A cruise industry health panel jointly convened by Royal Caribbean Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings is recommending Covid-19 tests for all guests and crew members as part of a plan released on Monday that the companies hope will clear the way to US sailings.
The recommendation is one of 74 steps outlined by the so-called Healthy Sail Panel in a report submitted to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. According to the recommendations, guests must get tested between one and five days before boarding and show a negative result.
Speaking in a joint interview on Monday with Norwegian chief executive Frank Del Rio, Royal Caribbean chief executive Richard Fain said the guidance creates a path to welcoming guests back onto ships.
“We’ve always said we won’t start until we know it’s safe, but we think the panel has given us that pathway, and so we would start fairly quickly to assemble a crew and do all that,” Mr Fain said, declining to give a specific date. “We’re hoping that would be soon.”
The panel also recommended once-daily temperature checks for guests and crew, updating air-conditioning systems and modifying ships to promote physical distancing, including through the removal of self-service buffets.
The companies are seeking a green light from the CDC to restart US cruises. A CDC “no sail” order that prevents the companies from sailing in US waters expires at the end of the month, but the federal agency has previously extended the order.
Members of industry group Cruise Lines International Association – including Royal Caribbean and Norwegian – have suspended US cruise operations until at least the end of October.
The industry shut down in mid-March after a series of outbreaks and fatalities on ships. Now, it needs to convince governments and customers that it can prevent another one of those episodes, which captured the world’s attention and used critical resources at a key time in the pandemic.
In the CDC’s latest “no sail” order, the agency said it had spent 38,000 person-hours on its cruise-ship response between March and July. In that period, it has identified about 3,000 Covid-19 or Covid-like cases on cruise ships and 34 deaths, and it said 80 per cent of ships in US jurisdiction were affected by Covid-19 in the period.
Citing current scientific evidence, the CDC said cruise ships pose "greater risk of Covid-19 transmission" than other settings – a conclusion that the industry has quibbled with even after the onboard outbreaks. The order specifically mentioned an article in the Journal of Travel Medicine, which concluded that the reproduction rate of the virus on Carnival's Diamond Princess was about four times higher than in the early days of the virus in Wuhan, China.
Mr Fain and Norwegian’s Mr Del Rio said the return to the seas would be gradual. As the new guidelines suggest, the resumption would initially rely in part on trips to the companies’ private islands, where they can exert control over the environment.
“We need to build momentum, we need to build confidence,” Mr Del Rio said. “We need to demonstrate that what is on paper can actually be put into practice in a successful way.”
Speaking in the same joint interview, the panel’s co-chairmen said the recommendations would significantly reduce risk, but couldn’t completely eliminate it.
The chairmen, former US Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb and former Utah Governor Michael Leavitt, said a key to the return to the seas was planning for how to offload passengers in the event that the virus does reach the ships.
“You can create a protective bubble around this environment,” Mr Gottlieb said. “You can control many aspects of this environment, and that allows you to substantially reduce the risk.”
Outside his role on the panel, Mr Gottlieb told CBS on Sunday that there would probably be at least one more viral cycle in the fall and winter, and that he didn’t anticipate a vaccine for general inoculation until late in the second quarter or into the third quarter of 2021.
Mr Leavitt said on Monday that the panel expected to incorporate feedback from the CDC. The companies will also be outlining specific procedures based on the panel’s recommendations.
“To those who are looking forward to cruising, this is an important milestone, but there’s still work to do,” Mr Leavitt said.
Marathon results
Men:
1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13
2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50
3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25
4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46
5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48
Women:
1. Judith Korir(KEN) 2:22:30
2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01
3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30
4. Abebech Bekele(ETH) 2:29:43
5. Aleksandra Morozova(RUS) 2:33:01
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
How to get exposure to gold
Although you can buy gold easily on the Dubai markets, the problem with buying physical bars, coins or jewellery is that you then have storage, security and insurance issues.
A far easier option is to invest in a low-cost exchange traded fund (ETF) that invests in the precious metal instead, for example, ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold (SGLN) both track physical gold. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF invests directly in mining companies.
Alternatively, BlackRock Gold & General seeks to achieve long-term capital growth primarily through an actively managed portfolio of gold mining, commodity and precious-metal related shares. Its largest portfolio holdings include gold miners Newcrest Mining, Barrick Gold Corp, Agnico Eagle Mines and the NewMont Goldcorp.
Brave investors could take on the added risk of buying individual gold mining stocks, many of which have performed wonderfully well lately.
London-listed Centamin is up more than 70 per cent in just three months, although in a sign of its volatility, it is down 5 per cent on two years ago. Trans-Siberian Gold, listed on London's alternative investment market (AIM) for small stocks, has seen its share price almost quadruple from 34p to 124p over the same period, but do not assume this kind of runaway growth can continue for long
However, buying individual equities like these is highly risky, as their share prices can crash just as quickly, which isn't what what you want from a supposedly safe haven.
2019 ASIAN CUP FINAL
Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre flat-six twin-turbocharged
Transmission: eight-speed PDK automatic
Power: 445bhp
Torque: 530Nm
Price: Dh474,600
On Sale: Now
2019 Asian Cup final
Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
The specs
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Power: 272hp at 6,400rpm
Torque: 331Nm from 5,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.7L/100km
On sale: now
Price: Dh149,000
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Results:
2.15pm: Handicap (PA) Dh60,000 1,200m.
Winner: AZ Dhabyan, Adam McLean (jockey), Saleha Al Ghurair (trainer).
2.45pm: Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 1,200m.
Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel.
3.15pm: Conditions (PA) Dh60,000 2,000m.
Winner: Hareer Al Reef, Gerald Avranche, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
3.45pm: Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 1,700m.
Winner: Kenz Al Reef, Gerald Avranche, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
4.15pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup (TB) Dh 200,000 1,700m.
Winner: Mystique Moon, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson.
4.45pm: The Crown Prince Of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 1,200m.
Winner: ES Ajeeb, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel.
'Hocus%20Pocus%202'
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
Black Panther
Dir: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o
Five stars
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Sweet%20Tooth
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The%20Hunger%20Games%3A%20The%20Ballad%20of%20Songbirds%20%26%20Snakes
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
