Is Royal Caribbean requiring vaccinations to cruise

[lynncarol]

I apologize if this topic has been discussed before, but I remain very confused. We have an upcoming October cruise on Odyssey going out of Fort Lauderdale. Originally the cruise line sent us information that seemed to indicate both vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers would be allowed.  Now I  read that all Royal Caribbean cruises require vaccinations. This is fine with me as all of us have both shots, but I really would like some clarification if possible.  We are taking our grown disabled daughter with us and she remains worried about Covid breakthroughs. I would like to be able to give her some reassurance. Thank you

[awestover89]

Yes, vaccines are required for passengers older than 12. 

[Missusdubbya]

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/do-i-need-a-covid-vaccine-to-cruise-what-counts-as-proof
 

[thjeepster]

15 minutes ago, lynncarol said:

I apologize if this topic has been discussed before, but I remain very confused. We have an upcoming October cruise on Odyssey going out of Fort Lauderdale. Originally the cruise line sent us information that seemed to indicate both vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers would be allowed.  Now I  read that all Royal Caribbean cruises require vaccinations. This is fine with me as all of us have both shots, but I really would like some clarification if possible.  We are taking our grown disabled daughter with us and she remains worried about Covid breakthroughs. I would like to be able to give her some reassurance. Thank you

Which sailing are you going out on?

 

They also require a COVID test up to 2 days before the cruise also.

[lynncarol]

Wow!  Never expected such quick responses.  Thank you all! It is an Oct 31 sailing and we do know about the Covid test requirement, planning on getting Rapid Antigens for all of us before leaving home. One more question, please since you folks seem to have the latest answers.  Are independent shore excursions in Mexico allowed? I think our daughter would do better if it were not a ship tour.

[thjeepster]

20 minutes ago, lynncarol said:

Wow!  Never expected such quick responses.  Thank you all! It is an Oct 31 sailing and we do know about the Covid test requirement, planning on getting Rapid Antigens for all of us before leaving home. One more question, please since you folks seem to have the latest answers.  Are independent shore excursions in Mexico allowed? I think our daughter would do better if it were not a ship tour.

I don't know too much about the excursions.

We are on the Odyssey also but sailing on the 17th...actually getting married on the ship during the first sea day!  Just found out we will be the first couple to be married on the ship!

 

We purchased the at home kits from the link from Royal....I think it's easier than finding/booking a location to go get one.....heard CVS cancels tons of appts. 1 or 2 days before the appt.

 

Have a great cruise and enjoy!!!

[Dat Cruisin Couple]

2 hours ago, lynncarol said:

I apologize if this topic has been discussed before, but I remain very confused. We have an upcoming October cruise on Odyssey going out of Fort Lauderdale. Originally the cruise line sent us information that seemed to indicate both vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers would be allowed.  Now I  read that all Royal Caribbean cruises require vaccinations. This is fine with me as all of us have both shots, but I really would like some clarification if possible.  We are taking our grown disabled daughter with us and she remains worried about Covid breakthroughs. I would like to be able to give her some reassurance. Thank you

 

Your adult daughter is vaccinated, correct? If so, you are all good for sailing and most(all?) ports allow for independent excursions when all parties are vaccinated.

 

Bon Voyage!!!

[lynncarol]

Yes our daughter is vaccinated too.  I am excited to learn that independent excursions are allowed.  Thank goodness for cruisecritic responders as Royal Caribbean has never answered any of my inquiries about these issues nor have we received any notifications about them.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

7 minutes ago, lynncarol said:

Yes our daughter is vaccinated too.  I am excited to learn that independent excursions are allowed.  Thank goodness for cruisecritic responders as Royal Caribbean has never answered any of my inquiries about these issues nor have we received any notifications about them.

RCI has all of that information on their website.

[nelblu]

3 hours ago, awestover89 said:

Yes, vaccines are required for passengers older than 12. 

Florida included.  When was this announced?

