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Hundreds of COVID-19 positive passengers disembark Majestic Princess after cruise ship docks in Sydney

Carnival Australia president Marguerite Fitzgerald confirmed 800 COVID cases had been recorded onboard the Majestic Princess, and the majority of infections were among passengers. 

Hundreds of COVID-19 positive travellers are disembarking a cruise ship docked in Sydney this morning, with passengers advised not to catch public transport home. 

The Majestic Princess carried 3,300 guests and 1,300 crew on a 12-day cruise to New Zealand, with at least 20 per cent of passengers contracting COVID-19.

Speaking in Circular Quay where the vessel docked on Saturday morning, Carnival Australia president Marguerite Fitzgerald confirmed 800 COVID cases had been recorded, and the majority of infections were among passengers. 

“We have been proactively preparing for and managing incidences of COVID-19 and working with NSW Health,” she told reporters.

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“We started to see elevated cases about half way through this voyage.”

Ms Fitzgerald said most infected guests had mild symptoms or were asymptomatic and had been isolating in their cabins. 

Passengers who tested negative for the virus were allowed to disembark the cruise ship first, those who tested positive exited on a deck-by-deck basis through a separate door. 

Ms Fitzgerald said COVID positive passengers were advised not to use public transport when they disembark. 

“To help all our guests return home, we are working with all guests who have tested positive for COVID-19 to assist them with accessing private transport and accommodation to complete their isolation period,” she said.

“As they are getting off, they have advised how they will be returning home.”

NSW Health on Friday night ranked the Majestic Princess as a tier three COVID risk level, which indicates a high level of transmission.

All guests onboard were advised to wear masks and were required to take a rapid antigen test in the last 24 hours to determine how they would disembark.

Uninfected guests disembarking the Majestic Princess on Saturday morning told the Daily Telegraph they were satisfied with the precautions taken by the cruise line. 

“We felt safe most of the time … they were cleaning the whole time,” passenger Sharon Leslie told the publication.

Sharon Kluger said the cruise line kept passengers informed as the outbreak worsened. 

“We weren’t worried about COVID, we were just doing our own thing and wearing our masks,” she said.

It comes as Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant warned New South Wales had entered its fourth COVID-19 wave. 

There are currently 974 COVID-19 patients in NSW hospitals including 32 in ICU, while this week cases jumped from 12,450 to 19,800.

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A cruise ship with 800 covid cases docks in Sydney

An earlier version of this story said the Ruby Princess cruise ship is owned by Carnival Cruise Line. The ship is owned by the Carnival Corporation. The story has been corrected.

A cruise ship carrying some 800 people who have tested positive for the coronavirus docked in downtown Sydney on Saturday, triggering memories of a deadly ship-related outbreak in Australia’s largest city in the early, pre-vaccine days of the pandemic.

The Majestic Princess, which returned from New Zealand, is carrying more than 4,000 people, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC). Princess Cruises, the cruise line, said in a statement that all guests onboard took a rapid antigen test within 24 hours of disembarking and that passengers who had tested positive would exit separately and not take public transport. Australia no longer requires people who have tested positive for the virus to isolate, though local authorities have issued guidance that covid patients onboard ships should isolate for five days after testing positive.

“Our onboard medical team will continue to support guests until they disembark,” Princess Cruises said in a statement. It did not respond to a question about whether customers who had tested positive could isolate onboard until they recovered, though the company said it would help guests access accommodation for isolation. The Majestic Princess was scheduled to soon sail to Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city.

The health department of New South Wales, the state in which Sydney is located, said in a separate statement that patients had been isolating onboard. State authorities said that there was a “Tier 3” covid risk level aboard the Majestic Princess, indicating a “high level of transmission.”

Cruise ships have been a potent incubator for the coronavirus. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention monitored such ships for transmission at sea for about two years ; it also warned against cruise travel amid the omicron spike during last year’s holiday season. The CDC still recommends getting vaccinated and taking a coronavirus test before boarding a cruise ship.

In early 2020, Carnival Corporation’s Ruby Princess allowed thousands of passengers to disembark in Sydney, placing the cruise ship at the center of one of Australia’s largest covid outbreaks. At least 28 people died and 700 cases were linked to the ship, according to the ABC . Another Carnival ship, the Diamond Princess , also logged 12 Covid-related fatalities earlier that year, including the first Australian national to die of the virus.

But the country has since lifted coronavirus restrictions on international travel: Proof of vaccination or a negative coronavirus test are no longer required for entry, and mask-wearing on international flights is encouraged but not mandatory, according to Australia’s Department of Health and Aged Care.

The absence of restrictions is a far cry from how Australia first handled the pandemic. Sydney, the commercial capital, enacted a 106-day lockdown in 2021, while Melbourne endured the world’s longest stay-at-home lockdown. Australia also closed its borders to nearly all international travelers for nearly two years , reopening in February. It deported tennis ace Novak Djokovic for being unvaccinated, preventing him from competing in this year’s Australian Open. The country has one of the lowest covid death rates in the Western world.

One side effect of cruise covid rules: Norovirus has plummeted

Australia’s reopening came after it achieved one of the world’s highest immunization rates. As of Nov. 9, nearly 96 percent of residents older than 16 have received two doses of a coronavirus vaccine . The country of 25.7 million people reported a seven-day rolling average of 12 deaths on Friday, or about half that of a month ago.

But New South Wales authorities said this week that the state had entered a new wave of the pandemic, and some medical experts fear that the upcoming holiday season will trigger a spike in infections that could challenge the hospital system in a country that has removed virtually all curbs on the virus.

“If the major public hospitals on the east coast aren’t overwhelmed with patients and facing staff shortages over the holiday break - I’ll donate $1000 to charity,” tweeted physician Steve Robson, president of the Australian Medical Association, in response to news of infections on board the Majestic Princess. (Most of Australia’s population lives on its east coast.)

Katerina Ang contributed to this report.

