Cunard cancels sailings until March 2021

Luxury cruise line Cunard has extended the suspension of sailings for its three ships until next year.

Sailings are cancelled until March 25 for the Queen Elizabeth, until April 18 for the Queen Mary 2 and until May 16 for the Queen Victoria.

The firm had previously cancelled sailings until November 2020.

It said the decision to extended the suspension is due to “the complexity of operating world voyages” and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office continuing to advise against cruise travel due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Cunard president Simon Palethorpe said: “We are so sorry to all those guests who were due to sail on any of the cancelled voyages and for the disappointment this news will cause.

“After very careful consideration and reviewing the latest guidance, we simply do not feel it would be sensible to start sailing again with our current schedule so we have reviewed future itineraries.”

Customers with affected bookings will automatically receive credit for a future sailing worth 125% of the cost of their original trip.

They can also request a cash refund.

Mr Palethorpe said Queen Elizabeth’s planned sailings between March and December 2021 in and around Australia, Japan and Alaska are also “sadly not practical” and have been replaced by shorter European trips departing from Southampton.

The ship will sail around the coast of Cornwall, the west coast of Ireland and Scottish islands, as well as visiting some destinations on the continent such as Amsterdam and Barcelona.

Last week Cunard owner Carnival warned that hackers may have accessed personal details of its customers and staff after discovering an attack.

The Anglo-American company told regulators about the ransomware attack, which got into encrypted parts of its IT systems.