These new guidelines apply to all Cunard cruises from Southampton and all other departure points, with the exception of countries where government regulations and protocols vary including Canada and Australia. - As of Dec. 1, 2022, guests traveling with Azamara no longer need to be vaccinated against COVID-19 on sailings starting and ending in the U.S. or Europe. Cruise lines have adopted very strong Covid protocols partly because of the CDC and partly because of the optics of an outbreak on a cruise. Fortunately, the CDC has also indicated that it is evaluating the situation, which may lead to welcome changes for cruise travelers. Sarah has been writing about the cruise industry since 2015. And there may be places around the world that still require certain things, certain testing, certain vaccinations, so if we choose to go to those places, then we're going to respect that, and guests will be informed ahead of time and know what they have to do. Norwegian Cruise shares tumble about 6% after the company's adjusted loss per share and adjusted Ebitda loss were worse than analysts expected in the fourth quarter. Princess is now permitting up to 10% of its guests to be unvaccinated. What to Know About Riding on the Alaska Railroad, Katmandu Park Punta Cana Is Opening March 15, 14 of the Best New Cruise Ships Launching in 2023, The Top Hotels in Mexico for a Romantic Getaway. Requests are not guaranteed and will be processed after the booking is paid in full, in sailing date order, and once we have finalized the estimated vaccinated guest count. Now that is being further expanded as cruise lines try to return to normal. The cruise line has dropped all pre-cruise testing for sailings less than 6 nights. If you are taking a cruise and still need a rapid Covid-19 antigen test, try Azova for a inexpensive effective option. In late July the CDC relaxed Covid requirements for the cruise industry. This now means that regardless of vaccination status, guests can cruise on the select sailings, as long as they meet any testing requirements. However, sailings visiting Greece require a supervised COVID test prior to embarking. Getty Images. There will be no pre-cruise testing for vaccinated travelers on cruisesup to 15 nights, with the exception of full Panama Canal transits, trans-ocean and other special itineraries. For sailings from Southampton, Ravenna and Civitavecchia, and Amsterdam, vaccinated travelers must present a negative COVID test taken within two days before embarking, while unvaccinated travelers must test negative within one day of sailing. The . Now, more cruise lines are dropping Covid vaccine and precruise Covid testing requirements. "We are already experiencing an increase in calls and bookings due to the pent-up demand for cruise, andwe expect to see another uptick as a result of this latest announcement.. "Cruise lines, the all-inclusives in the Caribbean everyone has a set of protocols. Now nursing homes are pushing to lift the vaccination mandate altogether. Starting Sept 3, 2022, Unvaccinated Guests are welcome to cruise with no capacity limits. Gottlieb noted that the CDC would make the ultimate decision and that the agency needed more data first. Now, the official termination of the CDC program is only accelerating the elimination of testing among other lines. Pre-cruise testing is no longer required, except for cruises to Canada, Bermuda, Greece and Australia (per local guidelines), and on voyages 16 nights or longer. But when the sailing was announced as "fully vaccinated" in May, Gov. The ship is set to sail this Saturday from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and will be the first revenue cruise to depart from a US port in over a year. From Sept. 5, Royal Caribbean International will no longer require COVID-19 vaccination for cruises from California, Louisiana, Texas and Europe. Some safety measures will stay in place, which Transport Canada noted was in line with U.S. requirements. Today, he considers his company's vaccine mandate a competitive advantage. Voyages 16 nights and longer will continue to have vaccination and testing requirements that are specific to the itinerary. Vaccine exemptions are limited to a small number of guests who are over age 5. The vaccine-mandate reversal is the latest update in a heated battle between cruise lines and the state, which has banned vaccine passports. Vaccination for sailings starting and ending in the U.S. is not required. On 4 April, days before a vote in the Bundestag was scheduled, the initiative for a general vaccine mandate was effectively shelved, with a group of 237 parliamentarians who had favored it switching to proposing instead a mandate for those aged 50 and over. Children under 12 will not have to present negative Covid-19 tests, regardless of vaccination status. Saga was the first major cruise line to implement this vaccination policy. Copyright 2023. April 5, 2021. Children 5 and under are not . Its good to be knowledgeable about maritime law before booking a cruise trip. