All Aboard! 1st post-pandemic cruise ship readies to sail

FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida: The first cruise ship to leave a US port since the coronavirus pandemic brought the industry to a 15-month standstill is preparing to set sail with nearly all vaccinated passengers on board.

Celebrity Edge will depart Fort Lauderdale, Florida, at 6 pm Saturday with the number of passengers limited to about 40 percent capacity, and with virtually all passengers vaccinated against COVID-19. Celebrity Cruises, one of Royal Caribbean Cruise's brands, says 99% of the passengers are vaccinated, well over the 95% requirement imposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Words can’t describe how excited we are to be a part of this historic sailing today,” said Elizabeth Rosner, 28, who moved from Michigan to Orlando, Florida, in December 2019 with her fiance just to be close to the cruise industry’s hub.