Cruises Return, from Caribbean Ports

Cruises are returning this summer, with three major players in the industry homeporting in the Caribbean.

With the CDC No-Sail Order remaining in place until November 1, there’s still a 2021 cruise option for incentive winners: Caribbean cruises with vaccinated staff and required vaccines for passengers, sailing out of Caribbean ports for now.

Crystal Cruises

Crystal Cruises, which is requiring all guests to be fully inoculated with a COVID-19 vaccine at least 14 days prior to their Crystal cruise, will be offering sailings from The Bahamas on board Crystal Serenity this summer.

The “Bahamas Escapes” are a series of 16 seven-night, roundtrip cruises from Nassau beginning July 3, as well as 16 seven-night voyages roundtrip from Bimini beginning July 4. With these sailings, Crystal Serenity became the first ship to homeport in The Bahamas, as well as the first ocean ship to sail from the Americas since the cruise industry’s voluntary halt in operations almost a year ago.

Celebrity Cruises

Celebrity Cruises announced its return to cruising this week, with the Celebrity Millennium cruising from St. Maarten beginning June 5 and new 7-night itineraries departing through August. The ship will sail with vaccinated crew and will be available only to vaccinated guests (and children under the age of 18 with a negative PCR test result within 72 hours of embarkation).

Celebrity Cruises is offering two different itineraries, which begin and end in St. Maarten, one to Aruba, Curacao and Barbados and the other to Tortola, Saint Lucia and Barbados. For incentive qualifiers, the all-exclusive The Retreat has a private sundeck and redesigned lounge offering complimentary beverages, gourmet bites, live entertainment, and around-the-clock butler and concierge service.

Royal Caribbean

Royal Caribbean International has announced a summer lineup of 7-night cruises on board Adventure of the Seas, setting sail June through August from the new homeport of  Nassau, The Bahamas.

Itineraries will include the two back-to-back days on Perfect Day at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean’s private island destination in The Bahamas, and visit Grand Bahama Island, The Bahamas and Cozumel, Mexico.

Royal Caribbean International also will be sailing Vision of the Seas June through August with a series of new 7-night cruises from the first-time homeport of Bermuda. The Vision of the Seas itinerary will overnight in Bermuda, as well as include a full day at Perfect Day at CocoCay.