Hurtigruten has temporarily suspended all expedition sailings on MS Roald Amundsen, MS Fridtjof Nansen and MS Spitsbergen until further notice following a large scale COVID outbreak on an Arctic cruise.
The line reported that 36 crew members and several guests had tested positive in the outbreak on board the MS Roald Amundsen.
Norwegian health authorities stated that almost 400 passengers from two July cruises to the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard are in quarantine.
“The safety and well-being of our guests and crew is Hurtigruten’s number one priority,” Hurtigruten CEO Daniel Skjeldam said today.
“We are now focusing all available efforts in taking care of our guests and colleagues. We are working closely with the Norwegian National and Local Health Authorities for follow-up, information, further testing, and infection tracking.”
He added: “In light of the recent increase in new cases of COVID-19 globally, the only responsible choice is to suspend all expedition sailings until we are absolutely confident, we can carry out our operations in line with all requirements from the Authorities and with the even stricter requirements we have set for ourselves.”
Hurtigruten, considered the world’s greenest cruise line, is in the process of reaching out to and informing guests booked on the now cancelled voyages.
Hurtigruten’s coastal Norway operations are unaffected by the suspension