Crystal announced that it has updated its new health and safety protocols to now require all guests to be fully inoculated with a COVID-19 vaccine at least 14 days prior to their Crystal cruise. Guests will need to provide proof of vaccination before embarkation and must have received both doses of the vaccine if recommended by the manufacturer by that timeline. The vaccine requirement augments the company’s Crystal Clean+ 4.0 measures, including negative COVID-19 tests for both guests and crew, temperature checks at the terminal prior to boarding, a mask policy, social distancing guidelines, enhanced cleaning and disinfection measures, reduced capacity and more.
Crystal understands that the widespread availability of vaccines varies according to the distribution plan of each travelers’ home country and/or state. As of today, the company has voluntarily paused operations through May 2021 for its River fleet, into June for its Ocean ships, through August 1 for Crystal Esprit and through August for Crystal Endeavor, allowing most travelers sufficient time to get fully vaccinated before Crystal’s resumption of sailing.
Crystal’s crew, who hail from dozens of countries around the world, will be expected to be vaccinated as well when the company resumes sailing, however, this may not be a viable option for all crew members given their age and/or the availability of vaccines in their home countries.
In addition to providing verified documentation of their COVID-19 vaccine at the time of boarding, guests will complete an online form acknowledging this requirement before their cruise tickets will be issued. Crystal has published a frequently asked questions document on the advisory alert section of its website for further reference.
This article was originally published at River Cruise Advisor.
