P&O Cruises and Cunard Line, both parts of  Carnival Corporation & plc group,  have decided to extend  pause of the operation of their fleets from 11 April to 15 May due to the coronavirus pandemic, the two companies said in separate statements.

P&O Cruises president Paul Ludlow said: “It is clear that our original date of April 11 to resume sailings, which would have been a 30 day pause in operations, is just not feasible in light of the government announcements last week.”

“Regrettably, therefore, we are now extending this pause until May 15. Given the current guidelines it is prudent and practical to extend the pause until normal operations can be resumed.

“As we work through the evolving restriction on ports around the world future itineraries may be subject to change and so we are looking at how we phase our ships back into service.”

Simon Palethorpe, President, Cunard said, “The impact of COVID-19 is affecting personal routines and businesses as well as placing significant travel restrictions around the world. Everyone in the Cunard team is aware of the need to support the management and containment of COVID-19 globally. This includes protecting the health and safety of our guests and crew. It is therefore right we extend the pause in operations.”

He added: “It is too soon to know exactly how this situation will evolve. But I do know that we, the Cunard team, will commit all our resources, energy and talent to weather this storm and come out stronger than ever for our guests.  We have been sailing for 180 years and we look forward to many more. We will get through these tough times together and look forward to welcoming our guests back on board again soon, when the time is right.”