Cunard Line is limiting guest capacity on some sailings aboard Queen Victoria and Queen Marie 2 due to lack of crew. The company said that guest capacity will be limited in order to provide its distinctive service.
Difficulties are related to travel restrictions related to COVID-19, which often include testing requirements, quarantine periods, and other health and safety protocols that may make it challenging for crew members traveling through multiple countries to join ships. Required visas and other international documentation can also cause travel at this time, especially for the crew.
In communication with guests, the cruise line said: “As you may have seen in the news, the wider impact of COVID-19 is affecting hospitality and is disrupting airlines and as such this is impacting the number of crew members we are able to get to our ships.”
With fewer crew members on board, queues and waiting times can be long and not all services on board can be offered.
“We naturally want to ensure that all guests across the fleet experience the high standards of service on board that they would expect from Cunard and which we are committed to delivering,” the notice continued. “We are therefore limiting the number of guests sailing as we build crew numbers back up.”
“Due to our framework of protocols to protect the health and wellbeing of all crew and guests we are currently operating at a reduced guest capacity and we need to take an approved number of staterooms out of service,” another statement reads,
There is no word on whether any bookings for Queen Anne have been affected, though the new ship is not scheduled to set sail until January 2024. Thus far, the impacted sailings are reported to be during June and July 2022, though some sailings in August may also be affected.
While there has been no direct announcement about which guests, cabins, or sailings are immediately impacted, Cunard Line has been contacting guests directly if they are affected. It is important to note that the impacted sailings are still planned to set sail, but will host fewer guests in order to maximize service and ensure a high-quality experience.
