Belize City, Fri. Sept. 24, 2021– On Friday, September 24, Royal Caribbean International (RCI) became the third cruise line to visit Belize since a halt in cruise visits to the country immediately after the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. RCI’s Independence of the Seas embarked on its journey from the Galveston Port in Texas on the 19th of September with over 1,650 persons onboard and arrived at Belize’s shores on Friday as a part of its 8-day Western Caribbean Cruise.

A release from the Belize Tourism Board states, “Royal Caribbean International is the third cruise line to call on Belize since the cruise sector reopened, which underscores the growing demand for Belize as a prime tourism destination. Cruise tourism is a crucial component to Belize’s tourism recovery efforts, and the ability to provide a safe and secure experience for the passengers, crew and the destination is paramount. The Belize Tourism Board remains committed to the full recovery of the cruise industry to pre-COVID numbers and looks forward to welcoming an increasing number of visitors to our shores in the months ahead.”

Since the resumption of cruise ship arrivals to Belize, the Belize Tourism Board has had to address two incidents involving the discovery of COVID-19 cases among the passengers on two cruise ships that docked at Belize’s port.

Since those incidents, the cruise sector has been operating under stringent health and safety protocols — including a requirement that passengers and crew members be vaccinated or present a negative Covid-19 test result. Reportedly 98 percent of the passengers and 99 percent of the crew members on the Independence of the Seas which docked on Friday were fully vaccinated.