Cruise Line Update: Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line Change COVID Requirements

As COVID cases decrease across the U.S., three major cruise lines are easing up on their pandemic restrictions onboard their ships.

Royal Caribbean (RCL), Carnival Cruise Line (CCL), and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) are rolling back their mask requirements in the coming days, allowing passengers to go maskless when sailing on their cruise ships.

Royal Caribbean has announced that it will lift its indoor face mask requirement for fully vaccinated passengers starting on Friday, while Carnival Cruise Line will begin allowing passengers to go maskless in most venues on its ships beginning on March 1. Norwegian said its face mask policy would also be lifted on March 1.

For passengers traveling on Royal Caribbean departing from the U.S. and Puerto Rico, masks will not be needed indoors. However, unvaccinated children aged 2 and older will be required to wear face masks indoors and in crowded areas.

Face masks are also optional at the cruise line’s private destinations but are required at public ports of call and at cruise terminals during boarding, screening, and disembarkment.

Passengers traveling on Carnival Cruise Line from a U.S. port on March 1 and beyond will only need to wear a face mask in “certain venues and events,” the cruise line said on its website. Signage will be provided to notify where masks will be required.

Masks will also be required during embarkment and disembarkment as well as during shore excursions and on transportation vehicles. Local mask guidelines will also need to be adhered to, the cruise line said.

Face masks will also not be required on Norwegian cruises from U.S. ports. However, the cruise line does recommend them when indoors or when physical distancing is not possible.

The news of the lifting of the face mask requirement comes as the three cruise lines opt into the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s voluntary COVID-19 program for cruise lines, which allows for the removal of the mask requirement onboard cruise ships if 95% of passengers and crew are fully vaccinated, USA Today reported.

As of Tuesday at 10:11 a.m. ET, shares of Royal Caribbean were trading at $83.49, down 20 cents or 0.24%, while shares of Carnival Cruise Line were trading at $21.81, down 36 cents or 1.62% at the same time. Shares of Norwegian Cruise Line were trading at $20.95, down 25 cents or 1.18%, also at the same time.