Royal Caribbean, Celebrity dropping vaccine requirement for select cruises

Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises are dropping their vaccine requirements for cruises leaving from select homeports in the U.S. and Europe starting in September.

According to an update posted to Royal Caribbean’s website, a COVID-19 vaccination is not required for sailings departing from home ports in California, Louisiana or Texas on or after Sept. 5, 2022. 

“Royal Caribbean still strongly recommends that guests are fully vaccinated, if eligible, with the final dose administered at least 14 days before sailing,” the company notes.

For these sailings, documentation of vaccination is not required to board, but the cruise line says it will ask passengers to disclose their vaccination status during check-in.

READ MORE: Norwegian, Regent, Oceania will drop vaccine mandate on Sept. 3

“We recommend you bring your vaccination documentation with you, in case authorities or local businesses in a destination request to see it,” the cruise line says.

Guests who are not fully vaccinated will need to bring a negative test result for any COVID-19 test taken within the three days before boarding day.

Guests that are not up to date on their vaccination per EMA standards will need to take a COVID-19 test aboard to get off in Greece or Spain, the company said.

Click here for Royal Caribbean’s testing requirements FAQ.

Similarly, Celebrity Cruises, which is part of the Royal Caribbean Group, is also relaxing some of its vaccination requirement so “everyone can sail with us, once again,” according to an update posted to the company’s website.

Beginning Sept. 5, 2022, all Celebrity Cruises travellers, regardless of vaccination status, can sail on the following itineraries as long as they meet any testing requirements to board:

• All sailings departing from the UK and Europe (with the exception of Iceland)
• All sailings departing from Los Angeles

For all other sailings, guests are invited to visit Celebrity’s Country Travel Requirements page for the country of embarkation for more information regarding vaccination age requirements.

The updates come after three brands with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings – Norwegian Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises – announced an industry-first change on Aug. 8, dropping vaccinate mandates for sailings that commence on or after Sept. 3, 2022 (with some exceptions).

Vaccinated guests aged 12 and older will no longer have any pre-cruise COVID-19 related protocols whereas unvaccinated guests, aged 12 and older, or those who cannot or decline to provide proof of vaccination, will need to present a negative PCR or antigen COVID-19 test taken no more than 72 hours prior to boarding, the company said.

The changes come following the CDC ending its Cruise Ship COVID-19 program.

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