Travellers sailing with Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) can soon ditch their face masks.
In a sign of loosening pandemic rules around the world, NCL has
announced the easing of Covid-19 protocols, including masking mandates,
vaccination requirements for young passengers and pre-departure testing
protocols.
Come 1 March 2022, passengers will no longer need to wear a mask on board for cruises departing from a U.S. port.
Norwegian still recommends mask wearing, but will not require it
indoors. The cruise line also adds that mask wearing, however, may still
be required in destinations its ships sailed to.
In addition, unvaccinated children under four years of age will be
allowed to board, marking a shift from Norwegian's earlier 100%
vaccination mandate. Norwegian will limit the number to “well under”
five percent of the total guest occupancy on each cruise.
NCL
will no longer provide complimentary antigen tests at the port prior to
embarkation. Instead, passengers will be required to show proof of a
negative antigen or PCR to sail administered by a verified third party
within two days prior to boarding in a U.S. port or three days if
departing from a non-U.S. port.