Posted at 12:45 p.m., Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Carnival says proposed rule may sink profitability
Advertiser Staff
Cruise operator Carnival Corp. said it could lose money on its voyages to Hawai'i if a proposed change in the Passenger Vessel Services Act occurs.The company said it believes the rule change by U.S. Customs and Border Protection is being issued to protect NCL America's interisland cruise operations in Hawai'i.
The rule could require that all roundtrip U.S. cruises by foreign flag vessels spend at least 48 hours in each foreign port on the cruise and require that the time spent in foreign ports must be more than 50% of the time spent in all U.S. ports on the cruise, Carnival said in a regulatory filing.
"If implemented as written, the proposed rule could also impact other non-Hawaii itineraries such as Seattle-based Alaska and some Caribbean cruises, which may no longer qualify under the PVSA," Carnival said.
"Accordingly this proposed rule could adversely affect our Hawaii and non-Hawaii cruises profitability."
