Going on a cruise?  As policies evolve, your children will likely have to be vaccinated in order to sail.

If you want to board a cruise in the US right now, and you’re at least 12 years old, you’ve got to be vaccinated.  What exactly does it mean, though, to “be vaccinated”?  It turns out, the definition varies, and it kept some would-be-cruisers from setting sail, especially Canadians.  That is, until now.  Because so many things have changed recently, it's easy to get confused, so let's review vaccine requirements for cruisers...

In an announcement leading to changes at many cruise lines, the Bahamian Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis signed an emergency powers order that prohibits cruise ships from entering Bahamian ports unless all persons 12 and older are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

Sunday evening a US District judge granted a preliminary injunction to stop Florida's so called "vaccine passport ban".  The Florida law, until now, prohibited businesses (including cruise lines) from denying service to customers if they couldn't provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination. Businesses violating the law were subject to a $5,000 fine per instance.  Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, originally filed a suit on the matter in July of this year.

The count is over, at four hundred and ninety-two days.  That’s how long Virgin Voyages, the newest cruise line, just for adults, was delayed in setting sail due to the pandemic.  In early 2020 many were eagerly awaiting the April 1 maiden voyage, but the change of date was no joke.  For a group of lucky British sailors (that’s what Virgin Voyages calls guests), they set sail today from...

Last week we saw Royal Caribbean and Celebrity begin requiring pre-embarkation COVID testing regardless of vaccination status, and now Carnival Corporation has announced the same for their three major North American brands.  Further, they've updated their guest mask policies...

The last time a large cruise ship was in Alaska was September of 2019 - until now.  That might not matter to some, but if you’re one of the 8,500 residents of Sitka, AK, the return of cruising is the ability to breathe again.  Just like when cruising returned to the Caribbean in early June of 2021, it was Royal Caribbean Group that was first to bring that oxygen to the community, this time in the Last Frontier, with Serenade of the Seas and her 2,143 guests.

The return to service for cruise lines has just begun, but despite the significant logistics involved, things are starting to move quickly.  One of the largest and best known lines, Carnival Cruise Line, has announced that they'll be brining even more ships back in September and October - with a total of 15 vessels sailing, and plans to have the rest sailing by the end of the year...

Florida is home to the three busiest cruise ports in the world, so a safe return to cruising is in the best interest of the state.  Despite this, and the overwhelming evidence that vaccines play a critical role in a "return to normal", Florida imposes significant fines each time a business requires proof that a patron is vaccinated.  Now, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (parent company to NCL, Regent Seven Seas, and Oceania Cruises), is suing Florida over this so called "vaccine passport ban", and the entire industry will be watching...

On June 26 Celebrity Edge became the first cruise ship to sail from the US in over 15 months.  We’ve been on board four days now, and as a cruise blogger, I keep getting asked about restrictions.  This makes sense, as myself and every other traveler with a keyboard has been trying to predict the future for a year – and we were all wrong...