World of Cruising | Cruise holidays: Which cruises are cancelled…

Under the new rules, Covid restrictions – previously set to lift on June 21 – will now remain in place until July 19.

Domestic cruises have been permitted since last month but numbers onboard cruise ships have been capped.

These limitations will now continue until July 19, potentially impacting cruises sailing in the coming weeks.

Government advice states: “Domestic cruises can operate with up to 1,000 people or 50 percent capacity, whichever is lower. This capacity limit applies to passengers only.

“COVID-secure guidance applies. Groups of more than six people or two households will not be allowed to mix indoors – whether or not they originally booked in the same group.”

Regarding step four in the roadmap out of lockdown, the Government explains: “It is expected that England will move to Step Four on July 19, though the data will be reviewed after two weeks in case the risks have reduced.

“By step four, the government hopes to remove all legal limits on social contact. This includes lifting capacity limits for domestic cruises.”

Celebrity Cruises, Marella Cruises, MSC Cruises and P&O Cruises are among major cruise lines sailing around the UK this summer.

TUI’s Marella Explorer was set to sail Southampton via Dover and Portland, departing June 28, 2021.

However, the popular holiday brand recently announced swathes of ocean and river cruises would be cancelled.

The axed voyages are as follows:

• Marella Cruises sailings on Marella Discovery and Marella Discovery 2 due to depart on or before 31 July 2021.
• Marella Cruises sailings from Palma on Marella Explorer due to depart on or before 25 September 2021.
• Marella Cruises sailings from Dubrovnik on Marella Explorer 2 due to depart on or before 21 October 2021.
• Marella Cruises sailings on Marella Discovery 2 due to depart between 1 November 2021 and 30th April 2022.
• TUI River Cruises sailings on TUI Skyla due to depart on or before 1 August 2021.
• TUI River Cruises sailings on TUI Maya due to depart on or before 14 August 2021.
• TUI River Cruises sailings on TUI Isla due to depart on or before 31 October 2021.

P&O Cruises were due to start again on June 27 with the launch of P&O’s domestic cruises and Britannia to sail from Southampton on a three-night short break.

The vessel has a capacity of 3,647 passengers – of whom only 1,000 could now sail.

Celebrity’s newly revamped Celebrity Silhouette has capacity for 2,886-guests and has therefore had to dramatically cut down on numbers. The first UK cruise onboard is diarised for July 3.

A Celebrity spokeswoman told World of Cruising: “Our passenger capacity and protocols onboard are all in line with the current recommendations of the government and our Healthy Sail Panel, and will remain so until the government advice changes.

“We are set to sail and can’t wait to show how, despite the limitations of the past year, there is no limit to the fun, relaxation and enjoyment of our holidays at sea.”

MSC Virtuosa was the very first ship to sail after travel restrictions eased and has already been operating under the capped numbers.

However, MSC Cruises has cancelled the entire 2021 deployment of MSC Magnifica as a result of ongoing Covid rules.

Viking’s newest ocean ship, Viking Venus, began sailing its England’s Scenic Shores itinerary on May 22 and has also been limited to 1,000 passengers.

A number of the cruise lines are sailing the UK this summer but, thanks to their small ships, will not be affected by the 1,000 guest limit.

Cruise lines have also been hit by Covid restrictions in Scotland – passengers cannot embark or disembark in Greenock, near Glasgow, as planned.

Celebrity has been forced to axe a stop and amend its itinerary. A spokeswoman said: “As we await the next update from the Scottish Government regarding the resumption of cruise visits to Scotland, we have made the decision to change the itinerary of our first Celebrity Silhouette sailing which was due to stop in Greenock on July 6.

“In place, we have added two new ports to the itinerary – Liverpool and Dover – offering even more chance for our guests to enjoy the stunning culture and scenery the beautiful British Isles has to offer”.

World of Cruising has contacted P&O and MSC for comment.