With more and more cruise lines phasing out pre-cruise COVID-19 testing for shorter voyages, it can be confusing which cruises still require tests not because of the length of the voyage, but because of the ports that will be visited .
Carnival Cruise Line has clarified which cruises, even short ones, still require all guests to have a negative test result before departure.
Testing is still required for popular destinations
In a post on his Facebook page, Carnival Cruise Line brand ambassador John Heald clarified that all guests, regardless of vaccination status, must still have a negative pre-cruise COVID-19 test before sailing. to some destinations, regardless of length. of navigation.
“I’m here to help as many of you as I can and of course the fluid situation we find ourselves in in the cruise industry was made abundantly clear again last night with the latest news on testing.” Heald saidnoting that different cruise lines have different requirements.
Heald went on to simplify Carnival Cruise Line’s testing requirements, stating that testing is still required for all passengers on all cruises, regardless of length, calling at any port in BermudaBahamas, or Grand Cayman.
To be clear, cruises sailing to Kings Wharf (Bermuda) as well as George Town (Grand Cayman) still require pre-sailing testing.
Similarly, all cruises to every port of call in the Bahamas – Nassau, Freeport, Bimini and even the cruise line’s private island destinations, Half Moon Cay or Princess Cays – require all passengers to have a negative test result before departure.
It does not matter if the cruise has other ports on its itinerary; if the cruise visits any of the ports listed above, tests are still required at this time.
This clarification comes just days before Carnival Cruise Line the new testing protocols take effect on August 4which say testing is no longer required for fully vaccinated guests on cruises of five days or less.
However, guests booked on short cruises should not updated protocols clearly state that the requirements apply “unless the destination requirements change” – distinction that is made several times in the cruise line Have fun. Be sure. the protocols page.
“I know this is disappointing news. Heald said. “This was certainly not what we wanted, but proof once again that we must adhere to the ever-changing rules and requirements of the countries we visit.”
On all cruises of six nights or longer, pre-sailing tests are still required for all passengers, regardless of ports of call, port of embarkation or vaccination status.
Short cruises that do NOT require testing
This clarification may be disappointing to a number of guests booked on short 3-4 night cruises, as many of those cruises only sail to the Bahamas. Due to destination requirements, those cruises still require a pre-sailing test.
There are several Carnival cruise options coming in the coming weeks that will not require testing for vaccinated guests, however, such as:
- 5-night Western Caribbean cruises from New Orleans aboard Carnival Couragemobile phone on Carnival ecstasyor Galveston in Carnival breeze that call at Cozumel and Progreso or Costa Maya, Mexico
- 5-Night Western Caribbean Cruises from Tampa Carnival Paradise visiting Mahogany Bay, Honduras and Cozumel, Mexico
- 5-night Western Caribbean cruises from Port Canaveral aboard Carnival Freedom visiting Amber Cove and Grand Turk
- 4-night Baja Mexico itinerary from Long Beach on board Carnival radiation visiting Ensenada and Catalina
- 3-4-night Baja Mexico cruises from San Francisco on board The miracle of carnivals or from Long Beach aboard Carnival radiation calling only Ensenada, Mexico
- 4-night Western Caribbean cruises from New Orleans aboard Carnival Courage or from Tampa aboard Carnival Paradiseonly visiting Cozumel, Mexico
- 4-night Western Caribbean cruises from Miami aboard Invasion of carnivals or Dawn of the Carnival visiting Key West and Cozumel
These short itineraries still offer guests a variety of cruise vacation options on many different Cruise Ships if they prefer not to test before sailing.
Test instructions that differ on other cruise lines
While some other cruise lines have also begun to waive pre-cruise testing requirements for shorter cruises, including MSC Cruises (cruises from August 8) as well as Royal Caribbean International and its sister lines, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea (cruising from August 8), testing remains in place for most longer itineraries.
Guests booked on any future cruises should stay in close contact with their cruise line as their departure date approaches, as protocols will likely continue to evolve and testing requirements may continue to change with notice. short at scheduled ports of call.
