P&O to resume limited UK cruises for vaccinated passengers

P&O Cruises is to resume a limited UK service for vaccinated passengers this summer, Carnival said on Wednesday.

The cruise operator will offer short breaks around the British coast on two ships. Only British residents who have had both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine will be permitted to travel, and proof of vaccination, along with travel insurance, will be mandatory.

P&O Cruises said: "Given the advanced progress of the UK vaccination programme and strong expressed preference on the part of us guests for the limited series of UK coastal cruises, these sailings will be for UK resident Covid-19 vaccinated guests only."

The cruise industry has been one of the hardest hit by the pandemic. During the early stages, thousands of passengers were stranded onboard amid coronavirus outbreaks. All cruising was then halted as the pandemic spread and borders closed.

P&O Cruises has not set sail since March 2020, and earlier this month confirmed that international holiday voyages would not resume until the end of August 2021.

In January, Carnival reported a preliminary adjusted net loss of $1.9bn for the fourth quarter. Chief executive Arnold Donald recently told the Financial Times that while the company’s full fleet was expected to be sailing again by the end of this year, having retired 19 of its 107 ships during the crisis, he did not expect a full recovery until 2023.

P&O Cruises’ UK summer breaks will be for three, four or six nights on its flagship Britannia, or for seven nights on new ship Iona. Setting sail from Southampton, Britannia will aim to travel where it is most sunny at the time of departure, while Iona will cruise the Scottish islands. Prices start from £449 per person for a three-day cruise.

"Ready to go to Hull and back?", joked Peel Hunt analysts Ivor Jones and Douglas Jack.

They said the UK-listed shares, despite a strong rally, remain at an irrational 18% discount to their US-listed peers.

"This, plus the potential for forward bookings to strength, encourages us to reiterate our ‘buy’ recommendation and 1,850p target price."

As at 1015 GMT, the UK-listed shares in Carnival were down 1% at 1,727.7p, while the US-listed shares were ahead 1% in pre-market trading.