Federal fitness officials are abandoning the caution they’ve had with cruising since the pandemic began, leaving it up to travelers if they feel safe boarding a ship.
Cruise operators welcomed the announcement, which came as many other people were thinking about summer vacation plans.
An industry organization said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention resolution validated the measures that have been taken, adding that team members and as many passengers as possible should be vaccinated against the virus.
The CDC got rid of the COVID-19 “Cruise Travel Health Advisory” that was first imposed in March 2020, after virus outbreaks on several ships around the world.
However, he has expressed reservations about the cruise.
“While cruise ships will continue to pose a threat of COVID-19 transmission, users will do their own threat assessment when choosing to travel on a cruise ship, just as they do in all other contexts,” CDC spokesman Dave Daigle said in an email.
Daigle said the CDC resolution was based on “the current state of the pandemic and the reduction in COVID-19 cases aboard cruise ships in recent weeks. “
States have canceled mask-wearing orders, pressuring federal officials to ease restrictions related to the virus.
Outbreaks continue to be reported on cruise ships, which conduct random testing before it ends.
On Sunday, a Princess Cruises ship returning from the Panama Canal had “several” passengers who had been tested for the virus. Princess Cruises said all affected passengers had mild symptoms or no symptoms, and that all team members and passengers had been vaccinated. A dozen passengers were tested before the same ship docked in San Francisco in January.
Operators must notify CDC of virus cases on board ships. The company has a color-coded formula for classifying ships based on the percentage of passengers who test positive. The CDC said the formula remains in place.
Cruise ship shipping operators have complained since the beginning of the pandemic that their industry has been flagged for a lockdown and then stricter COVID-19 restrictions than others, adding airlines.
The Cruise Lines International Association said in a statement that the CDC’s resolution to remove its fitness warning “recognizes the effective public fitness measures in place on cruise ships and begins to flag the playbox between cruise ships and similar destinations on land. “
Colleen McDaniel, editor-in-chief of Cruise Critic, a site that publishes reviews, called the CDC resolution great news.
“Symbolically, it’s a wind of change when it comes to cruise ships,” he said. “I think it would possibly convince some of the skeptics. What the CDC says is vital for cruise ships. “