Are Vaccines Mandatory For Cruises
For Australians, anyone currently looking to sail internationally will need to be fully vaccinated. For domestic sailings, this will be entirely dependent on your chosen cruise line and their cruise vaccination requirements and the current laws of the state or territories you plan on travelling from/to. To avoid the chance of you missing your next cruise, whether domestic or international, we suggest being fully vaccinated. This ensures you can sail stress-free knowing you wont have your voyage cut short due to any cruise vaccination policy when entering another state or territory.
American Queen Steamboat Company
Who Needs to Be Vaccinated: All passengers, no exceptions, need to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Are Any Unvaccinated Passengers Able to Sail? No.
Is A Pre-Arrival COVID-19 Test Required? All passengers will undergo a complimentary COVID-19 test during the pre-cruise hotel stay prior to embarkation.
Is A Pierside, Pre-Embarkation COVID-19 Test Required? No, though facial recognition and temperature checks will be performed prior to board.
Masks and Physical Distancing Requirements: Masks are not required.
Crew Vaccinated?: Yes — American Queen is even vaccinating its shoreside employees.
Can I Go On A Cruise Without Being Vaccinated Or Take A Pre
Jeannine Williamson
Thursday September 22 2022, 11:52am
Most major cruise lines still require passengers to be fully vaccinated, including having the relevant booster jabs. Norwegian Cruise Line*, Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean* International, for example, are all headquartered in the US, which means they must follow the guidelines set out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention even when theyre sailing outside of the country. Vaccine requirements are starting to change, however. The CDC updated its guidelines on July 18 so that vaccination is no longer a requirement instead, its merely recommended. A number of cruise lines have reviewed their policies following the change. Heres what you need to know.
Main photo: a cruise ship docked near Grand Turk Island
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No Covid Vaccines Needed To Cruise On Royal Caribbean Ships
Starting July 2, Royal Caribbean ships will not be requiring passengers to have covid vaccines for sailings from the U.S. Meanwhile, Hawaii is set to abolish inter-island travel restrictions, but United Airlines will require new employees to prove they are vaccinated.
The Washington Post:Royal Caribbean Announces Cruises With No Vaccine Requirement Cruise giant Royal Caribbean International on Friday announced plans to bring back six more ships including some of its largest for U.S. sailings starting July 2. The Miami-based operator will not require passengers to be vaccinated. Guests are strongly recommended to set sail fully vaccinated, if they are eligible, the cruise line said in a news release. Those who are unvaccinated or unable to verify vaccination will be required to undergo testing and follow other protocols, which will be announced at a later date. Crew members will be fully vaccinated.
USA Today:Flying To Maui? Travelers Will No Longer Be Tested For Coronavirus On ArrivalTravelers to Maui who aren’t vaccinated will no longer be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival, a move that eliminates one travel restriction as vacationers flock to the island this summer. The popular Hawaii destination ended the testing program on Friday after a month of test results found just a handful of positive cases among visitors and residents. “I think the time has arrived,” Maui Mayor Michael Victorino said this week in announcing the end of the testing.
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Can I Go On A Cruise If I’m Not Vaccinated
The requirements depend on the cruise line. Here’s what to know about setting sail without a COVID-19 vaccination.
Jessica Rendall
Wellness Writer
Jessica is a writer on the Wellness team with a focus on health news. Before CNET, she worked in local journalism covering public health issues, business and music.
Like many businesses attempting to regain shape as we close out year two of a global pandemic, cruise lines have started setting sail again — with some strict health measures in place. That’s because cruise ships, with their tight quarters, buffet-style living and international travel, can be a breeding ground for the coronavirus.
As is true for most travel restrictions these days, your ability to book a cruise may depend on your vaccination status. If you chose not to get a COVID-19 vaccine, can you still go on your favorite cruise vacation?
If you’re an adult in the US, the answer is probably not, unless you’re one of the few people with a medical or religious exemption .
Before you book — and especially if you’re looking at cruises months ahead — it’s important to consider the spread of COVID-19 in countries or ports where your ship will stop, and that’s regardless of your vaccination status. It’s also important to consider who’s coming with you. Children as young as age 5 are now able to get vaccinated, so your ability to cruise may depend on whether you’ve chosen to get your child vaccinated.
Here’s what we know about cruising unvaccinated for now.
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Carnival Corporation & Plc
Carnival Corporations cruise lines have amended their own vaccine and testing requirements.
Carnival Cruise Line amended its requirements for a second time on August 24, going into effect for sailings beginning on September 6. Fully vaccinated guests on cruises 16 nights or less no longer need to test, while unvaccinated guests over the age of five can cruise as long as they provide a recent negative COVID-19 test result. Self-tests without medical supervision are now welcome on most cruises, except those in destinations that require other requirements, like in Fiji or Bermuda.
