What are the chances Carnival or any cruise line eliminates Vaccine mandates?

[cruisingguy007]

48 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

The ports and other countries absolutely make a difference. And with Covid cases on the rise again in other countries (like UK) it is again premature to declare the pandemic over.

 

Agree with this 100%. 

[jimbo5544]

More good news.  The cdc continues to loosen the parameters around the cruise industry.  Kudos to the industry for proving they can and do maintain controls of their industry.   

[BlerkOne]

On 3/14/2022 at 6:55 AM, jimbo5544 said:

Israel has led the way in many aspects with covid.  They were pre curve in many aspects as well.  They also now accept non vaccinated travelers.  The US will not follow for a TON of reasons, but the ops question is an interesting one.

Israel is now on a second booster. The US will follow that.

 

Israel does indeed now allow unvaccinated tourists, but still has a ton of restrictions in place for the unvaxxed, including 2 PCR tests.

[jetsfan58]

Some of us that have family members with underlying conditions have never had the choice of getting vaccinated and boosted. Its become a way of life for that population. I applaud Carnival for continuing to require the testing prior to Cruising. Hopefully they will eventually be in a position to move away from this mandate. Now is not he time with the new strains appearing everyday week/month.            

[JerseyGirlJen]

I'm hoping by the end of 2023/2024, but time will tell.

[MoCruiseFan]

On 3/10/2022 at 11:43 AM, goracer6 said:

Our family was hoping to cruise soon but the cruise vaccine mandates are making it nearly impossible to cruise with kids that have not had the shot. It seems that cruising is the only place I am aware of that still requires proof. Since restaurants, schools, hotels, airlines, and amusement parks do not require proof, do the cruise lines follow soon? 

Just seeing if anyone had any insight on the possibility of the cruise lines lifting the requirement. 

Cheers and sail on friends! 

 

 

Eventually they all will.  The question is not if the mandates will be lifted, teh question is WHEN they will be. 

[bucfan2]

17 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

The US will follow that.

 

Doubtful (at best) for the majority.

Edited March 21, 2022 by bucfan2

[skridge]

On 3/10/2022 at 11:43 AM, goracer6 said:

Our family was hoping to cruise soon but the cruise vaccine mandates are making it nearly impossible to cruise with kids that have not had the shot. It seems that cruising is the only place I am aware of that still requires proof. Since restaurants, schools, hotels, airlines, and amusement parks do not require proof, do the cruise lines follow soon? 

Just seeing if anyone had any insight on the possibility of the cruise lines lifting the requirement. 

Cheers and sail on friends! 

Hopefully never.  Unfortunately, many that cruise think that vaccine mandates are stomping on there freedom, even though many vaccines have been mandated in the past.  I think eventually the cruise lines will have to relent.  If your kids are not old enough to get the shots you can get an exemption and I think they have stopped requiring the bubble tours in most ports.  

[bmc alabama]

I do think that recovered should be added to vaccinated. I think the studies have shown that natural immunity from a recovered infection is very strong against hospitalization/death as well.

[satxdiver]

4 hours ago, skridge said:

Hopefully never.  Unfortunately, many that cruise think that vaccine mandates are stomping on there freedom, even though many vaccines have been mandated in the past.  I think eventually the cruise lines will have to relent.  If your kids are not old enough to get the shots you can get an exemption and I think they have stopped requiring the bubble tours in most ports.  

I am with you on this.  I have had many vaccinations all the way back to polio soon after it was authorized.  I received my first two jabs within a week after it was authorized to my group and received the third jab one day after it was authorized.  My freedom is staying healthy and not infecting my fellow people.  

[nol4am]

I think the required Negative test before a cruise is the only thing needed. The vaccine is pointless really (when it comes to cruising) as far as spreading the virus. I am vaccinated to be clear and do like knowing everyone else (most) are vaccinated but in reality, it only really matters to a person is if everyone is Nagative when boarding. 

Edited March 21, 2022 by nol4am

[nol4am]

Double post sorry

Edited March 21, 2022 by nol4am

[snowballs mom]

It may be quite a while. I just returned from a month of cruising the Bahamas and southern Caribbean on Carnival and Celebrity. All ports required that passengers be vaccinated and all required that we carry a copy of our vaccination card at the minimum. In Bonaire we needed to provide the original card that was checked by their security before we could exit the port. Celebrity had dropped their mask requirements for passengers just before we boarded, but many of the countries we visited still had them in place, some even requiring them outside.

[cruisingguy007]

1 hour ago, snowballs mom said:

It may be quite a while. I just returned from a month of cruising the Bahamas and southern Caribbean on Carnival and Celebrity. All ports required that passengers be vaccinated and all required that we carry a copy of our vaccination card at the minimum. In Bonaire we needed to provide the original card that was checked by their security before we could exit the port. Celebrity had dropped their mask requirements for passengers just before we boarded, but many of the countries we visited still had them in place, some even requiring them outside.

 

Is there a list somewhere of ports of call that require them outside? How/when did you find out that they were required?  

[snowballs mom]

10 minutes ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

Is there a list somewhere of ports of call that require them outside? How/when did you find out that they were required?  

We were notified on the cruise ship at the start of each cruise. Our Elation cruise was first on Feb. 14th, and I don't remember if the information was posted on Carnival's website. Our Celebrity B2B started on Feb. 20th, and they do have the information on their website somewhere. The requirements for some ports did change after we left (additional ports allowed fully vaccinated passengers to tour independently). Celebrity supplied us with a printout of each port's requirements at the start of each cruise, mentioned requirements each port day with the announcement we could go ashore, and also had the requirements stated in their daily schedules each port day.

