Mardi Gras cruise ship, Carnival Cruise Line’s largest to date, sails from Port Canaveral
As Carnival Cruise Line's Mardi Gras sailed out Port Canaveral's Cruise Terminal 3 Saturday evening for a seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruise, it marked the official return of an industry that had been sidelined for 16½ months locally by the coronavirus pandemic.
"It's a huge milestone," Port Canaveral Chief Executive Officer John Murray said. "We've got a brand-new ship and a brand-new terminal. That's exciting for us and exciting for Carnival Cruise Line."
But the return of cruising to Port Canaveral comes at a time when COVID-19 cases are spiking to record levels in Brevard County and statewide, putting somewhat of a damper on the milestone.
Pre-pandemic, the cruise sector generated roughly 20% of the overall tourism industry revenue in Brevard County, as many passengers on Port Canaveral-based ships stayed at local hotels before or after their cruises, ate in local restaurants, visited local attractions and shopped at local stores.
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With tourism pegged at a $1.8 billion-a-year industry in Brevard County, the loss of the cruise industry during the pandemic meant the loss of an estimated $495 million in tourism sector revenue.
And, for Port Canaveral itself, it meant a loss of $113.6 million in cruise ship and cruise parking revenue, as well as the elimination of 107 of the port's 262 jobs by May 1. Pre-pandemic, about 80% of the port's revenue came from various fees it charged cruise ships and from cruise passenger parking.
The Mardi Gras is the fifth Carnival ship to resume sailing since July 3, with one sailing out of Miami, two out of Galveston, Texas, and one out of Seattle that sails to Alaska.
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The cruise industry has maneuvered through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's extensive procedures to get to the point at which ships are sailing again from U.S. ports. That includes at the world's three busiest cruise ports, based on passenger volume — which all are in Florida — PortMiami, Port Canaveral and Fort Lauderdale's Port Everglades.
Space Coast Office of Tourism Executive Director Peter Cranis said he is glad to see cruise operations return to Port Canaveral. But he remains concerned about the potentially fast-spreading COVID-19 variants, including how they could affect the cruise industry, if there is an outbreak aboard one or more ships.
"Clearly, the CDC is going to be watching them very closely," Cranis said. "I hope we don't have another pause" in cruise operations – something he fears if COVID-19 develops as an issue aboard cruise ships.
Laurilee Thompson, co-owner of Dixie Crossroads Seafood Restaurant in Titusville, said she has been anxiously awaiting the restart of the cruise industry.
"I think it's really important for the cruise industry to resume again," said Thompson, whose restaurant is patronized by both cruise passengers and cruise line employees. "We're excited. We're very much looking forward to it. It will be amazing."
Jennifer Sugarman, president and chief executive officer of the Cocoa Beach Regional Chamber of Commerce, said having cruises back will "provide a nice pop of business for everybody. It's huge."
"They're excited. They're ready," Sugarman said, in discussing what chamber members think about the restart of cruises. "They've been ready for a long time."
Canaveral Port Authority Commissioner Micah Loyd said, while he remains cautious about what the return to cruising will bring, he believes cruise lines will be focusing on health and safety.
"We're all really excited," Loyd said. "I think it will be a very safe and fun time for everybody."
Interest in cruise bookings
Dawn von Graff, the franchise owner of Expedia Cruise Ship Centers in Ocoee, said she is seeing relatively strong interest in people booking cruises. But, she added, some remain hesitant and are waiting a little longer to see how the pandemic trends in the coming months.
Von Graff said some people are booking cruises for next year, hoping the pandemic will be over by then. That is contributing to rising prices and high demand for some 2022 sailings, especially on new ships like the Mardi Gras and for Alaska sailings, which have a limited season.
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Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy was joined by the Hossler family of New Port Richey – members of Carnival's elite Diamond Level of frequent cruisers – for a ribbon-cutting ceremony Saturday morning at Cruise Terminal 3. The Hosslers were the first paying passengers to board the Mardi Gras. They also were the first paying passengers to board a ship at the port's new $155 million terminal complex, which was completed more than a year ago.
"Today, the day has finally come when we are ready to set sail," Duffy said Saturday. "We are making Carnival and Port Canaveral history today. We are thrilled to be back. We're very, very excited to finally be able to welcome our guests back on board and back to fun."
Boarding the Mardi Gras on Saturday were Michael and Gemina Del Costello of Rome, New York, who have had 16 cruises they booked canceled because of the pandemic.
