Walker & O'Neill, P.A. (LexBlog United States)

Yesterday, I received word from the Jewel of the Seas, upon its return from its latest cruise back to its curremt home port of Amsterdam, that forty-six (46) guests of the 1,750 passengers tested positive for COVID-19. The Royal Caribbean cruise ship still had sixteen (16) senior oficer who were in quarantine (which we discussed...

In a brochure sent to its crew members before its public announcement today, Virgin Voyages stated that it delayed the launch of its third ship Resilient Lady to an unknown date next year. The cruise line informed its crew that: “Due to current global challenges, the debut of Resillient Lady will be delayed from July...

A gastrointestinal (GI) outbreak of unknown origin occurred during a cruise to Alaska last week on the Carnival Splendor cruise ship which sickened ninety-three (93) passengers and crew members. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 77 of 2,109 (3.65%) guests and 16 of 1,079 (1.48%) crew members reported being ill during...

Two crew members*, who reportedly suffered chemical burns on a Celebrity cruise ship today, were medevaced to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk, Virginia. The crew members were injured while working on the Celebrity Summit cruise ship. Earlier today, the cruise ship contacted the Coast Guard Fifth District Command Center, which responds to maritime incidents...

Following the fire on the Carnival Freedom cruise ship, the burned ship was neither safe nor suitable to carry vacationing guests on a return cruise back to Florida. Despite telling its guests in a letter delivered to their cabins on the burnt ship that it intended to send them home “as soon as possible,” Carnival...

A fire broke out this morning on the Carnival Freedom while the cruise ship was in Grand Turk. Fortunately, there are no injuries reported so far. A large number of cruise guests posted images on Twitter of what appears to be a fire coming from inside the ship’s funnel. There is one popular blog that claims...

Yesterday, CNBC reporter Seema Moody tweeted that Carnival Corporation (“Carnival”) was “in discussions to sell (its) Seabourn brand to the Saudi sovereign wealth fund.” Carnival in discussions to sell Seabourn brand to the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, per sources. Talks are still ongoing, no deal finalized as of yet. Comes

The Jewel of the Seas sailed from Amsterdam on May 20th with 1,752 guests onboard the Royal Caribbean cruise ship. There were twelve (12) crew members and three (3) guests who initially tested positive for COVID-13. After two days of the cruise, the number of guests who tested positive for the virus increased to seven...

Two weeks ago, on May 3rd, the largest cruise ship in the world, Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas, arrived in Palma de Mallorca billowing a think cloud of black smoke from its stacks.  The reality of this huge cruise ship belching out a huge plume of smoke over the Mediterranean port contrasted sharply with...

The Alaska State Police identified the woman who went overboard last week from the Celebrity Solstice. ABC 13 in Houston reported that authorities in Alaska are conducting a death investigation after a Houston woman went overboard during a cruise. Alaska State Troopers identify the woman as 40-year-old Selena Pau Pres.” Last week we reported that...

A woman went overboard from the Celebrity Solstice early in the morning of May 17, 2022 while the ship was sailing on an Alaskan itinerary. KTOO reported that “a cruise ship camera showed the woman going overboard at approximately 3 a.m. Tuesday as the ship sailed from Juneau to Skagway.” There has been no explanation...

A number of newspapers are reporting today that the Carnival Spirit cruise ship experienced a COVID-19 outbreak. As usual, Carnival Cruise Line refused to respond to requests regarding the number of infected passengers and crew members. Cruise guests on the Carnival cruise ship estimated the outbreak to involve “more than 100 people” and as many...

This year’s annual Seatrade Cruise Global exposition in Miami Beach is ending today. This week, attendees listened to the cruise trade show’s keynote presentation titled “The State of the Global Cruise Industry.” The panelists who addressed the theme of the presentation – “Resilience and the Restart” –  included Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) President and...

Three recent cruises aboard Princess Cruises cruise ships have involved many dozens of guests testing positive for COVID-19 according to passengers aboard the Caribbean Princess, Ruby Princess and Sky Princess ships. In all three cases, Princess Cruises did not say how many people tested positive, demonstrating the typical lack of transparency by a Carnival Corporation-owned brand....

Yesterday was Carnival Cruise Line’s fiftieth (50th) birthday.  The internet was filled with celebratory tweets and Facebook postings from Carnival cruise fans and travel agents extolling the cruise line’s “family fun and entertainment.” There is no question that one thing this cruise line has successfully accomplished over the last 50 years is to market itself...