Edited March 21, 2022 by snowballs mom

[ledges1]

1 hour ago, snowballs mom said:

It may be quite a while. I just returned from a month of cruising the Bahamas and southern Caribbean on Carnival and Celebrity. All ports required that passengers be vaccinated and all required that we carry a copy of our vaccination card at the minimum. In Bonaire we needed to provide the original card that was checked by their security before we could exit the port. Celebrity had dropped their mask requirements for passengers just before we boarded, but many of the countries we visited still had them in place, some even requiring them outside.

Can you be more specific about ports. I have been to St Maarten, St Kitts, Amber Cove (DR), Cozumel , Costa Maya and San Juan between 1/26 and 3/6. Only San Juan said you may need your CDC card to enter some establishments. I saw only  one restaurant requiring the card in SJ. I did not go in.  Other bars and restaurants  did not require it. Just curious, it would help people to know which ports other than Bonaire. Thanks.

[RichYak]

2 hours ago, nol4am said:

The vaccine is pointless really (when it comes to cruising) as far as spreading the virus.

The vaccine requirement on cruise ships is not intended to reduce spread. It's meant to reduce the potential need for advanced medical attention for passengers who test positive on board. In that respect, there is a point to it, though much less so now with less severe variants.

[cruisingguy007]

7 minutes ago, ledges1 said:

Can you be more specific about ports. I have been to St Maarten, St Kitts, Amber Cove (DR), Cozumel , Costa Maya and San Juan between 1/26 and 3/6. Only San Juan said you may need your CDC card to enter some establishments. I saw only  one restaurant requiring the card in SJ. I did not go in.  Other bars and restaurants  did not require it. Just curious, it would help people to know which ports other than Bonaire. Thanks.

 

Carnival should have this info for passengers somewhere on it's website or listed in pre-cruise emails that they send out. I can't find it anywhere. It is kind of frustrating having to rely on second hand information and not knowing ahead of time for planning purposes. 

[famof4togo]

48 minutes ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

Is there a list somewhere of ports of call that require them outside? How/when did you find out that they were required?  

Agreed!  There should be a list of which ports require masks and which ports require vaccine cards to be shown....that way we don't get caught off guard and have to go back to our rooms etc....

[braveslake]

We just  cruised last week to Cozumel, Costa Maya, Roatan, and Belize. Masks were "required" in all of those ports by the countries. We wore them but the majority did not. They did have masks at debarkation if you needed them. Belize required a copy of the vaccine record according to our CD. We did a beach shore tour directly from the ship so did not encounter that. Maybe someone who went into the port can clarify if they actually checked them. Hope that helps. 

Edited March 21, 2022 by braveslake

[BlerkOne]

1 minute ago, cruisingguy007 said:

 

Carnival should have this info for passengers somewhere on it's website or listed in pre-cruise emails that they send out. I can't find it anywhere. It is kind of frustrating having to rely on second hand information and not knowing ahead of time for planning purposes. 

Actually they shouldn't, because it would be almost impossible for Carnival to keep the website up to date with all information for all ports. i think most countries Carnival visits have their own websites with their information. But since things change, best to prepare for anything and those without flexibility should wait until less volatile times.

[snowballs mom]

8 minutes ago, ledges1 said:

Can you be more specific about ports. I have been to St Maarten, St Kitts, Amber Cove (DR), Cozumel , Costa Maya and San Juan between 1/26 and 3/6. Only San Juan said you may need your CDC card to enter some establishments. I saw only  one restaurant requiring the card in SJ. I did not go in.  Other bars and restaurants  did not require it. Just curious, it would help people to know which ports other than Bonaire. Thanks.

I'm sorry, but I am old and don't remember the specifics. We were cruising from Feb. 14th through March 13th. We were told to have paper copies or electronic copies (photos on our phones) in most ports. We were having difficulties with independent excursions being canceled, so almost everything we booked was through the cruise line and we just followed their directions regarding masking. We had tours in St. Lucia, Dominica, St. Croix, St. Kitts, Barbados, Curacao, Aruba and Bonaire and were off the ship independently in Amber Cove and Nassau. Bonaire was the only port where we had to show them our original card. No one else checked. Mask requirements were different everywhere and most likely have changed by now. Please keep in mind that requirements seem to change on a daily basis.

[BlerkOne]

5 minutes ago, famof4togo said:

Agreed!  There should be a list of which ports require masks and which ports require vaccine cards to be shown....that way we don't get caught off guard and have to go back to our rooms etc....

All of the cruises I have been on since the restart have Good To Know flyers in the cabins with current information.

[cruisingguy007]

Just now, BlerkOne said:

Actually they shouldn't, because it would be almost impossible for Carnival to keep the website up to date with all information for all ports. i think most countries Carnival visits have their own websites with their information. But since things change, best to prepare for anything and those without flexibility should wait until less volatile times.

 

"It's too hard" isn't good justification, they seem to be able to update their Have Fun be safe protocols just fine. Just updated again today in fact.  

[Joe817]

14 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

Actually they shouldn't, because it would be almost impossible for Carnival to keep the website up to date with all information for all ports. i think most countries Carnival visits have their own websites with their information. But since things change, best to prepare for anything and those without flexibility should wait until less volatile times.

^^^^^This! Carnival cannot be expected to keep of all of the ports of call they go to, totally up to date, with protocols changing almost daily, and certainly monthly!

 

Why don't you do what I do before a cruise? Go to the countries Ministry of Tourism' website so you can read for yourself, and be confident that what it has to say is the final word. Works for me!