At a glance
Learn about the gastrointestinal illness outbreak on Cunard Cruise Line ship Queen Victoria in January 2024, including outbreak details and actions taken in response.
Outbreak details
Cruise Line: Cunard Cruise Line
Cruise Ship: Queen Victoria
Voyage Dates: January 22–February 6, 2024
Voyage number: V405
Final case counts:
- Number of passengers who reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of passengers onboard: 129 of 1,824 (7.07%)
- Number of crew who reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of crew onboard: 25 of 967 (2.59%)
Predominant symptoms: diarrhea, vomiting
Causative agent: norovirus
Actions in response to the outbreak
In response to the outbreak, Cunard Cruise Line and the crew aboard the ship reported the following actions:
- Increased cleaning and disinfection procedures according to the ship's outbreak prevention and response plan.
- Isolated ill passengers and crew.
- Notified current and embarking passengers and crew of the situation onboard and encouraged prompt illness reporting and good hand hygiene.
VSP remotely monitored the situation, including reviewing the ship’s outbreak response and sanitation procedures.
More information
Cases
Gastrointestinal illness is a commonly used term for acute gastroenteritis (AGE). Cruise ships report cases that meet our case definition for AGE. We define a reportable case of AGE as
- Three or more loose stools within a 24-hour period or what is more than normal for that person OR
- Vomiting along with one of the following symptoms: diarrhea, muscle ache, headache, abdominal cramp, or fever.
Case totals
Cases reported are totals for the entire voyage. It does not mean all people are sick at the same time, such as when they arrive or leave a port or ship.