NCLH cancels all Asia cruises through summer 2020
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings is scrapping all cruises in Asia on all three cruise brands for most of 2020.
After announcing Norwegian Spirit will not be deployed in Asia this year, NCLH is also cancelling 10 scheduled sailings on Oceania Cruises and six on Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
It will reroute all cruise ships out of Asia until at least after the summer of 2020.
During an earnings call, Norwegian CEO Frank Del Rio said a total of 40 sailings have been cancelled out of an ‘abundance of caution’ due to the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact so far on the cruise industry.
Two people died last week on the Diamond Princess despite it being placed under quarantine for two weeks.
Other ships were turned away from multiple ports across Asia.
Passengers or crew who had been in China, Hong Kong or Macao in the past month are not allowed to board a NCLH ship, regardless of their nationality.
"Prior to the emergence of the virus, 2020 was shaping up to be an incredibly good year. We entered 2020 in a record book position at all three brands and at higher prices on a comparable basis," Del Rio said.
"The effects of the coronavirus outbreak on our business have been swift and severe."
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