MSC Cruises announced today that all passengers on its winter cruises must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and must also take a COVID-19 test before their embarkation date.
These measures had already been implemented for all of the company's winter cruises in other regions and have now been extended to Mediterranean cruises, with the new requirements applying to passengers with an active reservation on both the MSC Grandiosa and the MSC Fantasia.
Passengers on any of the company’s winter itineraries traveling on or after December 4 must be fully vaccinated. Passengers are considered vaccinated if they have received the full course of COVID-19 vaccination more than 14 days before the start of their cruise. All passengers must also take a COVID-19 test up to 72 hours before the ship’s departure.
The measures will apply to all passengers aged 12 and older and are in addition to the existing health and hygiene regulations first introduced by MSC Cruises in the summer of 2020, which today constitute the industry-leading protocol. These measures include an additional COVID-19 test upon boarding, as well as other measures during the cruise, all designed to provide all passengers and crew with the highest level of health protection.
Gianni Onorato, CEO of MSC Cruises, said:“Our health and hygiene protocol has led the way in the industry, not only because we were the first major cruise line to resume international operations, but also because of its flexibility in adapting to the evolving pandemic situation on land.”
“This approach has reassured our passengers, our crew, and the residents of the destinations we visit with our ships, as they have seen that even during a new surge in the pandemic on land, we were able to adapt our health and hygiene measures appropriately and continue to offer the highest level of protection to our passengers and crew last winter in the Mediterranean,”he added.
Gianni Onorato continued:“Given that some European countries are seeing a rise in infection rates on land, we have strengthened our measures to ensure the well-being of those on board our ships and the residents of the communities we visit, demonstrating once again that health and safety are our top priority.”
The new measures will now also apply to winter itineraries in the Mediterranean on the MSC Grandiosa and MSC Fantasia, in addition to the company's other ships operating in Northern Europe, North America, South America, South Africa, and the Middle East.
Any passenger who already has a reservation and is not fully vaccinated by the departure date may choose to reschedule their vacation with us for a later date or request a refund.
Furthermore, since passengers under the age of 12 are not eligible for vaccination, they will continue to be welcome on board under the current measures.
MSC Grandiosa will set sail from Barcelona on 7-night cruises to Marseille, Genoa, Civitavecchia, Palermo, and Valletta before returning to Barcelona. Meanwhile, MSC Fantasia, setting sail from Barcelona, will visit Marseille, Genoa, La Spezia, Naples, and Palma de Mallorca before returning to Barcelona.
