Carnival Cruise Line’s Stricter Protocols Frustrate Passengers

Carnival Cruise Line’s passengers are frustrated over the operator’s stricter protocols. Some passengers said that they were not aware of these changes.

Carnival Cruise Lines spokesperson said that a small percentage of unvaccinated guests were allowed. However, passengers going with unvaccinated kids under 12 years old were caught off guard by how strict the new protocols would be. For instance, unvaccinated kids are not allowed to leave the ship.

However, according to Carnival’s spokesperson, guests received the stricter protocols ahead of time via email. This includes restrictions on board and at the destinations.  “This information has also been posted on our website and communicated to guests via a series of emails after the booking is made leading to the departure”.

In the email, it stated that unvaccinated passengers will remain on board unless you can book a spot on a “bubble” cruise for unvaccinated guests. Unfortunately, some passengers didn’t know that a spot on a “bubble” cruise is only limited.

Complicated Return of Cruises

The cruise industry in the US had to stop its operations for more than a year due to the pandemic. Now, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention allows cruises to resume operations but with certain conditions.

Under the conditional sailing order, cruise ships need to meet the vaccination threshold set by the health agency. Cruise ships need at least 95% of their passengers and crew members vaccinated to operate. If not, cruise operators will have to run a simulated voyage to test COVID19 safety protocols using volunteer passengers.

Unfortunately, despite the safety protocols set by the CDC, some cruise ships had cases of COVID19. To gain the confidence of their passengers, cruise ship operators decided to add their safety protocols. This includes mandatory vaccination and testing requirements.

Worldwide, only under 50% of the entire cruise industry has restarted its operations. That is according to the data released by Cruise Ships in Service Report.