There may be restrictions or exceptions to both rules depending on specific destinations.
Princess Cruises will make it easier for travelers to meet its testing and vaccination requirements beginning September 6. Like Carnival, guests taking a Princess Cruise sailing under 16 nights long will only need to provide proof of full vaccination, while unvaccinated guests are required to test and upload proof of their result prior to embarkation.
As always, there are countries where all guests will be required to be vaccinated and even provide COVID-19 tests before entering, like Canada, Greece and Australia. Guests booking these cruises will be notified of the requirements.
Children aged four and under do not need to adhere to any of the above rules.
Msc Cruises Vaccine Policy
MSC is a popular choice for passengers looking for relatively affordable fares. The cruise line has a limited — but growing — presence in the U.S., with cruises from Florida and New York.
MSC’s policy toward vaccination for sailing from the United States is that while kids under 12 years old are allowed to sail unvaccinated, those older than that must have the shot.
However, the cruise line did recently relax testing requirements for vaccinated passengers, with a reference that vaccine rules could also drop sometime in the future:
“MSC Cruises will continue to monitor pandemic conditions and port requirements outside of the U.S., with a goal to relax testing and vaccination protocols to open cruising to all guests, while prioritizing the health and safety of its guests, crew and destinations.”
You can view MSC’s latest policies here.
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What If I Have A Certificate Of Recovery
Some countries issue “certificates of recovery” if someone has been infected with COVID-19 and recovered, issuing a certificate that proves a positive COVID-19 test and recovery, instead of vaccination as someone’s proof of immunity. The European Union’s Digital COVID Certificate, for example, includes certification of recovery from COVID-19.
For guests departing outside of the US who are cruising with Royal Caribbean, they may present a certificate of recovery. If you’re not in the US and have a certificate of recovery, contact your desired cruise line before purchasing the cruise.
The US doesn’t issue certificates of recovery at this time, so telling the cruise line you already had COVID-19 won’t get you a vaccine exemption.
If Cruises Sail With Vaccinated & Unvaccinated Passengers Is Everything Back To Normal
Even before the dropping of vaccine requirements, the passenger experience on the ship was largely back to normal. Now that vaccine requirements are dropping for many lines, you can say that cruising is now like it was before the pandemic.
Want to have a drink at the bar and chat up your fellow passengers? You can do that. Enjoy dinner, shows, the casino, ports of call, and more. While much has changed behind the scenes, the experience on the ship is largely identical to what it was before.
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Major Cruise Line Drops Vaccine Requirement From Us Ports
- Publish date: Jul 22, 2022 5:26 PM EDT
As the cruise industry has made its way back from its covid-related March 2020 through July 2021 closure, a lot of people have put off cruising until it returned to “normal.” That’s a relative word, however, as your normal and my normal may not be the same.
Some people waited to cruise until masks were no longer required while others won’t step onboard until every covid-related protocol goes away. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control stopped tracking the presence of covid on ships and issued a new set of guidelines for the cruise industry. These included recommendations that ships continue to require pre-cruise testing and for passengers to be vaccinated.
Here’s what the CDC currently recommends when it comes to vaccines.
“CDC recommends all eligible travelers be up-to-date with their COVID-19 vaccines. In addition to the protection COVID-19 vaccines provide to individual travelers in preventing severe illness or death from COVID-19, having a high proportion of travelers on board who are up to date with COVID-19 vaccines reduces the likelihood that cruise ships medical centers are overwhelmed by cases of COVID-19.”
The guidance also makes it clear that 90% is what a “high proportion” of travelers means. That number has come down from 95% and it was generally believed to be a number to account for kids too young to get vaccinated to be onboard.
Shutterstock
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Inc
The three cruise lines under NCLH have also made amendments to their testing and vaccination policies.
Norwegian Cruise Line announced a large easing of vaccination requirements, effective August 11: all guests 12 and up will be required to either provide proof of full vaccination or a recent negative COVID-19 test result.
There will be, of course, some itineraries with different rules, due to specific destinations requirements, like Greece, Canada and Bermuda, which continue to require fully vaccinated guests.
Beginning September 3, Oceania Cruises will no longer require vaccinated travelers to test prior to embarkation. Unvaccinated travelers will be able to sail with a recently administered negative COVID-19 test result, with some exclusions.
Regent Seven Seas Cruises will also amend its testing and vaccination requirements beginning September 3. Fully vaccinated guests will no longer need to provide negative COVID-19 tests, while unvaccinated guests will be allowed onboard provided they test negative ahead of embarkation .
Travelers will also undergo a pre-embarkation health screening.
