Arcadia September 2024

At a glance

Learn about the gastrointestinal illness outbreak on the P&O Cruises ship Arcadia, including outbreak details and actions taken in response.

Outbreak Details

Cruise line: P&O Cruises

Cruise ship: Arcadia

Voyage dates: September 3–October 3, 2024

Voyage number: J415

Number of passengers who reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of passengers onboard: 128 of 1,959 (5.57%)

Number of crew who reported being ill during the voyage out of total number of crew onboard: 19 of 799 (2.41%)

Predominant symptoms: diarrhea and vomiting

Causative agent: norovirus

Actions in response to the outbreak

In response to the outbreak, P&O Cruises and the crew aboard the ship reported the following actions:

  • Made announcements to notify onboard passengers and crew of the outbreak, encourage case reporting, and encourage good hand hygiene
  • Collected stool specimens from gastrointestinal illness cases for testing
  • Increased cleaning and disinfection procedures according to their outbreak prevention and response plan

VSP conducted a field response for an environmental assessment and outbreak investigation to assist the ship in controlling the outbreak.

Tips for healthy cruising

Learn how passengers can protect themselves.

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.