Cruise tourism in Latin America is rapidly recovering and in some cases demand is again at pre pandemic level, according to Alberto Muñoz, Royal Caribbean vice-president for the region.
A leading cruise company has announced it will no longer be requiring passengers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or to wear facemasks while onboard effective October 4.
Venezuelan authorities Thursday announced the first cruise ship in 15 years will be arriving at Margarita on Jan. 3, while the so-called “turoperación” with Russia will be resumed as of October, with 5 direct weekly flights between Moscow and Porlamar.
With the departure on Monday of the Norwegian flagged three-mast tall ship Statsraad Lehmkuhl, Ushuaia, extreme south of Argentina, considered the successful 2021/22 cruise season over. According to local port authorities from the province of Tierra del Fuego, Ushuaia received more than 200 calls and some 60,000 visitors, since the arrival last 7 November of NatGeo Endurance, and was the only Latin American port that did not interrupt its summer activities.
A Princess Cruise vessel that had left San Francisco on a 15-day voyage to the Panama Canal and back has been gripped by COVID-19. According to the shipping company, 100% of passengers and crew were vaccinated. The Port of San Francisco also requires that at least 95% of both passengers and crew members onboard are vaccinated.
The Punta Arenas port management company, in the extreme south of Chile, has offered a timetable of cruise vessel activities during the first two weeks of February. According to the program, eleven calls are scheduled in the two weeks to 15 February. Until Sunday 6 February six cruise vessels were effectively called.
The cruise vessel Crystal Symphony that was supposed to dock in Miami sailed to the Bahamas instead after a U.S. judge granted an order to seize the vessel as part of a lawsuit over unpaid fuel.
Buenos Aires' cruise season has kicked off with the arrival at the Argentine capital's river port of the US-flagged World Navigator carrying some 100 passengers from Europe, the United States and Canada.
Punta Arenas, the extreme south of Chile will be hosting Silversea Cruises as its base of operations, having decided to abandon Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego. Silversea announced a release in which it makes official its Antarctic cruise operations during the 2021/22 season, following an agreement with Chilean officials.
Chile announced on Monday that foreign tourists on cruise expeditions to Antarctica can call and land in the country as long as they comply with a strict sanitary protocol. Andrea Wolleter, head of Chile's tourism services made the announcement following on reiterated petitions from organizations linked to the tourism industry as well as regional and city officials.