Cruise ship docks in Sydney after 800 people on board infected by COVID outbreak

• A cruise ship where 800 people on board have tested positive for COVID has docked in Sydney.
• The president of the cruise operator said cases began to rise halfway through the voyage. 
•  54,661 cases of COVID were reported across Australia in the last week. 

A cruise ship suffering a major COVID outbreak has docked in Sydney, Australia.

The BBC reports that approximately 4,600 passengers and crew were aboard the luxury Majestic Princess, and 800 people were affected by the outbreak of the viral bug. 

President of the cruise operator Carnival Australia Marguerite Fitzgerald told ABC Australia that they began seeing many cases halfway through the 12-day cruise around New Zealand, with all cases either asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic. 

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She told the news outlet, "Reflective of the increase in community transmissions, we too have seen more guests test positive for COVID-19 on the current voyage of Majestic Princess. This is a result of mass testing of our 3,300 guests."

She added that staff would be assisting all COVID-positive guests "with accessing private transport and accommodation to complete their isolation period," according to ABC. 

One passenger told ABC, per The Guardian: "It was scary because we heard about it, but of course, we tested negative, and the Majestic Princess were really good with the protocols. [We] wore masks for these last seven days, and we were very careful when we went ashore."

Carnival Australia did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment. 

COVID cases are spiking across Australia, with 54,661 cases reported across the country in the last week, said The Guardian.

According to Reuters , Australian authorities have been working to assure the public that this ship outbreak is under control. Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil said that authorities had created "regular protocols" since the March-April 2020 Ruby Princess outbreak when hundreds caught COVID-19-linked an Australian cruise around the coast of New Zealand, and 28 people died.

O'Neil told Reuters that the authorities are determining how to get passengers off the Majestic Princess "on a case-by-case basis."

The ship will soon depart for Melbourne, Australia.

Watch: The rise and fall of the cruise industry

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'Plenty of protections in place' as 800 COVID-19 infected passengers disembark cruise ship in Sydney

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Cruise Ship With 800 Covid-Positive Passengers And Crew Docked In Sydney

After cases soared, a cruise ship with 800 Covid-positive passengers docked in Sydney , Australia.The wave of infections spread around both passengers and crew members on a cruise ship sailing from New Zealand.

The Majestic Princess cruise ship was halfway through a 12- day voyage when the outbreak happened. Cases increasingly spread which led to mass Covid-19 testing for 3,300 passengers on board. Of these passengers, 800 tested positive alongside a few crew members.

According to CNN, the ship had 4,600 passengers and crew on board in total.

Related: Disney Cruise Line Presents Marvel Day At Sea

Cruise ship with 800 Covid-positive passengers docked in Sydney:

The uptick in cases has been linked to the rise of infections in Australia.

In a media briefing, Carnival Australia president Marguerite Fitzgerald told reporters that a large number of the cases were detected at least halfway into the voyage, adding that all cases were either asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic.

She also highlighted that all guests who tested positive will have help “with accessing private transport and accommodation to complete their isolation period”. Fitzgerald added that Carnival Australia maintains the most stringent of measures to keep all safe onboard, including requiring 95% of guests over the age of 12 to be vaccinated and testing staff and passengers for Covid before they board.

The incident is reminiscent of the outbreak on the ship Ruby Princess, which belongs to the same operator, earlier in the pandemic. When asked about the comparison, the BBC shares that Fitzgerald responded: “Since then, we as a community have learnt a lot, a lot more about Covid.”

According to reports, the Majestic Princess will soon depart for Melbourne.

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More Than 800 Passengers Got COVID On A Cruise Ship, Which Then Let People Off In Australia

The cases are all mild or asymptomatic.

BuzzFeed News Reporter

The Majestic Princess cruise ship docked at the International Terminal at Circular Quay in Sydney on Nov. 12, 2022.

Passengers on a cruise ship where more than 800 people tested positive for COVID-19 disembarked on Saturday in Sydney.

The Majestic Princess returned from a 12-day voyage to New Zealand carrying more than 4,000 people, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corp . That means 20% of the people on board got COVID.

Marguerite Fitzgerald, the president of the ship’s cruise operator Carnival Australia, said at a Saturday press conference that cases started to rise about halfway through the trip. She also said that all cases were mild or asymptomatic.

A spokesperson for the ship’s cruise line, Princess Cruises, said in a statement that all guests on board took rapid antigen tests within 24 hours of disembarking. Those who tested positive were told to exit separately from others and to avoid public transportation. Cruise line staff were also helping people who were positive find accommodations to continue isolating, Princess Cruises Senior Vice President Stuart Allison said in a statement to Australian outlet 9 News .

The Majestic Princess prepares to depart from Sydney in November 2022.

In an additional statement to CNN , Fitzgerald said the cruise operator has been implementing “the most rigorous and strict measures which go well above current guidelines,” including testing staff and passengers for COVID before they board and requiring 95% of guests over the age of 12 to be vaccinated. She said that Carnival Australia ships have made more than 50 voyages, “with a vast majority of more than 100,000 guests unimpacted by COVID.”

“However, the emergence of COVID in the community has meant we have seen a rise in positive cases on the last three voyages,” she added.

The Majestic Princess has since continued on to Melbourne, carrying 220 people from the original New Zealand cruise, SBS News reported . That means at least 580 people who got COVID on the ship disembarked in Sydney.

The Majestic Princess docked in Sydney

After Australia closed its borders for two years, tourism is back in the country, and neither proof of vaccination nor a negative COVID test is required to enter. The country also no longer requires people with positive COVID tests to isolate, but local authorities in New South Wales advised individuals who test positive to isolate for five days after. These relaxed guidelines serve as a sharp contrast with Australia's once-intense COVID regulations .

Carnival cruise ships have been incubators for COVID in the past. In March 2020, the Ruby Princess allowed thousands of passengers to disembark in Sydney. At least 700 cases were linked to the ship, and at least 28 people died, according to the ABC . There were 12 COVID-related fatalities later that year linked to the Diamond Princess .

