NEWS UPDATE: The ONE Major Piece of the Aussie Cruise Restart Puzzle + Carnival Cancellation & more!

Join my private Facebook group for cruise deals, tips and advice - the more members we have, the better we’ll get! www.facebook.com/groups/CTGdeals Head to my website for great cruise and travel deals: www.thecruiseandtravelguy.com.au Follow me on Facebook and Instagram: www.facebook.comn/thecruiseandtravelguy www.instragram.com/thecruiseandtravelguy This week, the Australian arm of Carnival Cruises announced the further suspension of their local operations. Departures on Sydney’s Carnival Splendor have been cancelled through to and including April 26th, and on Brisbane’s Carnival Spirit through to and including April 28th. As before, there is a certain expectation that sister line P&O Australia will follow suit with their own extended pause, but as at the time of recording, this is yet to be announced. The simple fact is that apart from international borders, there are very few places that mandate both vaccinations and negative tests before entry. Here in NSW, most of us are obliging with state regulations that require QR code check ins in basically all businesses and establishments, and every day, thousands and thousands of people are informed via the app that they have been in contact with someone affected by the virus - because of course there is no negative test required to go to your local shopping centre, or movie theatre, or restaurant. People receiving an alert that they’ve been near a confirmed case are simply told to monitor for symptoms and get tested if any develop, but otherwise can continue with their lives as normal. Conversely, boarding a ship requires a negative test, and once onboard, health and wellness protocols are some of the most stringent anywhere in the world and most certainly when compared to other travel environments. According to CLIA, the number of positive cases identified onboard ships is remarkably smaller than those identified on land, and the majority of those cases are mild or asymptomatic - posing little to no burden on ship medical resources. On home soil, the most significant determining factor as to when cruising will return to our shores is hinged on legislation that is currently before the federal parliament. Cruise Weekly reported that The Biosecurity Amendment (Enhanced Risk Management) Bill 2022 will bring reform to government powers when it comes to strengthening health measures from an international arrivals perspective. One of these measures would allow federal authorities to delay the disembarkation of passengers from a ship for 12 hours to allow risk assessments to take place if required. The bill’s explanatory statement indicates that it is expected these changes will be legislated prior to the resumption of cruising, which of course begs the question, when will the bill pass? Parliament won’t meet again until early February, with only 5 sitting days scheduled before the end of March and a further reading and debate is required in the House of Representatives whilst two are required in the Senate. Assuming that the bill successfully passes in both Houses of Parliament by the end of March, that doesn’t leave a lot of buffer time for cruising to resume in April or even May. On the positive side, at least we have something tangible to focus on in terms of what is required for a restart. In the US, amidst the barrage of media headlines about the number of ships affected by COVID, the CDC is finally ending its Conditional Sailing Order. The CSO was put in place in order to supply a framework to the cruise industry as to how to recommence cruising from the United States, and covered everything from simulated voyages through to restricted voyages. Though many cruise lines have gone beyond the requirements of the CSO and will continue to do so once the order officially ends on January 15th, the closure of this chapter marks an important milestone for the industry. The notion that cruising can be treated in the same way as any other land or air based travel environment is something that Australians can only wish for. Thanks for watching!