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| Above, passengers shopping aboard a cruise ship to Key West and Havana. Photo by Armand Vaquer. |
Cruise ships are essentially "floating petri dishes" anyway, but the stubborn coronavirus and its variants have made matters worse for travelers.
Since the delta variant reared its ugly head, cruise lines have to modify their requirements on vaccinations and take other protective measures.
According to an article in Japan Today:
Miami - Joel Steckler was eager for his first cruise in more than a year and a half, and he chose the ship that just two months ago became the first to accept passengers again after a long pandemic shutdown.
Steckler was fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and that was enough to resume cruising, under initial guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Now, the 63-year-old from Long Island, New York, is going to postpone the trip he had planned for Saturday amid new, tighter guidelines prompted by the delta-variant-fueled surge in cases and breakthrough infections.
“You just have to make a personal decision,” said Steckler, who takes medication that suppresses his immune system and changed his plans after consulting his doctor. “You don’t want to be in a position where you are sick on a cruise and you have to fly home or somehow get home.”
Cruise lines have detected infections among vaccinated crew members and passengers, including in an elderly traveler who recently died. Last Friday, the CDC began advising travelers who are at a higher risk for severe COVID-19 illness to avoid cruises. It is also recommending that passengers show both a recent negative COVID test and proof they've been immunized.
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