“Didn’t… didn’t we already do this?” one Twitter user wrote in response to the news about the 800 COVID cases on the Majestic Princess .

Other users are raising questions about how safe it is to cruise while the pandemic is ongoing, even if vaccines provide protection against severe illness.

The Twindenberg @jonkudelka I didn’t understand why anyone would pay to go on a cruise ship before covid but seriously how much would you have to hate yourself to do it now? 12:33 AM - 12 Nov 2022 Reply Retweet Favorite

The Cockatoo @DarcyAmaroo Back to square one. That’s how it started. A cruise ship docking with hundreds of cases of Covid on board. Why would you go on a crowded cruise ship with Covid still spreading through the population? 08:32 PM - 11 Nov 2022 Reply Retweet Favorite

covid is not over @twee_i_a I get it, I really do. The need 2 get back to a "normal life" is absolutely critical for all of us. But we are going to have to realize that for ALL of us to have any hope of doing that, many of us are going to have to change the way we go about things. Cruises are not necessary. 07:26 PM - 11 Nov 2022 Reply Retweet Favorite

MelissaD 🔥💧🐨🌱💓🌍 😷 @D_Melissa2 If cruise ships are going to have 800+ Covid-19 🦠 + cases of people disembarking from them we really need to talk about responsibilities to the community. 11:12 PM - 11 Nov 2022 Reply Retweet Favorite

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Covid-hit Coral Princess cruise ship docks in Sydney

Passengers must record a rapid antigen test before disembarking but crew remain onboard

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A cruise ship with more than 100 Covid-19 positive people onboard has docked in Sydney .

After departing Eden on the New South Wales south coast with more than 2,300 people onboard, the Coral Princess berthed at Circular Quay just before dawn on Wednesday, where it will remain for a day before returning to its home port of Brisbane.

Passengers will have to record a negative result on a rapid antigen test before disembarking but the crew will have to remain.

The outbreak mostly involves infected crew members, with 114 in isolation on Tuesday.

Four passengers were also isolating after positive results, and 24 earlier disembarked in Brisbane , according to Queensland’s chief health officer, John Gerrard.

NSW Health said passengers who tested positive had probably taken the virus onboard with them rather than becoming infected at sea.

The ship docked in Eden on Tuesday, where about 800 passengers disembarked after returning negative tests.

The Eden-Monaro MP and NSW regional development minister, Kristy McBain, said locals had been happy to see the ship dock after bushfires and the pandemic impacted the region.

“When you’ve got towns that rely on tourism it’s been an incredibly difficult couple of years,” McBain told Sydney radio 2GB on Tuesday. “Hopefully this will be the first of many cruise ships to dock this season ... There’s been significant investment into the Port of Eden so that cruise ships could dock in town.”

A Princess Cruises spokesperson said the crew who had tested positive were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms.

At the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020, another Princess cruise liner – the Ruby Princess – was briefly linked to one in eight NSW coronavirus cases.

The latest cruise ship outbreak comes as concern grows about the growing spread of the B.4 and B.5 Omicron subvariants that could reinfect people who have already had the virus.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

The Australian Health Protection Principal Committee has advised shortening the period people are considered immune to the virus to four weeks, requiring people experiencing symptoms more than 28 days after they left isolation to get tested again.

The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia has criticised the end of free rapid antigen tests for concession card holders and called for the government to extend it beyond July.

“Case numbers and hospitalisations are still rising every single day,” said the society’s president, Fei Sim. “Governments should be encouraging more testing, not less.”

Australia recorded 41,336 new coronavirus cases and 58 related deaths on Tuesday.

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Second cruise ship with COVID-19 outbreak docks in Sydney; fourth wave may peak next week

This is your latest weekly update on covid-19 in australia..

The Majestic Princess cruise docked in Sydney on Thursday with positive cases followed by The Celebrity Eclipse on Friday. Both ships have been classified as tier 2, which means they both carried 30-99 COVID-19 positive cases per 1,000 people and their staff was impacted too. (file) Source: AAP / DEAN LEWINS/AAPIMAGE

• Dr Kerry Chant says the number of new cases will start declining from next week in NSW
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Going on a cruise in the Christmas holidays? Here’s what you need to know

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Disclaimer: Early release articles are not considered as final versions. Any changes will be reflected in the online version in the month the article is officially released.

Volume 30, Number 5—May 2024

Interventional Study of Nonpharmaceutical Measures to Prevent COVID-19 Aboard Cruise Ships

Suggested citation for this article

Cruise ships carrying COVID-19–vaccinated populations applied near-identical nonpharmaceutical measures during July–November 2021; passenger masking was not applied on 2 ships. Infection risk for masked passengers was 14.58 times lower than for unmasked passengers and 19.61 times lower than in the community. Unmasked passengers’ risk was slightly lower than community risk.

In the summer of 2021, several European Union Member States (EUMS) and European Economic Area (EEA) countries gradually lifted COVID-19 public health measures and reopened borders. The easing of restrictions enabled cruise lines to resume operations, applying guidelines published by the EU Healthy Gateways Joint Action, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, and European Maritime Safety Agency. We assessed the effectiveness of nonpharmaceutical measures (NPMs) by comparing COVID-19 incidence rates among EUMS and EEA communities and populations of cruise ships and applying different sets of measures.

We conducted an ecologic study in which cruise ships in group 1 (passenger and crew populations on 2 cruise ships, ships A and B) and group 2 (passenger and crew populations of 9 cruise ships) carrying vaccinated populations applied identical NPMs apart from face masking in passengers and physical distancing, which group 1 did not apply ( 1 ) ( Table ). The cruise ship company provided epidemiologic data and screening and diagnostic results for group 1 ( Appendix ). Ship captains or doctors reported epidemiologic data and screening and diagnostic results to competent health authorities and EU Healthy Gateways Joint Action ( Appendix ). Passenger populations changed in every cruise, but ≈6 passengers remained onboard the ship for >1 voyage. COVID-19 imposed severe crew change restrictions, and most crew remained the same during the study; the percentage of crew disembarking likely represented <0.5% of the crew population. We calculated COVID-19 incidence rates for the period of July–November 2021 for groups 1, 2, and 3 (EUMS communities). We obtained epidemiologic data for EUMS communities from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control website ( 4 ).

