Taking a cruise is usually a relaxing, enjoyable way to travel, but many on a transatlantic Princess Cruise might wait a while until they take their next one as over 100 people contracted norovirus.
According to the Associated Press, 96 passengers and six crew members caught the norovirus on the Crown Princess which left Venice, Italy on Dec. 2 for a 20-day cruise. Norovirus is a gastrointenstinal illness that causes stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhea.
"We suspect it was inadvertently brought abroad by embarking passengers," Karen Candy, Princess spokeswoman said, according to Chron. "It seems to be heightened in Europe."
Over 2,600 passengers and 1,180 crew members are on the Crown Princess.
The illness is common on cruise ships and cruise lines go to great lengths to try to prevent it. Norovirus is contagious and can be transmitted easily, so many cruise lines enforce strict hygiene rules.The Crown Princess staff did what it could to try to prevent the spread of the illness when they became aware of the issue.
"At first sign of the increase in the numbers of passengers reporting to the medical center with gastrointestinal illness, we immediately initiated additional enhanced sanitation procedures to interrupt person-to-person spread of this illness," Candy said, according to Chron. "The ship continues to undergo the highest level of sanitation to stop the spread of the illness."
The Crown Princess will go through an extensive disinfection process when it docks in Galveston, Texas on Saturday. The ships is scheduled to take week-long Caribbean cruises from Galveston until April 2013.
In May, the Boudicca, a Fred Olsen Cruise Lines ship also had a bad outbreak of norovirus. Over 170 people contracted the illness.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
