The World Dream ship, which had been denied entry in Taiwan's Kaohsiung amid concerns of coronavirus infection on board, is seen docked at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Hong Kong February 5, 2020. — Reuters pic
Vietnam today turned away two ships from docking, citing the need to prevent the virus from entering the country. The flu-like virus has so far killed 1,380 people with the total number of infections at more than 63,000, most of them in China where the outbreak originated. “Cruise lines are scrambling as the situation unfolds, to cancel and move their floating resorts to safer destinations,” cruise expert Stewart Chiron said.Ships re-routing include the Cunard Line’s Queen Mary 2, owned by Carnival, which has cancelled a stop in Singapore scheduled for Wednesday and yesterday, and is sailing straight to Fremantle, Australia.
The Norwegian Spirit liner will no longer conclude its March cruise in Singapore but rather in Greece, and its Asia itineraries from April through December 2020 have also been cancelled, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings said. “ will offer aggressive prices to fill their new cruises and passengers will quickly respond,” Chiron said.