The USA's CDC agency (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) reported gastrointestinal illness/norovirus outbreaks on Cunard’s flagship Queen Mary 2 and Seabourn’s Seabourn Encore.
On Queen Mary 2, 224 of 2538 passengers (8,8%), along with 17 crew members, experienced symptoms including vomiting and diarrhea during the vessel’s current voyage. The ship departed Southampton (England) on March 8th, with scheduled calls in NYC New York and the Caribbean.
On Seabourn Encore, the CDC reported 12 of 461 passengers (2,6%) and 22 crew members with similar symptoms, along with abdominal cramps. The vessel set sail on a Transpacific repositioning itinerary from Japan to California (via Hawaii) on March 16th.
Both companies implemented isolation protocols and other mitigation measures in response to the outbreaks, per CDC guidelines.
These incidents are part of a broader trend, with 12 outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness on cruise ships meeting the CDC’s public notification threshold this year. Ten of these cases have been attributed to norovirus.