Disney delays test cruise following inconsistent Covid-19 results

A Disney Cruise Line spokesperson says five of nearly 600 crew members tested positive for the coronavirus

'Disney Dream' was due to sail on its test cruise on Tuesday, for the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Courtesy Disney

Walt Disney Company postponed its first test cruise since the onset of the global coronavirus pandemic after Covid-19 tests came back with inconsistent results for five crew members, the company said on Monday.

Several cruise lines have planned to resume voyages from the US after many months. Last weekend, Royal Caribbean's Celebrity Edge became the first vessel from a major operator to sail from a US port.

The ‘Disney Dream’ cruise ship 340 metres long, cabins for about 4,000 passengers. Reuters

The Disney Dream was scheduled to set sail on Tuesday. A Disney Cruise Line spokesperson said routine Covid-19 testing came back with positive results for five of nearly 600 crew members.

All of the five were asymptomatic, had been vaccinated and had tested negative "several times before", the spokesperson said. They were tested the day after the positive result, by the same lab, and found to be negative, the spokesperson said.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention treats the results as positive, which prompted the cancellation of the test cruise, Disney said. The company did not say when a new sailing would be scheduled.

Royal Caribbean executive Michael Bayley last week said two unvaccinated teenagers tested positive on its Adventure of the Seas ship. The company also said that 92 per cent of guests were fully vaccinated.