. 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. On October 16, it is Disney Wonders turn to implement the new protocols, sailing from San Diego on a 5-night Baja California cruise. In short, Gottlieb sees a transition from government-imposed rules on isolation/quarantine to the expectation that people take personal responsibility. Find an update to carnival covid-19 requirements here. 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, the company announced. All guests must be vaccinated to sail with Viking. For cruises of five or fewer nights from Los Angeles, vaccinated passengers won't need to test for COVID. 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. webpage. The CDC's mask mandate for public transportation runs untilMarch 18, and Gottlieb thinks the agency will extend it by two or three weeks but give a definitive end date. Under the current voluntary CDC guidelines, 95% of passengers must be vaccinated. Unvaccinated passengers will face onboard restrictions, COVID-19 tests, and extra costs. We make sure cruisers are fully prepared for their cruise vacation with tips on ships and ports. The parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line says passengers are still splurging on luxury trips. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relaxed its definition of what it means to be a highly . During a press conference on Thursday, the Florida governor suggested the state might fight efforts to impose COVID-19 vaccine mandates on cruise passengers -- something that is at the core of comeback plans at a growing number of cruise lines. Ron DeSantis' office called the cruise line's vaccine mandate "discriminatory. That's a surprising move but it's one that outgoing Carnival Cruise Lines CEO Arnold Donald thinks rights a wrong. Royal Caribbean International has announced updated protocols for the United States, Puerto Rico, and Barbados-based cruises through March 31, 2022. Booster shots are not required. As of now, Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian have not made any major covid . The following voyages require guests, age 12 and older, to be fully vaccinated. Thats why were asking readers like you to support our independent, fact-based journalism. From Sept. 5, Royal Caribbean International will no longer require COVID-19 vaccination for cruises from California, Louisiana, Texas and Europe. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically. Otherwise all guests must be fully vaccinated 14 days before departure. 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. Cruise lines have adopted very strong Covid protocols partly because of the CDC and partly because of the optics of an outbreak on a cruise. Fully-vaccinated . Copyright 2023 Northstar Travel Media, LLC. . Cruise ships will be allowed to lift COVID-19 restrictions from mid-January, the CDC said Monday. The Disney Cruise Line announced Wednesday that it will require all passengers ages five and older to be fully COVID-19 vaccinated in order to be granted entry onto the ship . Departing from Miami, she will visit the Cayman Islands and Castaway Cay on a 5-night Halloween On The High Seas western Caribbean cruise. Two major cruise lines, Royal Caribbean International and Carnival Cruise Line, have announced plans to ease onboard . This takes effect Sept. 6. Subscribe to the Long Beach Post's daily eALERT and get the best local news in the city delivered to your inbox. The cruise lines are already set up to self-manage with all protocols necessary to keep their guests in the safest environment possible, as they always have been.. Unvaccinated guests are welcome on most voyages, except for those that visit destinations where local regulations vary, including Australia. 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. Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian all require anyone 12 and older sailing on their ships to be fully vaccinated. Its good to be knowledgeable about maritime law before booking a cruise trip. Cruises visiting Greece require a supervised test. Voyages 16 nights and longer will continue to have vaccination and testing requirements that are specific to the itinerary. 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. 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. 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. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, how vocal some potential customers and cruise lines, Margaritaville at Sea Gears Up With Travel Advisors in Mind, Its a Summer of Record-Breaking Cruise Sales. Azamara. These new guidelines apply to all Cunard cruises from Southampton and all other departure points, with the exception of countries where government regulations and protocols vary including Canada and Australia. The options available to unvaccinated guests continue to expand. These protocols include that fully vaccinated guests do not need to provide proof of a negative test result. And one month later, the state passed a law to ban vaccine passports starting July 1. The changes are nuanced, depending on embarkation ports and destinations and, in some cases, by cruise length, and vary by cruise line. Children 11 and under are no longer required to be vaccinated. The vaccine-mandate reversal is the latest update in a heated battle between cruise lines and the state, which has banned vaccine passports. . Im talking more about CDC and the policy environment. 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. If you are taking a cruise and still need a rapid Covid-19 antigen test, try Azova for a inexpensive effective option. Starting October 14, Disney Cruise Line will drop the vaccine mandate for all guests and introduce relaxed testing requirements for fully vaccinated guests. 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 . Royal Caribbean's Celebrity Cruises rolled back its COVID-19-vaccine mandate for Florida cruises. Be sure to double check or work with a travel agent to ensure youre meeting the requirements of the cruise you are considering. "I'm very glad that it has ended, said Adam Martindale, owner of a Cruise Planners franchise in San Diego, Calif. There are no other leisure industries as regulated as cruise lines are. 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. COVID-19 cruise cover varies depending on the provider. We make sure cruisers are fully prepared for their cruise vacation with tips on ships and ports. That's likely only partly true because Royal . That's a policy some havegrudginglycomplied with, while others have skipped cruising because of it. 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. NBC 6's Ryan Nelson reports on Norwegian Cruise Line dropping its COVID-19 testing requirement. Also starting Sept. 5,Celebrity Cruises will discontinue its vaccination mandate for sailings from Los Angeles, the UK and Europe (but not Iceland). 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