People should avoid cruise ship travel even if they are vaccinated
CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) increased the risk level for cruise ship travel to its highest level and said it should be avoided by everyone, even those who are vaccinated and boosted.
The agency bumped up the travel risk level for cruise travel from Level 3 to Level 4 on Dec. 30, indicating the risk for COVID- 19 is “very high.” The move “reflects increases in cases onboard cruise ships since identification of the Omicron variant,” according to cdc.gov, the CDC’s website.
In addition to including cruise travel in its wider list of travel advisories looking at countries worldwide, the agency has created a color status classification for cruise ships.
On Dec. 30, the agency listed 91 ships in its yellow category that indicates that the volume of COVID cases reported has met the CDC’s threshold for investigation.
As of Dec. 30, no ships were listed as red, which indicates that reported cases are at or above the threshold for investigation.
Three ships were listed as orange on Dec. 30, indicating that reported cases are below the CDC’s threshold for investigation. Sixteen ships were listed as green, meaning that the ships had no reported cases of COVID-19.
Green, orange, yellow and red designations indicate a ship’s COVID situation from best to worst. A gray designation is reserved for ships that the CDC has not reviewed for COVID safety.
Last week, four ocean cruise ships were turned away from ports of call or were prohibited from letting passengers disembark in the Americas this week because of COVID-19 cases aboard.
Advice for People Who Decide to Cruise Anyway
While the CDC says to “avoid cruise travel, regardless of vaccination status,” it advises those who do travel on a cruise ship to make sure they are fully vaccinated and boosted, if eligible.
People who go on a cruise should also get tested one to three days before their trip, and three to five days after, regardless of vaccination status.
The unvaccinated should also self-quarantine for a five full days after. People on cruise ships should also wear masks in shared places, according to the CDC.
Most cruise lines are requiring all or most passengers and crew to be vaccinated, in compliance with a CDC Conditional Sailing Order that was implemented to allow cruise operations to resume more than a year after the industry came to a standstill at the start of the pandemic. Many cruise lines also require pre-departure testing, regardless of vaccination status. Some lines, including Royal Caribbean, require all passengers 2 and older to be masked in indoor public areas, except while actively eating and drinking.
Before coronavirus variants brought a rise in breakthrough cases among the vaccinated, some lines did not require vaccinated passengers to wear masks in areas reserved for vaccinated guests.
