FLORIDA, CAPE CANAVERAL — After a handful of participants reported contradictory COVID-19 test results, Disney Trip Line has postponed its first test cruise since the epidemic slammed the cruise industry to a halt, the company announced Monday. The Disney DIS, -1.00 percent Dream was supposed to leave Port Canaveral, Florida, on Tuesday with 300 employees who had volunteered for the “simulation” cruise. However, the trip has been postponed until next month, pending clearances, due to a small number of employees having conflicting COVID-19 results, “which the CDC considers positive,” Disney said in a statement.

The cruise line’s request for a two-night test cruise was authorized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The federal government is beginning to allow cruise ships to sail again, but only if virtually all passengers and crew members have had a flu vaccine. Cruise operators must show the efficiency of its COVID-19 safety policies on test voyages, according to Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who signed a bill prohibiting businesses from requesting proof of vaccination. Celebrity Edge departed Fort Lauderdale, Florida, last weekend, marking the first time a cruise ship has left a U.S. port in 15 months. Carnival ships are already slated to depart from other ports next month, so Saturday’s voyage marked the start of the cruise companies’ return to operation. Celebrity Cruises, one of Royal Caribbean Cruises’ RCL, -6.47 percent brands, said 99 percent of passengers had been vaccinated, far exceeding the CDC’s 95 percent threshold.
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