As California reopens to tourists, San Francisco is preparing to welcome back cruise ships, and early bookings show pandemic weary passengers are ready to set sail.
The cruise ship industry was one of the first victims of the pandemic, with outbreaks of COVID-19 among passengers and crew leading to lengthy quarantines, and even some deaths.
But now, San Francisco is ready to opens its ports to cruise ships sometime in the late summer or early fall.
Elaine Forbes, Executive Director of the Port of San Francisco, told KCBS Radio that she is thrilled to have cruises back and that bookings are already exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
Forbes said that in 2018, cruise ships pumped $27 million into the local economy, with about 300,000 passengers having visited San Francisco.
"And there’s a spillover effect from that spending," she said. "It spurs jobs, it keeps people employed and there’s a downstream effect of those visitors."
Forbes explained that because it "simply wasn’t safe to cruise" during the pandemic, the industry suffered a lack of cruise ships, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now have guidelines.
According to the CDC, all passengers and crew will need to be vaccinated.
Royal Caribbean had to cancel its first sailing later this month after eight crew members tested positive for COVID-19. The cruise line said the cases were identified after vaccinations were given, but before they were fully effective.
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