P&O Cruises announced its extending its pause in operations up to and including July 31, 2020 as a result of the continued impact of COVID-19.

P&O Cruises president Paul Ludlow said: “With the current lockdown in place and Government guidelines around the world advising against travel it is necessary to extend the pause in our operations for all sailings up to and including July 31, 2020. We are so sorry not to be able to give our guests amazing holidays at the moment, but we will do so as soon as global guidelines will allow. Unfortunately these dates also include the much anticipated Ionafest and we are looking to re-schedule that as soon as possible.

“In the meantime, pending more clarity on the longer term impact of Covid-19 and timing on the world’s return to normality, we are considering the evolving advice as well as potential restrictions in ports of call as we look at how and when we phase our ships back into service.

“We are working hard to make sure that a holiday with P&O Cruises adheres to relevant measures and guidelines to protect everyone onboard without compromising our guests’ enjoyment and experience. These new stringent measures will be in place as soon as we reintroduce our ships and we will all get used to them in the same way as we got used to airline hand luggage restrictions. They will become the new normal and they will give our guests and crew reassurance and peace of mind.”

All guests with a holiday booked up to and including July 31 this year will automatically receive a 125% Future Cruise Credit (FCC). FCCs may be used for any sailing up to the end of March 2022 for any sailing (subject to availability) with bookings to be made before the end of December 2021.

Ludlow continued: “I am pleased to say that in order to give our guests maximum flexibility FCCs can now be used against a second cabin so guests may bring friends or family or else they can upgrade an existing booking. In addition and following feedback, guests can also now gift or transfer the FCC by simply contacting either their travel agent or us, if they booked direct.

“We are seeing strong demand for 2021 and guests looking for a specific date, itinerary or ship should book early as there is limited availability.”