Booking Your Cruise Amid Covid Travel Restrictions
Booking your cruise can be daunting, even for the most experienced traveler. Last July, I sailed on one of the first fully vaccinated cruises, sailing from Saint Martin with Celebrity Cruises. I learned a lot when confronting many complications and changing rules of cruise travel during coronavirus. For smoother sailing with your cruise travel plans, I’m sharing what I learned, nine tips on how to book your cruise with coronavirus travel restrictions.
And it will all be worth it – I know.
Cruise Travel and Covid Restrictions Today
In 2021 and into 2022, cruise travel will be less cumbersome, cleaner and calmer, yet coronavirus travel restrictions are here to stay.
According to Forbes, as of September 2021, we face as many global Covid travel restrictions as in 2020. And many travel bans are here to stay.
In 2020, cruise lines took a disastrous hit during the pandemic to the tune of $77 billion worldwide. In ports around the world, empty cruise vessels are languishing in the water. But the cruise industry is ramping up, placing more vessels back into service every month.
Flexibility is key here, forcing every traveler to go with the flow until this pandemic winds down.
And that may take a long, long while.
To help you easily book your own cruise amid Covid restrictions today, check out these nine tips on how to book your cruise with coronavirus travel restrictions.
1. Is Your Cruise Ship Safe?
First, before you book, find out if your cruise ship meets health and safety standards. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) tracks and rates all cruise ships on this table.
Updated several times a week, the CDC assigns each ship with a color status—green, orange, yellow, red or gray – based on data collected over the last seven days as well as from CDC investigations.
2. Know Your Cruise Line Covid Restrictions
I learned that there’s very real risk of being denied boarding at the ship dock if I missed a single Covid restriction.
Do not miss a single Covid restriction. Be aware of your cruise line’s Covid restrictions and requirements for:
- Booking info provided
- Vaccination and testing
- Unvaccinated exemptions
- Travel Insurance
- Doctor’s note
- Shore excursions
To get an idea of what to track, check out Carnival’s Covid-19 Guest Protocols.
Expect Coronavirus Travel Restrictions Whether Vaccinated or Unvaccinated
All cruise lines require passengers to be vaccinated at least two weeks prior to sailing. Except for Celebrity (see below).
Coronavirus restrictions for cruises are ever-changing, following US rules and the rules of the destinations on ship itineraries. Some cruise lines limit vaccination requirements on certain cruises while others require daily Covid tests while sailing.
Whether vaccinated or not, negative Covid tests are required before boarding. And your final destination may require a negative Covid test a day or two before disembarkation. If found positive, foreign countries may require a mandatory quarantine upon entry at your expense.
To stay abreast of your cruise line’s changing policies, follow this TravelAge West page, which is updated frequently.
Note for Canadian and international passengers: For cruises leaving the U.S., the CDC requires a 2-dose series vaccines to be of the same type. For example, you can mix your Pfizer and Moderna vaccine doses. But if you’ve got a combo of AstraZeneca and Pfizer, you’re considered unvaccinated by the CDC.
And by your cruise line.
Carnival Cruise News on Unvaccinated Exemptions
Carnival allows unvaccinated passengers aboard with a very small number of exemptions for:
- Children under 12
- Teens and adults with medical conditions providing written confirmation from their medical provider that they cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons
After booking a cruise, you will not be guaranteed boarding. Instead, you’ll be put a waitlist for a pre-approval to board until you meet strict testing protocols. Complicated? Yes.
Also, mandatory travel insurance and/or a doctor’s note may be required, depending on the state where your cruise departs.
Unvaccinated Cruise Passengers Are Treated Differently On Board
During my Celebrity cruise, an unnamed Celebrity ship officer told me how unvaccinated passengers are treated differently aboard Florida-based ships.
For example, unvaccinated passengers may be separated from the vaccinated just like the old days of smoking and non-smoking sections. Or find that some activities or shore excursions are open only to the vaccinated.
This is true, according to Carnival’s guest protocols page.
“If you chose to board unvaccinated (even if tested negative), you may be segregated from the vaccinated on your ship during some activities or events or prevented from participating at all.” – Carnival
These ‘Unvaccinated Guest’ protocols may:
- Restrict your access to select areas of the ship
- Require dining in designated socially-distanced areas
- Prevent disembarkation in the Bahamas except on cruise line-organized shore excursions
Will Cruise Lines Require Vaccines in the Future?
With the rise of the Delta variant, unvaccinated passengers may be banned in the future. According to Travel and Leisure and TravelAge West, cruise lines may soon require proof of vaccination for all passengers.
Cruise Line Coronavirus Restrictions for Children
Cruise line policies for kids testing negative for Covid test range from allowing unvaccinated children under 12 on board, such as Disney Cruise Line. Or only allowing children 16 or older on board. Or banning children 12 and under altogether.
If your cruise line is vague about their children policy, call for clarification before booking.
Expect Contact Tracing Aboard Ship
I was surprised when Celebrity Cruises asked me to slap a blue plastic monitoring bracelet on my wrist for contact tracing during my weeklong cruise. These still experimental wristlets track where guests have been on a ship and any exposure to a known positive case on board.
However, during my cruise, I saw few wristlets on wrists. I opted to carry it with me, only removing it while swimming or in the ocean. Cruise lines seem to adopt and then abandon the wristlet but you may have to wear one.
