You want to cruise again, and we want to help you get back to sea soon!
Cruise lines and health officials have been working together to determine what protocols need to be in place to keep everyone’s health and safety top priority. Different than land-based vacations where people come and go frequently, cruise passengers are onboard for several days. There must be extensive requirements and processes put into place well before boarding to prevent the COVID-19 virus from entering a ship in the first place. Ultimately the goal of each cruise line is to protect all guests and crew onboard, as well as the people in the destination’s ships visit.
Some of these requirements will include a fully vaccinated crew, testing of all passengers before getting on the ship, and many cruise lines are requiring a large majority of the guests onboard to be vaccinated as well. These requirements and processes are not only critical to preventing COVID-19 from getting onboard a ship, but also allow for a much more relaxed onboard experience and ensure an enjoyable cruise vacation.
It is important to note, requirements vary by date, destination, cruise line, or even ship. At this point, most cruise lines are requiring guests to be vaccinated for cruises departing from the U.S. There are currently few exceptions and you may be required to purchase additional insurance if you are not fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
We do know that due to the health and legal requirements of many jurisdictions, unvaccinated adults will be required to undergo more testing and follow other restrictions which may result in additional costs for those who chose to cruise without a vaccination.
Long-term vaccination requirements have not yet been confirmed.
We understand there will be some element of confusion as each cruise line’s requirements are unique and because they are changing frequently in this environment. We anticipate more specific information will be shared in the coming weeks which may provide greater clarity. If you have a specific question has not been answered here in our Help Center, it is because those details are not yet available.