We calculated incidence rate ratios, standardized incidence ratios (SIRs), and 95% CI using the epiR package in R ( 5 ). We used Fisher’s exact test to determine statistical significance. We considered p<0.05 statistically significant. We calculated SIRs for groups 1 and 2 by using epidemiologic COVID-19 data in EUMS and EEA countries during the study period as a reference population to calculate expected number of cases onboard ( 4 ) ( Appendix ).

The group 1 health measures protocol was reviewed and agreed upon by the Hellenic Ministry of Health’s national COVID-19 taskforce. The study received approval from the University of Thessaly’s Research Ethics Committee (protocol no. 103/16.11317 1.2021; decision no. 103/01.12.2021). Written consent for serologic testing was obtained from all crew members.

The risk for COVID-19 infection in group 2 (masked passengers of 9 ships) was 14.58 (95% CI 7.799–28.361) times lower than risk for group 1 (unmasked passengers) and 19.61 (95% CI 18.86–34.48) times lower than in group 3 (EUMS community members). Infection risk for unmasked passengers in group 1 was lower than in the community (SIR 0.744, 95% CI 0.512–1.045; p = 0.094) ( Appendix ).

Conclusions

Our ecologic study demonstrated that COVID-19 infection risk among masked cruise ship passengers was 19.61 times lower than in the community (95% CI 18.86–34.48); the risk for infection among unmasked passengers was lower than in the community but not statistically significant (SIR 0.744, 95% CI 0.512–1.045; p = 0.094). Those findings suggest that NPMs implemented onboard the cruise ships were effective in reducing risk ( 1 ). Recent vaccination for the circulating variant appeared to contribute to reduced infection risk onboard ships, where vaccination coverage was almost 100%, compared with 66% cumulative vaccine uptake among the EUMS population ( 3 ). No outbreak occurred during the study period (group 1: median no. cases per voyage 1.00, range 0–15; group 2: median 0 cases per voyage, range 0–4). Of 44 close contacts of SARS-CoV-2–positive persons, 10 tested positive during quarantine, which could be attributed to protective effects of up-to-date vaccination for the circulating SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant. No deaths or severe cases were reported among the 11 cruise ships, despite the highly pathogenic nature of the Delta variant and older average age of cruise passengers.

Experimental studies in confined spaces demonstrated that masking is one of the most effective NPMs to prevent aerosol infection transmission ( 6 ). However, a systematic review of clinical trials in community settings and healthcare facilities demonstrated that wearing masks in the community likely makes little difference to outcomes compared with not wearing a mask ( 7 ). Masking in different settings (ships, hospitals, communities) might have different effects, however, the effectiveness of masking measures is likely influenced by how strictly those measures are enforced. During the pandemic, an absence of mask-wearing measures resulted in large outbreaks onboard ships ( 8 , 9 ). Our study demonstrated reduced COVID-19 incidence rates because of the protective effect of masking onboard ships. We suggest integrating use of high-filtration masks into routine case management, outbreak response measures, and preparedness and contingency planning for future public health emergencies of international concern. Crew members presented a lower infection risk than passengers and community populations, possibly because of mandatory mask use, recent vaccination, the strict enforcement of masking and vaccination policies, and reinforced education on symptoms and reporting requirements.

The first limitation of our study is that direct, individual observation of passenger and crew compliance was impossible in the uncontrolled environments of live cruises. The estimated case underreporting rates applied (1:4) were based on US data (February 2020–September 2021), but our study was implemented in Europe (July–November 2021), so differences could apply ( 10 ). The practice of 14-day quarantine and monitoring for disembarking passengers was applied only for close contacts of SARS-CoV-2–positive persons, so secondary cases could have been unidentified. We did not collect data on vaccination type, cabin occupancy, shore-based excursions, and onboard activities for the entire study population, so incidence rate differences for those factors could not be tested. Previous research of a COVID-19 cruise outbreak demonstrated that involvement in certain group activities (e.g., shows) and shore-based bus excursions were associated with infection, as well as a consistent dose-response relationship between number of cabinmates and attack rates in which attack rates decreased as passenger occupancy per cabin decreased ( 11 , 12 ). Alternative exposures, such as preembarkation queuing, social activities, contaminated surface contact, and common area use, deserve attention. Incubating passengers might not have been identified, but daily fever screening and diagnostic testing before boarding, during voyage, and before disembarking enhanced surveillance, reducing the possibility of undetected incubating COVID-19 cases ( 1 ). Strategies guaranteeing study protocol adherence were unfeasible on active voyages; however, enforcing company protocols and competent authority inspections maintained the intervention’s fidelity. Use of buffet lines in group 1 might be a confounder, but both groups applied identical food service occupancy limits; fomite transmission was unlikely given strict hand hygiene measures, replacement of serving utensils, sneeze-guards, and food service by crew. The ship company uniformly applied and enforced clear policies in groups 1 and 2. That uniform application was impossible in group 3 (communities) because implementation policies varied: full or partial; national, regional, or local; mandatory or voluntary; and groups targeted (i.e., at-risk persons, healthcare workers, travelers). Topics for further research include cost-effectiveness of NPMs on cruise ships in the context of pandemics, public health emergencies of international concern or during respiratory illness outbreaks.

In conclusion, our ecologic study demonstrated the safe restart of cruise ship sector operations and indicated that mask use added an extra layer of protection; further studies should be conducted to verify the results. Masking should be considered in future public health emergencies when making decisions regarding NPMs and other measures that could interfere with international traffic and trade.

