NEWS UPDATE: Are vaccination rules set to change soon? New Caledonia and PNG open to cruise + more!

Join my private Facebook group for cruise deals, tips and advice - the more members we have, the better we’ll get! www.facebook.com/groups/CTGdeals Follow me on Facebook and Instagram: www.facebook.com/thecruiseandtravelguy www.instragram.com/thecruiseandtravelguy Support the channel with a slogan tee: https://thecruiseandtravelguy.myshopify.com Head to my website for great cruise and travel deals: www.thecruiseandtravelguy.com.au Our local region continues to open back up to cruising and again P&O are at the forefront of these developments. Pacific Explorer arrived in Noumea earlier this week, officially marking the end of New Caledonia’s ban on cruising. Aside from offering beautiful landscapes and fantastic cultural attractions, Noumea is a pivotal port of call on South Pacific cruise itineraries. As one of the deepest ports in the region, it can accomodate even the largest cruise ships to visit Australia. Despite the broader cruise ban ending, two New Caledonian island ports will remain closed for the foreseeable future. Isle of Pines and Mare will be off limits to cruise ships until further notice. As a result of this change, cruise lines have scrambled to replace the ports of call on cruise departures as far forward as 2024. Meanwhile, P&O’s Pacific Encounter completed its maiden call in Alotau this week, marking the end of the cruise ban in Papua New Guinea. P&O’s first Grand Class ship is currently sailing on a 10 night PNG and Conflict Islands itinerary. Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises have changed one of their health policies, with crew members on both lines are no longer required to wear a mask whilst on duty. The change comes amidst a continual relaxation of cruise line health policies and better reflects acceptable practices both on land and in the air. As we’ve seen throughout the past year or so, these changes will slowly but surely trickle through to Australia’s own cruise health policies. Carnival this week announced that children under the age of 11 will no loner require a vaccine exemption to sail onboard the locally based Splendor and Luminosa. As of October 5th, only guests aged 12 and over with medical conditions preventing vaccination will need to apply for vaccine exemption. The exemption program was instituted by cruise lines in order to meet the Australian government’s cruise health protocols, which require 95% of all guests on local sailings to be vaccinated against COVID-19. That means that the remaining 5% of passengers that are allowed to board without having received a vaccination must be properly accounted for to ensure cruise line’s aren’t in breach of the regulations. Though it doesn’t appear that there have been any changes to government regulations requiring 95% of all guests to be vaccinated, this change in Carnival’s policy seems to have come off the back of media reports that highlighted the case of families missing out on their booked cruises, because they weren’t aware that they had to apply for a vaccine exemption for their children. How exactly Carnival will account for the numbers of unvaccinated people onboard, or whether they will simply prioritise counting children age 11 and under within the 5% threshold isn’t clear. This could be a sign that government regulations will soon change, but as at the time of filming, the 5% quota remains in place. Finally this week, Ovation of the Seas will depart Honolulu this weekend and embark on her nearly three week journey home. The transpacific voyage will see Ovation of the Seas visit Tahiti and New Zealand before she arrives in Sydney on October 29th. I’ll be boarding Ovation of the Seas for the first time next month, so keep an eye out for a ship tour and vlog series which will be coming soon. Thanks for watching!