Need To Know Information
Pre-cruise boarding checklist:
- Register with Carnival and complete your pre-cruise vaccine attestation question email within 24 hours of booking if unvaccinated guest is on reservation you will need to submit a request for capacity-managed exemption within 48 hours of making reservation – this must be done in order to prevent cancellation of your booking
- Verify if you need to get a negative viral COVID-19 test taken
- Complete online health questionnaire 72 hours prior to sailing
- Pack your vaccine card if vaccinated
- Florida & Texas based ships need travel Insurance requirement for unvaccinated guests
- Masks – recommended not required
- Shore excursions – Unvaccinated guests may be permitted to go ashore when booked on an excersion – unless otherwise specified.
- Guests are traveling on back to back cruises, regardless of vaccination status, will need to be tested between voyages
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What are the pre-cruise COVID-19 tests requirements?
Vaccinated Guests – ALL Bermuda, Canada, & Grand Cayman Sailings
Vaccinated Guests – Not Visiting Bermuda, Canada & Grand Cayman
Unvaccinated Guests Testing Requirements Regarless of Destination
What kind of pre-cruise COVID-19 tests are acceptable?
Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours
Travelers embarking on any Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours itinerary are required to be fully vaccinated. Guests taking river cruises dont need to adhere to line-specific testing requirements. Guests might be required to take a rapid antigen test upon embarkation for an ocean cruise.
All guests must also complete a pre-travel health questionnaire.
Norwegian Cruise Line To Ditch Its Vaccine Requirements Starting In September
Dont forget to check local COVID-19 regulations before sailing
Port of Seattle / Norwegian Cruise Lines
Norwegian Cruise Line is changing its SailSAFE health and safety protocols following the CDC’s decision to drop its COVID-19 program for cruise ships. According to a statement released by the cruise line, as of Sept. 3, 2022, Norwegian will welcome all guests on board, regardless of vaccination status.
Of course, these changes will come with stipulations. Unvaccinated guests over 12 must present a negative COVID-19 test taken 72 hours before boarding. Those vaccinated will no longer have any pre-departure COVID-19 requirements. Children 11 years old or younger will not have COVID-19 restrictions and are welcome to board unvaccinated and without a negative test.
“Our long-awaited revisions to our testing and vaccination requirements bring us closer in line with the rest of society, which has learned to adapt and live with COVID-19, and makes it simpler and easier for our loyal guests to cruise on our three best-in-class brands. Health and safety is our top priority, and we will continue to modify our robust SailSAFE program as the public health environment evolves,” said Frank Del Rio, president and CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line, in a statement.
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Four Cruise Lines To Drop Covid Vaccination Requirements
Aug. 14, 2022 — Four major cruise lines are dropping their COVID-19 vaccination requirements for some sailings next month, according to USA Today.
Carnival Cruise Line wonât require unvaccinated guests to apply for an exemption to sail after Sept. 6. The changes are subject to local restrictions, such as those in Bermuda, Canada and Greece, and donât include voyages in Australia or trips that are 16 or more nights.
Princess Cruises will remove vaccination requirements on Sept. 6 for most voyages that are less than 16 days. The cruise line currently requires unvaccinated guests to have a vaccine exemption before they sail.
Royal Caribbean Group, which includes Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises, will welcome all travelers regardless of vaccination status beginning Sept. 5 âas long as testing requirements are met,â a spokesperson told USA Today.
For Royal Caribbean, the changes include sailings from Los Angeles, New Orleans, Galveston and Europe. For Celebrity, that means cruises leaving from Los Angeles, the U.K. and Europe â but not Ireland. Bahamas and Caribbean cruises that leave from Florida ports still have vaccine rules in place.
Starting Sept. 6, Princess Cruises will require passengers on sailings of 16 nights or longer to take a test within three days of leaving, as well as those on full Panama Canal transits. Unvaccinated passengers will be required to show a negative test for all trips.
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Cruise Lines That Dont Require A Covid
Cruise lines have begun to get rid of their COVID-19 vaccine requirement that they have mandated over the past 15 months since cruises have restarted.