"We love cruising," Gemina Del Costello said just before they boarded the ship. "We can't wait."
"It's been a long 16 months" without a cruise, Michael Del Costello added.
The Del Costellos have two more Carnival cruises booked for later this year – in October out of Long Beach, California, and in December out of Miami.
Mardi Gras passenger Charlene Beckstrom of Winter Springs said the sailing will mark her first vacation since COVID-19 hit.
She typically takes two or three cruises a year.
"That's my favorite thing – cruises," Beckstrom said.
Because of the extended shutdown of cruising, Beckstrom had her bookings aboard the Mardi Gras canceled four times.
Before the end of the year, Beckstrom plans to take a cruise aboard the Royal Caribbean Mariner of the Seas, then another cruise on the Mardi Gras.
Beckstrom said she is pleased to see cruising resume, not only for her personal vacation plans, but also because cruise ship crews who have been out of work for many months can return to their jobs.
Sugarman said, in the eyes of many of her chamber's members, the return to cruising is long overdue.
Some in the cruise industry have said the delay has been caused by onerous CDC rules that they believe unfairly singled out the cruise industry – an industry that received negative attention during the start of the pandemic because of ships that could not return to ports due to COVID-19 outbreaks onboard.
Cruise lines plan a phased approach for their resumption of cruise operations at Port Canaveral, although the pace of scheduled sailings in August and September is relatively strong.
Disney Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean in July both had what's known as "simulated sailings" out of Port Canaveral with non-paying passengers to help meet CDC requirements to later sail with passengers who buy tickets for the cruises.
Disney had 300 of its employee "cast members" play the role of passengers on a two-night sailing of the Disney Dream.
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Royal Caribbean used a mix of employees, travel agents and some of its most frequent cruisers for an 800-passenger, two-night sailing of the Allure of the Seas.
Among the passengers on the Allure's simulated sailing on Tuesday was Dick Gothner, a retired firefighter and paramedic from Sarasota, who before the pandemic was averaging six cruises a year.
"I'm so psyched right now," Gothner said as he was preparing to board the ship.
With Royal Caribbean's vaccination requirements and CDC guidelines in place, Gothner said he had no qualms about cruising again.
By opting to sail the Mardi Gras with at least 95% of its passengers having received the COVID-19 vaccine, Carnival was able to bypass the simulated sailing route and immediately go to a "revenue sailing" with paying passengers.
Mardi Gras is Carnival's 'new baby'
Carnival is particularly proud of this ship, which is its largest to date and the first of three Carnival "XL Class" ships scheduled for delivery in the next few years.
The Mardi Gras – named after Carnival's first ship that was introduced in 1972 – has a capacity of 5,282 passengers based on double-occupancy and a full capacity of 6,465. It is the first North American-based cruise ship powered with cleaner-burning liquefied natural gas, and is the first cruise ship with a roller coaster, which the cruise line named Bolt: Ultimate Sea Coaster.
"Mardi Gras is our new baby, and we have been waiting a lot longer than nine months to deliver her. We are very excited to show her off, " Duffy said Friday, as Carnival showed off the ship to the local officials, travel agents and the news media.
The ship has nearly two dozen restaurants, including ones developed by celebrity chefs Guy Fieri, Emeril Lagasse and Rudi Sodiman, as well as by retired basketball great Shaquille O’Neal, who holds the title of Carnival's "chief fun officer."
Carnival decided to initially sail the Mardi Gras at 70% of its capacity, although it could have sold many more cabins. Duffy said the inaugural cruise has nearly 4,000 passengers aboard, and that will help physically distance passengers from one another.
The Mardi Gras will alternate between weeklong eastern and western Caribbean sailings. The first sailing will have three port-of-call stops – in San Juan, Puerto Rico; Amber Cove, Dominican Republic; and Nassau, the Bahamas.
The ship also has a crew of about 1,600 aboard, among them, cruise director Chris Williams, who calls himself "The Flying Scotsman."
Williams – who has worked on Carnival ships for 10 years – said he is "super-excited" to be sailing again and expects he will see a high energy level from passengers on this inaugural cruise.
"They're so ready for this," Williams said.
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COVID-19 protocols
Duffy said the ship has extensive protocols in place, including various restrictions on non-vaccinated passengers. Among them are additional face covering requirements in indoor spaces, required COVID-19 testing and required travel insurance.
