Updated April 23, 2020
Luxury cruise line Cunard, announced today that, as a result of the continued impact of Covid-19, it will be extending the pause to voyages.
For its ships Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, Cunard is cancelling all sailings that were due to depart up to and including 31 July, 2020. For Queen Elizabeth, maintaining a shorter summer season in Alaska would unfortunately not make these voyages viable, so the cruise line has taken the practical decision to cancel the entire Alaska season and all departures up to and including the 8 September, 2020.
Simon Palethorpe, President, Cunard said, “These are unprecedented times and this global outbreak continues to challenge Cunard, our industry and our world in unimaginable ways. We would love nothing more than to bring our fleet back in to service, and give our guests the holidays they deserve and long for, but with the lockdowns and travel restrictions in place around the world, this is simply not possible at this time.”
He added, “We have been sailing for 180 years and we look forward to many more. We will get through these tough times together and look forward to welcoming our guests back on board again when the time is right.”
As Cunard has done previously during this pause period, guests who are booked on cancelled voyages will automatically be given a 125% refund of the fare paid in the form of a Future Cruise Credit. This may be used on any sailing before the end of March 2022. Guests may now also use their Future Cruise Credit for a second cabin to bring friends or family or to upgrade an existing booking.
Full details of the changes to operations and options available to guests due to travel on cancelled voyages, can be found at www.cunardcruceros.com
Cunard will continue to monitor government guidelines and travel restrictions around the world, and this may mean there are further changes to the timing of when each of the ships returns to service.
Updated March 30, 2020
As the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve, Cunard has made the decision to take the preventative measure of extending the suspension of all voyages an extra month from April 11 up to and including May 15, 2020.
Cunard will continue to monitor government guidelines and travel restrictions in ports of call around the world, and this may mean there are further changes to the timing of when each of the ships returns to service.
Simon Palethorpe, President, Cunard said, “The impact of COVID-19 is affecting personal routines and businesses as well as placing significant travel restrictions around the world. Everyone in the Cunard team is aware of the need to support the management and containment of COVID-19 globally. This includes protecting the health and safety of our guests and crew. It is therefore right we extend the pause in operations.”
He added: “It is too soon to know exactly how this situation will evolve. But I do know that we, the Cunard team, will commit all our resources, energy and talent to weather this storm and come out stronger than ever for our guests. We have been sailing for 180 years and we look forward to many more. We will get through these tough times together and look forward to welcoming our guests back on board again soon, when the time is right.”
Cunard guests who were due to sail between April 11 and May 15 will automatically receive a 125% Future Cruise Credit. This can be redeemed against any new booking, on any voyage sailing before the end of March 2022, providing the booking is made by the end of December 2021.
Updated March 16, 2020
As a result of the continued impact of COVID-19, and following the recommendation by the Cruise Lines International Association for cruise lines to voluntarily and temporarily suspend operations from U.S. ports for 30 days, Cunard will be suspending new cruises on its ships until April 11, 2020.
Cunard president Simon Palethorpe said:
“Having reviewed all of our ship operations and industry recommendations, we have decided no new guests or crew will be joining our ships as we suspend operations until April 11, 2020.
“This pause in operations has been done in an abundance of caution to support the global effort to contain the spread of Covid-19.”
All guests impacted directly by this temporary suspension are being contacted regarding their voyage and their options.
Palethorpe continued: “These truly are unprecedented times, the likes of which we have certainly never seen before. We are really sorry for the disruption and disappointment that this extraordinary measure will cause. We hope everyone will understand that we have to take these measures in the interests of protecting the wellbeing of our guests and crew.”