Dr. Mouchtouri, an associate professor of hygiene and epidemiology at the University of Thessaly, is scientific manager of the European Union project Healthy Sailing and led the maritime transport work package of the European Union Joint Action Healthy Gateways. Her primary research interests include the prevention and control of cross-border health threats and public health aspects in maritime transport.

Acknowledgments

We wish to acknowledge the contribution of the Hellenic Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 taskforce, the National Public Health Organization of Greece and the Biomedical Research Foundation, Academy of Athens, for the next-generation sequencing (NGS) analysis of positive samples. Moreover, we thank the ships’ medical doctors and all ship officers and crew members for their contributions. We express our sincere thanks to the National Public Health Organization of Greece and to the President of the Biomedical Research Foundation, Academy of Athens, Dimitrios Thanos for the NGS analysis of positive samples.

Part of this research was conducted in the framework of the Healthy Sailing project which received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Framework Programme under grant agreement no. 101069764. Moreover, part of this research was conducted in the framework of the EU Healthy Gateways Joint Action, which received funding from the European Union’s Health Programme (2014–2020) under grant agreement no. 801493. The cost of laboratory testing (serological tests and rapid antigen detection tests conducted onboard ships) was covered by the cruise lines.

• EU Healthy Gateways Joint Action . Advice for restarting cruise ship operations after lifting restrictive measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic (version 2—April 2021 ) [ cited 2021 Jun 29 ]. https://www.healthygateways.eu/Novel-coronavirus
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control . Data on country response measures to COVID-19 (archived) [ cited 2024 Feb 9 ]. https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/download-data-response-measures-covid-19
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control . COVID-19 vaccine tracker [ cited 2024 Feb 9 ]. https://qap.ecdc.europa.eu/public/extensions/COVID-19/vaccine-tracker.html
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control . Data on the daily number of new reported COVID-19 cases and deaths by EU/EEA country [ cited 2022 Jul 23 ]. https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/data-daily-new-cases-covid-19-eueea-country
• Stevenson  MSE . epiR: tools for the analysis of epidemiological data [ cited 2024 Feb 9 ]. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=epiR
• Wang  Z , Galea  ER , Grandison  A , Ewer  J , Jia  F . A coupled Computational Fluid Dynamics and Wells-Riley model to predict COVID-19 infection probability for passengers on long-distance trains. Saf Sci . 2022 ; 147 : 105572 . DOI PubMed Google Scholar
• Jefferson  T , Dooley  L , Ferroni  E , Al-Ansary  LA , van Driel  ML , Bawazeer  GA , et al. Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses. Cochrane Database Syst Rev . 2023 ; 1 : CD006207 . PubMed Google Scholar
• Veenstra  T , van Schelven  PD , Ten Have  YM , Swaan  CM , van den Akker  WMR . Extensive spread of SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant among vaccinated persons during 7-day river cruise, the Netherlands. Emerg Infect Dis . 2023 ; 29 : 734 – 41 . DOI PubMed Google Scholar
• Hatzianastasiou  S , Mouchtouri  VA , Pavli  A , Tseroni  M , Sapounas  S , Vasileiou  C , et al. COVID-19 outbreak on a passenger ship and assessment of response measures, Greece, 2020. Emerg Infect Dis . 2021 ; 27 : 1927 – 30 . DOI PubMed Google Scholar
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . Estimated COVID-19 burden 2023 [ cited 2024 Feb 9 ]. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-updates/burden.html
• World Health Organization . WHO advice for international travel and trade in relation to the outbreak of pneumonia caused by a new coronavirus in China 2020 [ cited 2024 Feb 9 ]. https://www.who.int/news-room/articles-detail/who-advice-for-international-travel-and-trade-in-relation-to-the-outbreak-of-pneumonia-caused-by-a-new-coronavirus-in-china
• Plucinski  MM , Wallace  M , Uehara  A , Kurbatova  EV , Tobolowsky  FA , Schneider  ZD , et al. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Americans aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Clin Infect Dis . 2021 ; 72 : e448 – 57 . DOI PubMed Google Scholar
• Table . COVID-19 health measures, laboratory screening, and diagnostic testing for SARS-CoV-2 per comparison population group in interventional study of nonpharmaceutical measures to prevent COVID-19 aboard cruise ships

Suggested citation for this article : Mouchtouri VA, Kourentis L, Anagnostopoulos L, Koureas M, Kyritsi M, Kontouli KM, et al. Interventional study of nonpharmaceutical measures to prevent COVID-19 aboard cruise ships. Emerg Infect Dis. 2024 May [ date cited ]. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid3005.231364

DOI: 10.3201/eid3005.231364

Original Publication Date: April 17, 2024

Table of Contents – Volume 30, Number 5—May 2024

Please use the form below to submit correspondence to the authors or contact them at the following address:

Varvara A. Mouchtouri, Laboratory of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, 22 Papakyriazi str, 41222, Larissa, Greece

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• Travel Updates
• Health & Safety

Cruise ship arrives in Sydney with close to 300 suspected Covid cases

A cruise ship classified as a tier 2 Covid risk by the NSW government has docked in Sydney on Friday morning.

Sad scene in ‘sketchiest underpass ever’

US embassy’s stark warning after Bondi

‘Horrible’: Fresh warning for Aussies in Bali

A luxury cruise ship carrying as many as 300 positive Covid cases has docked in Sydney on Friday morning.

The Celebrity Eclipse moored at Circular Quay as the NSW government classified the vessel as a tier 2 Covid risk, signalling there were as many as 99 positive cases per 1000 people on-board.

The cruise ship, which was carrying about 3000 people, had just completed a trip to New Zealand, including stops to Christchurch and Dunedin.

All passengers aged 12 and over had to be fully vaccinated to sail, per the Covid protocols outlined on the Celebrity Cruises website.

Vaccination certificates had to be sighted at the departure point for passengers to be allowed to embark.

It comes a week after the Grand Princess docked in Melbourne, with dozens of Covid-infected passengers allowed to disembark.

