Where Have All The Cruise Ships Gone?

Now that all the cruises at sea during the COVID outbreak have finally ended and cruises in the near future are cancelled, what have the cruise lines done with all of their ships?

Ports like Miami and Fort Lauderdale that are home ports to so many meaning that is where many cruises begin and end are full. Many of the cruise lines have reduced their crews to a bare minimum and a lot have positioned them in the Bahamas where their private islands are. As one blog put it, the crew can at least have some free time on the islands.

One of the last ships to put into port was the Queen Mary 2 who had to end their world cruise early. Most passengers disembarked in Australia but a small number who were unable to fly home due to medical conditions stayed onboard as the ship made its way back home to Southampton. It is now spending time in its home port along with another ship, the Queen Victoria. The third ship of the line, the Queen Elizabeth is sheltering in Asia until cruises can again resume. There is quite a nice video on the Cunard.com site from the president of Cunard, Simon Palethorpe. 

Many cruise lines are posting videos of favorite ship entertainers, cooking lessons, etc. to keep their loyal cruisers informed as well as entertained and certainly fueling their desire to return as soon as possible to the cruise life we enjoy. If you'd like to see some of them go to FaceBook and like the pages of your favorite cruise lines or check their blogs from their websites.

The question is, how different will it be? Will there be a reduction in the number of passengers? Social distancing? Masks? Certainly the habits of hand sanitizing  will continue as well as the thorough cleaning of rooms and public areas. I trust that the powers that be are even now planning how they can best serve their passengers.

There is a neat site called CruiseMapper.com if you would like to track the cruise ships once they start moving again.