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. He acknowledged some people don't want mask mandates lifted and predictedmany will still wear masks in congregate settings, particularly in winter when flu and COVID circulate. For cruises from Barcelona, both vaccinated and unvaccinated travelers have to present a negative test taking within one day before embarking. ", "Companies doing business in Florida, including Celebrity Cruises, should immediately cease to impose such discriminatory policies upon individuals," Christina Pushaw, DeSantis' press secretary, told Insider in an email in May. We respect that every guest has choices, and regardless of your vaccination status, we have amazing vacations for you to enjoy, reads the lines CruiseHealth page. Royal Caribbean, back in February, made masks optional for fully vaccinated passengers. Passengers who are not fully vaccinated will need to bring a negative COVID-19 test result taken withinthree days before embarking. During a press conference on Thursday, the Florida governor suggested the state might fight efforts to impose COVID-19 vaccine mandates on cruise passengers -- something that is at the core of comeback plans at a growing number of cruise lines. Cruise Hive was established back in 2008 and among the earliest blogs in the industry. We make sure cruisers are fully prepared for their cruise vacation with tips on ships and ports. So if we're going to someplace we're going to honor whatever that destination's rules are. Children 11 and under are no longer required to be vaccinated. Seatrade, a trading name of Informa Markets (UK) Limited. This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Unvaccinated guests are welcome to sail on all voyages, except for itineraries that feature destinations that continue to require vaccinations. We make sure cruisers are fully prepared for their cruise vacation with tips on ships and ports. "The options available to unvaccinated guests continue to expand, according to Princess. These new guidelines apply to itineraries from all departure ports except where government regulations and protocols may vary like Canada, Greece and Australia. The mass market of Unvaccinated cruises are not back yet. (That mandate does not include a booster shot.) This easing applies to certain departures out of Los Angeles in California, Galveston in Texas, New Orleans in Louisiana, and cruises in Europe. but the consequences are here now. (Note: Since the initial announcement, the CDC has released new guidance for cruise ships on the mitigation and management of the virus. He also predicted a quiet spring and summer 2022 since many people have been vaccinated or infected so immunity in the US . Some cruise lines already let children and a select few customers travel unvaccinated. Other fun experiences include a Mickey Mouse-querade Party, a family costume party where kids can meet their favorite Disney characters, Halloween-themed movies, and even ghostly ship announcements. But Gottlieb does have a timetable in which he expects the agency to act. Unvaccinated children under 5 do not require pre-cruise testing. Vaccinated guests, regardless of age, no longer need to test for the shorter sailings. Starting Sept. 6, vaccinated travelers on cruises under16 days will no longer have to test before embarking and only need to upload proof of vaccination while getting OceanReady. Millions of travelers rely on Cruise Hive in the United States, Europe, Australia, and around the world. Unvaccinated travelers still need to apply for an exemption to cruise in Australia or on voyages 16 nights and longer. On May 5, 2022, the CDC reevaluated and lowered the cruise ship vaccination status thresholds from 95 percent to 90 percent of passengers under the COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships. NCL's last two Prima Plus ships will accommodate green methanol, Moving forward on multiple sustainability fronts: Insights from NAPA. The CDC's new opt-in cruise program reduced isolation/quarantine times for highly vaccinated ships. Despite passenger numbers rebounding post-pandemic, the company posted an annual net loss of $2.27 billion. All Rights Reserved. Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Princess Cruises will soon lift vaccination mandates for many cruises and ease testing, while Cunard is easing testing. COVID-19 cruise cover varies depending on the provider. I think that its likely to be a requirement that is in place through this fall and winter, Gottlieb said, according to a Cruzely report. For the time being, cruise lines are mostly holding strong to their vaccine mandates, but another subset of travelers is hoping those will eventually go away, too. Cruising still requires either a covid-19 test and vaccination in most situations. All rights reserved. In short, Gottlieb sees a transition from government-imposed rules on isolation/quarantine to the expectation that people take personal responsibility. Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Princess drop vax mandate for many cruises, Cunard eases testing. Guests of . Some cruise lines are still limiting the number of unvaccinated guests onboard. ), This announcement is the most significant to date, and is another step to greater consumer confidence in travel, Tolkin said. Unvaccinated guests are welcome to sail on all voyages. Two Summer Itineraries Modified for Disney Cruise Ship, Passenger Accused of Using Stolen Credit Cards for Royal Caribbean Cruise, Royal Caribbean Makes Major Updates for Loyal Guests, Holland America Line Gears Up For Alaska Travel Expo. "Since we resumed operations, our goal has been to making cruising one of the safest vacations anywhere in the world while providing an exceptional guest experience,"he said. Cruises 5 days or less: With the exception of sailings to Bermuda and Canada, fully vaccinated passengers will not be required to test before sailing. RELATED: NCLH Drops COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements, Welcomes Everyone to Sail. Those 16 and older must be vaccinated. The CDC will likely recommend COVID-19 vaccination for congregate settings like cruises through this fall and winter, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, advisor to Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, said Thursday. Children ages four and younger do not need to be vaccinated, nor do they need to provide a negative test result. It will also . Disney Cruise Line will be changing its vaccine and testing requirements beginning September 2 for all cruises departing from ports in the United States and Canada. The announcement came just weeks after Celebrity Cruises' unveiled its resumption of sailing plans aboard the Celebrity Edge. Royal Caribbean released a further update to its protocols on Wednesday, which will go into effect in September 2022. Since the start, it's been our aim to provide the latest cruise news covering all the major cruise lines. Frank Del Rio has no regrets. Martindale expects vaccine requirements will predominantly remain in place until at least the end of 2022, something that the majority of my clients are very much in favor of, he said. Most Americans have a strong opinion on vaccines -- strong to the point that the topic has caused family rifts and led friends to stop speaking to each other. Cruise ships will be allowed to lift COVID-19 restrictions from mid-January, the CDC said Monday. ", Read the original article on Business Insider, See more stories on Insider's business page, Chicago police chief, U.S. attorney resign after Mayor Lori Lightfoot loses reelection. On July 18, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the elimination of its COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships sailing in U.S. waters, a first-of-its-kind move that would allow each individual cruise line to manage its own COVID-19 mitigation programs. Three months ago, on December 30, it was moved to the agency's highest-risk Level 4 category of travel advisories as the . These new requirements apply to voyages from all ports except those in Canada, Bermuda, Greece and Australia, where government regulations still require vaccinations. Before boarding all three . This takes effect Sept. 6. Though . CDC relaxed Covid requirements for the cruise industry, ry Azova for a inexpensive effective option, reach out and Im happy to help find you a cruise, Covid-19 Vaccination Recipients Will Receive Vaccine Card, CDC Relaxes Covid Requirements for Cruises, Saying Goodbye To Princess Cruise Lines' Captain Stubing. When it comes to cruises that are six nights or more, all guests aged 2 and over must present a negative test result taken within three days before departure. After a 1-0 loss to Lincoln in the 2021 CCS Division II championship game, Sequoia girls' soccer head coach Melissa Schmidt told a team of mostly freshmen and sophomores that Many cruisers have been hours away from boarding without confirmation of negative results, adding undue stress to what should be a vacation full of rest and relaxation. Royal Caribbean Group which owns Silverseas and Celebrity is hinting at unvaccinated cruises later this year. Royal Caribbean said in a letter to travel agents, Here at Royal Caribbean, you can trust we will continue to prioritize the health and safety of our guests, crew, and the communities we visit. Carnival Cruises no longer requires that passengers get vaccinated against COVID-19 for most voyages of less than 16 days, the company announced on Friday. Unvaccinated guests are permitted to sail on most MSC voyages. For four out of five ships in the fleet, the changes come right on time for the popular Halloween cruises. And one month later, the state passed a law to ban vaccine passports starting July 1. The 10% rule remains in effect for cruising leaving the United States. Passengers on cruises 16 nights or longer, or sailing on full Panama Canal transits, trans-ocean and other specific itineraries, need to take a supervised test within three days before embarking. I think that the public-health officials -- CDC -- is going to want to see what the epidemiology of this disease is when it gets to a quote, unquote, normal state.". Eventually, those rules were loosened and the CDC's program became voluntary, and now, the federal agency has abruptly stopped any covid-related regulation or tracking of the cruise industry. Disney Cruise Line adheres to local laws, regulations and protocols in place at all homeports and ports of call . Passengers no longer have to wear masks onboard while they are indoors, and while capacities have not returned to 100% . Royal Caribbean Chief Executive Jason Liberty,during his company's fourth-quarter earnings call,pointed out how well those protocols have been working. Number 8860726. Registered in England and Wales. Under the new rules, Unvaccinated passengers ages 12 and older must still present a medically supervised negative PCR or antigen test taken no more than 72 hoursbefore sailing. See more stories on Insider's business page. Sign Up for Our Monthly Cruise Newsletter. Before boarding all three cruise lines, passengers must show their original vaccination cards. These protocols include that fully vaccinated guests do not need to provide proof of a negative test result. Must be able to regularly lift up to 50 lbs KEYWORDS: RMF, Risk Management Framework, ICD, Information Assurance, IA, IAO, IAT, IAM, A&A, A+, Network+, Security+, Non-classified Internet Protocol Router Network (NIPRNet), Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet), DISA Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs), Splunk, ACAS . In response to the CDC program ending, Margaritaville at Sea and Virgin Voyages have also ended their pre-cruise testing, doing so even for U.S.-based cruises. That's what the three major cruise lines had to do. (Note: This information is accurate as of February 7, 2023. The industry is still recovering and working under a patchwork of regulations. 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