P&O Cruises has been contacting booked visitors to tell them of the cancelation of the inaugural crusing of the brand new Arvia, initially scheduled to debut from Southampton on December 9, 2022. Only the primary crusing is cancelled, nevertheless, and the ship will nonetheless sail on its deliberate December 23 departure.
New Arvia Cruise Ship Delayed
Arvia, the primary new ship for P&O Cruises since Iona debuted in 2020, might be barely delayed together with her inaugural crusing cancelled.
“For reasons beyond our control, we have taken the decision to cancel Arvia’s first cruise which was scheduled to depart Southampton on 9 December,” P&O Cruises stated in a press release supplied to Cruise Hive.
“We have made this decision as we will not compromise on the high standards of build, interior design, and service for which P&O Cruises is known.”
While additional particulars behind the cancellation aren’t supplied, it’s possible that offer chain delays have impacted the vessel’s ending particulars. Rather than set sail with components of the ship not but prepared for visitors, the cruise line has opted to cancel that first cruise with the intention to concentrate on ending the ship appropriately.
It can also be doable that staffing issues at shipyards have impacted building schedules for brand spanking new ships, notably with many areas nonetheless having quarantine protocols and well being and security restrictions remaining in place.
Two small fires occurred aboard Arvia in July, however aren’t believed to have impacted the ship’s building and aren’t the trigger for the inaugural delay.
Compensation Offered
Guests booked on the now-canceled inaugural crusing are being supplied a full refund, in addition to an extra 10% future cruise credit score (FCC) to make use of on a future reserving with P&O Cruises.
The cruise line can also be providing a novel alternative for impacted visitors.
“They will also be invited to a ship tour and lunch onboard Arvia ahead of her first sailing, so they can still be among the first guests to experience our newest ship,” the assertion learn.
It is unclear what number of visitors might be able to benefit from that chance, nevertheless, as it’s unlikely that visitors who might have deliberate to journey considerably to succeed in Southampton for the inaugural cruise would have the ability to modify journey plans merely to get pleasure from a ship tour and lunch reasonably than a full cruise.
The new inaugural crusing of the 184,700-gross-ton vessel will now be the December 23, 2022 departure from Southampton, a 14-night roundtrip itinerary visiting the Canary Islands, Spain, and Portugal.
After that one crusing, Arvia will depart Southampton on her first transatlantic crossing on January 6 to reposition to the Caribbean, the place she is going to provide a spread of itinerary choices from Bridgetown, Barbados and St. Johns, Antigua by way of the winter earlier than returning to Southampton in March 2023.
Many New Ships Delayed
Delays because of shipyard staffing and provide chain points have been widespread issues with new cruise ships prior to now two years, with a number of vessels for various cruise strains experiencing related delays.
Carnival Cruise Line’s new flagship Mardi Gras, for instance, was delayed a number of instances by way of the peak of the pandemic, whereas Disney Cruise Line’s new Disney Wish, 12 sailings canceled earlier than the ship debuted in mid-July 2022.
Similarly, Norwegian Cruise Line’s new Norwegian Prima additionally had its inaugural crusing pushed again. That ship was lastly delivered to the cruise line in late July 2022, and accomplished her first crusing from a U.S. homeport earlier this month.