ASTA is calling on the CDC to lift restrictions on cruising "immediately" and enable cruising to resume from U.S. ports by July 1.
In a statement Tuesday, ASTA CEO Zane Kerby said "nearly every other form of human activity has been cleared for resumption" with proper Covid-19 safety protocols in place, ranging from dining in restaurants to traveling by air.
"Inexplicably," he said, cruising is still suspended per the CDC's Framework for Conditional Sailing Order, which is not expected to expire until Nov. 1.
Kerby argued that the restrictions are "particularly unwarranted given that Covid-19 vaccinations are on the rise" and increasing daily. He also pointed out research that indicates vaccinated individuals are unlikely to spread Covid-19.
Now, with several cruise lines announcing they are launching sailings from Caribbean islands to bypass U.S. ports and increasing evidence that Americans want to travel, Kerby said he expects them to head to the Caribbean to cruise. Those islands are "forward-thinking," he added.
"The CDC's continued inaction in removing cruise restrictions imperil livelihoods and communities in South Florida, up to now the de facto cruise capital of the world, and far beyond," Kerby said. "It is a shame that the CDC's inflexibility has brought us to this point."