MSC Cruises As of September 1, 2022, MSC Cruises no longer requires U.S. citizens to be vaccinated. MSC currently offers cruises to the Caribbean and Bahamas from Florida. View Best Prices on MSC
Norwegian Cruise Line Norwegian Cruise Line was the first major cruise line to announce the elimination of a COVID-19 vaccine requirement. This new policy goes into effect today, September 3, 2022. View Best Prices on NCL
Royal Caribbean Starting on September 5, 2022, guests who are not vaccinated will be able to sail on Royal Caribbean cruise ships, the worlds largest cruise line. View Best Prices on Royal Caribbean
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Carnival Cruise Line For cruises that depart on or after September 6, 2022, Carnival Cruise Line will allow all guests to once again sail on their Fun Ships. View Best Prices on Carnival
Princess Cruises Effective for cruises that depart from the U.S., United Kingdom, and Europe on or after September 6, 2022, vaccination will no longer be required. View Best Prices on Princess
Celebrity Cruises Starting on Monday, September 5, 2022, all guests will be able to sail on Celebrity cruise ships, even if not vaccinated. View Best Prices on Celebrity
Regent Seven Seas Cruises Starting today, September 3, 2022, Regent has opened up their sailings to everyone. View Best Prices on Regent
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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.
Cruising With Unvaccinated Kids
Children may or may not be able to cruise, depending on the ship. Norwegian Cruise Line doesn’t allow children under the age of 5 to cruise, for example, because they can’t get vaccinated yet. In the specific event that you have a child turning 5 during the voyage, check in with your cruise line before buying a ticket.
Looking for a family cruise on Disney’s cruise line? Disney Cruise Line became the first cruise line to require passengers as young as 5 to be vaccinated for sailings starting Jan. 13.
While other cruise lines may not officially require vaccinations for kids that young yet, they may in the future. If you’re not comfortable vaccinating your child under 12, hold off on buying them a ticket or get confirmation on a timeline for requirements from your desired cruise line. Remember: Vaccine exemptions and refunds are not guaranteed.
The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.
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What Cruise Lines Need To Admit To Unvaccinated Passengers
Unvaccinated cruises passengers must wear masks, while vaccinated passengers don’t.
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As the major cruise lines prepare to relaunch from U.S. ports this summer, they have not yet been as frank with unvaccinated passengers as they need to be about how their cruise experience will stack up next to that of their vaccinated cruise mates.
Royal Caribbean made headlines a week ago when it announced that it would begin sailing from Florida in early July with ships where vaccinations would be recommended but not required. Guests are strongly recommended to set sail fully vaccinated, if they are eligible, said Royal Caribbeans 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.
Michael Bayley, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean International, : For Freedom, Odyssey, Allure, Symphony and sailing out of Florida ports in July and August we are strongly recommending all guests eligible for vaccines are fully vaccinated. We expect approximately 90 percent of our guests will be vaccinated. Guests who choose not to be vaccinated or not willing to verify vaccination will be subject to testing and additional health protocols which will be at their expense.
Despite Floridas law, Norwegian Cruise Line is also insisting it will require everyone on board its ships to be fully inoculated against Covid-19.
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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Virgin Voyages Vaccine Policy
Until recently, Virgin Voyages had a simple policy. As an adults-only cruise line, Virgin required everyone on the ship to be vaccinated. Now that policy has changed to 90% of passengers, allowing 10% of those onboard to sail unvaccinated with an exemption.
Passengers can call the cruise line at 954-488-2955 to ask about sailing without having the shot. There is no mention of needing a reason to be eligible for an exemption. Unvaccinated passengers will need to test before boarding.
You can view Virgin Voyages’ latest policies here.
How Do I Prove That I’m Vaccinated If It’s Required
In many cases even though passengers can now sail without the shot, proof is still needed if you are vaccinated. That’s because passengers with the vaccine often don’t need to test before sailing, while those without it still need to test negative before sailing.