Carnival Corporation CEO Arnold Donald received over $15,000,000 in compensation in 2021, according to MarketWatch. Carnival stock (CCL) had a “two-year decline of 60.4%” while Mr. Donald’s “total compensation increased 35.1% over the past two years” to $15,060,000. Income for Carnival Corporation #cruise / CarnivalPLC Chief Executive Officer / CEO Arnold Donald Increased 35% in...

Yesterday, seventy-two (72) out of two-hundred and thirty (230) crew members on the Silver Cloud operated by Silversea Cruises (Silversea Expeditions) tested positive for COVID-19, according to a crew member on the cruise ship who wishes to remain anonymous. Infected crew members are now under quarantine on the ship. Another twenty-nine (29) crew members appear...

Last week, a federal district court (Judge Darrin P. Gayles) in Miami issued an arrest warrant for the Crystal Symphony because the luxury cruise ship is millions of dollars in arrears in unpaid fuel bills. Judge Gayles signed the order of seizure which directs U.S. marshals to “arrest the defendant vessel, her boats, tackle, apparel...

For the past several weeks, I have received emails from several people who reconsidered going on this Atlantis Events party on the Oasis of the Seas. One person commented: “They won’t let us postpone! We’re Canadian and under an advisory not to leave the country, which has implications for insurance. The CEO (Rich Campbell) does...

With recent news accounts revealing that Royal Caribbean is housing at sea thousands of COVID-19 infected crew members on four cruise ships, the cruise line is claiming that infected ship employees are largely asymptomatic. Royal Caribbean International recently told the Washington Post that it is “transferring workers to crew-only ships to wait out their isolation...

Yesterday, the Chief Judge for the Southern District of Florida fined Carnival Corporation $1,000,000 for violating the terms of its criminal probation which it has been serving for the past five years. In response, Carnival dipped into its petty cash fund and promptly paid the fine with a $1,000,000 check. DOJ: Princess Cruise lines has...

This past weekend, Royal Caribbean announced the suspension of the Jewel of the Seas. The announcement also refered to the cruise line suspending two other active cruise ships, Symphony of the Seas and Serenade of the Seas. It included a statement that a fourth cruise ship, the Vision of the Seas, which is not yet sailing...

Yesterday, Royal Caribbean announced the suspension of sailing on three of its active cruise ships, the Jewel of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas and Serenade of the Seas.  It also announced that a fourth cruise ship, the Vision of the Seas, which is not yet sailing on revenue cruises with pasengers and which the...

After additional testing on the Jewel of the Seas, there are now one-hundred and nine (109) COVID-19 cases involving crew members on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship which is continuing on its cruise to the Caribbean. Six guests are also infected with the virus. Earlier this week, we reported that thee were fifty-one (51) crew...

Officers on the Royal Caribbean cruise ship, the Jewel of the Seas, reportedly are falsely telling guests aboard the ship that there are neither guests nor crew members on the ship who have tested positive for COVID-19. In truth, there are currently around eighty (80) crew members who have tested positive for the virus after...

This morning the captain (master) of the Jewel of the Seas announced that the Royal Caribbean cruise ship was barred from porting in Cartagena due to the presence of COVID -19. A knowledgeable crew member informed me that fifty-one (51) crew members, and three (3) guests, tested positive for COVID-19. Update from RoyalCaribbean Jewel of...

Why Is the CDC’s Color Status for the Rhapsody of the Seas and Vision of the Seas Floating Hospitals and Quarantine Hotels Designated “Green” (No Reported COVID-19 Cases)? This past week, I received lots of information from both crew members and cruise guests that several Royal Caribbean cruise ships are transferring crew members, who test...

Watching videos of raucous cruise guests crowded in interior spaces and partying on cruise ships on  New Year’s Eve makes one think that the deadly COVID-19 pandemic is somehow over. Notwithstanding recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) not to take a cruise even if you are vaccinated, many thousands of mask-less...

Today the Harmony of the Seas finally returned to its home port in Port Canaveral after a disastrous week at sea.  Royal Caribbean transferred over a hundred (100) crew members, who tested positive for COVID-19, to the Vision of the Seas which the cruise line is using as a quarantine facility-at-sea and/or floating hospital. Based...

The Jewel of the Seas faced a dilemna yesterday.  After starting the day with fifteen crew members and five guests testing positive for COVID-19, ten additional crewmembers later tested positive for the virus. This brought the number of infected crew members to a total of twenty-five. With five infected guests, the total number of infected...