Coronavirus : general discussion focussed on the impact on the cruise industry

[Peter Mugridge]

From where I'm sitting, i can't really see cruise ships resuming sailing in 2021 at all, especially not big ones.

Could they all survive another year in warm layup?

There's no guarantee of a vaccine yet...

Aren't there already some doing "cruises to nowhere" type round trips in parts of the Far East?

OK, that's rather different from a multi port voyage or a line voyage, I know.

[cunardqueen]

Off topic  Lets look at The giant Disney theme park in California , The owners want to open it as a matter of course urgently . The CDC and Govenor on the other hand are and l quote " in no hurry"  to reopen it.
 
Disney have kept the park in a state that allows it to reopen almost with immediate effect, but the Halloween events are cancelled. The transformation into Halloween is a huge operation in that when the theme park shuts after the Fireworks display and the last guests leave its literally transformend over the space of several hours into Halloween  A friend used to work there, for the Disneybuffs there a great many who consider it a rite of passage  to see the last Disney Display and then the First Halloween parade. There are literally thousands employed for the changeover, l remember being told the figures but not being a Disney fan thought the number quoted was insane.  Changing from Halloween to Christmas takes even more of an operation but they do that over 4 nights.   
  Sadly at the moment they are preparing to layoff 28000 cast members (Disneyspeak for workers) While Downton Disney is in limited operation its a mere fraction of the size and doesnt really give a Disney true experience. But think about the hotels in the area and restaurents , a lot have simply closed up . Its a massive operation both inside and outside the park and while local trade can provide good numbers, its the international visitors that boost the numbers.

While not in the same league, but just some info as has been the norm for the past number of years at the end of the month the numbers would have been finalised where i work and the orders placed for Crackers, napkins and table decorations. Then in Mid Novemeber the Cracker Lorry ( yes thats its nickname would be in the area delivering the stuff.)  so with a usual run of about 2500 crackers in boxes of 50  . Now think of the orders that would be placed for Turkeys , the extra wine ordered .NONE of that is happening. And we dont expect to see any change in that setup ! Unless by the grace of God those in power change their minds at the last minute, but alas then its a bit late .

 A recent trip to London was quite shocking in that how quiet the place was, the hotel l was in had 300 bedrooms and would have been full . my weekend there they had at the most 30 rooms occupied and that included a Saturday night. the rate l paid was a third of the regular rate. No food service of any kind nor yet any house keeping. The Hard Rock Cafe in Leicester Sq the Friday night had 2 tables in. The Thameslink trains from and to Gatwick l counted on my train l was the only person in 4 carriages . Gatwick Airport may as well have just been closed for all that was open. The food concourse was a Starbucks or Nandos . The easyjet aircraft was nearly full.  London was l must admit a sorry sight. Great for the social distancing however

 For whats its worth l agree with shutting the Pubs, One look at the photos of people trying to get one last drink before the 6pm was a disgrace  you cannot even with the best will in the world mix public and drinks and drinkers throw in drunks and that mentality.You could limit drinks but that just causes a headache but there is a mentality out there who will not do as they are told.  A restaurant does allow a slightly better experience. When a certain Public House reopened here you had the managers welcoming folk in with handshakes and then as the night wore on the rules were not so much relaxed more thrown out the window.

The cruise ships had a very small taste of this with the norovirus, and how many of us when handed the Noro sheet would have owned up to having symptoms and risked being denied boarding. Then there was the staggered boarding times for QE2, did anyone actually stand by these times, Nope.  Would anyone be happy to turn up at embarkation many hours before checkin , go through the Covid test and wait fo the results and only then get to checkin and finally board, how safe would you feel ?  Heathrow is trying so hard to get people moving and tested. but seem to be fighting an uphill struggle. 

There does come a time when you wonder at what cost we have to pay for all this.  But thats just my ramblings .

[Rod]

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/passenger-tests-positive-coronavirus-first-cruise-ship-sail-caribbean-pandemic-n1247552

[Rob Lightbody]

Daily Echo : Cunard cruise firm cancels voyages until middle of 2021

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/18931267.cunard-cruise-firm-cancels-voyages-middle-2021/

Voyages departing Southampton on board Queen Mary 2 up to and including May 28, 2021 and on board Queen Elizabeth up to and including June 4, 2021 have all been shelved.

