Royal Caribbean CEO: ‘Any day’ for CDC cruise guidance
Royal Caribbean chief executive announced that they expect the Biden administration to issue technical guidance for the cruise industry amid the ongoing pandemic.
By Michael McGrady, Maritime Direct Americas & Pacific Correspondent
Richard Fain, chief executive officer of Royal Caribbean, announced that he expects the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue guidance to the cruise industry so it could recover from the pandemic.
“Some of the things we thought was going to happen aren’t happening. They’re better than we thought,” Fain said in an interview with CNBC anchor Seema Mody on the Exchange Exclusive television program.
According to CNBC, customers’ age of purchasing trips has reportedly “diverged from the company’s expectation.”
“We really thought older people would be more cautious. Turns out they want to get out of the house, too,” said Fain.
He further described that this surge in bookings is likely due to older people wanting to leave the house. The overall cruising customer base has changed, Fain added.
“We thought almost everybody was going to be an experienced cruiser because they’re the ones who understood cruising and were anxious to come back,” he said. “Yet, in our Singapore operation, 80% of our guests have been first-timers. So we’re getting a lot of surprising data as things come out, and it’s mostly positive.”
Royal Caribbean has begun operations overseas. However, the US and Caribbean seasons are indefinitely postponed.
