Anthem of the Seas arrived in Southampton, England ahead of the first Royal Caribbean summer cruises from the UK in over a year. The ship is ready and the crew are 100% ready and vaccinated and eager to welcome the first guests on July 7.
No doubt the internet is one of the most important things for crew working onboard the cruise ships. The net is the window to the outside world, connecting the crew with their loved ones back home.
Today, June 26, Celebrity Cruises will restart voyages on Celebrity Edge, the first cruise ship to set sail from U.S. port with paying guests. As agreed with CDC, at least 95% of passengers need to be fully vaccinated on the ship. According to Celebrity Cruises, 100% of the crew onboard Celebrity Edge are already fully vaccinated.
Starting today the crew onboard Anthem of the Seas will go in a so-called modified quarantine after four crew members tested positive for COVID-19 on the recent PCR test. According to our source, the 4 crew members disembarked the ship today.
Odyssey of the Seas crew will go in a 14-day quarantine again, after eight crew members tested positive for COVID-19. Six team members who tested positive are asymptomatic and two with mild symptoms. They are quarantined on board and are being closely monitored by the ship’s medical team.
Royal Caribbean International continues with crewing up its ships for the upcoming cruise season. With the latest announcement of its gradual restart with more cruise ships on the way the company will bring team members from all around the world back on board.
Several crew members from India have contacted Crew Center raising concerns about their current status and rejoin dates on Celebrity Cruises. The crew said since the decision by Royal Caribbean to temporarily suspending all crew assignments in April, amid a surge of Covid-19 cases in India, they haven’t received a Letter of Employment or sign-on date by Celebrity Cruises.
Celebrity Cruises has come up with an interesting solution how to meet the CDC threshold of 95% of passengers and 98% of crew to be vaccinated on cruises sailing from U.S. ports, and at the same time comply with Florida law that prohibits companies asking guests to provide proof of vaccination.
The latest test results of the 4 Royal Caribbean crew members who tested positive for Covid-19 last week onboard Odyssey of the Seas are now all negative. The great news for the crew and for their fellow shipmates was announced by Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley.
Royal Caribbean International plans to restart cruises on the Spectrum of the Seas from Hong Kong this summer. Hong Kong authorities have given Royal Caribbean approval to restart operations with short "cruises to nowhere" only for Hong Kong residents following strict health protocols.