[nelblu]

10 minutes ago, Heymarco said:

Julyish.

Constantly changing rules.  Saw the following on the Q&A. 

 

For Florida residents the following applies:

 

For Cruises Departing from All U.S. Homeports

All Royal Caribbean guests age 12 and older must present proof of COVID-19 vaccination, with the final dose of their vaccine administered at least 14 days before sailing. We will continually evaluate these requirements and make updates as local public health standards evolve.

For guests departing from Florida homeports, this is a requirement of The Bahamas and St. Thomas governments for a cruise ship to enter their waters, and is currently planned to remain in effect until November 1, 2021, at which point the policy may be updated. We remain in contact with local governments in the ports we visit and will update the policy if advised.

Guests under the age of this requirement don't need to be vaccinated and will complete COVID-19 testing requirements depending on the length and departure port of their sailing.

 

So does that mean that if someone is unvaxxed and doesn't get off in Nassau or St Thomas, can they sail.  Does if apply to Coco Cay.   

 

The reason for my question, as I'm waiting for my TA, is that we are on Anthem on Easter and my grandkids are not vaxxed.  Was thinking of switching to Symphony out of Miami.  The itinerary includes Antigua, St Thomas and Coco Cay.

 

[smplybcause]

1 minute ago, nelblu said:

Constantly changing rules.  Saw the following on the Q&A. 

 

For Florida residents the following applies:

 

For Cruises Departing from All U.S. Homeports

All Royal Caribbean guests age 12 and older must present proof of COVID-19 vaccination, with the final dose of their vaccine administered at least 14 days before sailing. We will continually evaluate these requirements and make updates as local public health standards evolve.

For guests departing from Florida homeports, this is a requirement of The Bahamas and St. Thomas governments for a cruise ship to enter their waters, and is currently planned to remain in effect until November 1, 2021, at which point the policy may be updated. We remain in contact with local governments in the ports we visit and will update the policy if advised.

Guests under the age of this requirement don't need to be vaccinated and will complete COVID-19 testing requirements depending on the length and departure port of their sailing.

 

So does that mean that if someone is unvaxxed and doesn't get off in Nassau or St Thomas, can they sail.  Does if apply to Coco Cay.   

 

The reason for my question, as I'm waiting for my TA, is that we are on Anthem on Easter and my grandkids are not vaxxed.  Was thinking of switching to Symphony out of Miami.  The itinerary includes Antigua, St Thomas and Coco Cay.

 

 

Currently if you're over 12 you're not getting on the ship unless you're vaxxed. In Coco kids don't have to take Royal excursions to get off the ship, but for every other port unvaxed kids have to take RC excursions or stay on the ship. 

 

No one knows for certain what it will be in April. Rules are likely to change once the vax is approved for the 5-11 set. Bahamas will likely extend their rule, but no one knows until when. It's possible by April they won't be as strict about vaccines. It's equally possible that they'll keep the requirement in place. There's also the CDC CSO out there that expires at the end of this month that they may extend. 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

9 minutes ago, nelblu said:

So does that mean that if someone is unvaxxed and doesn't get off in Nassau or St Thomas, can they sail.  Does if apply to Coco Cay.   

NO if the grandkids are over 12 yo at the moment.

Once the vaccines are approved for the younger crowd, I am pretty sure they will be required for under 12 as well.

Edited October 6, 2021 by Itchy&Scratchy

[nelblu]

35 minutes ago, smplybcause said:

 

Currently if you're over 12 you're not getting on the ship unless you're vaxxed. In Coco kids don't have to take Royal excursions to get off the ship, but for every other port unvaxed kids have to take RC excursions or stay on the ship. 

 

No one knows for certain what it will be in April. Rules are likely to change once the vax is approved for the 5-11 set. Bahamas will likely extend their rule, but no one knows until when. It's possible by April they won't be as strict about vaccines. It's equally possible that they'll keep the requirement in place. There's also the CDC CSO out there that expires at the end of this month that they may extend. 

