US to lift the UK and Europe Travel Ban

The US will reopen its borders to fully vaccinated arrivals from the UK and EU in early November, the White House has confirmed.

Non-US travellers will be required to show proof of full vaccination against Covid-19 as part of the new rules. They will also have to provide evidence of having tested negative for Covid-19 up to 87 hours prior to departure.

 

Unvaccinated arrivals will likely be subject to additional testing requirements, the White House has intimated.

 

White House Covid coordinator Jeffrey Zients confirmed early details of the US’s travel plan to national press outlets in the US on Monday afternoon (20 September).

 

The move will bring to an end what will by November be a 20-month ban on most travel to the US for non-US citizens. The ban was originally introduced by the Trump administration on 17 March 2020 in the early stages of the Covid crisis.

 

Prime minister Boris Johnson travelled to the US on Monday to discuss international travel arrangements with US president Joe Biden.

The World Travel and Tourism Council said the readmission of UK visitors to the US was a vital move.

 

Julia Simpson, WTTC president and chief executive, said: “The UK alone represents 8% of all inbound travel to the US, accounting for $40 million per day to the nation’s economy.

“WTTC has long been calling for the US to reopen and our research shows that by opening its borders to key markets such as the UK, it will pump $198 million back into the US economy every single day.”

Proof of how much the US ban has affected the UK travel industry is underlined by stats from Cirium.

 

They show that from 1 January to 19 September this year, the major airlines flew 8,380 one-way flights across the Atlantic, a 76% drop on the same period in 2019, which saw more than 35,000.

 

The ban led to the demise of Norwegian’s long-haul arm and led Virgin Atlantic to go running to the banks to seek refinancing. It also saw BA permanently axe two US routes, including Charleston.

 

The ban also meant the long-awaited debut of JetBlue’s transatlantic services was more low key, with the New York carrier launching Heathrow-JFK in August and immediately paring back its schedule.

 

JetBlue’s Gatwick launch, on 29 September will also be scaled back, with four flights a week, but the announcement from Washington is timely for the carrier.

 

The reopening will also boost new airline Norse Atlantic Airways, which had gambled on a relaxation of restrictions by early 2022 when Norse will use some of Norwegian’s former fleet to start US flights from Gatwick.

 

Before the announcement, tour operators had reported pent-up demand for the US, but mostly for 2022 and beyond, so the news will only add fuel to demand for next year. In the near term, the relatively small market for winter sports in the US will receive a boost, as will Caribbean cruise departures from Miami.

Cruise Industry Execs Meet with Health Officials to Discuss Restart Plans

FILE PHOTO: Tourists enjoy a ride on a catamaran as cruise ship Carnival Magic is seen near the shores of Cozumel on October 17, 2014./File Photo

Cruise industry executives met with health experts and White House staff earlier this week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday, following criticism of its guidelines on restarting voyages.

The discussion, which centred around how the pandemic-battered industry could get back into business, comes after the CDC said passengers and crew would need COVID-19 vaccine shots and more frequent testing, but did not give a timeline on when it will lift its ban on cruises.

Carnival Corp, the industry’s largest player, had said the instructions were “unworkable” and threatened to shift the home ports of its cruise ships to other parts of the world if the United States did not allow it to start sailing.

Industry leaders showed their frustration with the guidelines relating to vaccination requirements and sought to set up a working group with industry and CDC, the agency said in a statement about the meeting that took place on Monday.

The CDC said it wanted to restart sailing in a phased approach but again did not provide a timeline.

The chief executives of Carnival, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Royal Caribbean Group attended the Monday meeting, CNBC reported.

The companies did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

The state of Florida, where the three companies are based, had earlier this month filed a lawsuit against the CDC, demanding cruise ships be allowed to resume sailing.

“We welcome the CDC’s expressed commitment to working with the cruise industry… to address the changes in the science, including the impact of vaccines, that will move us toward our shared goal of responsibly resuming operations this summer,” the Cruise Lines International Association said in a statement.

White House hosts call with cruise line bosses to discuss Healthy Sail Panel proposals

Cruise line bosses have held discussions with the White House over plans to resume sailing in a “safe and responsible manner”.

US vice president Mike Pence chaired a call with five cruise line executives; the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Healthy Sail Panel.

Carnival Corporation chief executive Arnold Donald; Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings president and chief executive Frank Del Rio; Royal Caribbean Group chairman and chief executive Richard Fain; Disney Signature Experience president Thomas Malzoum and MSC Cruise’s executive chairman Pierfrancesco Vago was present for the discussions, held yesterday (October 9).

A statement on the White House website said the call had focussed on “the impacts of the coronavirus on the cruise line industry and the maritime economy, the CDC’s No Sail Order, and the Cruise Lines International Association (Clia) and Healthy Sail Panel’s proposal to resume sailing operations in a safe and responsible manner.”

The Healthy Sail Panel has proposed 74 key steps towards the resumption of cruising, and since being announced in September, has received industry-wide adoption.

The proposals are now to be presented to the Coronavirus Task Force with a view to providing a recommendation to the president, Donald Trump, on the next steps on the CDC’s current No Sail Order which currently bans US-based cruising through until October 31.

According to the statement, Pence “highlighted the shared goal of reopening the maritime economy, with a focus on the cruise line industry safely sailing again.”

He thanked the Healthy Sail Panel and cruise line bosses for “conducting an industry-driven effort that focusses on the health outcomes”.

The White House said the cruise lines bosses had stressed that the process and proposals of the Healthy Sail Panel would result in “accountability and standards that will ensure cruise ship passengers are in a safe and healthy environment.”

It comes days after the chiefs of four leading cruise companies said they were “confident” cruising would resume from the US this year.

Speaking at the Seatrade Cruise Virtual conference, Carnival Corporation’s Arnold Donald said: “I’m a 4.5 to a 4.9 on the optimism scale [out of 5]” while Royal Caribbean’s Richard Fain said he was “confident and optimistic”.

Pence: Cruise Industry Delivers Comprehensive Proposal

The cruise industry delivered a comprehensive health plan to the federal government on Tuesday, according to Vice President Mike Pence, speaking at a Tuesday evening press conference at The White House.

The plan was not made immediately available, but Pence said the government would review it in the next 24 hours.

Pence added that the plan includes advanced screening, improved medical services aboard the ships, airlift evacuation and land-based care protocols, all at the expense of the cruise lines.

Pence said President Donald Trump had an objective to make cruise lines safer.

In addition, Pence said the vulnerable population should not take a cruise.

Later in the press conference, he was asked if a bailout was on the table for the cruise industry, and did not answer the question. 

Meanwhile, a separate report said that California Governor Gavin Newsom was reviewing the state's legal options in regards to restricting the cruise industry.