Ray Of Hope: Head Of NCLH SailSafe Council Says Pandemic Nearing An End

Former U.S. Food & Drug Administration Commissioner and cruise industry health consultant Dr. Scott Gottlieb has offered a wave of optimism for the cruise industry and the travel advisors who fill its ships.

In a webinar with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings CEO Frank Del Rio today, Gottlieb said he believes the voracious Omicron variant is already peaking, and the next two to three weeks will likely show a rapid decline in cases.

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Gottlieb also made a strong case that the pandemic phase of the COVID-19 virus is nearing an end.

“I think the future is going to look a lot different than the past. This may well be the last major wave of infection,” said Gottlieb, who heads up NCLH’s SailSafe Global Health and Wellness Council.

Gottlieb says the Omicron variant that has raged throughout the world for the past two months, “is peaking right now.” Infections are dropping quickly in places where Omicron hit hard first, including South Africa, the UK and even early-outbreak states in the U.S.

“By February, we’ll be way down the epidemic curve and when we get into the spring I would expect prevalence will be very low,” Gottlieb added.

As Omicron declines, Gottlieb says a combination of “a significant wall of immunity” through vaccination and illness, robust testing and increased access to powerful therapeutics, will very likely see COVID-19 “fade into the background of our daily lives.”

A father of young children, Gottlieb says his family has been very careful during the pandemic, but he’s so confident of a brighter future that he is planning a summer cruise vacation.

“I feel very strongly that (a cruise ship) is an environment where you can carefully measure and mitigate risk,” Gottlieb said. “People are looking to reclaim things that are important to them. When we get past this wave I think confidence will return very quickly and we will feel much more safe this summer.”

The doctor’s words are music to the ears of NCLH CEO Del Rio, whose three cruise brands have taken a careful and proactive stance during the crisis, requiring vaccinations for all passengers and crew and closely following the advice of the medical professionals assembled for the SailSafe Council.

“I know it’s been a horrific two years and 2022 hasn’t started the way we thought it would,” Del Rio said. Norwegian Cruise Line recently cancelled a number of close-in sailings due to Omicron, but Del Rio says he is both confident for the near future and proud of how his company has responded to the crisis.

“The health and safety of our guests and community is the core of what we do. We have made every effort and spared no expense. We simply will not take risks for the sake of profit,” Del Rio said.

The cruise executive also took a moment to reflect on the past two years of turmoil.

“This is one of the most difficult tests our generation will face. This has been our war. We’re still fighting but I’m 100% confident we’re going to win and soon,” said Del Rio.

He is sticking to his prediction that the full Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises fleets will be operating by late spring.

With the cruise industry’s ‘Wave Season’ annual sales blitz now underway, Del Rio says travel advisors should take confidence from the belief of Gottlieb and other medical professionals that we’re nearing the end of a long nightmare.

“Be positive, be proactive, be encouraging,” he advised agents. “We’ve survived two years of this monster and it’s no time to quit now.”