CDC Gives Celebrity Cruises Green Light to Resume Sailings in the U.S. Starting This June
(Latest Update: June 8, 2021) Cruising in U.S. waters will officially resume this June. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has officially approved Celebrity Cruises to sail with paying passengers onboard starting this June. The first ship to sail will be the Celebrity Edge, which will depart a seven-night Caribbean cruise from Port Everglades on June 26, 2021. The ship will be captained by Kate McCue, the first and still only American female cruise ship Captain.
Celebrity Cruises CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo announced the line’s return with an announcement on Twitter.
SOMEDAY IS HERE. pic.twitter.com/ZC6oS2LXYe
— Lisa Lutoff-Perlo (@LisaLutoffPerlo) May 26, 2021
“For the past 15 months our conversations with friends and loved ones about seeing the world have been accompanied by the phrase ‘someday.’ I’m beyond proud and excited to say that day has arrived,” said Lutoff-Perlo. “The power of travel has a way of healing our souls as we connect with cultures, sights, and experiences that bring greater joy and renewed energy to our lives. Nothing compares to these experiences at sea and now the wonder of these journeys returns. We’ve been preparing for this day for months and, on behalf of all of us at Celebrity Cruises, we’re ready and we can’t wait to welcome our guests aboard once again!”
In accordance with Phases 2B and 3 of the CDC’s Conditional Sailing Order, Celebrity Cruises will meet the requirement to have 95% of passengers and 95% of crew vaccinated and will skip simulated test voyages. Earlier this week Royal Caribbean International, also part of Royal Caribbean Group, has been approved to conduct simulated test voyages starting this June.
Richard Fain, Chairman of Royal Caribbean Group, also remarked on the line’s restart, “Today’s exciting news is the result of a collaboration with the CDC, our elected officials at the local, state and national levels and our industry partners at CLIA. We’ve consulted with the brightest minds in the health industry to ensure that our passengers and crew feel safe and comfortable on our ships while enjoying the uncompromised experience they know and love.”
On June 8, Celebrity Cruises also announced that the Celebrity Equinox has also been approved by the CDC to sail passenger cruises from Port Everglades beginning July 25, 2021. The ship will offer 7-night Caribbean itineraries visiting Cozumel, Costa Maya, and Nassau. Equinox will join the eight other previously announced ships in the Celebrity fleet that will be resuming operations around the world in 2021.
Sources: USA TODAY
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