The optimism on display just two months ago when Singapore Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung pledged to reopen the city-state and its tourism-reliant economy has taken a beating after a possible local coronavirus case was found aboard one of Royal Caribbean Cruise Ltd.’s ships.
In the early hours of Wednesday morning, the 1,680 passengers on Quantum of the Seas — enjoying day three of a four-day cruise to nowhere — and 1,148 crew were alerted to an announcement that a suspected case of COVID-19 had been discovered, the voyage was being cut short and everyone should remain in their staterooms.
It was the second blow in as many months after a highly anticipated air travel bubble with Hong Kong was axed before it even started, leaving would-be travelers on both sides of the South China Sea stranded, their hopes of quarantine-free reunions with family and friends dashed.