 

31 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

NO if the grandkids are over 12 yo at the moment.

Once the vaccines are approved for the younger crowd, I am pretty sure they will be required for under 12 as well.

Confused. If the H & S protocols require vaxxed for those Paxs 12 and over, why the Florida blurb.

[smplybcause]

13 minutes ago, nelblu said:

 

Confused. If the H & S protocols require vaxxed for those Paxs 12 and over, why the Florida blurb.

 

Florida has a law on the books that says you can't require people to show a vaccine card for service. So for a while Royal was playing by FL rules and not requiring it in Florida (but requiring it everywhere else). But then the USVI said a ship needs everyone 12+ vaxed in order to dock so Royal required it for those sailings. Shortly after Bahamas created the same rule - and as practically every cruise out of FL goes to the Bahamas they are now requiring it. 

 

Royal is "hiding" behind the Bahamas law as for why they are requiring vaccine cards and why it's ok even though there's the FL law. That's why there's a blurb there - so it's official that they're requiring it due to another country's law. 

[Sunshine3601]

1 hour ago, nelblu said:

Constantly changing rules.  Saw the following on the Q&A. 

 

For Florida residents the following applies:

 

For Cruises Departing from All U.S. Homeports

All Royal Caribbean guests age 12 and older must present proof of COVID-19 vaccination, with the final dose of their vaccine administered at least 14 days before sailing. We will continually evaluate these requirements and make updates as local public health standards evolve.

For guests departing from Florida homeports, this is a requirement of The Bahamas and St. Thomas governments for a cruise ship to enter their waters, and is currently planned to remain in effect until November 1, 2021, at which point the policy may be updated. We remain in contact with local governments in the ports we visit and will update the policy if advised.

Guests under the age of this requirement don't need to be vaccinated and will complete COVID-19 testing requirements depending on the length and departure port of their sailing.

 

So does that mean that if someone is unvaxxed and doesn't get off in Nassau or St Thomas, can they sail.  Does if apply to Coco Cay.   

 

The reason for my question, as I'm waiting for my TA, is that we are on Anthem on Easter and my grandkids are not vaxxed.  Was thinking of switching to Symphony out of Miami.  The itinerary includes Antigua, St Thomas and Coco Cay.

 

No need to switch cruises.    The same rules applies to all US cruises as of right now anyone 12 and older must be fully vaccinated.     Suspect this will be updated when children 5 to 11 are approved to get the vaccine.

[nelblu]

2 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

No need to switch cruises.    The same rules applies to all US cruises as of right now anyone 12 and older must be fully vaccinated.     Suspect this will be updated when children 5 to 11 are approved to get the vaccine.

Now I know.  The reason I mentioned is that Florida law created certain exemptions from the 100% vaxxed rule.  Now,  I have no flexibility and if the same protocols are announced and notified, we will not be able to sail.  Hoping no hassle in getting CC refund.

[pcur]

7 hours ago, thjeepster said:

I don't know too much about the excursions.

We are on the Odyssey also but sailing on the 17th...actually getting married on the ship during the first sea day!  Just found out we will be the first couple to be married on the ship!!

Congrats!!!

[RFerrington]

I am anxious to see how Royal handles cruises that go nowhere near the Bahamas or St. Thomas.  We are still booked for the 11-21-21 (Thanksgiving) cruise on Allure.  Only western Caribbean ports.

19 minutes ago, nelblu said:

Hoping no hassle in getting CC refund.

I have been dealing with this nonsense since cruising restarted.  Currently (who knows for how long) you must wait for the vaxx protocols to be announced for your sailing and THEN you can tell them you do not wish to abide by the vaxx protocols and ask for a full cash refund.  If you cancel before they have announced the vaxx protocols you can still cancel your cruise but you will receive an FCC rather than cash.  This will likely require you to pay the balance of your cruise as they have not been announcing protocols until after final payment date....but of course, they have lately been pushing final payment date back so it's kind of a mess.  So far, I have not been denied a full refund for any of the 12 bookings that have been cancelled.  I hope this continues to be true and I hope it's true for you, too.

