Wallace Immen was booked on a mid-January cruise from St. Maarten aboard Windstar’s Star Legend –until…
I was feeling great after finishing packing for a Caribbean getaway and a flight to get away from the coldest days of winter. Then a check of my e-mails gave me one of the biggest chills I’ve had in years of travel:
Subject: Your January 2022 Windstar Cruise has been Cancelled
Did I read that right? Only a couple of days earlier, I’d received another email from Windstar reassuring that everything was moving ahead as usual. But things apparently fell apart fast.
“We are operating in a very confusing, complex and ever-changing environment,” apologized Windstar president Christopher Prelog in the letter sent to everyone booked on Windstar Caribbean cruises through Jan. 29.
“We are potentially denied access to ports in the Caribbean with as few as three people onboard testing positive due to current COVID-19 policies in many of the islands, thus we’d potentially be unable to deliver the expected cruise itinerary. Some islands go even so far to deny us entry if we have just one case within the last seven days.”
And Windstar is far from the only line suddenly cancelling cruises. Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas and Royal Caribbean have all recently cancelled multiple cruises on timelines that stretch into the Spring. Not only that, Canadian airlines have grounded flights to more than a dozen Caribbean and Mexican destinations through the end of April.
Thank you, omicron.
Only a few weeks ago, it felt as though we’re finally emerging from the long covid travel chill. My wife and I had done a couple of Caribbean cruises in November where masks were not even required and a week-long river cruise in France that required masks indoors but ran smoothly.
Hooray, happy days seemed here again. And they should be. So, hopefully this is only a momentary abundance of caution during what will be a short-lived spike in cases.
“We’ve had very few positive COVID-19 cases on our yachts due to the layered approach we have instituted, giving us confidence that we are doing the right things,” Windstar’s cancellation letter continued.
“We have adapted and updated our protocols and practices swiftly to continue to keep everyone healthy in this ever-changing environment. We’ve moved from antigen testing to PCR testing, from cloth masks to surgical masks, to altering our dining protocols to reduce guest contact with those outside of their immediate traveling companions.
“Despite all of these measures, the Omicron variant is difficult to detect as the far majority of vaccinated people are asymptomatic and the viral load of the virus are lower than previous variants. This makes operating a cruise line very difficult given the lack of detection, easier transmission person to person, and all the regulations around international borders and travel requirements.
“We are potentially denied access to ports in the Caribbean with as few as three people onboard testing positive due to current COVID-19 policies in many of the islands, thus we’d potentially be unable to deliver the expected cruise itinerary. Some islands go even so far to deny us entry if we have just one case within the last seven days.”
C’est la guerre. So, what happens when your cruise is yanked at the last minute?
First thing was to cancel the flight we had booked separately, and Air Canada allowed a last-minute cancellation with a choice of either a voucher for the value of the ticket good for a future flight or a refund in Aeroplan points valued at 65 per cent of the ticket value.
Fine, we’ll be flying again and can use the voucher.
Next, Windstar. “By way of compensation, we will offer you a Future Cruise Credit (FCC) valued at 100% of monies paid to Windstar Cruises. Please allow up to four weeks to receive the FCC certificate.
“Should you wish to transfer your canceled voyage FCC into a refund you may do so once the FCC is received. Please follow directions on the FCC and request a refund within 24 months of receipt. Please note Windstar does not reimburse third party (non-Windstar) travel expenses or fees.”
“We continue to believe that our yachts are among the safest places to be during this pandemic given everyone is fully vaccinated and tested frequently. I sincerely hope that you will rebook your cruise with us for a later date when the environment is more stable,” Windstar’s president concluded.
“While I don’t think we will see the end of COVID-19 any time soon, I know we can operate successfully with our health and safety protocols as we’ve been doing since June 2021 with very few cases on board our yachts. I also believe that travel to and from our yachts will become fundamentally easier in the not too distant future.”
That future can’t come soon enough.
Wallace Immen is the executive editor of The Cruisington Times
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