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“We have just been made aware via the Premier of Western Australia’s media announcement, that Cruise & Maritime Voyages will no longer be able to disembark guests from Vasco da Gama in Fremantle on Friday 27thMarch as originally agreed on Wednesday 18th March, and that guests will now be disembarked on Monday 30thMarch instead.http://www.tourismlegal.com.au/

We are doing everything we can to gather the facts of this situation as soon as possible to advise our guests, agents and community of this change. Unfortunately we cannot confirm all details until the Western Australian Premier’s office consults with us. At this stage, we understand that on Monday, all Western Australians will be transferred to Rottnest Island to spend 14 days in self-isolation before being allowed to continue with their onwards journey. Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan has indicated via media reports that he is awaiting notice from other states and territories as to transport arrangements for the rest of our Australian guests, and at this stage they will no longer be permitted to self-isolate on Rottnest Island as he originally announced yesterday.

Contrary to the WA Premier’s statement, neither Cruise & Maritime Voyages nor the Captain of Vasco da Gama were formally advised that our arrival into Fremantle would be delayed until Monday prior to the WA Premier making his announcement to media earlier.

There are currently 798 Australians and 108 New Zealanders on board the ship. Based on the WA Premier’s announcement, we understand that guests from New Zealand will be staying on board the ship until they can travel directly to New Zealand. All guests with an international nationality on board Vasco da Gama have informed us that they are either Australian or New Zealand residents, regardless of nationality, and all hold the appropriate visas to reside in either Australia or New Zealand. We are working to gain clarity from the WA Premier on arrangements for these guests.

Please note that we have recorded no health issues with any guests or crew members on board Vasco da Gama. By Monday, our guests will have been at sea for 16 days straight without disembarking the ship or being in contact with anyone who was not a guest or crew member of CMV, which places them outside the 14-day period that the World Health Organisation indicates is the incubation period for COVID-19.

Since the WA Premier made the initial announcement yesterday about our guests having to disembark on Rottnest Island, we have been working to get in touch with the WA Premier to gain further clarity around the situation. We want to assure our guests on board that we are doing everything we can to get more information about these changes, and we look forward to starting consultations with the WA Premier soon.

We thank our guests and crew for their patience during this time, as we know this will be disappointing for them. We will continue to work with the State and Federal Australian Government, including Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and Australian Border Force (ABF), as well as the New Zealand Government, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), and Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) to gain clarity around the situation.”