Carnival Plans to Run Test Cruises From Galveston

[Lee Cruiser]

1 minute ago, TNcruising02 said:

Where is the closest foreign port for a cruise out of Galveston?

I'm guessing that would be Progreso

[TNcruising02]

2 minutes ago, Lee Cruiser said:

I'm guessing that would be Progreso

Port of Galveston, United States to Port of Progreso, Mexico: 844 nautical miles
It looks like to calculate the time it would take to go there and back, we would have to know the speed of the ship.

http://ports.com/sea-route/port-of-galveston,united-states/port-of-progreso,mexico/

[Bgwest]

7 minutes ago, Lee Cruiser said:

That's what I thought, so I'm guessing that would apply to these test cruises as well.

 

As a general rule, a foreign-flag vessel like Carnival’s vessels may transport passengers on round-trip voyages originating in the United States if the vessel stops at a nearby foreign port during the course of its voyage.  This type of voyage can also include stops at U.S. ports where passengers can go ashore for sightseeing and shopping, so long as the passengers do not permanently disembark at those U.S. ports.  Nearby foreign ports include Canada, Mexico, Central America, Bermuda, and most Caribbean Islands.

 

Foreign-flag vessels like Carnival’s vessels may transport passengers between U.S. ports without violating the PVSA if the vessel stops at a distant foreign port and the passenger traveled with the vessel to that distant foreign port.  Distant foreign ports include South American countries, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, European countries, and Asian countries.

Jones Act is often confused with PVSA. Jones Act has absolutely nothing to do with making foreign stops while carrying passengers. 

 

Jones Act aka Merchant Marine Act of 1920:

https://www.freightplus.io/2017/10/31/5-fast-facts-you-need-to-know-about-the-jones-act?gclid=Cj0KCQjw--GFBhDeARIsACH_kdbj2Wi9WvbIXTvN-H682y6xFLZzNBXHgYyzE6FhzXHHjgUYGjlvHZEaAjPWEALw_wcB

[Lee Cruiser]

3 minutes ago, Bgwest said:

Jones Act is often confused with PVSA. Jones Act has absolutely nothing to do with making foreign stops while carrying passengers. 

 

Jones Act aka Merchant Marine Act of 1920:

https://www.freightplus.io/2017/10/31/5-fast-facts-you-need-to-know-about-the-jones-act?gclid=Cj0KCQjw--GFBhDeARIsACH_kdbj2Wi9WvbIXTvN-H682y6xFLZzNBXHgYyzE6FhzXHHjgUYGjlvHZEaAjPWEALw_wcB

The PVSA is part of the Jones Act.

 

The Jones Act has a portion of the law that specifically covers cruise ships and their passengers. This law, the Passenger Vessel Services Act or PVSA, applies to ships carrying passengers, versus ships carrying cargo. 

 

https://www.barneslawfirm.com/how-the-jones-act-affects-cruise-ships/

[lobster1313]

10 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

Port of Galveston, United States to Port of Progreso, Mexico: 844 nautical miles
It looks like to calculate the time it would take to go there and back, we would have to know the speed of the ship.

http://ports.com/sea-route/port-of-galveston,united-states/port-of-progreso,mexico/

20 kts 

[TNcruising02]

27 minutes ago, regoodwinjr said:

20 kts 

So, 1.8 days there and then 1.8 days back.  It would really have to be a five day cruise.  The Florida ports have the advantage of being much closer to foreign ports, so the cruise lines can have shorter test cruises.

Edited June 3, 2021 by TNcruising02

[Lee Cruiser]

And so it looks like Vista will be the first test cruise from Galveston.

 

 

[Liljo22]

1 hour ago, TNcruising02 said:

So, 1.8 days there and then 1.8 days back.  It would really have to be a five day cruise.  The Florida ports have the advantage of being much closer to foreign ports, so the cruise lines can have shorter test cruises.

The Breeze runs 4 day cruises to Cozumel.

[TNcruising02]

18 minutes ago, Liljo22 said:

The Breeze runs 4 day cruises to Cozumel.

That's great and maybe this will be the route they choose for a quick test cruise.

[SCBarker]

2 hours ago, Lee Cruiser said:

That's what I thought, so I'm guessing that would apply to these test cruises as well.

I'm guessing not, since they are not carrying passengers really. Just their own employees doing a job. They've been hauling employees between Florida and Texas regularly with no foreign stops.

Who knows? It's all unimportant speculation at this point.

 

 

[Bgwest]

5 hours ago, Lee Cruiser said:

The PVSA is part of the Jones Act.

 

The Jones Act has a portion of the law that specifically covers cruise ships and their passengers. This law, the Passenger Vessel Services Act or PVSA, applies to ships carrying passengers, versus ships carrying cargo. 

 

https://www.barneslawfirm.com/how-the-jones-act-affects-cruise-ships/

No, it is not. 

 

From your own link:

The Jones Act applies to vessels carrying merchandise from one U.S. port to another. If a ship will move merchandise between U.S. ports it must be built, owned, and a documented vessel. So, if a ship is moving goods within the U.S., they must abide by all U.S. maritime laws. 

 

The Passenger Vessel Services Act (PVSA) applies to cruise ships because cruise ships move passengers. The PVSA prevents a ship from taking passengers from one U.S. port and dropping them off or having them exit the ship in another port. The only way a cruise ship can do this is to be registered in the U.S. and fall under all U.S. maritime laws. 

 

The PVSA was enacted in 1886.

 

The Merchant Marine (Jones) Act of 1920 was enacted in, well, 1920.

Edited June 4, 2021 by Bgwest

[Bgwest]

4 minutes ago, Bgwest said:

 

Duplicate

Edited June 4, 2021 by Bgwest

[firefly333]

Clearly cruise ships can do routes without foreign ports. They do it all the time to move ships around. Not  clue why people want to discuss something that clearly doesnt apply to test cruises.

 

Always some who want to pontificate on the psa or jones act and say why it has to be called this or that. .. doesnt matter. Doesnt apply with crew only. They arent moving merchandise, they are going to test protocols, not delivery. 

[ontheweb]

14 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Clearly cruise ships can do routes without foreign ports. They do it all the time to move ships around. Not  clue why people want to discuss something that clearly doesnt apply to test cruises.

 

Always some who want to pontificate on the psa or jones act and say why it has to be called this or that. .. doesnt matter. Doesnt apply with crew only. They arent moving merchandise, they are going to test protocols, not delivery. 

That may be why they want to use employees on the test cruises rather than volunteer passengers. No one can claim they are violating the PVSA by transporting passengers.

[Bgwest]

5 hours ago, firefly333 said:

Clearly cruise ships can do routes without foreign ports. They do it all the time to move ships around. Not  clue why people want to discuss something that clearly doesnt apply to test cruises.

 

Always some who want to pontificate on the psa or jones act and say why it has to be called this or that. .. doesnt matter. Doesnt apply with crew only. They arent moving merchandise, they are going to test protocols, not delivery. 

Pontificate you say? Bet that makes you feel special. 

 

Using your logic (or lack thereof), I wonder why The Alaska Tourism Recovery Act was passed and signed into law to as a workaround to the PVSA and not the The Merchant Marine (Jones) Act? 

 

For the educated, facts and accuracy really do matter.