A Princess Cruises spokesperson said last week the vessel had been impacted by a spike in cases across Australia.

“Like many other tourism operators, we too have been impacted by the current fourth wave being experienced across Australia,” the spokesperson said.

An activist has shared a confronting video of the “sketchiest pedestrian underpass” he has ever seen. What confronted him in the tunnel left him truly disturbed.

The US Embassy in Canberra has warned its citizens that ‘dangerous events’ can occur in unexpected areas following the horrific Bondi massacre.

Aussie tourists are falling sick from a common but dangerous illness in the tropical tourism mecca.

Business Insider

A company is turning former cruise ships into floating hotels — see inside its largest 'floatel'

Posted: April 17, 2024 | Last updated: April 17, 2024

• Bridgemans ServicesGroup operates a fleet of former cruise ships turned into hotels. 
• Its "floatels" are designed to house workers during long-term projects.
• See its largest 652-cabin floatel with a game room and buffet.

Some old and unwanted cruise ships meet their demise at ship-breaking yards , where they are disassembled and sold for scrap.

Other vessels find a more fortunate fate, receiving a second chance to do what they already do best: serve as floating hotels.

Canada-based Bridgemans Services Group buys and charters former cruise ships to turn into "floatels," outfitted with standard cruise amenities like daily housekeeping, buffets, and relaxing lounges.

But the ships aren't designed to transport tourists from one destination to another anymore. Instead, companies turn to Bridgeman when they need to house workers for a long-term project, whether it be the construction of an offshore wind farm in Europe or the shooting of a major film in a remote destination.

Floatels can accommodate workers in remote destinations where hotels might not be an option.

In more metropolitan areas, Bridgemans says its ships could lessen the stress an inundation of workers might have on the local housing market.

And once they are no longer needed, the vessels depart and "leave no trace behind," the company said.

Over the last decade, Bridgemans has deployed its ships for 15 projects on every continent, Brian Grange, the company's president, told Business Insider.

Grange said that its deployments — most often for liquified natural gas companies — last for an average of two years.

In the past, it has also provided accommodations for MSC Cruises at its Ocean Cay private island and housing for more than 1,000 workers in the Philippines' on a project for the Manila International Airport during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company's three ships range from 150 to 652 cabins.

The floatel operator acquired its largest ship, the 561-foot-long MV Isabelle X, in 2023.

In its past life, the 35-year-old vessel sailed around the Baltic Sea as one of Estonia-based Tallink Gruipp's cruise ships.

But gone are its days of leisurely cruising. The 35,000 gross-ton ship is now on its first deployment in Howe Sound, just north of Vancouver, where it's housing more than 600 workers who are building Woodfibre LNG's "net zero" LNG export facility.

Isabelle X underwent a six-month retrofit before it was sent to Howe Sound.

The process included updating the ship's cabins and adding amenities like a game room and an 8,000-square-foot gym.

The latter two are especially important: "We need to make sure we delineate between work and home," Grange told BI. "We have to create a social environment on board these vessels that makes it attractive for workforces around the world."

During their free time, workers can play billiards, relax in the outdoor lounge, or use the ship’s WiFi to catch up on social media.

The sports lounge has large television screens, while the games lounge has darts, ping pong tables, and air hockey.

The 'quiet lounges' are the go-to space for people who need to unwind after a long work day.

Or, they could recharge and catch up on the latest shows in their cabins, which all come with desks, storage, and 32-inch televisions.

Like a typical cruise ship, Bridgemans' vessels have buffets with live cooking stations, a dessert bar, and the occasional themed night.

The ships' chefs tailor their menus to the demographic and dietary restrictions of the workers on board, the company's president told BI.

Residents can expect at least four protein options, plenty of veggies, and handmade bread and desserts.

Unlike most cruise lines, Bridgemans can pre-purchase all the food it needs before deployment.

Grange says this allows the ships to maintain food quality and consistency in remote locations.

Remember that deployment in the Philippines during COVID-19? He said the ship had packed almost 800 tons of food ahead of the project.

He wouldn’t disclose the cost to rent one of Bridgemans’ floatels.

But he did note that the cost of a cabin on the Woodfibre LNG project in Howe Sound is comparable to a hotel room in nearby Vancouver, as is the case with most of its projects near major cities.

The company’s most recent acquisition, the 150-cabin Diamond XI, is currently being retrofitted and would be ready for deployment this year.

According to the company's president, the vessel is small and high-end, likely to be used for sporting events and movie shoots.

It could also be the start of a greater expansion: He hopes to add two or three more vessels to its fleet in the next five years.

"The world has opened up to this as a valued alternative to housing," Grange told BI.

Who knows, the next time you see a cruise ship off the coast, there's a slim but possible chance it could be housing workers — not vacationers.

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Coral Princess COVID-19 outbreak may foreshadow what happens on land in coming weeks

A COVID-19 outbreak on a sister ship to the Ruby Princess has been called "inevitable" but did not impact the liner's scheduled stop in Sydney today.

Key points:

• The cruise liner has docked in Sydney but most crew members will not be allowed to disembark
• An expert in infectious diseases says the outbreak will be a drop in the ocean compared to wider community transmission
• A passenger isolating on the Coral Princess said Carnival Cruises was handling the outbreak well

The Coral Princess, which arrived in the Harbour City today as part of a 12-day cruise, is battling a COVID-19 outbreak of 115 crew members and 14 passengers, according to Carnival Australia.

Carnival Australia confirmed 10 more passengers had tested positive for COVID-19.

President Marguerite Fitzgerald said 10 passengers who returned positive rapid antigen test (RAT) results before disembarking in Sydney today are isolating on the ship.

"We believe and the health authorities have also said that most of those guests probably brought COVID with them onto the ship when they embarked in Brisbane," she said.

"We knew this was going to happen...no one expected that we'd keep COVID off ships, it was just about managing it."

NSW Health said it was likely the passengers acquired the virus prior to boarding, and all infected travellers and crew were isolating.

