This protocol will go into place starting Aug. 8. Currently, Royal Caribbean requires travelers 12 and older to be vaccinated on U.S. cruises. On Friday, Royal Caribbean announced new seven-night cruises aboard the Adventure of the Seas cruise ship that will depart from Nassau in the Bahamas starting in June. I will be boycotting the company instead. Its difficult to tell. By contrast, you cant really tell whether someone has been vaccinated unless you actually see that persons Covid-19 Vaccination Record Card and somehow verify that its not a fake. As a side note, the ship's Windjammer buffet was not open for dinner during the sailing. Guests can take advantage of in-person, telehealth, and self-swab tests. Plus, your own feed of TPG content. Meanwhile, Hawaii is set to abolish inter-island travel restrictions, but . [TRENDING: Is it illegal in Florida to back into a parking space? If they are more likely, then you could easily end up on a ship where less than half of the passengers are fully vaccinated. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. Long story short: They were, very strictly. On sailings of a certain length, further requirements for unvaccinated passengers include two more tests after embarkation: one during the sailing and one just prior to departure from the ship. Royal Caribbean President and CEO Michael Bayley, who was also on the sailing, said he expects the CDC to roll back mask mandates on ships with a large percentage of vaccinated passengers as early as this week. Like what you see? Royal Caribbean International's sister brand Celebrity Cruises (both owned by Royal Caribbean Group) is still requiring all passengers 16 years old or older be vaccinated on its seven-night. Proof of a negative test can be the printed or digital results, a clear photo of your self-test result, or your actual self-test in hand. The venue was open to both vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers. Cruise officials said any cruise guests departing before then must adhere to the current protocols in place, which differ depending on where you are leaving from. This closure is related to staffing and the logistics of keeping passengers socially distanced, despite the fact that the ship was sailing at less than 30% capacity and 93% of passengers were vaccinated. The annual airline fee statement credit can be complicated to take advantage of compared to the broader travel credits offered by competing premium cards. While vaccination is not required, they kindly ask passengers to disclose their vaccine status during check-in. Royal Caribbean Will Not Allow Any Unvaccinated Guests Worldwide According to the statement made by Michael Bayley, Royal Caribbean will not be allowing any guests onboard who have not been. The Amex Platinum comes with access to a premium concierge service that can help you with everything from booking hard-to-get reservations to finding destination guides to help you plan out your next getaway. "I'm skeptical that's going to change in the real short term. When I learned that the line would be creating some separate spaces and mandating masks, I wondered if the rules would be enforced and, if so, how strictly. In addition to having more rules in place than some other cruise lines, Royal Caribbean also enforced those protocols more strictly, with crew checking for wristbands in vaccinated-only venues and checking for masks in indoor places accessible to everyone. Learn more. Lindblad, Silversea, Azamara cruise lines will require the additional COVID-19 vaccine dose for those eligible starting March 1. This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. Our goal has been to provide our readers with expansive coverage of all aspects of the Royal Caribbean experience. Plus Ups are excluded. Four major cruise lines are dropping their vaccination requirements for some sailings next month, the . This bracelet allowed me to access areas of the ship reserved for vaccinated passengers. The graphic below, produced by Statista, illustrates countries with the most COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100,000 people. If you need help with the Public File, call 407-291-6000. Crew members were also positioned at the entrances to restaurants, the theater and even at the Freestyle soda machines to push the buttons for passengers. The industry-wide trend comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officially ended its pandemic-era program for cruise ships last month. Travel + Leisure magazine may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. An attendant who was monitoring the entrance told me they were passengers waiting for their test results. (Photo by Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images) Due to changing vaccine regulations in the Bahamas, which is a frequent stop for many cruise lines, Royal Caribbean's policy for voyages leaving from Florida will now be the same as its policy for those from all other U.S. embarkation ports -- proof of inoculation is required -- from Sept. 3 through at least Nov. 1, 2021. CDC stops reporting coronavirus cases on cruise ships. 1:03 Royal Caribbean International is resuming cruises aimed at U.S. vacationers this summer - with a twist. The cruise company's new sailings from the Bahamas will require all adult guests "to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The change comes just over a week after Royal Caribbean first eased vaccine requirements for cruises departing from Los Angeles, Galveston, New Orleans, and any European homeport as well as weeks after Royal Caribbean eliminated testing for vaccinated passengers on shorter sailings. regardless of vaccination status, can cruise on the . At the same time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made its guidance optional for cruise lines and has warned against boarding a cruise ship at the moment, regardless of a person's vaccination status. Royal Caribbean no longer says Florida cruise passengers must receive the coronavirus vaccine, instead noting