Royal Caribbean Cancels Sailings From Bermuda
[Updated] Both the Cruise Critic website and the Royal Caribbean fan website are reporting that Royal Caribbean has canceled their summer cruises homeported in Bermuda, with the line reportedly saying that that while “we are no longer homeporting from the island nation, we still look forward to bringing our guests to Bermuda.”
Cruise Critic
The Cruise Critic website said, “Royal Caribbean has canceled its summer cruises homeported in Bermuda, citing a preference from U.S. travelers to sail from closer ports.
“Sailings on Vision of the Seas had been set to debut from Bermuda on June 26. The cruises, which required adults over 18 to be vaccinated, were going to include an overnight in Bermuda and time at Royal Caribbean’s private island, Perfect Day at CocoCay.
The Royal Caribbean Blog
The Royal Caribbean Blog, which is an unofficial fan blog not affiliated with Royal Caribbean International, is also reporting the same. Their report states, “The cruise line announced Vision of the Seas’ summer season from Bermuda in 2021 is now officially cancelled. This affects Vision of the Seas Bermuda departures between June 26 – August 28, 2021.
Royal Caribbean Statement
The statement on the RCI website said, “Vision of the Seas was to resume operations from Bermuda beginning June 2021. However, in anticipation for our U.S. return to service and following overwhelming feedback from our guests, the summer season in Bermuda will be cancelled.”
We Reached Out For Comment & Will Update As Able
These reports were just posted today and we reached out to the BTA and the Government and will update as able, however we had an initial quick response from one local entity who indicated that the reports are correct, and said that they will provide a statement later.
Update | Royal Caribbean Statement
Update: The Royal Caribbean cruise line responded to our email with this statement: “As we return to sailing, we continue to be committed to delivering memorable vacations informed by valuable feedback from our guests and travel partners. The likelihood of cruises setting sail from the U.S. this summer is greater each day, and with that, U.S. travelers are increasingly showing a preference for more direct access to ports of departure.
“The decision has been made to cancel Vision of the Seas’ summer season from Bermuda. While we are no longer homeporting from the island nation, we still look forward to bringing our guests to Bermuda with several ships across the Royal Caribbean fleet as we have for many years. As we get back to cruising, our close partnership with the Ministry of Tourism and the Bermuda Tourism Authority is still focused on working toward the common goal of getting the community back on its feet by helping revive local tourism .
“We are reaching out to guests and travel partners impacted by this change to assist with their options. This cancellation does not affect any other open deployments.”
Update 4.00pm: Minister of Transport Lawrence Scott Statement
Minister Scott said, “You may be aware that the US CDC made a public announcement that cruise ships will soon be able to resume sailing in US jurisdictional waters, under a conditional sail order, providing each ship meets certain CDC COVID-19 regulations and recommended operational protocols. The restart of this service will depend on the cruise lines’ ability to get ships ready for service and their compliance with the CDC’s guidance.
“This means that cruise lines originating ship calls from the United States are refocussing their resources on the safe resumption of traditional sailings from US ports on or around July or August.
“Already this news has influenced passengers’ decisions on homeporting from Bermuda on the Royal Caribbean Group’s ‘Vision of the Seas’.
“For this reason, I confirm that the specific homeporting itinerary for the Vision of the Seas has been replaced with the hope that Royal Caribbean will be able to meet the CDC conditional sail order protocols and commence regular contract calls to Bermuda as soon as mid-August.
“The 2021 Cruise Ship Schedule remains fluid and currently shows 21 calls for RCG ships between August 13 and November.
“We are committed to working through the details of the COVID-19 protocols to meet our Ministry of Health’s travellers immunization and pre-test and on-arrival test requirements for passengers and crew on-board traditional call ships.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our internal and external stakeholder partners for their commitment and dedication to our new homeporting initiative. Viking Cruises ‘Orion’ is on track to arrive in Bermuda tomorrow afternoon to ready the crew and ship for the revenue cruises commencing on June 15 with eight calls.”
Gee what a shocker, Here in Florida we have reopened a long time ago and its been said over and over on the local news here that the cruise ships will be allowed to start sailing in June.
I am guessing its only the plp and its clueless transport minister that was unaware of this?
Florida moved ahead long ago and Bermuda unsurprisingly is still following the ” science from April 2020?
SMDH!!
Facts.
The Transport Minister is Lawrence Scott. We need hardly say more.
Well, that little initiative didn’t last long! Hard to believe anything the cruise lines say these days…