‘I am ecstatic’: COVID-19 vaccine inspires confidence among cruise passengers, industry

COVID-19 vaccine’s distribution broke. 

Sobel had four cruises booked for 2020 before the pandemic struck, including one transatlantic cruise with her son from New York to Rome in May, which was canceled.

“When the vaccine became a reality, I booked the same trip, but in reverse for November 2021,” Sobel told USA TODAY.

Many cruisers were willing to get back on board cruise ships even before vaccine distribution began.

But now, with vaccines being distributed rapidly around the nation, more cruise passengers, along with the industry officials and health authorities, have voiced confidence.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention maintains vaccines could help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 on cruise ships, which haven’t sailed in U.S. waters since March after multiple outbreaks on ships at the pandemic’s onset.

COVID-19 testing before and after travel, mask wearing, hand washing, social distancing and frequent cleaning can be an effective strategy to reduce the transmission of COVID-19 during travel – including on cruises.

“As effective vaccines become more widely available in the U.S. and internationally, they can be used to reduce the risk of travel-related transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19 and the movement of the virus from one location to another,” Shockey said. 

universal COVID-19 testing, is the right one to help mitigate the risk of transmission of COVID-19 on board a cruise ship.

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Passengers feel more optimistic

And passengers who may have been hesitant to reboard ships are feeling more optimistic, too.

Gay Courter was on board the Diamond Princess, which was among the first ships that had to quarantine passengers because of coronavirus infections. More than 700 people were  infected with the virus, and more than a dozen died. Courter has since written a book about the experience and said she is inspired by the news and believes everyone on board should be vaccinated before cruising again – though that isn’t a requirement for now for future cruisers.

She added that she has seen some cruisers on forums saying they wouldn’t be willing to get the vaccine. 

“Cruise lines have tried various strategies to isolate and wear masks, but all have failed,” Courter told USA TODAY of cruises that have had coronavirus cases in Europe and Asia, where operations have restarted. “Cruising will continue to be a viral nightmare unless everyone on the ship has the vaccine.”

“There should be vaccination passports – just like we had years ago verifying that we had smallpox, typhoid, polio, etc. – in order to keep those countries safe,” she added, noting “travel is not a given right.”