MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Cruise lines suspend calls at Mexican ports

At least three cruise lines have suspended stops as of this week at Mexican ports because of concerns over the country's swine-flu outbreak. The cancellation of ship visits followed a recommendation issued this week by the U.S. Centres for Disease Control that advised US citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Mexico.

Cruise officials were seeking clarification from the CDC about how the health advisory affects cruises, particularly the many ships currently in Mexico. Cruises to Mexico are very popular, departing from Southern California and Florida ports on week-long or shorter sailings.

Carnival Cruise Lines, one of the biggest cruise companies, suspended ports calls by three ships in Cozumel and Ensenada. Seattle-based Holland America cancelled a visit to Mazatlan.

Princess Cruises ships are cancelling port calls to both Cabo San Lucas and Puerto Vallarta, said spokeswoman Karen Candy. One ship, the 2,670-passenger Sapphire Princess, will instead visit the ports of San Diego and Catalina in California.

Other cruise lines haven't announced port-call cancellations, but all are emphasizing how thoroughly ships are cleansed and said they will closely monitor for any signs of swine flu. Many ships stock anti-viral medications that can be used to prevent the flu.

In the past, cruise lines have had to battle outbreaks of the Norovirus, a very common and highly contagious virus, so most have hand sanitizers available throughout ships.