CDC Updates Mask Guidance, Shore Excursion Rules

Cruising for the vaccinated traveler is starting to look a little more normal.

The CDC has updated its guidance for passengers and crew who are fully vaccinated, and the Operations Manual now gives a few more benefits to those who have received their final inoculation for COVID-19.

The guidance now states the following:

“Cruise ship operators, at their discretion, may advise passengers and crew that—if they are fully vaccinated—they may gather or conduct activities outdoors, including engaging in extended meal service or beverage consumption, without wearing a mask except in crowded settings.”

The CDC also amended its guidance for shore excursions. Previously, it had banned independent shore exploration, even for vaccinated travelers. This has been changed from a “requirement” to a recommendation.

The guidance now says that fully vaccinated passengers “may engage in self-guided or independent exploration during port stops if they wear a mask while indoors.”

Previous guidance required the wearing of masks outdoors and prohibited independent shore exploration and drew the ire of many in the cruise industry.

Frank Del Rio, CEO of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, which plans on vaccinating its crew and sailing only with vaccinated passengers, expressed frustration with the original guidance, mask rules in particular.

“In between bites of your meal and in between sips of your beverage, you have to put on your mask, take off your mask. So nobody should order soup because your mask might get sloppy,” he said. “So that, to me, is just preposterous.”

Indoor guidelines have remained the same and require all passengers, regardless of vaccination status, to wear masks.