CDC drops its COVID-19 risk advisory for cruise ship travel

The Norwegian Gateway is in Miami. After more than two years of warning Americans, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention dropped its advisory warning for cruise travel.

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The Center for Disease Control and Prevention lifted its risk advisory for cruise ship travel on Wednesday, two years after issuing warnings to travelers.

TheCruise Ship Travel Health Notice was removed in an update posted online. Three months ago, the CDC increased its travel warnings for cruises to the highest level after investigations of ships that had Covid outbreaks.

The CDC has lifted its travel health notice, but officials say it is up to the passengers to determine their own health risks.

While cruising will always pose some risk of COVID-19 transmission, travelers will make their own risk assessment when choosing to travel on a cruise ship, the agency said in a statement to NPR.

The agency says it will continue to provide guidance to the cruise ship industry in order for cruise lines to operate in a way that will provide safer and healthier environments for crews, passengers and communities.

The Cruise Lines International Association, the industry's largest trade organization, praised the decision of the CDC to remove its travel health notice.

"Today's decision by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to altogether remove the Travel Health Notice for cruising recognizes the effective public health measures in place on cruise ships and begins to level the playing field, between cruise and similarly situated venues on land, for the first time since March 2020.

From the onset of the pandemic, CLIA's cruise line members have prioritized the health and safety of their guests, crew, and the communities they visit and are sailing today with health measures in place that are unmatched by virtually any other commercial setting."

Travelers should make sure they are up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines before taking a cruise, as well as following their ship's requirements and recommendations against the virus, according to the CDC.

Travelers are urged to check their cruise ship's case levels and vaccination requirements online before traveling.