Posted on 10/10/2021 11:14:47 AM PDT by Capt. Tom
Cruise Ships Continue to Visit Destinations Despite CDC Level 4 Travel Notices Why are cruise lines ignoring the travel notices issued by the CDC to avoid all travel to a specific country?
Over the last weeks and months, we’ve seen numerous reports from the CDC stating that several destinations are not safe for travel.
In the past, we’ve always looked to the Department of State for travel advice and whether or not traveling abroad to certain countries would be safe or not, although the CDC has always had its travel advice as well.
With the CDC now more in the picture and its travel notices gathering more attention, the question is if they matter.
What Do the Different Health Notices Mean? We’ve seen cruise ships sailing to popular cruise hotspots including Jamaica, Aruba, Belize, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Bahamas without interruption. At the same time, the CDC says that travel should be avoided to these destinations as they are all currently on the level 4 list. There are currently more than 24 nations on the CDC’s level 4 list, its highest level.
To understand why cruise ships are still traveling to the ever-growing list of countries to avoid we should understand what the different levels mean.
For each destination on the CDC’s list of countries to avoid, it assesses how many new COVID-19 (or other infectious diseases) cases each country has and if those cases show an up-or downward trajectory.
The Travel Health Notice level can be raised if there has been a significant increase of cases or the case count exceeds a threshold over 14 days. These levels are as follows:
Level 4: Very high level of COVID-19: Avoid travel to this destination. Level 3: High level of COVID-19: Make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel. Unvaccinated travelers should avoid nonessential travel to this destination. Level 2: Moderate level of COVID-19: Make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel. Unvaccinated travelers at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 should avoid nonessential travel to this destination. If you must travel and have concerns, talk to your doctor. Level 1: Low level of COVID-19: Make sure you are fully vaccinated before traveling to this destination.
Why Are Cruise Lines Ignoring the CDC’s Travel Advice? If the cruise industry would follow the CDC’s Level 4, a cruise to 90% of the popular Caribbean destinations would be a thing of the past. And with the US on Level 4 as well, travel would be impossible.
It’s the main reason why cruise lines and destinations have been working together since early 2020 to find a balance between the CDC’s requirements and those of the cruise ports. A Royal Caribbean spokesperson said this:
“Caribbean destinations and cruise lines started working together in summer 2020 to develop a universal set of guidelines for resumption of cruise travel across the Caribbean, Mexico and the Americas,”
With the US and the destinations on the same set of protocols, the cruise companies can be reasonably safe in the assumption that cruising can be done safely, and the CDC seems to agree as well. Cruise lines and destinations have been implementing stricter measures than was required from the CDC until only recently.
The agency implemented measures recently for cruise ships that had been in place on board (such as a pre-cruise testing requirement) for weeks. In contrast, measures in place in destinations, such as the 100% vaccination in the Bahamas, are not mandated by the CDC in certain circumstances.
With these measures, the cruise lines can and will ignore the CDC’s Travel Health levels. By implementing strict measures onboard and in different destinations, the cruise lines go beyond what the CDC expects, making the travel health notices not obsolete but certainly more guidance than a rule.
Also Read: Another Caribbean Cruise Nation Back on CDC Level 4 Travel List
The travel notices are there for an excellent reason; they are in place to protect you and your family when traveling. The good thing is that the cruise industry is taking measures further than the CDC would expect, making sure you and those you love are safe onboard wherever you travel.
As I have mentioned many months ago, the Cruise lines have waited to long in placating the CDC, but it looks like they are waking up to the fact that all the cheerleading and future bookings aren't going to pay the bills due right now.
The cruise lines are foreign flagged so they won't get bailed out. The airlines have been bankrupt before, and if they go bankrupt now they will get bailed out.
The cruise magazines like this article, have to present an optimistic out look, as the magazines depend also on the success of Cruising. -Tom
So is CDC level 4 the health equivalent to DEFCON 1? :-}
It was almost obligatory to put this in the end of the article to praise the ass kissing CDC Cruise Lines. -Tom
It’s long past time people stopped freely giving control over their lives to politically-corrupted organizations like the CDC and politically-corrupted bureaucrats like Fauci.
I agree ,and have always criticized the Cruise lines for voluntarily telling the CDC the Lines will put more restrictions on passengers than the CDC recommend.
If you feel you need more restrictions on your passengers than the CDC recommends, just do it, but don't encourage the CDC to meddle more into your business by implying the CDC didn't go far enough with their regulations.-Tom
Capt. Tom wrote: “IMHO After bowing to the CDC, and going the extra distance to please the CDC, apparently the ass kissing CDC Cruise Lines are realizing they have to get some income right now or the creditors might force them into a form of bankruptcy.”
Some important things to remember:
- The CDC doesn’t care if you enjoy your cruise.
- The CDC doesn’t care about anything except reducing the infection rate.
Back when this ‘negotiation’ between the CDC and the cruise lines began, the cruise lines proposed, IIRC, seven different factors about reopening cruising. The one glaring thing that wasn’t mentioned was enjoying your cruise.
The CDC does not care about reducing the infection rate. If they did they would do something (anything?) about the southern border.
They are ignoring the CDC because everything the CDC says is a lie. We went on a cruise last month to a couple of countries on their level 4 list and had a great time. Everything was fine there, and you did not have to wear muzzles outside and only in some buildings.
“The CDC doesn’t care about anything except reducing the infection rate.”
The CDC does not give a d*** about reducing the infection rate. In fact, I think they want it to be worse. They love the power it gives them.
bennowens wrote: “The CDC does not care about reducing the infection rate. If they did they would do something (anything?) about the southern border.”
The CDC has no power over border policies.
EastTexasTraveler wrote: “The CDC does not give a d*** about reducing the infection rate. In fact, I think they want it to be worse. They love the power it gives them.”
Think of the power they would accrue if they reduced the infection rate to zero.
I agree with some of the previous posters since the CDC doesn't seem to care about the infected people illegally crossing our border and going to many states around this country carrying many different types of diseases besides Covid.
In the past, families on cruise line were few and far between. Recently it looks like cruise lines are trying to attract cruising families with kids.
If you look at the design of the new cruise ships the top decks are playgrounds for kids, an of course younger parent types.
You must have noticed how some of the Lines were happy that the kids might now have to be vaccinated. That means the kids can go on cruise lines that have only vaccinated passengers allowed onboard. Good for a family cruise.
Also IMHO the Cruise Lines did a poor public relations job of separating the Vaxxed and unvaxxed, without aggravating the old time reliable unvaxxed cruisers.
As my old Irish grandmother explained to me, Irish diplomacy is telling someone to go to hell, but doing it in such a way, that they look forward to the trip. -Tom
“Think of the power they would accrue if they reduced the infection rate to zero.”
They would have no power.
Did a cruise (Holland America) in September - Athens to Venice. CDC had Greece at Level 4, but our flight from Dulles to Athens was 100% full....can’t imagine why people don’t listen to the DC anymore...
We just got back from our 3rd cruise since July, all on Celebrity, and this time we had NO COVID cases. We had 2 the first time and 2 the second cruise, but the Captain came on the stage the last night and announced that we had no cases......hopefully we can get back to where the crew doesn’t have to wear masks.
The CORRUPT and INCOMPETENT CDC ONLY WANTS TO CONTROL YOU!
Glad to hear you got those cruises in, and that Celebrity is going well with very few Covid cases. -Tom
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