3. Know Your Cruise Line’s Refund and Cancellation Policy for Covid
If you must cancel or interrupt a cruise if get sick, exposed to or are quarantined due to Covid, some cruise lines offer full refunds and others only a Full Cruise Credit. Same with government shutdowns causing a cruise line to cancel your cruise.
Policies vary across the board, depending on the line. According to the generous Celebrity Cruises’ refund and cancellation policy, if you test positive for Covid on a Celebrity cruise, the line will cover your Covid treatment cost, a land-based quarantine and you and your party’s travel home.
So study your cruise lines’ policies well.
4. Get Travel Insurance For Your Cruise with Coronavirus Travel Restrictions
Your cruise line may offer generous travel insurance. Just be sure to read the fine print.
And make sure your travel insurance covers medical care overseas. In most countries, travelers usually pay for their hospital and other medical expenses out of pocket.
And, in case a country overwhelmed with Covid cannot help you, consider buying additional insurance to cover your emergency evacuation to the US.
Enroll in the US State Department Smart Traveler Enrollment Program
Enroll with the Department of State’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) here. Benefits include:
- Getting important Embassy information about safety conditions in your destination for informed travel decisions
- Helping the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency
- Helping family and friends find you in an emergency
5. You’ll Juggle Many Details for Your Cruise with Coronavirus Restrictions
“Failure to comply with pre-cruise information requests on a timely basis will result in cancellation.” – Carnival cruise line’s pre-boarding info
During a stressful week before my cruise, I juggled endless details to meet Covid restrictions, signing online forms, calculating Covid testing windows, making test appointments, and re-confirming airline flights. Bring both printed and digitized documents with you since some places want a digital copy and others a hard copy.
Expect To Do Math
My Celebrity cruise required a negative Covid PCR test 72 hours before sailing. And to enter the island of Saint Martin, where my cruise departed, I needed a negative Covid test within 120 hours before arrival.
To get test results in time, I needed test results within 24 hours to allow for a false positive test. So my neighborhood CVS was out – the chain cannot guarantee results within 24 hours.
Instead, I paid a private outfit for a parking lot test for results guaranteed within 24 hours. This allowed enough time to fill out Saint Martin’s online form and submit my negative test results 24 hours before arriving to get a pre-approval for entry.
Complicated? Yes. But still worth it.
Confirm and Re-Confirm – Right Up Until Departure
Travel plans and instructions can change as restrictions arise or are abandoned, especially during the Delta variant era. Expect to long hold times on the phone with your airline, the cruise line or travel agency.
Expect Misinformation and Airline Schedule Changes
A week before departure, Celebrity Cruises sent an email cancelling my cruise; one frantic phone call confirmed their mistake. I was good to go.
As airlines ramp up after lockdowns, recall crews back to duty and place grounded airliners back in service, over-booked flights are common.
And there’s no guarantee that you wouldn’t get involuntarily bumped and miss your ship departure. Again, this is where good travel insurance kicks in.
Until everything shakes out, expect snags in service and flight changes.
6. Helpful Links on the Latest Coronavirus Travel Restrictions
The helpful links below should make your cruise travel easier.
CDC Cruise News
Check out this Center for Disease Control (CDC) website for current cruise travel recommendations, how to stay safe, Delta variant updates and infection risks, regardless of vaccination status.
The CDC recommends that cruise travelers are fully vaccinated against Covid before traveling on a cruise ship.
“According to the CDC, travelers at an increased risk of severe illness from Covid should avoid travel on cruise ships, including river cruises, worldwide, regardless of vaccination status.”
US State Covid Travel Restrictions
Before flying, check out these travel restrictions by state tracked by United Airlines. As of this writing, only Hawaii and Kansas restrict travel.
Royal Caribbean Blog
This newsy, unofficial blog and its forums are a great resource if cruising on RCL as well as Celebrity and Silversea cruises. Track any fast-moving changes or follow live blogs from current cruises.
Carnival Cruise News
If cruising on the world’s most popular cruise line, find out about travel alerts, itinerary changes and advisories.
Cruise Critic Message Boards
Get updated info at Cruise Critic and its forums about new restrictions, itinerary changes, the latest shutdowns and more.
7. Medical Resources for Healthy Cruise Travel During Covid
To protect yourself while traveling, check out the coronavirus travel medical advice sites below:
Mayo Clinic Coronavirus Travel Advice
Cleveland Clinic On Protecting Yourself While Traveling
8. Packing For A Cruise With Coronavirus Restrictions
When packing for your cruise, be sure to include your essential safe-travel supplies, such as:
- Any medicines needed on your cruise
- Medical insurance card
- Vaccination card
- Face masks
- Tissues
- Alcohol-based hand sanitizer (at least 60% alcohol)
- Disinfectant wipes for surfaces (at least 70% alcohol)
- Thermometer
9. Expect Unsafe Crowds, Long Lines, and No Food En Route to Your Port
You won’t escape long lines and crowds traveling to and from your port. Prepare for packed jetways and long counter lines.
During your flight don’t expect to get fed nor find any restaurants open in airport terminals. After a meal-less flight, I found many closed restaurants in Miami’s airport nothing and long lines at what was open.
Local restaurant policies differ and airport websites aren’t helpful about open or closed restaurants. So come prepared with water, snacks and meals in your carry on, just in case.
Hopefully you feel comfortable now with my nine tips for booking your cruise with coronavirus restrictions.
Will it all be worth this trouble? I say yes!
So here’s to wishing you full sails and a strong breeze on your next cruise adventure.
