Is It Safe to Go on a Cruise?

The industry also is required to follow more stringent reporting requirements on disease outbreaks than any other hospitality or travel sector. (For instance, under the CDC’s no-sail order, ships now idling in waters subject to U.S. jurisdiction must submit weekly reports on crew health.) If and when there’s an incident on board, in accordance with International Health Regulations, the officer in charge is required to contact authorities at the next port to decide on next steps. International Health Regulations also require all ships in international service to provide a maritime Declaration of Health to report cases of infectious disease to authorities at the ports they enter.

Cruise ships operating from U.S. ports have to meet the requirements of the CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP), which among other things, has reporting requirements for gastrointestinal illness and other infectious diseases. “The VSP provides a level of scrutiny on cruise ships that is unparalleled within the travel and hospitality industry,” says Laziza Lambert, manager of strategic communications at CLIA. “There is no similar program in place for hotels, airlines, trains, or short-term rentals.” As part of the VSP, cruise ships sailing to or from a U.S. port undergo two unannounced inspections every year, and following the inspection, the VSP publishes reports and scores are made public on the CDC’s website.

Getting ahead of the risk factors

The biggest challenge facing the industry is to identify and put into place measures that manage risk, says Brian Salerno, senior vice president of maritime policy for CLIA. As of late, even with measures like pre-screening and increased sanitation protocols in place, there there have been outbreaks on small cruise liners carrying fewer than 250 passengers, which are not subject to the CDC’s no-sail advisory.

“We are still learning a lot about COVID-19 and how to prevent outbreaks in numerous situations. It is clear that our available screening tools (including actual testing for COVID-19) are imperfect, and when cases are missed, significant outbreaks can occur,” says Dr. Wu. “Unless COVID prevalence is very low in the populations that passengers and crew come from, our screening tools are not good enough to ensure the absence of cases on board. Without better screening tools or an effective vaccine, the only other tools to prevent outbreaks are the distancing, masking, and hygiene recommendations.”

What passengers can do

That’s not to say you can’t take a cruise without impending infection: In countries like Germany and Italy, areas with currently low COVID-19 incidence, cruising has slowly returned; MSC Cruises resumed sailing in Europe in August, with European guests, with no reported incidents of contagion. MSC implemented stringent new protocols, screening passengers with temperature checks, health questionnaires, and an antigen COVID-19 swab test prior to boarding. Passengers waited in the terminal for their results and could not board until they were cleared. In ports, guests could only disembark with an MSC guide on a pre-approved excursion. When a family broke protocol in a port, they were not allowed to re-board the ship, USA Today reported.

To mitigate risk, the same protocols for protection apply no matter where you are. Places limiting person-to-person spread, like private cabins and outdoor areas, are safer than indoor spots, and public spaces remain riskier. For their part, cruise lines across the board are adopting social distancing measures throughout their ships, increasing options for outdoor dining, limiting occupancy in public spaces, and implementing a host of contactless processes. For some time cruise lines have planned investments in no-touch tech that now are seeing a rapid rollout in market. MSC gave all guests a complimentary wristband that allows for contactless options on board, such as opening their staterooms or making payments. These wristbands can also help to facilitate proximity and contact tracing, if needed. Virgin Voyages created an app that guests can use on their phone to avoid queuing up at bars and restaurants, as well as having contactless delivery of food and drinks anywhere on the ship.

How cruise lines are thinking about the future

Despite the uncertainty over when their ships will set sail again, and just what that will look like, cruise lines are continuing to make innovations like these in preparation. Some lines have even created and instilled their own health protocols to guide their return: Virgin Voyages released a ‘Voyage Well’ plan created with expert advisors from AtmosAir Solutions, EcoLab, Dr. Heymann with Vikand, Global Public Health Services, in close collaboration with the CDC. Their new ship, Scarlet Lady, will launch with an HVAC system that uses ionization tech to kill viruses. Created by AtmosAir, the air purification system has been shown to kill 99.9% of viruses, including coronavirus, Virgin Voyages said in a statement.