However, departures on Queen Victoria remain unaffected and are scheduled to resume May 17, 2021.

[Rod]

What cunardqueen says is absolutely true. My daughter works at Disney's Hollywood Studios here in Florida. The parks, (I have been since they reopened) are not as you know them.
More to the point, the surrounding area is not as we knew it. Restaurants shut, not because of of rules but because there is no business! With Disney operating with maybe 50% of staff, the community does not have the money to spend on restaurants, to get new tires, to decorate their houses and so on. Taxis and Uber and Lyft have seen their custom halved.  The knock on effect is tremendous! Supermarkets have reduced hours considerably, so their staff don't have the money to spend.  Just last week a convenience store advertised a job on the night shift Midnight to eight, had over a thousand applicants! Colleges have seen students drop out so teachers don't have money to spend.
It is going to take years for this area to recover! If it does.

[Isabelle Prondzynski]

We have not heard much about ferries in this context, but here is one newsworthy event :

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/covid-ferry-outbreak-over-320-passengers-bound-for-ireland-stranded-overnight-1.4438372

[cunardqueen]

  We have not heard much about ferries in this context, but here is one newsworthy event : 

Northlink Ferries who operate between Scrabster (Caithness) and Stromness Orkney have blocked ALL group bookings for next year. So no tour busses. Several of the hotels up there are already closed till March, The past 2/3 weeks are when all in hospitality are making usually serious money . And Turkey Dinners are everywhere. So far we have sold 20 

This year its simply heartbreaking. On a minor note and l need to be careful here. The local area has had a sudden and unexpected increase in Overseas American (Vistors) who are booked in for 2-3 months. So while we would have expected in present circumstances be suffering intensely.  We do have a Golden Egg at the moment. Oh my shift next week includes working Christmas Eve till 9am Christmas Day.

Normally as in recent years l would either be in Los Angeles or Onboard Queen Mary at her Fabulous Christmas day brunch or one year leaving at 5am for a flight to Vegas on Christmas day or indeed last year  in Fabulous Las Vegas where  Five of us, after Christmas lunch  set of on a drive to Death Valley, two hours there, half an hour mucking about there  (and we were the only white faces there that day ) and two hours back   

 This year will be somewhat different, but l know where my mind will be at  .

BUT it will be so nice to sit down at 3pm, raise a glass of Bubbles and watch Her Majesty as she addresses the Nation , something l haven't seen in 20 years   

[Thomas Hypher]

On the topic of ferries:

I recall seeing some of P&O Ferry's Dover to Calais ferries laid up in a port they wouldn't normally visit (can't remember where here in the UK off the top of my head) during the first national lockdown here. This was unheard of given the usual busyness of the route and it's national importance.

Pride of York and her sister Pride of Bruges, two of P&O Ferry's Hull based ferries have recently been retired (and will be scrapped apparently) because of the decline in traffic caused by the pandemic, Pride of York leaving Hull for the final time a few days ago enroute for lay up in Rotterdam and then her eventual fate. To date, Pride of York is the last passenger ship built in the UK and is the largest passenger ship built on the Clyde after our QE2.

Of course, P&O except the cruise operation is owned by DP World - QE2's owners which makes one wonder how much DP World are feeling the pinch of this pandemic and whether it could have knock on negative effect on QE2's future...

At least one Stena ferry route in the Baltic has been scrapped because of this pandemic too.

[cunardqueen]

  Of course, P&O except the cruise operation is owned by DP World - QE2's owners which makes one wonder how much DP World are feeling the pinch of this pandemic and whether it could have knock on negative effect on QE2's future... 

If we can put emotion aside , and possibly they can, Would you operate Hotel QE2 right now at this time?

Ships are being sold off , scrapped and left to paddle about in various locations. Aircraft are being slaughtered, put into storage , and layup and retired. My beloved Queen Mary is to all purposes closed. Imagine on a Christmas day doing 1200 Brunches at $90 a head.  Hotels be it Grand lavish ones or the family run Inns are literally struggling from day to day, some have shut up till February,  look at the mighty Las Vegas , some are closed, guests simply lumped together and put into hotel that can be kept open, Many places are shut Monday to Thursday.

