Costa Cruises to resume sailings next month as P&O extends cancellations

Costa Cruises will restart cruises from Italian ports gradually next month while P&O Cruises has extended its cruise cancellations until mid-November.

Costa said it will restart from 6 September after receiving approval from the Italian government yesterday.

The first ship to set sail will be Costa Deliziosa, offering weekly cruises from Trieste to Greece, followed by Costa Diadema on 19 September, operating seven-day cruises in the Western Mediterranean from Genoa.

All other Costa cruises will be cancelled until 30 September.

P&O Cruises has extended its cruise cancellations until 12 November and axed two long itineraries due to depart in January 2021 following Foreign Office guidance.

The two cancelled longer cruises are Aurora’s Caribbean & South American Adventure and Arcadia’s World Cruise.

P&O Cruises’ President Paul Ludlow said: "It is clear that whilst the guidance is in place it is not advisable for us to resume operations."

He said the long-term planning, combined with the complexity and length of the long-haul itineraries and evolving border restrictions, were behind the decision to cancel the two longer cruises.

"I know that these January cruises, in particular, are holidays of a lifetime and we are so sorry for the disappointment that these cancellations will cause," added Paul.

"We continue to work in partnership with public health agencies at the highest level as well as Department for Transport, EU Healthy Gateways and Cruise Lines International Association.

"We will follow all applicable guidelines to enhance our already stringent measures to keep our guests and crew healthy and well and we will not resume sailing until this approved framework is in place. Fundamentally, we will be adopting best practice within the travel industry.

"The good news is that confidence in cruising is strong and we are seeing increasing and significant demand from our guests. We know that the FCO guidance is under constant review and we are hopeful that, as they are aware of the work the industry is doing, this will change before too long."

Guests booked on the cancelled cruises will automatically receive an enhanced 125% Future Cruise Credit or alternatively can fill in the website form for a 100% refund.

Ludlow continued: "We have invested significantly in new systems and technology to speed up the refund process and to date we have refunded tens of thousands of guests, although it is heartening to see that the majority of our guests have opted for the FCC so they have a holiday to look forward to in the future."

Seabourn has also cancelled further cruises, with all voyages on Encore axed until 25 November, cruises on Seabourn Ovation paused until 20 Decemer, and Seabourn Sojourn’s cruises cancelled until 24 May next year.

By Linsey McNeill, Editor (UK)