On October 6, the world's largest cruise conference was held with the participation of members of the International Cruise Lines Association (CLIA) at which it was decided to conduct mandatory testing for COVID-19 for all passengers and crew members before boarding the ship.

 

CLIA CEO Kelly Craighead made the announcement and called it "a key element of the world's initial renewal."

 

“I am delighted to announce that as of today, all ICA members around the world have agreed to 100 percent test passengers and crew on all ships with a capacity of 250 or more - with a negative test required for any landing.” Kelly Craighead, CEO of CLIA, she continued, “Recognizing that no single measure alone is sufficient to prevent COVID-19 on board, we see testing as an important initial step towards a tiered approach that we believe reaffirms the industry's commitment to ensuring the health, safety and well-being of passengers, crew and the communities we visit is our top priority. "

 

The news came as no surprise to American cruise lines, all of whom agreed to be tested before boarding.

 

However, the announcement appears to contradict the restart plans drawn up by CLIA in the UK in conjunction with the UK Shipping Chamber last week, which clearly do not include mandatory pre-tests for passengers, but only for the crew.

 

The statement also did not specify what preliminary testing for COVID-19 will be carried out. All major cruise lines that have safely resumed cruises - MSC Cruises, Costa Cruises and TUI Cruises - require mandatory pre-testing, boarding is only possible with a negative COVID-19 test.

 

MSC Cruises and Costa Cruises conduct rapid testing at the terminal and, if positive, a more thorough PCR test. On TUI Cruises, passengers are required to present a negative test result prior to sailing.

 

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Cruise department manager

Dahlia Vehbe