“In the meantime, all the identified close contacts of the case have been isolated, and the results that have come back so far are negative for COVID-19 infection.The remaining passengers and crew will remain on board the ship until contact tracing is completed. All passengers will undergo mandatory COVID-19 testing before they are allowed to leave the terminal at Marina Bay Cruise Centre," said Singapore’s Ministry of Health.

In a statement that all guests and crew who had close contact with this guest were marked, Royal Caribbean told Offshore Energy-Green Marine, adding that each of those individuals subsequently tested negative for the virus.

Today, the ship returned to port in compliance with government procedures and will disembark guests after completion of a contact tracing examination.

After a long pause triggered by COVID-19 in early December, the cruise line's Quantum Class ship departed from Marina Bay Cruise Centre on the first of its 3- to 4-night Ocean Getaways. This is the third cruise since the return of the business to operations.

The company said it had been planning for months to finally set sail again, introducing robust multi-layered initiatives for health and safety.

Before departing, the new procedures start with pre-departure health screenings, compulsory universal testing during embarkation and debarkation, mask wearing, physical distancing and improved cleaning practices within the ship, as well as reduced occupancy on board the vessel.

RCL's test run of resuming cruises in Singapore comes at a time when the cruise industry is keen to return to business after suffering huge losses around the world during the suspension of sailings.

Several brands have introduced limited regional sailings, but it has been very difficult to maintain cruises in the midst of increasing cases of infection and government-implemented restrictive measures.

Maritime Business World