The head of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings said the company’s ships would sail elsewhere if Florida won’t allow vaccination requirements for passengers and crew.
Norwegian President and CEO Frank Del Rio threatened to “operate from the Caribbean” if current state policies outlawing proof of vaccination requirements supersede the company’s planned vaccine mandate.
“At the end of the day, cruise ships have motors, propellers, and rudders, and God forbid we can’t operate in the state of Florida for whatever reason, then there are other states that we do operate from. And we can operate from the Caribbean for ships that otherwise would’ve gone to Florida,” Del Rio said during an earnings call on Thursday.
CRUISE LINES DIFFER ON VACCINATION REQUIREMENTS FOLLOWING ‘UNDULY BURDENSOME’ CDC GUIDANCE
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation into law on Monday that prohibits the proof of vaccination documentation, also known as “vaccine passports.” DeSantis previously signed an executive order to the same effect, preventing businesses from requiring proof of vaccination “to gain access to, entry upon, or service from the business.”
Del Rio said Norwegian has spoken with the governor’s office about vaccination requirements, adding that the two parties would continue to speak, but he left the threat of operating elsewhere on the table.
“We certainly hope it doesn’t come to that,” Del Rio said. “Everyone wants to operate out of Florida. It’s a very lucrative market.”
Del Rio also took issue with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s most recent COVID-19 conditional sailing order, arguing that the agency requires more from cruising than other industries, such as aviation.
Under the order, companies are required to embark on simulated voyages with crew and volunteers before accepting paying passengers, unless 98% of crew and 95% of passengers have been fully vaccinated.
The vaccination mandate Norwegian is planning, along with other protocols, give the company an unrivaled “one-two punch” safety advantage, Del Rio said.
“No one on Earth has it. Yet the CDC continues to treat us differently, we daresay unfairly,” he said.
“We acknowledge that cruising will never be a zero-risk activity and that the goal of the [CDC conditional sailing order’s] phased approach is to resume passenger operations in a way that mitigates the risk of COVID-19 transmission onboard cruise ships and across port communities,” Aimee Treffiletti, head of the maritime unit for the CDC’s COVID-19 response, said in a recent letter to the industry.
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The CDC said the industry may get the government go-ahead to operate as soon as mid-July.