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What Does ‘fully Vaccinated’ Mean
It seems most cruise lines are following the CDC’s definition of fully vaccinated, which means two weeks have passed since your second shot of Pfizer or Moderna, or since your one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot. It’s possible a cruise line may accept one shot of a viral vector vaccine, such as AstraZeneca, and one shot of an mRNA vaccine, but this practice of mixing for a COVID-19 vaccine primary series isn’t authorized yet in the US.
Some cruise lines, such as Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line, accept vaccines recommended or approved by the World Health Organization as well as the CDC. This includes vaccines such as AstraZeneca and Sinovac. See the full list of vaccines approved by the WHO here.
Bottom line: If you’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19 outside of the US, check with your cruise line to make sure they accept your vaccine before putting any money down. It’s also important to know that while all adults in the US are now eligible for boosters, the definition of “fully vaccinated” hasn’t changed and you don’t need an extra shot to be considered fully vaccinated.
All guests, regardless of vaccination status, should expect to be tested for COVID-19 prior to boarding a cruise ship.
Virgin Opens A Door For Royal Carnival Norwegian
Every other cruise line has a tough decision to make. Some of its current passengers have chosen to sail because every adult onboard has been tested and vaccinated. That creates a peace of mind you don’t get on other types of vacations.
There are, of course, also some passengers who have not sailed because they are not vaccinated or don’t care to share their vaccination status with a cruise line. The question for Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian becomes which changes will lead to the most passengers on their ships?
Virgin does not allow children on its ships, so it was sailing with 100% vaccination rates. If Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian allow for unvaccinated adults but keep the 90% vaccinated number that could limit how many families can book cruises on those lines, which are marketed as family cruise lines.
This isn’t an easy decision, because it’s partially about people’s health and partially about keeping your business healthy. In addition, Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian sail to a lot more ports than Virgin Voyages does, and cruise ships must also comply with local rules (and some destinations require vaccinations for anyone ages 12 and over even if they don’t get off the ship.
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Regent Seven Seas Cruises
Where they sail: Regent Seven Seas offers all-inclusive luxury cruises around the globe, which include perks like free airfare, free excursions, and complimentary unlimited drinks on board.
Who needs the vaccine: All guests are now welcome. Unvaccinated passengers will be required to test 3-days before embarkation.
What other safety measures are in place: Pre-departure testing may not be necessary depending on the port. Currently cruises leaving from Bermuda, Canada, and Greece will require a test.
Will I Need A Covid
Editors note: This post has been updated with new information.
When the first cruises allowing Americans restarted in spring 2021, all major lines were sailing with at least 90% of passengers vaccinated against COVID-19. That meant they required just about everyone on board to have their shots, with few exceptions allowed for young children and people who cant be vaccinated due to medical conditions or religious beliefs.
But now, little more than a year later, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has withdrawn its opt-in guidance for cruise lines, and many are now allowing more unvaccinated passengers to sail.
So, will you need a vaccine to cruise? Click on your favorite cruise line below to find out.
For more cruise news, reviews and tips, sign up for TPGs new cruise newsletter.
Note: In order to be considered “fully vaccinated,” passengers must have received their final shot at least 15 days prior to embarkation. Most lines only accept vaccines recognized and approved by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Generally, proof of inoculation must include your name, the type of vaccine you received and the dates on which you received all required doses.
Check out our recap of youth immunization policies for details on cruise vaccination requirements for kids. For general information on testing, please refer to our article on cruise testing requirements.
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Vaccines Masks And Testing: What Cruise Lines Require Now
Cruise lines have begun modifying their vaccination and testing policies surrounding COVID-19, with numerous cruise lines once again allowing unvaccinated passengers to set sail as of September 2022, provided they test negative for COVID-19 first.
Also, fully vaccinated passengers now no longer need to provide a negative COVID-19 test prior to setting sail on many voyages.
Keep in mind, however, that policies on testing and vaccination requirements vary from cruise line to cruise line, and that sailings to, from, or calling on ports in Canada, Bermuda, Greece, Australia and New Zealand will still require most passengers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
As protocols change rapidly, here is our rundown of current cruise line COVID-19 practices and policies:
Royal Caribbean Vaccine Policy
As of September 5, 2022, Royal Caribbean will no longer require passengers to be vaccinated to sail if departing from ports in California, Louisiana, and Texas. As well, no vaccine will be required if sailing from Europe. No special request or exemption is need to sail unvaccinated.
Cruises from Florida and other ports of departure will still require the shot for those 12 and older in order to sail for the time being. According to Royal Caribbean’s website, the cruise line is “working with local governments in the Eastern Caribbean to align on vaccination requirements for more itineraries.”
As well, even if not required, Royal Caribbean asks that you still bring proof of vaccination to your cruise.
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