The short answer is, perhaps, depending on where you're sailing. As has been the case with most cruises that have resumed sailing, the biggest changes could be with your ports and destinations.
There have been spikes in Covid-19 cases in a number of popular destinations from Sitka, Alaska to Mykonos, Greece, though these have so far not impacted cruise ship arrivals. Meanwhile, the rise in cases has caused some islands in the Caribbean to continue to keep their ports closed.
In any case, cruisers should be prepared for possible itinerary changes, as well as protocols that could vary from port to port, such as mask requirements.
Despite the rise, some travel agents have not seen a drop in bookings; Cruise Planners said that cruise bookings were up 27 percent week over week, with prices increasing on some itineraries. Slightly more than 30 percent of new cruise purchases had a 2021 departure date, Cruise Planners told us.
Ships May Be Vaccinated, Ports Are Not
The Alaska cruise season started on July 19, with Royal Caribbean's Serenade of the Seas making its first stop in Sitka.
Back in April, the town of 8,600 was a leader among the nation in vaccination rates, and COVID-19 cases were minimal. Nearly 70 percent of its residents are fully vaccinated and almost 75 percent have received at least one shot, according to the city's website.
But now Sitka is experiencing its largest spike since the pandemic, with 235 active cases; a third of the new cases are among vaccinated people, according to the Anchorage Daily News. The city's alert level is at red, with indoor capacity at restaurants reduced to 50 percent and face masks strongly encouraged.
Serenade of the Seas made its first stop as planned. While the ship's sailings carry a mix of vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers, the vaccination rate on the ship's current sailing is 97 percent – so higher than the town (of course, that figure includes the fully vaccinated crew too).
While Royal Caribbean has not indicated any change of itinerary, cruise lines do have the option of skipping a port where COVID-19 numbers are high.
UnCruise Adventures skipped calls in Ketchikan, Alaska, during an outbreak in May. At the time, city manager Karl Amylon, pointed to a possible trend, telling the city council, “We’ve been told point-blank by industry representatives that they will bypass a community that’s in a red zone, that has major outbreaks,” reported community radio station KRBD
Officials from Cruise Lines International Association Alaska were in Juneau on Thursday speaking at a Greater Juneau Chamber of Commerce event. Rising COVID-19 rates in Alaska were among the topics.
As reported by radio station KTOO Renée Reeve, vice president of government and community relations for CLIA Alaska, told the gathering that the organization was monitoring rising rates, so that cruise lines can respond appropriately.
She added that the organization’s members had been asked to participate in weekly meetings with port communities to discuss the COVID-19 situation. “So, if your community decides that it’s time to bring masks back? We want them to know that before their ship comes to port so their passengers are aware of that,” Reeve said.
The current Conditional Sailing Order from the CDC calls for agreements between the cruise lines and the ports to help protect people who live in the destination from outbreaks stemming on the ship. There's nothing within the CSO to protect cruisers from people in the destinations, however. Local officials are setting their own rules in this regard.
Curfews in Europe, Cruises Still Running
In Mykonos, a weeklong nighttime curfew and ban on music in restaurants, bars and cafes was ordered by local health officials in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19. As a result, there are reports of both Greek and international travelers cancelling plans to stay at hotels on the island. Cruise ships typically visit during daytime hours and are still calling.
According to the Greek tourism newsletter GTP, the Delta variant is also causing concern on other tourist-popular Greek islands, including Santorini and Crete. Whether curfews or other measures will be taken on those islands remained to be seen.
Passengers on Norwegian Jade, which is beginning cruises from Athens this weekend, were told that masks are now required onboard, despite everyone on the ship being vaccinated. Cruise Critic member Rob-Bob shared the following correspondence from NCL on his Norwegian Jade Roll Call:
"We hear you loud and clear, and we are very sorry for any confusion. We believed that we would not be required to mandate masks during this sailing. However, given the ever-evolving nature of this global pandemic and the changing requirements around the world, we must continue to modify our protocols as necessary to ensure compliance. As we previously communicated, this may mean we have different protocols from ship to ship based on local requirements."
In Iceland, fear of COVID-19 spread caused several towns to close their doors to the Viking Sky on a sailing earlier this month, after a guest onboard tested positive for the virus. The guest was quarantined. The ship, on a circumnavigation of the island, headed back to Reykjavik earlier than planned. In this case, Viking Cruises generously gave passengers a 50 percent credit in the form of a future cruise credit to make up for the three missed ports.
Meanwhile, one top cruise seller told the leading trade publication Cruise Week, "The U.S. restart is a tailwind, the Delta variant news is a headwind, the net result of which is a slight slowdown in call volume and bookings."
Caribbean Reopening Paused On Some Islands
Several small Caribbean islands backed off on their plans to welcome cruise ships this month – including the British Virgin Islands and Anguilla.
This affected Windstar Cruises' Star Breeze, from St. Maarten. The ship was to spend several days in the BVI, as well as call at Anguilla and St. Barth’s. On its July 17 sailing, the ship headed south to Barbados, where guests were only allowed ashore on ship-sponsored shore excursions or tourism-bureau sponsored Bubble Taxi Tours. St. Lucia also welcomed the ship’s passengers as did Antigua. The same itinerary was planned for the July 24 sailing, possibly adding St. Barth’s if it opens up.
In Mexico and The Bahamas, where cruises have been running since mid-June, no changes have been made because of the variant. But masking had already been the rule of the day at popular ports such as Cozumel, Costa Maya and Nassau – both indoors and outside, if social distancing isn't possible.
Cruise Critic Members Monitoring
The Delta variant has been a hot topic on the Cruise Critic message boards, with cruisers wondering if the spike in cases will lead to additional restrictions.
"I was looking to book this fall since I thought it would be best to wait 1-2 months of sailings but I didn’t expect the Delta variant to hit so strongly in the States. Do you think sailings will pause again or will it be compulsory for masks indoors?" asked dulcemariamar on the Carnival message board.
"Anything is possible. Certain cities are reinstituting the mask order due to the surge. During these times you have to decide your comfort level," replied wemjam. "I am an optimist and will take my chances and have booked several for this year. Since Carnival in particular is sailing almost fully vaccinated and appears they will be for a while, I think they are doing it right and should help keep things status quo for now."
Other members suggested that they would change their habits at home so they can stay healthy for their cruise.
"Someone had a good idea to wear a mask indoors (even if vaccinated) for the 10 days prior to their cruise so that they don't pick up the Delta variant," wrote Galley Slave on the Holland America Line board. "This is probably a good idea for all of us leaving on cruises, especially from states with more cases of the Delta variant."