Brisbane passenger Liz Bolton and her partner Clive Bolton, who departed the ship this morning, said the health measures in place had been smooth. 

"It's not as bad as people are making it out. We are loving it. We feel really safe," Ms Bolton said. 

"We've had COVID, we've taken all the precautions and we're fine … we just live with it."

Regular cruise passengers Richard and Robin Cooper said they were fully vaccinated and not worried. 

"You're letting people in the country who aren't vaccinated. Everyone on the ship is at least double vaccinated with boosters," Ms Cooper said. 

"We did an anniversary cruise prior to this one...we had no trouble then either."

Despite the strict COVID protocols now enforced on cruises, the virus is still too hard to stop in such settings, says professor of infectious diseases Peter White.

"SARS-CoV-2 is probably the major risk to cruises now … I think we're going to see more of these [outbreaks] unfortunately," Professor White, from the University of NSW, told the ABC.

He said coronavirus would become the new norovirus of cruise ships.

Norovirus is a type of virus that causes gastroenteritis and can spread easily in close quarters, including on cruise ships.

"Around one in 20 cruises would have a norovirus outbreak on them [before the pandemic] but we know that SARS-CoV-2 is probably more transmissible and infectious," he said.

"The inevitable has happened and we've had an outbreak."

Ms Fitzgerald said the low number of passengers infected proved the health measures implemented on board were actually working.

"This is the protocols working. It shows we actually are able to very successfully operate cruises in a COVID environment," she said.

The Coral Princess is in the same family as the Ruby Princess cruise liner which was responsible for Australia's first COVID super-spreader event in March 2020.

However, it is likely this outbreak, which is mostly contained to the crew, will be a drop in the ocean in relation to wider community transmission.

NSW is expecting a COVID-19 peak in the coming weeks as the new Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 circulate widely.

Professor White said the Coral Princess outbreak was simply foreshadowing what would be seen on land soon.

"We often consider a cruise ship as sentinel surveillance because we start seeing the outbreaks first on the ships," he said.

"That would be playing on my mind if I was going on a cruise and I might try to delay until there's not a wave of outbreaks set to roll in."

NSW Health has assessed the risk level for the Coral Princess outbreak as "amber", which is the second-highest level.

Carnival Australia, which owns Princess Cruises, says the ship is managing "quite well" in the circumstances but there will be some service impacts due to the number of staff isolating.

NSW Health said the crew were not allowed to get off this morning in Sydney and passengers had to take a RAT before disembarking.

Professor White said this outbreak was "particularly interesting" because the virus was most prevalent in the crew.

"I think there is a warning here that extra precautions for crew-based outbreaks … are something the cruise companies should focus on," he said.

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Fjords, Pharaohs or Koalas? Time to Plan for Your Next Eclipse.

If you can’t get enough of totality, or missed out this time, you’ll have three more chances in the next four years in destinations like Iceland, Spain, Egypt and Australia.

• Share full article

By Danielle Dowling

Are you still a little giddy from the magical moments of totality during Monday’s solar eclipse? Or did clouds swoop in to block your view? Maybe you just couldn’t make it to the path of totality this time. No matter what, the question now is “ Where and when will it happen again?”

“People who have never seen it before, the first words out of their mouth after the totality ends is ‘I’ve got to see another one, this is incredible, this is unbelievable.’ That is when you become addicted to these things and end up traveling no matter where the next one is,” said Joseph Rao, an eclipse chaser and guest lecturer at the Hayden Planetarium.

So, if like Mr. Rao, you’ve developed a raging case of umbraphilia — the love of eclipses — you’ll have three chances over the next four years to see the moon blot out the sun. The first, on Aug. 12, 2026, will start above Greenland, then strafe the west coast of Iceland and move along the Atlantic Ocean and over Spain. Almost a year later, on Aug. 2, 2027, another will skirt the Mediterranean coast of North Africa then cross Egypt and part of the Arabian Peninsula. The third, on July 22, 2028, will cut across Australia and the southern tip of New Zealand.

Future Eclipses

Eclipse chasers will have several more chances this decade to view a total solar eclipse .

Last week, as Victoria Sahami , the owner of Sirius Travel , was preparing to guide a group of tourists in Mazatlán, Mexico, for Monday’s big event, she was also planning for these other upcoming eclipses. Ms. Sahami joined the ranks of the eclipse-obsessed when she witnessed one in Venezuela in the 1990s. “Like many people, I was hooked. There was no going back,” she said.

Total solar eclipses happen fairly regularly — about every one to two years — in locations scattered around the world. “That’s the great thing about them: You wind up in places that you don’t normally go,” Ms. Sahami said.

A major spoiler is weather, which will be a big variable in the 2026 eclipse — one Greenland, Iceland and Spain will see.

“Iceland normally has a lot of cloud during that time of year,” said Paul Maley , who runs Ring of Fire Expeditions . “The data shows Spain to have the higher good-weather prospects of all three. However, the sun is low in the sky and the eclipse ends as the sun hits the horizon at sunset.”

Because of Iceland’s mercurial meteorology, Ring of Fire Expeditions is going all in on Spain, with a 10-day excursion on the mainland. Sirius Travel is offering not only a five-day trip to Majorca but also an eight-day tour around Iceland. It will be based in Reykjavik, and the itinerary will remain flexible on the day of the eclipse so the tour can easily pivot toward the location with the least cloud cover. Ms. Sahami recommends the trip for those who already have a few eclipses under their belt and would be happy just to take in the sights of Iceland if the weather doesn’t cooperate.

The 2027 eclipse, on the other hand, promises to be truly stellar: Luxor, Egypt — the site of numerous ancient temples as well as the Valleys of the Kings and Queens — sits right in the middle of the path of totality and will be bathed in darkness for a full 6 minutes 23 seconds. Weather-wise, it is what Ms. Sahami called “a slam dunk.” “You know you’re going to see it. You know that you’re not going to get any clouds,” she said.

