As cruise travel numbers rise around the world, several cruise lines say they plan to soon drop their COVID restrictions.
A report in Travel Weekly says Ponant, which recently acquired Paul Gauguin Cruises, plans to drop its vaccination requirement for passengers on April 1.
“After careful consideration of the lower incidence of Covid infections, combined with the higher rate of vaccinated and boosted guests, we have decided to relax our policy,” said Navin Sawhney, CEO of Americas at Ponant.
Travel Weekly said Cunard plans to drop vaccination requirements for guests on the Queen Victoria and Queen Mary 2 beginning April 23 and on the Queen Elizabeth on June 8, “unless a specific country or voyage requires vaccination.”
Not all cruise lines are making changes, so be sure to check before you travel.
As the rules begin to ease, cruise companies are reporting huge interest in cruising.
Travelweek reports Silversea Cruises now has almost 15% more on the books for 2023, than it ended up with for the entire year of 2022.
“February 2023 was the biggest month booking-wise in the history of the company,” said Mark Conroy, Silversea’s, Managing Director, The Americas.
The Queen Mary 2 in New York Harbor. CUNARD PHOTO
Princess Cruises’ Sapphire Princess is expected to be the first cruise ship in Vancouver Harbour this year, with a scheduled docking date of April 12, The Vancouver Sun states.
“It will be the first of what the Port of Vancouver expects to be a record 331 cruise ship visits to the city in the 2023 season, which, if the cruise lines can fill them, will bring a record number of passengers.”
CHINA THROWS DOOR OPEN TO VISITORS
Forbes today reports that, nearly three years after it closed its borders to foreign visitors, China is fully reopening. On March 15, 2023, China began issuing visas in all categories for foreigners. This move comes after China declared victory over the virus in February 2023 and dropped some restrictions in January 2023.
As I previously reported, Canada just last week ended travel restrictions on visitors coming into the country from The People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong and Macao.
Sunrise at El Morro fort in San Juan, Puerto Rico. JIM BYERS PHOTO
TRAVEL PHOTO OF THE WEEK
They’re not doing anyone any good sitting in my computer, so I thought I’d start a regular photo feature on my site and fire up some of my fave travel pics from over the years. Today it’s a sunrise photo from San Juan, Puerto Rico, where I stayed earlier this month for a board meeting of the Society of American Travel Writers. Our full convention will be in the city in September. It’s a terrific city, with colourful streets, great food and a rich history.
