For the next 12 months, he believes a lot of people are likely to get a booster to take them through the fall and winter. That's likely only partly true because Royal . Should thevaccines remain primarily a prevention from people from becoming very sick, that has less relevance to congregate settings and becomes more of a personal choice for protection, Gottlieb said. Royal Caribbean (RCL) - Get Free Report, Carnival Cruise Lines (CCL) - Get Free Report, and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) - Get Free Report find their companies in the middle of this debate. 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. From Sept. 5, Royal Caribbean International will no longer require COVID-19 vaccination for cruises from California, Louisiana, Texas and Europe. Travel insurance. He also predicted a quiet spring and summer 2022 since many people have been vaccinated or infected so immunity in the US . Children under five are not required to apply for a vaccine exemption. Subscribe to RSS Princess Cruises removed its vaccine requirement for most voyages of less than 16 days and adjusted testing requirements. 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. The news about the [U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)] removing the COVID-19 Programfor CruiseShipsis the mostpositive indication yet that we are moving further away from the pandemic, said Brad Tolkin, co-chairman and CEO for World Travel Holdings. Find an update to carnival covid-19 requirements here. 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 . All new vaccination and testing policies remainsubject to local destination regulations, according to the company. Royal Caribbean International has announced updated protocols for the United States, Puerto Rico, and Barbados-based cruises through March 31, 2022. Children 11 and under are no longer required to be vaccinated. On shorter cruises that . 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. Informa Markets, a trading division of Informa PLC. These 3 major cruise lines are set to lift mask mandates as COVID cases drop. All rights reserved. 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. That includes having proof of vaccination, getting tested before your trip, and wearing masks indoors. Lines and paragraphs break automatically. Gottlieb noted that the CDC would make the ultimate decision and that the agency needed more data first. I'm looking forward to cruising again,' he said. If thats the case, then everyone on the cruise will need to meet the vaccine 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. Making travel easier for all guests. Receive full access to our market insights, commentary, newsletters, breaking news alerts, and more. 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. 32. 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. "[Cruises] still trade, unfortunately, at a significant discount to land-based vacations. Some people are upset at the way iPhones charge. With the CDCs removal of the pre-embarkation testing requirement, we are hopeful and pleased that the travel and cruising industries are sailing toward a new normal, said Oneil Khosa, CEO of Margaritaville at Sea. 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. For departures five nights or less out of Los Angeles and Galveston, unvaccinated guests aged 2 and over must show a negative test result to sail. All guests 18 and older must be vaccinated to sail, plus one booster shot if eligible. In all cases, the protocols may vary on a particular sailing if the destination has different rules than the . Unvaccinated passengers are welcome to sail on all cruises departing from Europe and the U.S. Vaccination continues to be required on voyages to or from Australia, New Zealand, and the Galapagos Islands. Only those sailing on longer, more complex itineraries will be required to have an observed or in-person test prior to departure. 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. Today, he considers his company's vaccine mandate a competitive advantage. Since 2009, Cruise Radio has provided the latest cruise news and industry analysis through informative articles, videos, and weekly podcasts. Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian all require anyone 12 and older sailing on their ships to be fully vaccinated. Family cruises will be a bit easier in Europe now as Celebrity Cruises has become the first line to drop the mandatory COVID-19 vaccination requirement for guests under the age of 18. Paragliders record never-before-seen footage of world's second-tallest mountain, Elizabeth Holmes has 2nd child as prison sentence looms, Dozens of sharks swarm fishing boat in feeding frenzy off Louisiana coast, video shows, Death of man found near stores on Ladys Island Tuesday ruled suicide, Oneil Cruz hits first homer but Pirates walked off by Tigers, Why coyote confrontations are up in Hudson Valley, and what to do if you're approached, Bryan Kohberger's Pennsylvania warrants unsealed. This means any company that violates this proof-of-vaccination ban could be fined $5,000 for each customer. abruptly stopped any covid-related regulation. The vaccination policy for Cunard passengers remains the same. 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. Over time, Gottlieb thinks COVID will become like flu: 'If you get infected, stay home,' he said, adding the hope that employers will 'help people do the right thing,' There will also be less mandatory testing so fewer people who are asymptomatic will be detected. 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. Unvaccinated guests are welcome to sail on all voyages, except for those to or from Australia and on transatlantic and transpacific cruises. See more stories on Insider's business page. The cruise lines have dropped mask requirements but still require proof of vaccination. Its another step to normality and follows other recently relaxed requirements. 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. Virgin Voyages has also modified its vaccine policy to also allow 10% of guests to be unvaccinated. 