"That is all about protecting health and safety of everyone on board, so they can enjoy the cruise," Duffy said. "We're prepared to adjust as needed, and we're in constant dialogue and communication with CDC and the public health officials to ensure that we can meet all of their requirements."
Duffy realized that COVID-19 cases will occur on cruise ships, noting: "We're never going to get to zero, just like it's not zero anywhere else."
But she adds there are detailed procedures in place to isolate anyone with COVID-19 when a case is discovered on a Carnival ship. That includes COVID-19 testing capabilities on the ship, a full medical facility, quarantine cabins and contact tracing capabilities.
"I think you're actually safer on a cruise ship because of all the protocols that we have in place already, and all of the public health standards that cruise ships have always followed," Duffy said.
Murray said: "It's a personal decision whether to get on a cruise or not. But the protocols are very, very strong. You have to remember that none of the cruise lines want to have a ship go out and to have a COVID outbreak on board. It's in their best interest to make sure it's as safe as possible."
Duffy says Carnival is trying to navigate the CDC requirements, while not getting into the middle of the legal battle between the CDC and the administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over what the state believes is the federal agency overstepping its boundaries when dealing with the cruise industry.
The governor and the Florida Legislature also have implemented a ban in Florida on businesses asking customers for proof of having a COVID-19 vaccination — a so-called "vaccine passport." But that hasn't stopped cruise lines from sailing out of Florida ports.
"The governor has been helpful to the cruise industry in bringing CDC and the cruise industry back together, so that we would be able to restart sailing in July for the summer season." Duffy said.
Ramping up sailings
By the end of October, Duffy said, Carnival plans to have 15 ships sailing, representing more than half of the fleet for the Carnival, the world's largest cruise line.
At Port Canaveral, meanwhile, during August and September combined, tentative schedules include sailings by four cruise lines and seven ships out of Port Canaveral:
- Carnival will have 12 sailings of the Magic and eight sailings of the Mardi Gras.
- Disney will have 15 sailings of the Dream.
- Royal Caribbean will have 12 sailings of the Mariner of the Seas (including one simulated sailing), eight sailings of the Allure of the Seas and four sailings of the Oasis of the Seas.
- MSC, a new cruise line for Port Canaveral, will have four sailings of the Divina.
On some days, three different cruise lines will have ships sailing out of port.
By mid-September, Port Canaveral's tentative schedule shows that cruise activity will reach pre-pandemic levels, Murray said. In addition, some of the ships that will be sailing are larger than the ships that were based at Port Canaveral before cruises halted in March 2020, which will help make up for the reduced capacity targets cruise lines have implemented.
'A volatile time'
But everything is subject to change, and the potential of a COVID-19 outbreak aboard a ship is a wild card.
"It's really a volatile time," Sugarman said. "The delta variant is just wildly contagious."
Murray, though, said he is confident that the cruise lines are doing everything they need to do to keep passengers safe.
Edwin Loftin, senior vice president of integrated and acute care services and chief nursing officer at Parrish Healthcare in Titusville, said he believes "the cruise lines are taking this very seriously. They're creating the safest environment that they can."
Parrish, for example, has worked with the port and various cruise lines to coordinate COVID-19 vaccinations for ship crews.
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Financial infusion
The sailing of the Mardi Gras wraps up a positive week for Port Canaveral.
On Thursday, Florida Secretary of Transportation Kevin Thibault came to Port Canaveral to announced that the port will receive $72.21 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to help cover its losses stemming from the shutdown of the cruise industry since March 2020 because of COVID-19.
Murray said the money would help replenish Port Canaveral's capital construction funds, so it can undertake various cruise and cargo terminal projects.
By Aug. 9, the port will have 178 employees, up 23 since May 1, as it ramps up its staff to handle the cruise sailings.
Duffy said "it has not been easy this past 16 months," with Carnival Cruise Line alone having to cancel more than 3 million cruise reservations during the shutdown.
"We canceled, we rebooked, we canceled, we rebooked, and, finally, we canceled, rebooked, and we are sailing," Duffy said.
"You put the cruise lines aside and think about all of the communities around the country that rely on travel and tourism and cruising, and the impact that our pause has had on them," Duffy said. "This really brings a boost back to the local economy. It creates jobs. And, obviously, it's not just for the port, but all of the small businesses, all our travel agencies that rely on cruising. It's a good day for everybody."
Dave Berman is business editor at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Berman at dberman@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @bydaveberman.
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