Frank Del Rio, CEO and President of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings said that the company will be able to reintroduce one ship a week, so that the resumption will have to commence in June or July of this year in order to be 100% operational by the beginning of 2022.

As for occupancy rates during the start-up process, Del Rio said the CDC had not yet provided its target occupancy rates to the industry. NCLH is looking at an initial 50 percent mark, however.

According to Del Rio, the conditional sail order has also been more complicated than the industry expected. He added that, while events are heading in the correct direction, he does not anticipate a go-ahead from the CDC in the next few days.

In the meantime, the industry has also taken steps to allow Alaska cruises to operate from Seattle in the light of the 2022 ban on cruises in Canadian hinterlands by Canadian governments. It is difficult, however, to predict what the outcome will be, Del Rio said, noting that tourism is Alaska's third largest industry and constitutes up to 90% of some coastal communities' income.

Overall, Del Rio said that with his three labels, Norwegian, Oceania and Regent, 40 percent booked at this time, which is better than any previous years, the bookings for 2022 were very promising with prices in line with 2019.

Maritime Business World