Following Singapore’s decision to restart cruising amid COVID-19 outbreak, the region informed that two cruise lines will be allowed to offer Singapore residents “cruises to nowhere” under a pilot program.
In fact, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) noted that two cruise lines will be allowed to offer Singapore residents “cruises to nowhere” under a pilot program with enhanced safety protocols and mandatory coronavirus testing for passengers and crew.
For the recotds, the World Dream’s first “cruise to nowhere” will begin on November 6, while Quantum of the Seas will set sail in December.
What is more, in order to ensure hygiene protocols, ships will depart from and return to the same spot, with no port calls in between. The ships will operate at no more than 50% capacity and are for Singapore residents only.
In light of the situation, STB developed a mandatory CruiseSafe certification for the cruise sailings in order to restart operations safely.
STB’s CruiseSafe was created in consultation with the industry and is benchmarked against global health and safety standards. Singapore is one of the first countries in the world to develop and implement a mandatory audit and certification programme for cruise lines before they can commence sailings.
…STB added.
Concluding, Genting Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean International are in the process of attaining the certification. They were approved for the pilot as they have demonstrated the ability to put in place stringent protocols and precautionary measures as part of their CruiseSafe certification.