Fully vaccinated passengers won’t have to wear their masks when outdoors according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control & Prevention. “Cruise ship operators, at their discretion, may advise passengers and crew that—if they are fully vaccinated—they may gather or conduct activities outdoors, including engaging in extended meal service or beverage consumption, without wearing a mask except in crowded settings,” according to the CDC’s updated rules for cruise ships.
Under these new guidelines, fully vaccinated travelers can “engage in self-guided or independent exploration during port stops, if they wear a mask while indoors.” Recently, Norwegian Cruise Line announced a similar policy, allowing guests to explore ports on their own after initially requiring them to book through the cruise line. When Norwegian resumes sailing this summer, all guests will have to be fully vaccinated before boarding. They will reevaluate this requirement on or before October 31, 2021. Royal Caribean announced that masks will not be required at Royal Caribbean’s private island Perfect Day At Coco Cay.
This will open the way for cruises to restart out of the U.S. this summer. While several cruise lines including Royal Caribbean Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Holland America Cruises, Crystal Cruises and Seabourn Cruises have already announced they were resuming cruises from the Bahamas, Bermuda and Greece, others, particularly Carnival, had not made that move. Carnival Cruises now hopes to resume from Florida & Texas with the Carnival Horizon, Carnival Vista and Carnival Breeze. We update our post When Will Cruises Resume 2021 as information is released.
