With travel restrictions easing, cruise ships lifting their covid-19 vaccine and masking requirements, and some cruise ships that our own Insider reporters found quite crowded, it begs the question: What happens if you contract the virus during your time aboard the ship?
Insider spoke with Matt Hochberg who has been on hundreds of cruises and runs a website called RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com that shares travel tips and advice for those interested in booking a cruise. The website has no affiliation with the cruise line of the same name. In June, Hochberg was sailing on a Royal Caribbean ship in Alaska with his family when he began to have a scratchy throat. He brought his own covid tests — something he advises passengers to do — and tested positive.
He informed the cabin crew immediately and was then relegated to his cabin for the remainder of the trip. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises travelers to stay in their cabin and notify the onboard medical team if symptoms of the virus occur. Hochberg told Insider that the treatment he received during his time on the ship was fantastic. In less than an hour, a medical team consisting of a doctor and nurse tested him again as well as his family who tested negative.