The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has slightly eased its cruise warnings.
For example, it recommended that only fully vaccinated people take trips when sailings resume from US ports shortly instead of the banning cruises outright.
Also recommended was that travellers get tested one to three days before their trips and three to five days after trips.
The health regulator’s updates, first posted on 16th June, came after two passengers on Royal Caribbean’s ’Celebrity Millennium’ tested positive, and cases of infection were recorded among crew members on board ‘Odyssey of the Seas’, forcing the delay of her first trip.
“Since the virus spreads more easily between people in close quarters on board ships, the chance of getting COVID-19 on cruise ships is high. It is especially important that people who are not fully vaccinated… avoid travel on cruise ships, including river cruises,” CDC said.
The previous warning, the highest at level 4, imposed after incidents of rapidly spreading infections on ships last year, recommended that travellers avoid cruise trips altogether. The latest CDC announcement lowered the warning to a level 3, indicating a ‘high’ risk.
With nearly half of the US population now fully vaccinated, cruises are in huge demand as consumers are eager to travel again, Reuters said this week.
Analysts have also noted strong booking trends and higher ticket prices, building confidence in the industry’s comeback.