My Las vegas  gaming offers came in, one which caught my eye , Checkin from 5pm on Dec 30th , late checkout on New Years day , it includes $20.20 food/ beverage  credit  l just need to pay the resort tax for one night which is around $38 . Theres no Housekeeping on that offer, it can be added for $25 . There are various options to upgrade your room. There are pretty insane offers now . Last New year l was paying $400 for the same Hotel, granted it was a suite. Alas i cant get so really its of no use what so ever.
While an empty room will bring in no money , a room that is occupied does need some income to justify it being serviced. push the guest to upgrade, and add housekeeping and you have an extra spend.
I cite the famous $10 can of coke , Who in their right mind would pay $10 for a can of coke from your mini bar. well, it's easy to play the system , iv happily had a $10 can of chilled coke, but on checkout depending on various things and your level of play it can, along with other items be comped (complimentary) . So Guest is happy to have $10 wiped from the account for their loyalty , the cost to a hotel of  the same coke is 35c its a nice feel good factor . Its a crazy way of doing things if you don't really understand  the system , But if you do and they comp things , there is nothing nicer seeing your end of stay bill being readjusted at checkout .           

[Rod]

I am wondering,do you think that some cruise lines are shooting themselves in the foot?
Scrapping all of these liners, some with quite a bit of life left in them.
When this pandemic eventually is under control, I almost think that there will be a shortage of ships, in the right price point.
Please, I understand the cost of keeping a ship laid up, but, I also understand that when CV is under control, then people are going to want to travel. Problem being, they might not have the money, after being furloughed, or under reduced hours while the pandemic has been going on.
It is going to be very interesting to see.

[Thomas Hypher]

If we can put emotion aside , and possibly they can, Would you operate Hotel QE2 right now at this time?            

If looking at it from an unemotional, business point of view I would want to recoup as much of my multi-million, decade plus and counting investment so I'd keep her going in her static role as much as possible to try to achieve that - just from the initial purchase cost, let alone the bigger sum of money spent in the 14 years since! Having said this, Dubai isn't in the best of shape in general at the moment according to some sources, and this is intensified by this pandemic, so maybe anything goes at the end of the day? Perhaps it doesn't bear thinking about too much either on reflection...

[Andy Holloway]

At least the good people of Torbay are doing their bit to make this Christmas for the crews onboard the cruise ships anchored off Teighnmouth, a bit more enjoyable.

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-55279474

I have a friend who is still serving at sea, was Cunard some years ago but is not now, whose ship is alongside in the Caribbean, with only 78 crew left onboard from a normal crew of 750. They do 10 days alongside then go to sea for 2 weeks. Reading his emails about life onboard i'm certainly glad that i'm not at sea any more, even if i'd been on a ship anchored off Teignmouth which,by the way, is only about 20 miles from my house, how annoying would that have been?

[Rob Lightbody]

At least the good people of Torbay are doing their bit to make this Christmas for the crews onboard the cruise ships anchored off Teighnmouth, a bit more enjoyable.

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-55279474

I have a friend who is still serving at sea, was Cunard some years ago but is not now, whose ship is alongside in the Caribbean, with only 78 crew left onboard from a normal crew of 750. They do 10 days alongside then go to sea for 2 weeks. Reading his emails about life onboard i'm certainly glad that i'm not at sea any more, even if i'd been on a ship anchored off Teignmouth which,by the way, is only about 20 miles from my house, how annoying would that have been?

What a lovely story in this originally very shocking topic!

It's going to be '22 before things get back to anything close to normal for the cruise lines, that's pretty clear now

[Twynkle]

“Some of us”(!) are shopping for the on board crew(s), and many now are back home with several now working in different areas...there will need to be recruitment of many new crew members.

[Rob Lightbody]

For those of us in the UK.

Various scenes and mentions of QE2 in the first few minutes.

https://www.channel4.com/programmes/luxury-cruises-from-boom-to-bust

About the programme

Kate Quilton explores how ocean travel was transformed from a simple journey to a luxury holiday, and the post-pandemic future for what was once a £100 billion business