Norwegian Cruise Ship Operator SeaDream Cancels All Sailings After Virus Outbreak

Norwegian-owned cruise ship operator SeaDream Yacht Club has canceled all sailing for the remainder of 2020 after positive COVID-19 test results onboard one of its cruises, it said on Tuesday, dealing a fresh blow to the cruise industry.

The decision follows an outbreak of the novel coronavirus aboard a voyage of its SeaDream I vessel in the Caribbean last week.

“Seven guests and two crew members have tested positive for COVID-19 by Barbados health authorities,” SeaDream said in a statement.

Requirements for multiple negative PCR tests from guests before boarding had not been sufficient to prevent COVID-19 onboard, it said.

“The company will now spend time to evaluate and see if it is possible to operate and have a high degree of certainty of not getting COVID,” it said.

SeaDream Yacht Club said in September it planned to become the first luxury cruise operator to resume sailing in the West Indies, with 22 voyages planned from Nov. 7 onwards.

By contrast, most U.S. cruise operators have suspended their operations until the end of 2020, the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) said on Nov. 3.

Cruise ships were home to the some of the earliest clusters of infections of the novel coronavirus as it spread globally early this year, shutting down much of the cruise industry.

SeaDream Yacht Club, founded by Norwegian investor Atle Brynestad, operates two luxury vessels, each with a capacity of up to 112 passengers.

(Reporting by Nora Buli; editing by Robert Birsel)

Photograph: This Aug. 5, 2020 file photo shows the cruise ship SeaDream 1 in Bodoe, Norway. SeaDream 1 is one of the first cruise ships to ply the Caribbean waters since the pandemic began, but ended its trip early in November 2020 after some passengers tested positive for COVID-19, officials said on Thursday, Nov. 12. The ship was forced to turn back to Barbados, from where it had departed on Nov. 7. Photo credit: Sondre Skjelvik/NTB Scanpix via AP, file.

Related:

• Royal Caribbean Suspends Most Cruises Through Year End as COVID Cases Rise Globally
• Royal Caribbean Cruise Line Hit with Shareholder Lawsuit Over Coronavirus