Virgin Voyages is the latest cruise company moving sailings abroad as the timeline to resume operation in United States' waters remains unclear.
In a statement, Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group, said that Virgin Voyages had been looking forward to sailing, and they were excited to announce their plans to sail from the UK.
The line had a slow start due to the pandemic, which delayed its plans to emerge in April 2020. However, after multiple delays, its first cruise ship, Scarlet Lady, will debut in August 2021 in the UK with a series of sailings open to residents of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales.
Scarlet Lady will be departing out of Portsmouth England, with all crew and passengers required to be fully vaccinated.
In a statement, Virgin Voyages said that additional testing and protocols would be confirmed closer to sailing, "all in line with the most up-to-date recommendations from the UK government."
"We're committed to a healthy and safe start at sea and would never set sail without the proper precautions and considerations in place. This includes capacity limitations for this initial phased restart."
In cruises dubbed "The Summer Soiree Series," there are 2 kinds of itineraries being offered out of Portsmouth UK:
The "Long Weekender" voyage (August 6-9, August 13-16, August 20-23)
The "Summer WeekDaze" voyage (August 9-13, August 16-20, August 23-27)
Scarlet Lady was expected to make her delayed launch in July 2021 but cancelled her stateside summer cruises.
The vessel is scheduled to return to the United States in the fall for sailings departing from Miami FL starting September 22.
The second ship of Virgin Voyages, Valiant Lady, is still due to sail from Miami FL in November.