the shots are "strongly recommended." The reversal comes as Gov. Guests are also required to wear masks in all indoor public areas, in terminals, and during shore excursions, and take a COVID-19 rapid antigen test before boarding. Joe Raedle / Getty . Earn 5X Membership Rewards Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. In a press release Friday announcing . That appears to no longer be the case as the federal agency has shown: As of July 18, 2022, CDCs COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships is no longer in effect. On all itineraries departing Sept. 6 or later vaccinated guests will not need to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test except on cruises 16 days or longer, according to Carnival. This insurance would cover the cost of repatriation on a private charter flight and/or medical care if they tested positive during the sailing. The first to set sail will be the Freedom of the Seas ship out of Miami, Florida, on July 2. Passenger operations continue to be suspended during the initial phases of this Order. A blank Covid-19 vaccination record card; a filled-in version has become many people's prized possession. First and foremost, it's worth noting that. A line-by-line guide, 15 ways that cruising newbies waste money on their first cruise, Cruise hack: 6 ways to turn a voyage on a mass-market ship into a luxury experience, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. Travel + Leisure is published by Meredith Corporation under license from Travel + Leisure Co. Related: 15 ways that cruising newbies waste money on their first cruise. The SARS-CoV2 is still actively spreading in the U.S. and throughout different parts of the world. Speaking to Newsweek, a spokesperson for Royal Caribbean said that "vaccinations will be required for the upcoming sailings from [the] Bahamas and St. Where was one of the first places that SARS-CoV2 outbreaks were being noticed? Similarly, passengers 18 years old or older sailing from other international ports will also have to be fully vaccinated. For non-U.S. guests, the line will also accept Astra-Zeneca.". Alison Fox is a contributing writer for Travel + Leisure. It is typically fairly obvious if someone is wearing a slingshot mankini. Follow her adventures on Instagram. Our intention is to comply with all federal, state and local laws, she said via email. . Sign up for notifications from Insider! What if I am not feeling well in the days leading up to my cruise? Royal Caribbean's vaccine policies out of U.S. and Caribbean ports are remarkably consistent: For cruises from Seattle, guests who are 16 years of age or older must be fully vaccinated. Previously, the website said passengers 16 years old and older on all of the companys U.S. cruises had to meet the requirement. Going forward, the cruise line will make pre-departure. User @FunTimeFred1 wrote: "I'm 100% with you, Simone Any company that make this a requirement will go bust," in a reply to the message by @drsimonegold. The about-face is an apparent submission to Gov. Guests age 12 and up who are not fully vaccinated have 3 days to take a test before their cruise, regardless the duration of the cruise. Royal Caribbean Group CEO Jason Liberty spoke about the change during an earnings call with investors earlier this year and said the change is a move to be more like other forms of leisure travel, such as theme parks, casinos, or air travel. Thats Credit ranges are a variation of FICO Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application. Check directly with your cruise line about their COVID-19 testing or vaccination protocols before travel. While Americans filled arenas for concerts and sporting events, theme parks operated without any restrictions, and pretty much every business returned to normal, the CDC kept its thumb on the cruise industry. However, it shied away from creating a blanket COVID-19 vaccine mandate for guests, although the cruise line previously said it would expect crew members to be vaccinated before sailings return. That's likely only partly true because Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian, and the rest of the industry must also be protective of optics -- they want the easiest, most inclusive rules, but they also want customers to feel safe. To find out more about the new guidelines issued, click here. "Cruise passengers are at increased risk of person-to-person spread of infectious diseases, including COVID-19, and outbreaks of COVID-19 have been reported on cruise ships," the CDC warns. The CDC has dropped its voluntary program to monitor cruise ships. The cruise company's new sailings from the Bahamas will require all adult guests "to be . . The most important change may be the following: Guests who are not vaccinated can sail on any cruise from the U.S. or Europe (*except. Cruises from Australia are also not included in this policy change. Royal Caribbean has made it a practice to provide periodic . Caribbean. Samantha started at WKMG-TV in September 2020. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) - Royal Caribbean clarified its vaccine policy this week, stating that it will require certain guests to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 on cruises departing. This includes more contagious variants that now have sorority and fraternity sounding names, as I recently covered for Forbes. All guests aged 4 and older are required to have a negative COVID-19 test before boarding. ", Have our travel agency partner get you a free quote for a Royal Caribbean cruise. This card comes with a long list of benefits, including access to Centurion Lounges, complimentary elite status with Hilton and Marriott, at least $500 in assorted annual statement credits and so much more. I am a writer, journalist, professor, systems modeler, computational and digital health expert, avocado-eater, and entrepreneur, not always in that order. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

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