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. The new guidelines allow cruise ships operating in U.S. waters to choose to participate in the CDC's COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships, which requires participating cruise lines to report the . All travelers who are 12 and older must be fully vaccinated. What Is It Like to Travel to Saudi Arabia. There's one common reason for these reversals of vaccine mandates: the ban on vaccine passports in states like Florida and Texas, which has created a heated standoff between cruise lines and the states. Princess Cruises, which sails out of the Port of Los Angeles, also announced similar changes to their vaccination guidelines on Friday. The cruise line has announced a further easing of its protocols by dropping the vaccine requirements on select sailings from September 5, 2022. (That mandate does not include a booster shot.) However, Azamara still lists Miami as a port requiring COVID-19 tests, and Viking has yet to remove its testing in the U.S. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. parent to the Norwegian, Oceania and Regent brands also confirmed that they would keep health and safety protocols in place for ships operating in U.S. waters with the following statement: We welcome the decision by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to end the CDC COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships operating in U.S. waters. "All unvaccinated travelers ages 2 and older will be required to obtain a negative COVID-19 test either a negative RT-PCR test or a Rapid Antigen test taken no more than three days (72 hours) prior to travel and present the negative test results at check-in before travel to The Bahamas.". The following voyages require guests, age 12 and older, to be fully vaccinated. Voyages 16 nights and longer will continue to have vaccination and testing requirements that are specific to the itinerary. For cruises of five or fewer nights from Los Angeles, vaccinated passengers won't need to test for COVID. Fully-vaccinated . Seatrade Cruise News is part of the Informa Markets Division of Informa PLC. Unvaccinated travelers, or those who do not provide proof of vaccination, will need to self-test within three days before embarking and upload proof of a negative test. By the end of March, many mask mandates will go away, as is already happening in moststates and a growing number of schools. Royal Caribbean released a further update to its protocols on Wednesday, which will go into effect in September 2022. Otherwise all guests must be fully vaccinated 14 days before departure. The agency . Rocky started blogging on his own website When Doublewides Fly to share information about flying around the world on a dime. "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. Oct 26, 2021, 4:08 AM. Cruise-specific travel insurance is recommended on both Australian domestic cruises and international cruises. The CDC will now classify ships with a 90% or higher vaccination rate as "highly vaccinated". 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. These protocols include that fully vaccinated guests do not need to provide proof of a negative test result. (Note: This . Anne Kalosh | Aug 12, 2022. Cruises visiting Greece require a supervised test. Cruise lines . With the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ending its cruise ship program on July 18, 2022, multiple cruise lines have already announced updated protocols to allow more unvaccinated guests to sail and to reduce pre-cruise testing. None of them want to be. 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. Be sure to familiarize your self, or reach out and Im happy to help find you a cruise that meets you and your family needs. All rights reserved. To date, the biggest group to confirm it will likely extend its 100 percent vaccination policy into . Seatrade, a trading name of Informa Markets (UK) Limited. Virgin Voyages also was the first to end pre-departure COVID testing. 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. For those who are unvaccinated, pre-embarkation testing is required. He became the CEO at Norwegian in 2015 after it brought a cruise line Del Rio founded in 2002. This announcement is the most significant to date, and is another step to greater consumer confidence in travel. And one month later, the state passed a law to ban vaccine passports starting July 1. Sarah has been writing about the cruise industry since 2015. Copyright 2023. Unvaccinated guests are welcome to sail on all voyages. Disney Cruise Line is one of the last cruise lines to make these changes. This doesnt apply to select destinations where local regulations vary, including Australia. Starting Sept 3, 2022, Unvaccinated Guests are welcome to cruise with no capacity limits. 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%. Starting September 3, Norwegian Cruise Line will experience a major change in health and safety . The options available to unvaccinated guests continue to expand. On most sailings, kids and teens ages 17 and under do not have a vaccine requirement. The Uniglobe travel agency says most cruise lines are making the same call: to keep the guidelines. Then theyll make decisions about whether or not they continue to require vaccines in certain settings," he added. Copyright 2023. 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. This also includes cruise line private islands, such as Royal Caribbeans Perfect Day at CocoCay. "Gov. Currently, all three major U.S. cruise lines require all passengers to provide proof of a negative covid test taken no more than two days before their cruise and all passengers ages 12 and over must also be vaccinated. Carnival Cruises. The Miami-based cruise line also announced that starting Sept. 6, vaccinated passengers sailing on voyages of less than 16 days will no longer have to test before boarding. Unvaccinated guests are welcome on most voyages, except for those that visit destinations where local regulations vary, including Australia. 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. 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. NBC 6's Ryan Nelson reports on Norwegian Cruise Line dropping its COVID-19 testing requirement. So if we're going to someplace we're going to honor whatever that destination's rules are. "Allowing companies like Celebrity Cruises to require 'vaccine passports' for customers would mean tolerating discrimination by private businesses, which is unacceptable in Florida.". cruise lines are mostly holding strong to their vaccine mandates, When Will the Brightline to Orlando Open? THURSDAY, March 31, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- A two-year advisory that warned Americans against going on cruises has been dropped by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some cruise lines are still limiting the number of unvaccinated guests onboard. The cruise line is working with the ports and says it will share information to travel agents and guests as it becomes available. 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