CLIA welcomed the publication by the European Union of a new report outlining how to restart ship cruises. In a statement, CLIA said the EU's "Interim Guidance for Restarting Cruise Operations" (a document developed by the EU Healthy Gateways initiative) was “an important marker in the possible resumption of cruising in Europe”.
The EU report states:
“In addition to measures aimed at excluding infected persons from boarding a cruise ship, early detection and isolation of the first case, disembarkation, and quarantine of close contacts in facilities ashore are all essential elements for effectively preventing future Covid-19 outbreaks on board cruise ships.
“When resuming operations, cruise lines may initially consider using itineraries of a short duration (for example three to seven days) and to perhaps limit the number of port visits in the itinerary.
“The willingness and capacity of countries included in the itinerary should be explored, and arrangements should be in place to accept possible or confirmed COVID cases disembarking from cruise ships, as well as possible contacts and anyone else wishing to disembark.”
The document also states that all cruise ships “should have in place a written contingency plan/outbreak management plan for the prevention and control of possible cases of Covid-19”.
Secretary-general Tom Boardley, speaking on behalf of CLIA Europe (based in London UK), said that the primary concern of CLIA and its member lines was the health and safety of its passengers and crew. He added that the guidance from the public health authorities in Europe provided a useful resource for cruise companies as they prepared to resume operations.
Boardley also said that CLIA members envisaged that there would be "a gradual, phased-in approach to resumption of operations”.
The association stated that full resumption would "also be dependent on a variety of factors, including international, national, and/or local arrangements, the status of the continued spread of Covid-19 in specific locales, and advancements in detection, treatment and prevention”.