Japan said Thursday it would allow some elderly passengers off a quarantined cruise ship and into government-designated lodging, as the number of new coronavirus cases on the vessel jumped to 218.

Thousands of passengers and crew on the Diamond Princess -- the single largest cluster of infected people outside China -- face several days more of quarantine, with many taking to social media to voice their concerns.

Those working on the ship have been reluctant to speak to reporters for fear of losing their jobs, but two crew members broke their silence in a video broadcast by Indian media Thursday.

"We are scared that if the infection is spreading, it is spreading so fast that we could also become affected," said Sonali Thakkar, a ship security officer.

"We don't want to (become sick). We just want to go back home," she said in the clip broadcast by NDTV.

With passengers mostly confined to their cabins, crew members have to go door-to-door to deliver food and other supplies, and some fear this has reduced the effectiveness of the quarantine.

Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said Thursday there were 44 new cases -- including one crew member -- an additional 221 tests.

He said also that some elderly passengers would be allowed off the ship if they test negative for the COVID-19 virus.

Those who opt to leave will be moved to government facilities to wait out a quarantine that is set to last until February 19.

"If they test negative, those who wish to disembark can go and live in a lodging facility that the government will prepare," Kato said.

Captain Stefano Ravera informed the passengers of the new plan via ship broadcast.

"The Ministry of Health has already tested guests 80 years or older who are staying in a cabin without a balcony, and those 80 years or older with chronic medical conditions," he said.

- Quarantine questions -

Kato said five people from the ship were in serious condition in hospital -- four who have tested positive for the virus. Test results for the fifth are still being processed.

With dozens of new cases diagnosed almost daily, questions have been raised about the pace of testing and whether the quarantine is working.

Japan initially tested around 300 people who had close contact with the first infected passenger, or have displayed symptoms, but they have gradually widened the net as new cases were detected.

Officials saying they can only process 300 people a day, but hope eventually to expand this to 1,000.

In addition to the cases on the ship, Japan has confirmed 28 other infections -- mostly among evacuees from Hubei, where the virus emerged.

Four flights have brought back hundreds of people, most of whom are undergoing "self-quarantine" in government-designated hotels.

Evacuees from the first flight, which landed on January 29, were cleared to leave the quarantine on Wednesday night after passing a final round of checks.

As they left their hotel in Chiba, east of Tokyo, they thanked local residents for their solidarity.

No port in a storm, but cruise ship laughs off virus fears
Pattaya, Thailand (AFP) Feb 12, 2020 - On board a US cruise ship that is being rejected at Asian ports over coronavirus fears, stoic passengers are keeping spirits up with poolside yoga, spin classes, comedy shows and a few drinks.

The Westerdam, with its 1,455 passengers and 802 crew, left Hong Kong on February 1 on what was meant to be a dream 14-day cruise across Asia, and was due to disembark this Saturday in Yokohama, Japan.

But Japan, Guam, the Philippines, Taiwan and now Thailand have refused to allow the ship to dock.

Cruise operators insist there is "no reason to believe" there are any cases of the deadly virus, which has killed over 1,100, on board and have urged Thai authorities to reverse their decision.

Several other cruise ships have been refused entry at ports across the Asia-Pacific region -- from Singapore to Tonga -- as fears over the virus spike.

On Wednesday afternoon the Westerdam still appeared on its way to Thailand's eastern seaboard, where authorities have instead offered to ferry over supplies.

Even though their holiday plans in tatters, passengers are making the most of the extraordinary circumstances -- some taking to social media to share amusing asides on life unwanted and at sea.

"Not a bad place to be captive. I'm in the salon having my hair done right now and getting ready to hit the buffet," Christina Kerby said on Twitter, where her photos of yoga or posts on morning spin classes have bounced around.

Speaking later to AFP she said "we're eating, drinking, exercising, swimming, going to comedy shows and listening to music onboard".

"There is no shortage of activities to keep us entertained."

A video shows passengers in a ballroom giving hearty applause to the crew -- many of whom are from the Philippines and missed their chance to see family on the scrapped Manila stop.

- Barred from docking -

The atmosphere is in stark contrast to the gloom encasing the Diamond Princess, a quarantined Japanese cruise ship riddled with the virus which has forced passengers into a depressing lockdown in cabins.

"We're all good. The mood is positive... there's no tension on aboard" said Lorraine Oliveira, from Ireland, on the ship with her husband and two children.

But "we feel very sorry for the Filipino staff who were unable to see their family as we were unable to dock in Manila".

Before it was barred from docking, boat operator Holland American Line initially said the cruise will disembark on Thursday at Thailand's Laem Chabang port, a few hours east of Bangkok.

In neighbouring Cambodia, where Sihanoukville has a port able to accommodate cruise ships, authorities have also said they can not allow the ship to dock.

"We don't have the protective infrastructure like Japan," Information Minister Khieu Kanharith wrote in a Facebook post.

"But in an emergency we could allow them to stay in our waters awaiting for rescue from a country with enough expertise."

With no idea of where they will make land or when, passengers have cancelled onward flights, travel plans scrambled by events -- and governments -- beyond their control.

"Hopeful Thailand will change its mind," passenger Stephen Hansen told AFP.

"No sickness on board. This is now a political situation, not a health one."

Health authorities in Tonga have refused entry to three cruise liners -- CMV Astor, CMV Columbus and Crystal Serenity -- due to dock in the Pacific island nation on Wednesday.

A fourth passenger ship Wind Spirit, which had been set to arrive on Saturday, was also told to stay away.

The diversion notice did not say where the ships were headed but online trackers suggested the Astor was steaming towards Auckland, Columbus and Serenity were Fiji-bound and Wind Spirit was still near Tahiti.

Meanwhile Cunard's Queen Mary 2 luxury liner, currently off the coast of Malaysia, has been diverted to Freemantle in Western Australia, cancelling stops in Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

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