Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spokesman Jay Dempsey said samples taken from ill passengers on the Celebrity Mercury confirmed the virus.
Celebrity Cruise spokeswoman Cynthia Martinez said 413 of the more than 2,600 passengers and crew had symptoms including upset stomachs, vomiting and diarrhea.
Martinez said only 31 passengers were expected to be in isolation in their rooms when the vessel makes its scheduled arrival in Charleston early Friday. The crew conducted enhanced cleaning of the ship to prevent the spread of the illness, she said.
An extra doctor and two nurses came aboard in St. Kitts, in the Leeward Islands, and were sailing back to Charleston.
Norovirus is often to blame for similar symptoms in closed quarters like those on cruise ships and in day care centers.
The Celebrity Mercury is due to leave Charleston again on Friday evening with about 1,900 passengers. Martinez said she did not expect the departure to be delayed.
Dempsey said representatives from the agency's Vessel Sanitation Program were to meet the ship when it arrives and the ship will be cleaned completely before it leaves again.
"It's standard operating procedure. However, in the event of an outbreak, it's a little more intense in terms of the cleaning and everything else that goes on and in terms of reporting to vessel sanitation personnel," he said.
The vessel left on Feb. 15 from a state where health officials have reported twice as many cases of norovirus as normal this winter. Officials say the virus can stay on surfaces like doorknobs and handrails and can spread quickly.
According to the CDC website, there were two outbreaks of norovirus, which causes stomach flu, last winter on the Celebrity Mercury.
In all, the agency investigated 15 outbreaks of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships calling at American ports during 2009.
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