Carnival, Royal Caribbean cancel Mexico port stops

[JoeyandDavid]

MIAMI (AP) — Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean Cruises have suspended stops at Mexican ports over concerns about swine flu.

Carnival canceled Mexico port calls for three ships scheduled to visit the country Tuesday. It hasn't yet announced a decision on future stops there.

Royal Caribbean had said it was monitoring the situation but telling passengers not to worry because the outbreaks are inland, not in the Mexican coastal cities popular with cruise tourists. But later Tuesday the company said it is suspending port calls indefinitely in Mexico until more is known about the swine flu outbreak.

The move affects its Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises ships.

Meanwhile, the companies and competitor Norwegian Cruise Lines tried to allay guest fears by emphasizing how thoroughly the ships are cleaned.

Norwegian's Pearl is on a special voyage with Mexico stops. The company says it is monitoring the situation and asking passengers about their health before cruises start.

Royal Caribbean has four ships that regularly stop in Mexico and two more that were scheduled to begin port calls there. Celebrity Cruises has one ship that was scheduled to make stops in Mexico. The company says the ships will stop in other ports or spend extra time at sea.

Royal Caribbean's chief medical officer, Dr. Art Diskin, said authorities had not raised specific concerns about the ports the ships visit in Mexico, but the company was taking a cautious approach to the situation.

The company is screening embarking guests and crew members about recent visits to Mexico or contact with ill people, increasing sanitization measures on ships and giving passengers swine flu information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The company said medical staff have the ability to isolate guests or crew members who develop flu-like symptoms.

On Monday, the World Health Organization increased its alert level from 3 to 4 — out of 6. Its influenza chief, Keiji Fukuda, warned that "at this time containment is not a feasible option," rejecting calls for a travel ban or other restrictions on Mexico or the United States.

But travelers are canceling or delaying trips to Mexico, and on Tuesday Cuba became the first nation to ban all flights to its neighbor.

By Tuesday swine flu was said to have been a factor in more than 150 deaths and over 1,600 illnesses in Mexico. The number of confirmed cases in the United States climbed to 68, and federal officials warned that deaths were likely.

[DebbieandJerry]

How sad and tragic for all of those folks who saved their money and waited for this vacation, honeymoon and/or special event.

But, the old saying "better safe than sorry" is so true.

I guess this is no different than a cruise line changing it's course because of hurricanes.

[Suzila]

I was just about to make a reservation for our kids for a cruise to Mexico for my son's birthday, then last week they had reports about the drug wars going on down there. I hesitated and didn't book it yet.

This week it's swine flu. I really do like our children...I'm not trying to send them into something harmful. I just wanted to do something nice for them. LOL!

Anyway, now I'll wait until we (hopefully soon) get the all-clear. And maybe the prices of cruising to Mexico will be cheaper when this is all finished. Wishful thinking, right?

[JoeyandDavid]

I was just about to make a reservation for our kids for a cruise to Mexico for my son's birthday, then last week they had reports about the drug wars going on down there. I hesitated and didn't book it yet.

This week it's swine flu. I really do like our children...I'm not trying to send them into something harmful. I just wanted to do something nice for them. LOL!

Anyway, now I'll wait until we (hopefully soon) get the all-clear. And maybe the prices of cruising to Mexico will be cheaper when this is all finished. Wishful thinking, right?

no I think your right...they will have to run some super fares i think to get people back on board for mexico.. so if you can book quickly you may get a bargin

[Hillbilly]

MIAMI (AP) — Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean Cruises have suspended stops at Mexican ports over concerns about swine flu.

Carnival canceled Mexico port calls for three ships scheduled to visit the country Tuesday. It hasn't yet announced a decision on future stops there.

Royal Caribbean had said it was monitoring the situation but telling passengers not to worry because the outbreaks are inland, not in the Mexican coastal cities popular with cruise tourists. But later Tuesday the company said it is suspending port calls indefinitely in Mexico until more is known about the swine flu outbreak.

The move affects its Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises ships.

Meanwhile, the companies and competitor Norwegian Cruise Lines tried to allay guest fears by emphasizing how thoroughly the ships are cleaned.

Norwegian's Pearl is on a special voyage with Mexico stops. The company says it is monitoring the situation and asking passengers about their health before cruises start.

Royal Caribbean has four ships that regularly stop in Mexico and two more that were scheduled to begin port calls there. Celebrity Cruises has one ship that was scheduled to make stops in Mexico. The company says the ships will stop in other ports or spend extra time at sea.

Royal Caribbean's chief medical officer, Dr. Art Diskin, said authorities had not raised specific concerns about the ports the ships visit in Mexico, but the company was taking a cautious approach to the situation.

The company is screening embarking guests and crew members about recent visits to Mexico or contact with ill people, increasing sanitization measures on ships and giving passengers swine flu information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The company said medical staff have the ability to isolate guests or crew members who develop flu-like symptoms.

On Monday, the World Health Organization increased its alert level from 3 to 4 — out of 6. Its influenza chief, Keiji Fukuda, warned that "at this time containment is not a feasible option," rejecting calls for a travel ban or other restrictions on Mexico or the United States.

But travelers are canceling or delaying trips to Mexico, and on Tuesday Cuba became the first nation to ban all flights to its neighbor.

By Tuesday swine flu was said to have been a factor in more than 150 deaths and over 1,600 illnesses in Mexico. The number of confirmed cases in the United States climbed to 68, and federal officials warned that deaths were likely.

Hey Joey, NCL is going to Mexico? Are any of their passengers coming down with the swine flu? They claim they clean their ships well. Is that why the past couple of seasons they had an outbreak of the norovirus at least once?

[JoeyandDavid]

Hey Joey, NCL is going to Mexico? Are any of their passengers coming down with the swine flu? They claim they clean their ships well. Is that why the past couple of seasons they had an outbreak of the norovirus at least once?

Hey Hill..

Interesting you should ask.. I hadn't heard a thing about any flus' aboard any NCL ships.....and as far as norovirus i am a firm believer that it is spread by the guest that don't practice good hygene..not on the cruise lines fault..

[DebbieandJerry]

The cruise letter that Vacations to Go just put out said that the Swine Flu wasn't as severe as originally thought and that the cruiselines were adding Mexico back. Stay tuned ...

[Longboysfan]

I know I posted it somewhere that Celebrity had cancelled the Mexico trips till June 15th at the earliest.