Port Canaveral

The holiday travel season this year is expected to rival the busiest seasons before the coronavirus pandemic at Florida’s two most bustling airports.

Norwegian Cruise Line canceled voyages on eight cruise ships, nearly half its fleet, after one of its ships on Wednesday returned early to Miami due to a COVID-19 outbreak among crew members.

In a potentially ominous message for Florida’s cruise-ship industry, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that people should avoid cruise travel “regardless of vaccination status” because of the spread of COVID-19.

The announcement came after Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis last week said cruise ships will only be allowed to enter ports, including those on private islands used by cruise lines, if all crew members and passengers eligible for vaccines have been fully vaccinated.

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration plans to appeal a federal judge’s ruling that sided with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings in a constitutional challenge to Florida’s ban on so-called “vaccine passports.”

A U.S. district judge granted the preliminary injunction in a lawsuit challenging the state’s “vaccine passport” ban, which was signed into law in May by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and the state are battling about which court should hear a challenge to the state’s ban on so-called “vaccine passports,” with the cruise operator fighting an attempt to move the case out of South Florida.

Just as cruising out of Florida's ports restarts, the state leads the nation in COVID-19 cases, causing concerns that ships will be docked once again.

Captain John Murray, CEO of Port Canaveral, says he’s eager to put their over 72 million dollars to work on capital projects that were halted last year.

Recovery will take longer for the multibillion-dollar passenger cruise industry at the state’s ports, as ships are just now starting to return to sea after being shut down early in the pandemic.