Cunard Line has cancelled the first four scheduled trips of the Queen Mary 2, saying that after the long layoff during the pandemic it wants the ship’s next cruises “to be closer to home” in the UK.

The four cancelled sailings – which were to be the first in more than a year – had been scheduled between Nov. 14 and Dec. 10 and included a trip from Cunard’s base in Southampton, England, to New York, and a transatlantic return voyage.

Instead, the ship’s return will be delayed until Nov. 28, and its first two sailings will be short round trips from Southampton.

Cunard said the Queen Mary 2 will arrive in New York on Dec. 20 and make its first sailing from US waters two days later, going to the Caribbean. The two-day break is to allow for inspections under “the latest regulatory requirements,” said Cunard, which is owned by Miami-based Carnival Corp.

The cancellations are the latest in a series of fits and starts for the cruise industry, which has been devastated by the pandemic and struggled to meet health conditions set by the US health authorities.