3 major cruise lines just made it clear their ships won't all be back for a long time
It's official: It's going to take many, many months for Norwegian Cruise Line to get all of its ships back into operation.
Ditto for Norwegian's two sister lines, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
The three cruise brands on Wednesday announced restart plans for more than half of their collective fleets with restart dates for ships that still are five to nine months away.
For more cruise news, reviews and tips, sign up for TPG's new cruise newsletter.
The restart plans covered eight of Norwegian's 17 ships, three of Oceania's six ships and four of Regent's five ships.
The earliest restart date announced for any of the vessels was Oct. 16. Some of the vessels won't be back in operation until February of 2022.
The announcements come as the lines prepare to tiptoe back into cruising over the next four months with sailings on just a handful of vessels and are consistent with longstanding plans at the brands to return to cruising in a gradual way.
Norwegian plans to restart operations on July 25 with a single ship (Norwegian Jade) sailing Greek island voyages out of Piraeus, Greece. It then plans to start Caribbean cruises out of the Dominican Republic and Alaska cruises out of Seattle in August with one ship in each destination (Norwegian Gem and Norwegian Bliss, respectively).
Norwegian also has announced that two more vessels, Norwegian Epic and Norwegian Getaway, will restart operations in September and October, respectively.
Oceania plans to restart operations in the Mediterranean on Aug. 29 with just one ship, the 1,250-passenger Marina.
Regent plans to restart operations in Europe on Sept. 11 with just one ship, the 750-passenger Seven Seas Splendor.
None of the lines has operated a single cruise departure since the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a pandemic in March of 2020.
Related: The ultimate guide to Norwegian Cruise Line
Frank Del Rio, the president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, has said repeatedly over the past year that the company would resume operations gradually over many months.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings is the parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
"Our great cruise comeback continues to build momentum with today’s announcement of the return of 15 additional ships across our three brands," Del Rio said in a statement accompanying Wednesday's announcement.
In its announcement on Wednesday, Norwegian Cruise Line said it would bring back one ship in October, three in November, one in December, two in January and one in February. Specifically:
- Norwegian Breakaway will cruise from New York starting Oct. 24.
- Pride of America will cruise from Honolulu starting Nov. 6.
- Norwegian Encore will cruise from Miami starting Nov. 14.
- Norwegian Escape will cruise from Port Canaveral, Florida, starting Nov. 20.
- Norwegian Pearl will cruise from Miami starting Dec. 23.
- Norwegian Jewel will cruise from Panama City, Panama, starting Jan. 20, 2022.
- Norwegian Sun will sail from Hong Kong starting Jan. 28, 2022.
- Norwegian Spirit will cruise from Sydney, Australia, and Auckland, New Zealand, starting Feb. 9, 2022.
In addition, Norwegian pushed back the restart date for Norwegian Joy from Aug. 7 to Oct. 19. The ship no longer will sail Caribbean voyages out of Montego Bay, Jamaica, that were announced just seven weeks ago. The line said it was moving crew from the vessel to Norwegian Bliss to allow that ship to restart sailings to Alaska in August.
The announcement leaves just three Norwegian ships for which the line has yet to announce a restart plan -- Norwegian Sky, Norwegian Star and Norwegian Dawn.
The three ships included in Oceania's restart announcement on Wednesday are:
- Riviera, which will resume its previously published voyage schedule beginning from Istanbul on Oct. 18.
- Insignia, which will resume sailings on Dec. 21 with a Panama Canal voyage in advance of a long sold-out, 180-day around-the-world cruise from Los Angeles.
- Sirena, which will resume sailings out of Miami on Jan. 22, 2022.
Oceania on Wednesday said restart dates for two additional ships, Regatta and Nautica, would be announced later.
Oceania added that specific itineraries for the ships for which it had announced restart dates "will continue to be evaluated for port availability and may be adjusted as required closer to the sailing dates."
The four ships included in Regent's announcement on Wednesday are:
- Seven Seas Explorer, which will begin cruises from Venice, Italy, on Oct. 16.
