The departure of MS Nanhai Dream cruise ship on Friday, December 11, marked the reactivation of the cruise travel in China, as evidence of the country's socioeconomic recovery after overcoming the worst stage of the pandemic.
The Chinese liner departed from Port Sanya (Hainan) for Xisha Islands in South Sea. Nanhai Dream is the first in Asia to resume ex-China voyages in 2020. On Saturday, December 12, another Chinese vessel - Changle Gongzhu - will also start cruises.
According to press reports, the parent company, Hainan Cruises, had already booked all sailings for December, applied strict measures to prevent COVID-19 cases on ships, and only occupied half of its capacity.
However, observers now call for caution and estimate that the cruises with all the customers would only be in 2021 depending on how the development of vaccines behaved.