But for all its potential, those considering Egypt should be aware that the State Department has a Level 3 “Reconsider Travel” warning for the country because of the risk of terrorism.

The 2028 eclipse will darken the skies over Sydney, Australia, for 3 minutes 49 seconds. It will be the first time the city has experienced a total solar eclipse since 1857. Ms. Sahami has her eyes on a trip based out of there, while Mr. Maley has chartered a cruise ship off the northwest coast of Australia. It will be winter there, he said, but that isn’t likely to mean bad eclipse-viewing weather.

If you want to see any (or all) of these eclipses, you should get started on planning and booking now, particularly if you want to sign up for a trip organized by a tour company. One of Sirius Travel’s excursions to Luxor is already full.

Scrutinize refund policies and look into insuring your trip. Several companies will fully refund your deposit if you cancel a year in advance. A lot can happen, Ms. Sahami said, “but if you think you’re going to go, why not?”

Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram and sign up for our weekly Travel Dispatch newsletter to get expert tips on traveling smarter and inspiration for your next vacation. Dreaming up a future getaway or just armchair traveling? Check out our 52 Places to Go in 2024 .

David Coffin sings the praises of going unplugged, packing light, and eating raisins

We caught up with the boston harbor cruise guide to talk about all things travel.

If you ask David Coffin, he will tell you that most people don’t understand the full scope of maritime music. “They think it’s just sea shanties, but those are a very specific kind of song … rhythmic songs that [crew members] would sing on ships while they were working,” said the New Haven native. “Sea shanties are an entry point into maritime music, but there are so many others like whaling songs and songs about being at sea.” Coffin, 64, is a well-known area raconteur who performs maritime concerts, leads maritime music programs in schools, and has been the master of ceremonies for ‘Christmas Revels’ — held annually at the Sanders Theatre in Cambridge in celebration of winter solstice — for more than four decades. He has also been guiding tours for Boston Harbor cruises for nearly 25 years and said he is excited about a new harbor cruise he created and narrates for Boston Harbor City Cruises called the Boston Lighthouse and Outer Harbor Cruise, which is offered Thursday-Sunday through May 12. “People are enamored with lighthouses, and on this two-hour cruise, we show them four lighthouses and one surprise lighthouse,” said Coffin, who said there will be a musical component to the cruise. “I really enjoy storytelling — and there is so much history right here in Boston Harbor. To me, every trip is a performance, and even though it’s been almost 25 years [as a tour guide] and has [included] the same information, it never gets old.” Coffin added that he has the “coolest office in town — and it floats. And I’m so successful that I have windows on all four sides of my office.” We caught up with the father of three (one adult daughter and two adult stepchildren), who lives in Gloucester with his wife, Kirsten Wiberg, and their two dogs, two cats, and one bird, to talk about all things travel.

If you could travel anywhere right now, where would you go? I’d go to Fiji. Why? I think the water speaks for itself.

Do you prefer booking trips through a travel agent or on your own? My wife takes care of it.

Thoughts on an “unplugged” vacation? I’m all for it. Hard to do but very healthy for the brain.

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What has been your worst vacation experience? It was a busman’s holiday — meaning it was a holiday but I was still working — on a Carnival Cruise about 20 years ago. It was like a floating city with thousands of people. Never again.

What is your favorite childhood travel memory? Flying back from Paris, where we were visiting my grandparents when I was 6 or 7, and the plane lost an engine — so we had three instead of four. Everyone lost their appetite, so I had a lot of extra desserts. Remember, I was a child and since we were still flying, everything seemed fine to me.

Do you vacation to relax, to learn, or for the adventure of it all? Strictly to relax. My last vacation was an enforced vacation.

What book do you plan on bringing with you to read on your next vacation? Nothing. Reading takes me away from where I am, and I didn’t travel all that distance to get away from where I went.

If you could travel with one famous person/celebrity, who would it be? My wife.

What is the best gift to give a traveler? An amazing restaurant recommendation and a prepaid bill.

What is your go-to snack for a flight or a road trip? Trail mix — any kind with raisins — and ginger ale.

What is the coolest souvenir you’ve picked up on a vacation? A hole in my foot from stepping on a sea urchin at a beach in Spain. It was low tide and I was way out there on my own. I was a young kid and all I remember is that I couldn’t walk for a couple of days, and I got lots of ice cream.

What is your favorite app/website for travel? None. My wife makes travel arrangements and goes through the airlines directly.

What has travel taught you? Get there early.

What is your best travel tip? Unpack half your suitcase and leave the items you unpacked at home. You don’t need as much as you think you do.

Juliet Pennington can be reached at [email protected] .

Woman dead after bus crashes into pedestrians at Honolulu cruise ship terminal

Five pedestrians were taken to the hospital, police said.

One woman has died and 10 others were injured after a shuttle bus crashed into the transportation area outside a Honolulu cruise terminal Friday, according to police.

The ship, Carnival Miracle, was on a 15-day journey, departing Long Beach, California, on April 6, according to Carnival Cruise Line. Nine of the people hit by the vehicle were cruise ship passengers.

"Sadly, one guest has died from her injuries. She was traveling with her husband, who was also injured and is expected to recover. Members of the Carnival Care Team are assisting the guests. Our thoughts are with the guests affected and their loved ones," Carnival Cruise Line said in a statement to ABC News.

MORE: Sydney stabbing: 6 dead, suspect killed in attack at major shopping mall

A 57-year-old man was dropping off customers at pier 2 when a bystander told him that his vehicle was moving forward. He then jumped into the drivers seat, trying to stop the vehicle, but he accidentally pressed the gas pedal instead of the brakes, colliding with two concrete barriers and eleven pedestrians, according to the Honolulu Police Department.

Five pedestrians were transported to the hospital -- one of whom was later pronounced dead and four others are in good condition. Six other pedestrians refused treatment on the scene, police said.

According to police, speed does not appear to be a contributing factor in the collision and it is unknown if drugs or alcohol were contributing factors.

The investigation is ongoing.