- Seven Seas Mariner, which will begin cruises from Miami on Dec. 18.
- Seven Seas Navigator, which will restart cruises from Miami on Jan. 6, 2022.
- Seven Seas Voyager, which will restart cruises from Barcelona on Feb. 15, 2022.
With Wednesday's announcement, Regent now has unveiled comeback plans for all five of its ships.
Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:
- The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship
- The 8 worst cabin locations on any cruise ship
- A quick guide to the most popular cruise lines
- 21 tips and tricks that will make your cruise go smoothly
- 15 ways cruisers waste money
- 12 best cruises for people who never want to grow up
- What to pack for your first cruise
Top offers from our partners
How we chose these cards
TPG featured card
Rewards
3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels. |
2X | Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S. and at U.S. supermarkets. |
1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro offer
Annual Fee
Recommended Credit
Why We Chose It
Build your loyalty to Delta by applying for the carrier's mid-tier card option, the Delta SkyMiles Platinum card. The annual fee is quickly recouped by the card's travel perks, such as an application credit to Global Entry or TSA Precheck, annual companion certificate and so much more. Plus you can fast-track to elite status simply through card spend.Pros
- Earn bonus Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) and an Medallion Qualifying Dollar (MQD) waiver when you hit specific spending thresholds with your card within a calendar year
- Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year
- Statement credit for TSA PreCheck/Global Entry fee (up to $100)
- First checked bag free
Cons
- Doesn't make sense if you don't fly Delta
- SkyMiles aren't the most valuable airline currency
- Earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
- Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.
- Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights. Plus enjoy Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding and settle into your seat sooner.
- New: Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.
- Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide including takeout and delivery in the U.S., and at U.S. supermarkets.
- Earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases.
- Enjoy a per-visit rate of $50 per person for Card Members and up to two guests to enter the Delta Sky Club when traveling on a Delta flight.
- Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® after you apply through any Authorized Enrollment Provider. If approved for Global Entry, at no additional charge, you will receive access to TSA PreCheck.
- Earn up to 20,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) with Status Boost® per year. After you spend $25,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, you can earn 10,000 MQMs up to two times per year, getting you closer to Medallion® Status. MQMs are used to determine Medallion® Status and are different than miles you earn toward flights.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- $250 Annual Fee.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees
Rewards Rate
3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels. |
2X | Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S. and at U.S. supermarkets. |
1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro Offer
Earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.Earn 90,000 Bonus Miles50,000 Bonus MilesAnnual Fee
$250Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO© Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.670-850Excellent/Good
Why We Chose It
Build your loyalty to Delta by applying for the carrier's mid-tier card option, the Delta SkyMiles Platinum card. The annual fee is quickly recouped by the card's travel perks, such as an application credit to Global Entry or TSA Precheck, annual companion certificate and so much more. Plus you can fast-track to elite status simply through card spend.Pros
- Earn bonus Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) and an Medallion Qualifying Dollar (MQD) waiver when you hit specific spending thresholds with your card within a calendar year
- Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year
- Statement credit for TSA PreCheck/Global Entry fee (up to $100)
- First checked bag free
Cons
- Doesn't make sense if you don't fly Delta
- SkyMiles aren't the most valuable airline currency
- Earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
- Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.
- Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights. Plus enjoy Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding and settle into your seat sooner.
- New: Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.
- Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide including takeout and delivery in the U.S., and at U.S. supermarkets.
- Earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases.
- Enjoy a per-visit rate of $50 per person for Card Members and up to two guests to enter the Delta Sky Club when traveling on a Delta flight.
- Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® after you apply through any Authorized Enrollment Provider. If approved for Global Entry, at no additional charge, you will receive access to TSA PreCheck.
- Earn up to 20,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) with Status Boost® per year. After you spend $25,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, you can earn 10,000 MQMs up to two times per year, getting you closer to Medallion® Status. MQMs are used to determine Medallion® Status and are different than miles you earn toward flights.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- $250 Annual Fee.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees