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. DeSantis has stated many times that allowing private businesses to require 'vaccine passports' for Floridians taking part in everyday life - attending sporting events, dining at restaurants, or even going on cruises - would create two unequal classes of citizens based on vaccination status," Pushaw wrote in her statement to Insider. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relaxed its definition of what it means to be a highly . The NCL covid rules are among the most flexible for unvaccinated passengers on cruises leaving the United States. Disney Cruise Line has announced a significant change to its COVID-19 protocols, introducing relaxed measures that will allow guests who have not been fully vaccinated to step onboard the Disney cruise ships once again. Now that is being further expanded as cruise lines try to return to normal. Registered in England and Wales. Noting that NCLH passengers are a highly vaccinated population, President and CEO Frank Del Rio said they're not so concerned about catching COVID because they're protected against serious illness but they worry about having to isolate if they test positive or to quarantine if a close contact does. We highly recommend that all Guests become fully vaccinated before sailing and encourage unvaccinated Guests to take a COVID-19 test 2 days prior to their cruise. (Note: This information is accurate as of February 7, 2023. (Note: This . All new vaccination and testing policies remainsubject to local destination regulations, according to the company. Articles are of a general nature and should not be relied upon for individual circumstances. But there's a catch: Unvaccinated passengers - or those unwilling to show proof of the vaccine - will face onboard restrictions, extra COVID-19 tests, and additional costs, according to the cruise line. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has removed its "cruise ship travel health notice" after two years of warning travellers about COVID-19 infections linked to boarding a cruise ship. The rules will vary by port, but an awful lot of sailings would be covered simply by adopting this rule change. If unvaccinated guests have recently recovered from COVID and can provide appropriate documentation, they will also be exempt from the testing requirement. Cruise travel's CDC status has come a long way in the past few months. As of July 14, Princess Cruises is beginning to more openly welcome unvaccinated passengers. Copyright 2023. Guests without vaccination will be provided a test by Disney Cruise Line. They are going to want to make a decision around this after we get through another fall and winter with Covid and see if we are truly in an endemic phase with this.. - All other cruises still require proof of initial vaccination and a booster until further notice. Starting September 3, 2022, Norwegian Cruise Line Parent company is adjusting the required pre-cruise testing and vaccination protocols for all cruises, with the new guidelines taking effect September 3, 2022. Guests will still need to follow the pre-cruise testing requirements. Antibody tests are not accepted. Unvaccinated guests are welcome on most voyages, except for those that visit destinations where local regulations vary, including Australia. 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. Some safety measures will stay in place, which Transport Canada noted was in line with U.S. requirements. Thats why were asking readers like you to support our independent, fact-based journalism. You can keep up with her on Instagram at @IAmSarahJaneB. Royal Caribbean Group's Celebrity Cruises has rolled back its COVID-19-vaccine mandate for cruises sailing out of Florida ports, according to a June 17 update on Celebrity's website. Vaccination Requirements: While all guests 12 and up are required to be fully vaccinated, children ages 5-11 may be unvaccinated with approval from the cruise line. Number 8860726. Cruise planners call for Baltic 'reimagining,' sustainability support, Natalya Leahy succeeds Josh Leibowitz as Seabourn president, Carnival Corp. & plc arranges new forward starting $2.1b credit facility, Former Genting Hong Kong ship World Dream reported sold to Cruise Saudi, Port Canaveral overtook Miami as world's busiest cruise port in 2022 (updated), NCLH issues $250m 9.75% notes, amended Apollo deal has option for up to $650m notes, Court temporarily blocks Crystal/A&K from employing Lira, using Silversea info, reduced isolation/quarantine times for highly vaccinated ships, Allowed HTML tags: . Subscribe to the Long Beach Post's daily eALERT and get the best local news in the city delivered to your inbox. Though . but the consequences are here now. This means any company that violates this proof-of-vaccination ban could be fined $5,000 for each customer. We shall see this expanded for future cruises. Although cruises from the US may not require covid vaccination, a port on the cruise may. For cruises of five or fewer nights from Los Angeles, vaccinated passengers won't need to test for COVID. All Rights Reserved. The industry is still recovering and working under a patchwork of regulations. Two major cruise lines, Royal Caribbean International and Carnival Cruise Line, have announced plans to ease onboard . That could change. But there's a catch: Unvaccinated passengers - or those unwilling to show proof of the vaccine - will face onboard restrictions, extra COVID-19 tests, and additional costs, according to the cruise line. Its another step to normality and follows other recently relaxed requirements. Editor in Chief Learn to how to find the cheapest awards. For the sailings from California, Louisiana, Texas and Europe, Royal Caribbean passengers won't need to show documentation of vaccination but the line will ask for vaccination status atcheck-in and recommended travelers carry their vaccination cards in case authorities or businesses in destinations ask to see those. Apr 12, 2022 10:20 AM EDT. With that in mind, we've put together this list of cruise lines allowing unvaccinated guests to sail, as well as what the other lines currently require regarding vaccinations. His expectation is that more companies will soon remove pre-cruise COVID-19 testing, as local regulations allow. April 5, 2021. Copyright 2023. it was clearly supposed to reward people for getting vaccinated, but there's no mechanism to know if people are vaccinated, so everyone could go without masks without immediate consequence. Disney Cruise Line does still recommend that all guests get tested before sailing. These include a number of sailings of 16 nights or longerand other specific voyages. "In addition to eliminating the mandatory Bahamas Travel Health Visa, the Government of The Bahamas announced today that fully vaccinated travelers will no longer be required to submit to pre-travel COVID-19 testing to enter the country," the Bahamas Ministry of tourism shared in a press release. However, they must still follow requirements for unvaccinated guests, including pre-cruise and onboard testing. It will also . The rules will vary by port, but an awful lot of sailings would be covered simply by adopting this rule change. The CDCs latest updated guidance for cruise ships now only recommends, and no longer mandates, pre-cruise testing in the U.S. At this point, only Margaritaville and Virgin have revised their policies accordingly, but its very likely others will soon follow. Cruise Hive was established back in 2008 and among the earliest blogs in the industry. The cruise line is working with the ports and says it will share information to travel agents and guests as it becomes available. This can be a PCR or antigen test supervised in person or by telehealth professional. "The fact is we were being held, and we felt unfairly, to a different standard: a zero-risk standard relative to the rest of the travel and leisure sector and the rest of society. Carnival Cruise Line will require testing for vaccinated passengers only on trips 16 nights or longer or where local rules mandate it, such as on sailings to Canada and Bermuda, starting on Sept . 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 . Therapeutics will play an important role, too, and Gottlieb thinks they'll become widely availableand continue to evolve and become more effective. 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. The parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line says passengers are still splurging on luxury trips. Currently, the island nation requires all cruise ship passengers 12 and over to be fully vaccinated to enter the port. The following voyages require guests, age 12 and older, to be fully vaccinated. Lines and paragraphs break automatically. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. The changes are nuanced, depending on embarkation ports and destinations and, in some cases, by cruise length, and vary by cruise line. In all cases, the protocols may vary on a particular sailing if the destination has different rules than the . Guests of . Cruise planners call for Baltic 'reimagining,' sustainability support, Natalya Leahy succeeds Josh Leibowitz as Seabourn president, Carnival Corp. & plc arranges new forward starting $2.1b credit facility, Former Genting Hong Kong ship World Dream reported sold to Cruise Saudi, Port Canaveral overtook Miami as world's busiest cruise port in 2022 (updated), NCLH issues $250m 9.75% notes, amended Apollo deal has option for up to $650m notes, Court temporarily blocks Crystal/A&K from employing Lira, using Silversea info, Allowed HTML tags: . Since then, cruise lines can make their own rules and manage the monitoring of Covid-19 on cruise ships on their own. Check with Cunard for information on your specific sailing. by Rocky HoranLast updated October 26, 2022. Cunard testing changes, but not vaccination mandate. 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. Princess Cruises removed its vaccine requirement for most voyages of less than 16 days and adjusted testing requirements. The unvaccinated cruise is now back. Disney Cruise Line becomes one of the final major lines to remove the vaccine mandate, along with relaxing testing requirements. Vaccinated passengers still must present a medically supervised negative covid antigen or rapid pcr test before sailing. There are also excursion rules and limited capacity. This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. NBC 6's Ryan Nelson reports on Norwegian Cruise Line dropping its COVID-19 testing requirement. At long last, cruise lines are finally starting to drop their vaccine mandates and allow all passengers inoculated or not to sail on their ships. Informa Markets, a trading division of Informa PLC. Children under 12 will not have to present negative Covid-19 tests, regardless of vaccination status. Three months ago, on December 30, it was moved to the agency's highest-risk Level 4 category of travel advisories as the . 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. abruptly stopped any covid-related regulation. Our ships have been sailing very full all summer, but there is still room for more of our loyal guests, and these guidelines will make it a simpler process, and make cruising accessible for those who were not able to meet the protocols we were required to follow for much of the past 14 months, said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. November 11, 2021. Clients are booking now and into the future, and he believes the cruise lines are mostly getting back to normal operations and looking at long-term planning. Cruises 6 days or more: All guests are required to take an official COVID-19 test before boarding. On 5 April, the proposal was amended to lift the age threshold to 60 years. Find out when the conditional sailing order expires. The agency . Check with Carnival for specific cruise requirements. 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. 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. Yet the CDC is poised to loosen the industry's Covid leash, saying cruise lines are now positioned to . Be Safe. A cruise ship in Florida. Unvaccinated passengers or those who do not provide proof of vaccination must present the results of a negative PCR or antigen test taken within three days of embarkation . Children 11 and under are no longer required to be vaccinated. Well hopefully get our first glimpse of that this year. Children 5 and under are not . Otherwise all guests must be fully vaccinated 14 days before departure. Some people are upset at the way iPhones charge. Its important to note if the cruise line has a limit of unvaccinated guests. Gottlieb surmised US public health officials may take a decision on vaccination mandatesin springtime 2023,after the country gets through another fall and winter to see if COVID enters the endemic phase. It can be confusing to keep track of which lines require what, and in which regions unvaccinated guests can sail if there are still destination limitations. We finally got to a place that brings us much closer to where the rest of society is in terms of freedom to operate responsibly," the CEO said, according to a Travel Weekly article. In short, Gottlieb sees a transition from government-imposed rules on isolation/quarantine to the expectation that people take personal responsibility. Free expert cruise tips and news from Cruise Hive! Guests who have not been fully vaccinated will be required to provide a COVID-19 test taken one or two days before the sail date. Here are some of the latest cruise lines that are pulling back on pandemic measures. Part of this may also depend on whether the vaccines get reformulated to become highly effective against any transmission, which is very valuable for congregate settings like cruising. Carnival Cruises. Booster shots are not required. Shes been on 10 cruises and counting, and her favorite onboard activities include trying out the water slides, spending time in the spas thermal suite, eating lots of food, and attending the love & marriage show. With that in mind, weve put together this list of cruise lines allowing unvaccinated guests to sail, as well as what the other lines currently require regarding vaccinations. "Allowing companies like Celebrity Cruises to require 'vaccine passports' for customers would mean tolerating discrimination by private businesses, which is unacceptable in Florida.". Vaccinated guests, regardless of age, no longer need to test for the shorter sailings. 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. "[Cruises] still trade, unfortunately, at a significant discount to land-based vacations. Carnival Cruise Line removed testing for vaccinated passengers on sailings less than 16 nights, and eliminated the exemption request process for unvaccinated travelers, who will only need to show a negative test result at embarkation. Please view our privacy policy for details about the information we share with our partners. Carnival Cruise Line removed testing for vaccinated passengers on sailings less than 16 nights, and eliminated the exemption request process for unvaccinated travelers, who will only need to show a negative test result at embarkation. Since September 6, passengers on itineraries that are 16 nights or less, and who show proof . Be sure to double check or work with a travel agent to ensure youre meeting the requirements of the cruise you are considering. All guests 18 and older must be vaccinated to sail, plus one booster shot if eligible. The cruise industry has been bending over backward to show the public that cruises are a safe vacation opportunity. This easing applies to certain departures out of Los Angeles in California, Galveston in Texas, New Orleans in Louisiana, and cruises in Europe. Children under five are not required to apply for a vaccine exemption. All Contents Copyright 2022 Cruise Radio, Inc. | Website Designed by Insider Perks, Inc. Get the real facts delivered straight to your inbox, with trustworthy cruise related news. That's a policy some havegrudginglycomplied with, while others have skipped cruising because of it. We'll send you a weekly newsletter to your inbox. Reason Magazine's archive of articles filed under Vaccine mandates. To date, the biggest group to confirm it will likely extend its 100 percent vaccination policy into . As any client who has cruised recently knows, the logistics of requiring COVID-19 testing before, during or right after a trip can be daunting. scott@travelcodex.com, For updates: Royal Caribbean Chief Executive Jason Liberty,during his company's fourth-quarter earnings call,pointed out how well those protocols have been working. The CDC will now classify ships with a 90% or higher vaccination rate as "highly vaccinated". Virgin Voyages also was the first to end pre-departure COVID testing. For cruises out of Galveston and New Orleans that visit Grand Cayman, only passengers that show a valid vaccination record can go ashore. Children ages four and younger do not need to be vaccinated, nor do they need to provide a negative test result. For Cunard, from Sept. 6, self-testing prior to travel will change from 'mandatory' to 'highly recommended' for vaccinated passengers on the vast majority of voyages. As of now, Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian have not made any major covid . RELATED: Carnival Drops Pre-Cruise Testing & Vaccination Requirements. The test may be a medically observed antigen test, rapid or lab-based PCR test, or Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT). 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. Norwegian Cruise lines is just a one cruise lines which has updated their requirements for cruises this fall. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings is extending its passenger vaccine mandate "indefinitely," the company's CEO said on Wednesday. The vaccine-mandate reversal is the latest update in a heated battle between cruise lines and the state, which has banned vaccine passports. "The booster vaccine is causing the most challenges for my agency as far as clients not wanting to get an additional booster shot in order to sail in some parts of the world requiring this, Martindale said. Informa Markets, a trading division of Informa PLC. Below are the current requirements, as August 9, 2022 by cruise line. Voyages that are 16 nights and longer will continue to have vaccination and testing requirements that are specific to the itinerary for all passengers aged five and older, Carnival announced. Frank Del Rio has no regrets. This announcement is the most significant to date, and is another step to greater consumer confidence in travel. As you heard me say, we have carried approximately 1.3 million guests since the restart, with about 2,500 guests testing positive for Covid-19, a positivity rate of 0.19%. On a recent communication to travel agents, Royal Caribbean President Michael Bayley recently said,For those clientsbookedafter August 14, 2022,please await the specific protocol details from us related to those sailings. I expect that RCI will be dropping the vaccination requirements. Cruise lines will lift their mask mandates as they shift to a series of relaxed regulations under the CDC's voluntary Covid-19 Program for Cruise Ships operating in U.S. waters. They can take a PCR test 72 hours prior to sailing, or an antigen test two days prior to sailing. We'll send you a weekly newsletter to your inbox.