In a move that is likely to spark some soul searching among cruise lines that specialise in family holidays, Disney Cruise Line has announced that all passengers aged five up and up will have to provide proof that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 on all journeys scheduled for departure on or after January 13.
Disney is the first major cruise line to lower the vaccination requirement from the age of 12. Guests under the age of five can still sail with a negative COVID test.
The announcement comes after the American Centre for Disease Control approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines for children aged five to 12 years.
What the other lines are doing
Celebrity Cruises expects passengers 12 and over to be vaccinated and will accept Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, Sinovac and Sinopharm.
Crystal Cruises has not set an age limit on passengers who must be vaccinated, simply saying that any passenger who is vaccinated will be allowed on board. Children under the age of 12 will be asked to show a negative COVID-19 test when boarding and may be subject to restrictions onboard and onshore.
Holland America Line is only accepting passengers who have been fully vaccinated with Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson. They will not accept mixed doses.
All passengers 18 and over travelling within the UK on Cunard must be fully vaccinated. Those under 18 can either be vaccinated or supply a negative COVID-19 test before departure.
MSC Cruises expects all passengers 12 and over to be vaccinated. They are accepting unvaccinated passengers however they will face additional health and safety restrictions and will have to purchase MSC Cruises Travel Insurance and COVID-19 Protection Services. They will also have to supply evidence of a PCR test before departure.
Norwegian Cruise Line will only allow fully vaccinated passengers to sail. They are accepting mixed doses provided the second dose was received at least 14 days before sailing.
Princess Cruises requires all passengers regardless of age to be vaccinated. Passengers who have had one dose of Pfizer, Moderna or AstraZeneca will be considered to be fully vaccinated if they were previously infected with COVID-19.
Anyone sailing on Royal Caribbean will have to be vaccinated if they are 12 and older. Royal Caribbean accepts mixed doses as long as the final dose was taken at least 14 days before sailing.
