The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday advised people against going on cruises regardless of their vaccination status after a recent surge in positive Covid cases onboard ships as the highly contagious omicron variant sweeps the world.
The CDC increased its travel warning for cruises to the highest level as the agency is investigating or observing dozens of ships that have had Covid outbreaks.
Cruise ships operating in U.S. waters have reported about 5,000 Covid cases to the CDC between Dec. 15 – 29, a major spike compared to the first two weeks of the month when 162 cases were reported.
“It is especially important that travelers who are at an increased risk of severe illness from COVID-19 avoid travel on cruise ships, including river cruises, worldwide, regardless of vaccination status,” the CDC said.
The CDC warned that Covid transmits easily between people in close quarters on ships, and the chance of catching the virus on a cruise is very high even for people who are vaccinated and have received a booster dose.
The CDC advised people who decide to go on a cruise to get vaccinated before their trip and receive a booster dose if eligible. Facemasks should also be worn in shared spaces. Passengers who are not fully vaccinated should self-quarantine for five days after travel, according to the CDC.
The CDC also said people who go on a cruise should get tested 1 to 3 days before departing, and 3 to 5 days after their trip, regardless of vaccination status or symptoms.
The stocks of Royal Caribbean Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Carnival were down on the news. Brian Salerno with the Cruise Lines International Association said the trade group was disappointed by the CDC’s decision.
“We’re obviously disappointed at the CDC’s decision to raise the travel level for cruise today—especially given the overwhelming level of effectiveness of cruise protocols that are resulting in significantly lower level of cases on cruise as compared to land,” Salerno said.
Covid cases in the U.S. have surged to a pandemic high. The U.S. reported a seven-day average of more than 300,000 daily new Covid cases as of Wednesday, an increase of 82% from last week, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said on Wednesday that omicron is driving the rapid increase in Covid cases.
Correction: Norwegian Cruise Lines and Carnival stocks were down more than 2% on the news. Royal Caribbean fell 1.93%. A previous version of this story misstated Royal Caribbean’s stock move.
