CRUISE SHIPS IN LOCKDOWN

For cruise ships in lockdown, the industry might be on hold around the world, but that hasn’t stopped them from showing support to the healthcare heroes who are fighting COVID-19 on the frontline. It has also meant that many crew members have been stuck on board for months at a time. We take a look at some of the ways cruise ships have been showing love and support during the pandemic, as well as surviving on board:

MSC Orchestra

This ship has been in Ballito waters, in South Africa, for most of the lockdown. In fact, locals are referring to it fondly as ‘our ship’ and photos and updates are constantly shared on social media. On 1 August, the MSC Orchestra blew its horn at 12 pm in solidarity with the healthcare workers, doctors and rescue teams who are taking care of everyone during the pandemic. Throughout the lockdown and while the ship has been at sea, Captain Nicola Gravante has also been sharing some of the amazing footage and sights they have been seeing while onboard, including whales and dolphins who have visited. You can follow him on Facebook here.

Stella Maris (Apostleship of the Sea)

In the UK, seafarers’ charity, Stella Maris, has been working with P&O Cruises and Cunard to make sure that the cruise ship workers who are isolating on board during the pandemic are continuing to receive pastoral support and the care they need during the tough times. Part of this includes weekly recordings of Sunday Gospel Readings, daily prayer, scripture readings and Benediction. For many, keeping their faith strong during these difficult circumstances is essential.

Chris Wong – Royal Caribbean

Just like us, you might have wondered what exactly the crew do while stuck onboard the cruise ships for months at a time while the rest of the world is or has been in some form of lockdown. Well, Royal Caribbean crew member Chris Wong was actively vlogging during his time onboard giving some insight into what took place on board. There was a lot of cleaning and sanitizing, eating delicious food and enjoying movies, and some of the other activities on board. Doesn’t sound like a terrible ordeal to us!

What’s Next? While we saw several cruise ships in Europe start out again, this soon came under a negative spotlight with guests onboard contracting and/or spreading the COVID-19 virus. How long will it be before we will see cruise ships around the world returning to their normal, or ‘new normal’ routines? Time will tell, and we will be watching closely!

If you have an interesting lockdown cruise ship story or snippet to share with us, feel free to email us for posting on our social media!