Everyone, including the cruise industry, has been watching the wildfires devastate parts of Los Angeles and the firefighters struggling to contain them.
Talking about cruising seems trivial when people are losing their homes, businesses and, in some cases, their lives. But multiple ships across Carnival Cruise Line’s brands call L.A. home.
And passengers on those ships want to know whether they can get to their cruises and whether they have options should they need to cancel.
Related: Carnival shares warning, Royal Caribbean passenger gets huge bill
Los Angeles International Airport, for example, makes clear at the top of its website that “LAX is open and operating normally. Passengers should check their flight status directly with their airline.”
Taking a cruise for people who live in affected areas might not be at the top of their list.
Cruise News Today’s Doug Parker shows how Carnival Cruise Line is handling this issue and what it’s doing for passengers. Parker also has news of a warning issued by Royal Caribbean, and more.
Carnival’s Princess offers flexibility
Transcript:
This is Cruise News Today with Doug Parker.
Good morning, here’s your cruise news for Friday, January 10th.
Princess Cruises is offering flexible cancellation options to assist those impacted by the devastating wildfires in L.A.
Guests living in evacuation zones or homes that suffered significant damage can cancel January cruises scheduled between January 11 and January 30 and receive a future cruise credit or full refunds on purchases like excursions and packages.
Discovery Princess and Grand Princess continue operations with departures planned for Mexico, Hawaii and the South Pacific.
Los Angeles World Cruise Center remains open at the time of broadcast. Meanwhile, Carnival Cruise Line has confirmed its operations from the Port of Long Beach, California, remain unaffected.
Now, despite the wildfires in the L.A. area, Brand Ambassador John Heald assured guests that the port is operating normally and no disruptions to Carnival home port schedules are anticipated.
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Royal Caribbean shares illness warning
Royal Caribbean has notified guests who sailed aboard Symphony of the Seas in October and December of last year about potential exposure to Legionella. That’s the bacteria that causes Legionnaire’s disease.
Two passengers, one from each cruise, were diagnosed after the sailing.
Now, the cruise line said that it’s unclear where the exposure occurred and it has implemented heightened sanitation protocols in line with CDC guidance. Legionella is typically spread through contaminated water, not person-to-person contact.
Symphony of the Seas continues to operate from Miami and no outbreaks have been confirmed on board.
And the photo of the week comes from Walt. Regal Princess of what looks like Grand Cayman. Great picture here, Walt.
Thank you for sending it in. You can send yours in [email protected]. All photos are subject to broadcast.
If you have a lead on a story, let us know. [email protected].
Have yourself a great weekend. I’m Doug Parker with Cruise News Today.
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