On 19AUG, the Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis issued an emergency powers order which will require all eligible cruise passengers calling in port in the nation and its private islands to be fully vaccinated, effective 03SEP. This restriction will stay in place through 01NOV.
Before arriving at a port in the Bahamas, the cruise ship captain will be required to submit a manifest disclosing the vaccination status of all people aboard. All passengers twelve years and older will be required to be fully vaccinated.
In addition, any cruise pax arriving in The Bahamas "will be subjected to the testing requirements mandated by the cruise line and approved" by authorities.
Few exemptions to the requirement apply, but do include crew, contractors and other non-revenue passengers and any passengers ineligible for a vaccine due to medical contraindications. An exemption will also apply to those on cruise ships calling in a Bahamas port in an emergency.
The Bahamas is home to popular cruising destinations such as Nassau, Freeport, and Bimini. In addition, a number of cruise lines have their private islands in The Bahamas, including Royal Caribbean's Perfect Day at CocoCay, Carnival Corp.'s Half Moon and Princess Cays, Disney's Castatway Cay, MSC Cruises' Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve and Norwegian Cruise Line's Great Stirrup Cay.
A number of cruise lines resumed offshore cruising from The Bahamas earlier this year, including Royal Caribbean and Crystal Cruises.
Crystal Cruises continues its Luxury Bahamas Escapes sailings on the Crystal Serenity through NOV. While the line has added Miami as a port of call and embarkation for guest convenience, the cruises focus on the islands of The Bahamas including Nassau, Bimini, Exuma and more.
As OpenJaw reported yesterday, cruise lines such as MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Carnival Cruises have updated their health protocols to now require testing or full vaccination fro guests.
