Trevor KucheranLast Updated
Important Update:
AIDA Cruises will expand its range of cruises this fall with new voyages in Italy, starting on Oct. 17, 2020.
Carnival's German brand is thus moving up its restart from November to October.
“After weighing the risks in view of the increasing number of COVID-19 infections and the associated travel restrictions, we have come to the conclusion that, despite the careful preparations, the conditions for a safe and responsible restart are unfortunately not yet in place”
Original Article – Now Resumes
Originally AIDA planned on relaunching by making the below statement but then had to delay sailings until November.
AIDA Cruises said it would resume sailing operations in November , months after cruise operators were forced to pause voyages due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are planning to resume AIDA cruise operations with the first ships from German ports at the beginning of September 2020. The prerequisite for this was the approval of the flag state of Italy for the restart concepts. The first trips from Kiel will start on September 6th, 2020 . According to the catalog, these were planned with AIDAbella, but are now taking place with AIDAblu. The first cruises with AIDAperla will start from Hamburg on September 12, 19 and 26, 2020 to the Norwegian fjords.”
The Germany-based cruise line said it has introduced a variety of Covid-19 preventive measures to complement existing health and hygiene standards, as it restarts operations.
Some of the new enhanced measures include:
- Digital health questionnaire
- Temperature screenings
- Social distancing guidelines
- Capacity limitations
- Daily crew temperature checks
The onboard medical team is trained in for Covid-19 test procedures and treatments if needed. Medical staff will implement extensive processes to execute a high level of medical care and a safe return home for patients diagnosed with the viral infection.
The first voyages will take place with an adjusted passenger capacity and without stopping at any ports, but passengers can look forward to a “versatile vacation program on board with the usual five-star service.”
AIDA has originally suspended operations back in March due to the coronavirus outbreak that forced several countries to mandate lockdowns and travel restrictions.
The rest of AIDA's cruise operations will be suspended until the end of September with the exceptions of a few sailings the cruise line announced.
“As current developments show, the conditions for safe travel are not yet in place in all travel destinations in Europe. Therefore, due to the current situation, we unfortunately have to extend the interruption of the cruise season until 09/30/2020. Exceptions to this are the above-mentioned departures from Kiel with AIDAblu and Hamburg with AIDAperla. It is important to us to provide all guests with this information for their vacation. We very much regret that the other trips cannot take place as planned.”
AIDA had suspended their operations since March as the rapid spread of the coronavirus outbreak forced several countries to mandate lockdowns and travel restrictions.
Earlier this week, rivals Royal Caribbean Group and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd had announced a joint task force to help develop safety standards for restarting their businesses during the pandemic.
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