The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continues to elevate its travel notices. In the latest round of updates, another three Caribbean cruise destinations are now at level 4. St. Kitts and Nevis, Belize, and Grenada all have updated travel notices due to the growing spread of COVID.
Three More Caribbean Cruise Destinations at Level 4
On September 13, the CDC elevated the travel notice for a total of ten countries, including the three Caribbean cruise destinations of Belize, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Grenada. The CDC now recommends avoiding all travel to all three cruise nations, especially Belize and St. Kitts.
It’s recommended that people only travel to the countries if they are fully vaccinated due to the current situation and the growing risk for getting and spreading new variants.
St. Kitts is just reopening to cruise tourism, with Celebrity Equinox making its first call to the Eastern Caribbean island on September 14. Authorities have also issued a bulletin to residents to stay away from specific locations due to bubble tours. Belize had already dealt with cruise ships, including when Carnival Vista was eventually allowed to make its call in August after 27 cases on board.
To determine which countries are added to the Level 4 list, the CDC factors new cases over the past 28 days per 100,000 population. When that’s more than 500 cases, the country could be added. Another factor also depends on the number of people who have been tested over the past 28 days.
This news comes as the variants continue to spread worldwide, and the CDC has also already recently added other cruise hot spots in the region. On September 7, Jamaica was elevated to level 4; on September 20, Puerto Rico and St. Lucia were added, and on August 23, the Bahamas and St. Maarten were added.
In total, there are now 14 cruise destinations with the highest travel notice level from the CDC, including multiple cruise ports across the Caribbean and the Bahamas. More countries are heading for level 4 rather than going down to level 3. Meanwhile, cruise lines adapt their protocols to keep guests protected as the gradual return to operations moves forward.