Carnival (NYSE: CCL), the world's largest cruise company, announced on Monday that it has cancelled all of its remaining cruises that were scheduled to set sail in November, adding more uncertainty to the travel industry's outlook as the coronavirus pandemic cripples demand.
Carnival has determined that its "November 2020 operations will not be feasible" within the parameters of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (C.D.C.) 'No Sail' order. The company has notified all guests and travel agents that it will not sail the six trips scheduled to launch in Florida's PortMiami and Port Canaveral in the United States. The cruise line has also canceled the five cruises scheduled to operate from Sydney, Australia from January 2021.
The company added that it will continue "to work on protocols and procedures that would allow fro the resumption of cruise operations, with a gradual, phased-in approach, designation Miami and Port Canaveral as the first two home ports for embarkations." The company is looking into its options for scheduled December embarkments at this time.
Carnival announced earlier this month that it has cancelled all of its 2020 trips from U.S. ports, expects for ships scheduled to sail from PortMiami and Port Canaveral.
Rival Royal Caribbean International (NYSE: RCL) issued in a blog post on Monday that it will resume cruises out of U.S. ports once there are no outbreak on ships sailing in Europe, coronavirus infection rates maintain or lessen from their current levels in Florida, and most importantly, if and when the C.D.C. lifts its 'No Sail' order, which is tentatively Oct. 31 at this time.
New Research
The coronavirus can survive for nearly a month on surfaces such as glass, steal, vinyl, paper and polymer currencies, according to a peer reviewed study published in Virology Journal. The study was conducted by CSIRO, Australia's national science agency, and found that SARS-CoV-2 can survive on surfaces for significantly longer than previously anticipated, thus emphasizing the importance of disinfecting.
CSIRO researchers determined that the virus can survive on smooth surfaces for 28 days when kept at a temperature of 20 degrees Celsius (68 F)--roughly room temperature--and away from UV light. The virus could survive for several days at 30 degrees Celsius (80F) and stopped being infectious after 24 hours when introduced to 40 degrees Celsius (104F).
"These findings demonstrate SARS-CoV-2 can remain infectious for significantly longer time periods than generally considered possible," the study authors said, noting further research needs to be done to see how much of the virus needs to be present to infect and individual. "The makeup of the virus itself, the type of surface it is on and whether the virus is liquid or dried can impact the time it remains viable. Environmental conditions such as temperature, exposure to sunlight and humidity also play a part."
Based on current information published by the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) and the C.D.C., the coronavirus is mostly spread from person to person via droplets expelled from an infected individual. The W.H.O. has also determined that it is possible that infected droplets that land of surfaces that are then touched by an individual can lead to infection if introduced to the individual's eyes, nose or mouth.