Royal Caribbean has banned Chinese passport holders from entering one of its cruise ships over coronavirus fears.
The US-based cruise operator said it would bar those holding Chinese, Hong Kong or Macau passports from its ship Anthem of the Seas “until further notice”.
In addition, Royal Caribbean has also banned any guests who have been “from, to, or through” China, Hong Kong, or Macao in the last 15 days.
Mandatory specialised health screenings will be performed on anyone who has been in contact with people who have travelled from those regions.
Crewmembers and staff have also been hit by the a ban which is in accordance with guidelines set out by the cruise industry's trade group.
Its rival Norwegian Cruise Lines has introduced even more extreme measures and will not allow guests or crew members to board if they’ve traveled to those places in the last 30 days, reports the Verge.
On Friday, 27 Chinese nationals were screened for the virus on Anthem of the Seas after docking in New Jersey.
It will depart tomorrow following the scare and will continue its itinerary to Florida and the Bahamas slightly behind schedule.
It wrote in a statement: "We know that you may be anxious about boarding the ship today – we’re anxious too! So, we’ve decided to push our boarding to tomorrow, February 8, 2020, at 1:00 PM EST, while we wait for the results from the CDC."
"We have been working with medical experts, public health authorities, and local governments, and in alignment with new stricter CDC protocols, we are tightening our measures to protect guests and crew.
"These steps are intentionally conservative, and we apologize that they will inconvenience some of our guests."
A British national who caught coronavirus on a cruise ship n is a man on his honeymoon, a fellow passenger says.
Princess Cruises confirmed a British national was among 61 who tested positive for the SARS-like virus on board the Diamond Princess which has been quarantined off Japan.
He is Alan Steele, 58, from Wolverhampton.
The ship is anchored in Yokohama Bay and Japan is refusing to allow the 3,700 passengers and crew to disembark until the on-board outbreak ends.
