Cruises to nowhere have kicked off in Singapore, where ships will set sail from the Marina Bay Cruise Centre and make a round trip without any ports of call. Dream Cruises’ World Dream mega-ship has been sailing since Nov 6, with about 1,400 passengers onboard its inaugural cruise to nowhere.

Suffice to say, sea voyages in the time of Covid-19 are not like your usual cruise trips. Besides the fact that there are no ports of call on your two- or three-night trip, there’s a slew of safety measures on board the World Dream.

Here are the Covid-19 safety protocols to expect on World Dream’s cruise to nowhere.

For starters, all passengers will have to be tested for Covid-19 pre- and post-departure at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre (read about our experience here). For pre-departure tests, guests will be assigned a designated test time slot on the day of the cruise from 9am. Embarkation will be staggered as well. For guests who have time to spare in between testing and boarding times, they’ll have an option to hop on a free shuttle bus to VivoCity (there’s one every 15 minutes) to kill time.

The medical centre onboard the ship is not a new concept — it’s helmed by two doctors, an infections control officer and nurses.

What's different now is that the medical centre is Covid-19-ready. It’s fully equipped to carry out and process Covid-19 swab tests, with results out in 60 minutes.

If a passenger is suspected to have Covid-19, there’s a set of protocols to follow, including isolating the patient in one of the seven isolation cabins. Contact tracing will also take place (all passengers will get a MICE pod, a device similar to a TraceTogether token, for contact tracing purposes), and their close contacts will be quarantined in one of the 34 quarantine cabins. These cabins have been converted from regular staterooms.

Don’t worry, buffets aren’t a thing of a pre-Covid-19 past. However, instead of heaping the food on to your plate yourself, chefs and service staff will scoop the food on to the plate for you instead.

Guests are also required to tap in and out of restaurants with their RFID check-in card, have their temperature taken and sanitise their hands before going into the restaurant.

High tech auto handwashing stations have also been installed on the ship.

There’s also a maximum of five diners allowed per table, with seats clearly marked out to remind you to keep a safe distance from others.

For chargeable restaurants, reservations are required. F&B outlets also stop serving alcohol after 10.30pm, in line with regulations in Singapore.

Like with most hotel staycations in Singapore, pool time has to be reserved in advance. A maximum of 26 guests are allowed at World Dream’s main pool deck at any one time. Pre-bookings have to be made, and are available in one-hour blocks.

Prices for World Dream's Super Seacation cruise packages start at $359. More info at https://www.dreamcruiseline.com/

Photos: Kelvin Chia