initial period. “We can create a safe, ‘bubble-like’ environment for guests and crew,” said Del Rio. “We look forward to joining the rest of the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors in participating in this next phase of our recovery.”
While Norwegian’s plans include resumption from the U.S., it is preparing an upcoming restart outside the country, as well, scheduling NCL sailings in the Caribbean and Greek Isles. Norwegian Jade will embark in Athens (Piraeus), Greece, starting July 25; Norwegian Joy will sail from Montego Bay, Jamaica, beginning Aug. 7; and Norwegian Gem will depart from La Romana, Dominican Republic, starting Aug. 15. “Over a year after we initially suspended sailings, the time has finally come when we can provide our loyal guests with the news of our great cruise comeback,” said Harry Sommer, president and CEO of NCL, in a press release. “We have been working diligently towards our resumption of operations, focusing on the guest experience with health and safety at the forefront.”
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