[not-enough-cruising]

3 minutes ago, RFerrington said:

I am anxious to see how Royal handles cruises that go nowhere near the Bahamas or St. Thomas.  We are still booked for the 11-21-21 (Thanksgiving) cruise on Allure.  Only western Caribbean ports.

I have been dealing with this nonsense since cruising restarted.  Currently (who knows for how long) you must wait for the vaxx protocols to be announced for your sailing and THEN you can tell them you do not wish to abide by the vaxx protocols and ask for a full cash refund.  If you cancel before they have announced the vaxx protocols you can still cancel your cruise but you will receive an FCC rather than cash.  This will likely require you to pay the balance of your cruise as they have not been announcing protocols until after final payment date....but of course, they have lately been pushing final payment date back so it's kind of a mess.  So far, I have not been denied a full refund for any of the 12 bookings that have been cancelled.  I hope this continues to be true and I hope it's true for you, too.

I don’t think there is anyway to put the toothpaste back in the tube. The “age eligible” vaccine rule will remain in effect 

[pcur]

15 minutes ago, RFerrington said:

I am anxious to see how Royal handles cruises that go nowhere near the Bahamas or St. Thomas.  We are still booked for the 11-21-21 (Thanksgiving) cruise on Allure.  Only western Caribbean ports.

I have been dealing with this nonsense since cruising restarted.  Currently (who knows for how long) you must wait for the vaxx protocols to be announced for your sailing and THEN you can tell them you do not wish to abide by the vaxx protocols and ask for a full cash refund.  If you cancel before they have announced the vaxx protocols you can still cancel your cruise but you will receive an FCC rather than cash.  This will likely require you to pay the balance of your cruise as they have not been announcing protocols until after final payment date....but of course, they have lately been pushing final payment date back so it's kind of a mess.  So far, I have not been denied a full refund for any of the 12 bookings that have been cancelled.  I hope this continues to be true and I hope it's true for you, too.

As long as a person has booked within the CWC policy dates, there should be no problem with refunds/FCC.  Patience is required, but that's been the usual for over a year now.  

[Sunshine3601]

45 minutes ago, nelblu said:

Now I know.  The reason I mentioned is that Florida law created certain exemptions from the 100% vaxxed rule.  Now,  I have no flexibility and if the same protocols are announced and notified, we will not be able to sail.  Hoping no hassle in getting CC refund.

I don't see any cruise line reducing the need for passengers to be vaccinated.   If anything they are going to update once the younger children are eligible to be vaccinated.     They probably will have to give a 60-day +/- window for the 5-11 age group to show proof of vaccination. 

If grandchildren unable or not going to get vaccinated you should have no trouble in getting a refund, if unable to go without them.    

 

[bonsai3s]

8 hours ago, thjeepster said:

I don't know too much about the excursions.

We are on the Odyssey also but sailing on the 17th...actually getting married on the ship during the first sea day!  Just found out we will be the first couple to be married on the ship!

 

We purchased the at home kits from the link from Royal....I think it's easier than finding/booking a location to go get one.....heard CVS cancels tons of appts. 1 or 2 days before the appt.

 

Have a great cruise and enjoy!!!

1. Congratulations!

2. Hope they pick you for the "Love and Marriage" show.

3. Happy Honeymoon! ☺️

[nelblu]

2 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

If grandchildren unable or not going to get vaccinated you should have no trouble in getting a refund, if unable to go without them.    

 

Not a chance.  There are 4 cabins involved and it is a family Easter cruise.  I also have excess FCCs and I don't mind converting them to my name, since I have no problem sailing.

[sheilawigley]

Is San Juan considered a US home port?  I can't find anything confirming if san juan requires vaccinated or not.