The UK-based company Cunard Line announced it is limiting the max passenger capacity on some voyages aboard RMS Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria due to a lack of crew.
The Carnival Corporation-owned company revealed that the capacity would be limited in order to provide Cunard's distinctive service.
Difficulties are related to COVID travel restrictions which often include testing, quarantine periods, and other health & safety protocols that may make it challenging for crew traveling through multiple countries to join the ships. Required visas/other international documentation can also affect travel at this time.
In communication with passengers, the cruise company said:
“As you may have seen in the news, the wider impact of COVID-19 is affecting hospitality and is disrupting airlines and as such this is impacting the number of crew members we are able to get to our ships.
“We naturally want to ensure that all guests across the fleet experience the high standards of service on board that they would expect from Cunard and which we are committed to delivering. We are therefore limiting the number of guests sailing as we build crew numbers back up.”
“Due to our framework of protocols to protect the health and wellbeing of all crew and guests we are currently operating at a reduced guest capacity and we need to take an approved number of staterooms out of service.”
The impacted sailings are reported to be during June & July 2022, though some sailings in August might also be affected.
There has been no announcement about which sailings are impacted.
Cunard is contacting passengers directly if their voyages are affected. The impacted sailings are still scheduled to set sail but will host fewer travelers in order to ensure a high-quality experience.