Royal Caribbean announced in a press release Friday that six of its ships will begin sailing from major U.S. cruise ports in Florida and Texas in July and August. The announcement comes after the company unveiled plans to launch its Alaska season with roundtrip cruises from Seattle.
The cruise line's comeback will kick off on July 2 in Miami, and by the end of August Royal Caribbean hopes to have 12 ships cruising again across The Bahamas, Caribbean, Alaska, and Europe. Among the ships setting sail this summer is Independence of the Seas, which will take a 7-night Western Caribbean sailing from Galveston starting on August 15.
Odyssey of the Seas, a brand-new Royal Caribbean ship, will debut on July 3 with 6- and 8-night Caribbean cruises. The 2021 summer cruises are now available to book.
In the coming weeks, the company will announce plans to reintroduce its full fleet worldwide by the end of 2021.
"This is it. Vacationers can finally plan to take their precious time off this summer and truly get away after what has been a challenging time for everyone. I would like to sincerely thank our guests and travel partners for their incredible patience and understanding during this very difficult period. Thanks in large part to the successful rollout of vaccines, the world of adventure is beginning to open up, and we are all excited to start delivering great vacations to our guests, who have increasingly told us they are getting vaccinated,” said Michael Bayley, president and CEO, Royal Caribbean International.
Bayley says 90% of vacationers booking with Royal Caribbean are either vaccinated or are planning to get vaccinated in time to set sail.
All crew members will be vaccinated against COVID-19, and the cruise line is "strongly recommending" that guests set sail fully vaccinated.
Read more here.
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