Before cruises can get back to sailing, they must conduct “simulated voyages” per CDC requirements.
These cruises are essentially practice sailings so that the crew, cruise line, and government officials can put healthy protocols in place and practice how real voyages will go.
The cruises will have many of the same features as a regular cruise. To make it as realistic as possible, volunteer passengers are needed. These passengers must be at least 18 years old and have no health conditions that put them at higher risk of COVID. See more details about being a volunteer here.
Obviously there is a lot of excitement among cruisers about volunteering. Now, Royal Caribbean is the first cruise line to offer up some detail on the process.
The cruise line has created a dedicated Facebook group for interested passengers, as well as a form you can fill out to submit your interest.
According to the Facebook group:
Royal Caribbean has some of the most loyal guests in the cruise industry, and we have been overjoyed with their interest to take part in our simulated trial sailings. This week alone, we have received more than 3,000 emails, not including the tweets, comments, and messages across our social channels.
While we review the requirements proposed by the CDC and consider when we can host our simulated trial sailings, we are gathering information from those who have shown interest. Our priority is to ensure that we can exercise our comprehensive set of measures in a safe and healthy manner while making sure we provide a memorable vacation experience. This group will serve the community of adventurers who are excited and ready to be the first back at sea. Get ready to dust off your suitcase and get back to adventure!
As for the interest form, you can find it here.
The form simply asks for the size of your traveling party, basic contact information, citizenship, and Crown & Anchor number. If you don’t have a number, that’s ok. The instructions say to simply enter “999999999”.
Right now there are few details on how the selection process will occur. For instance, will passengers need to be within driving to the port? Will certain status-level cruisers get priority?
There is also no mention of a date of the simulated voyage(s) or even where they will sail from.
For now, all potential volunteers can do is fill out the form to show their interest and follow the Facebook group for future details.
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