The easiest way to show you’ve been vaccinated is to hang on to the white CDC vaccination card you should have received when you got the shot. We suggest keeping the original in a safe place and also making a copy so that you can always have a version should something happen to the original.
Some cruise lines will accept a digital record of your dose or an image of your shot card. To be sure, however, all cruise lines will accept the paper card, making it the easiest way to prove you’ve had the vaccine.
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Judge Blocks Florida Law That Prevents Cruise Lines From Requiring Proof Of Vaccination
MIAMI A federal judge has temporarily blocked a Florida law that prevents cruise lines from requiring passengers to prove theyre vaccinated against COVID-19, saying the law appears unconstitutional and wont likely hold up in court.
The vaccine passport ban signed into law in May by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis fails to protect medical privacy or prevent discrimination against unvaccinated people, but it does appear to violate the First Amendment rights of Norwegian Cruise Lines, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams wrote.
In a nearly 60-page ruling issued late Sunday, the judge said Florida failed to provide a valid evidentiary, factual, or legal predicate for banning requirements that passengers prove theyve been vaccinated. Norwegian has shown that suspending the requirement will jeopardize public health, potentially causing super-spreader events wherever passengers disembark, she wrote.
Florida separately sued the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention seeking to block federal cruise ship vaccination requirements. The CDC lost on appeal, but then made its guidelines non-binding, and all cruise lines operating in Florida have agreed to keep following the CDCs instructions on a voluntary basis, the judge wrote.
The CDCs current guidelines, in effect until Nov. 1, say cruise lines can sail again with confirmation that at least 95 percent of passengers and crew have been vaccinated, the judge noted.
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Lyan Sierra-Caro, a spokesperson for Royal Caribbean International, said the plans to require passengers be vaccinated that the company submitted to the CDC only applied to its test cruises. According to CDC rules, cruise ships that dont meet certain vaccination thresholds for passengers and crew must first do a successful test cruise before they can restart revenue cruises.
Our intention is to comply with all federal, state and local laws, she said via email.
On May 26, the cruise line updated its website to say that passengers 16 years old and older on its cruises from Seattle and The Bahamas are required to be vaccinated. Previously, the website said passengers 16 years old and older on all of the companys U.S. cruises had to meet the requirement.
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Do I Need A Vaccine To Cruise Policies For Major Cruise Lines
Do I need a vaccine to cruise? Thats been one of the biggest questions in a return to sailing.
And the good news for many people? The restrictions requiring vaccines are dropping quickly.
As the United States has opened up again following the worst of the pandemic, many people have returned to a normal way of life. That includes things like visiting restaurants or movie theaters, going to a sporting event, and of course, travel.
The good news is that given the vaccines, a milder variant, and prior cases, the amount of serious illness seems lower. As a result, people are able to get back to the things they love and cruises have had a successful restart with millions heading back to sea.
In fact, apart from vaccines and testing, the onboard experience has returned to exactly what it was before the pandemic. Now, a recent shift has led to cruise lines removing those hurdles as well.
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Will More Cruise Lines Drop Their Pre
Anyone going on a cruise is curious if the pre-cruise test mandate will go away anytime soon, and the answer is maybe.
In July 2022, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention dropped its Covid-19 program for cruise ships, meaning its new recommendations are not required for cruise lines to follow. This includes pre-cruise testing.
There’s no timeline for if/when cruise lines may drop testing across the board in the United States.
As the threat of Covid-19 begins to diminish, an end to pre-cruise testing seems logical given that the U.S. dropped a pre-flight covid test requirement for international travel.
For now, all the major cruise lines require a pre-cruise covid test, with the exception of a handful of ships operating in Europe noted earlier in this article.
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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.
Can I Get The Shot The Day Before I Sail Or Just One Dose
No. Cruise lines make it clear that passengers must be fully vaccinated. That means having both doses of a two-dose shot 14 days before embarking on the ship. A single shot of the Johnson & Johnson dose is ok, but still requires receiving it well in advance of sailing.
In other words, this is not something you want to put off until the last minute.
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