Carnival Cruise Line has made an itinerary change for the 10-day Carnival Sunshine voyage and will implement new pre-cruise terminal testing.
In that sense, to replace Saint Juan, Puerto Rico, to stopover at Amber Cove, in port Plata, Dominican Republic, has been added to the itinerary. However, it is not the only change to the 10-day itinerary; in addition to replacing San Juan, the planned visit to St. Kitts has been eliminated. In the British Virgin Islands, the ship will call at Tortola, where additional tests are required for the ten-night cruise.
In a letter sent to booked guests, Carnival Sunshine implemented new Covid-19 testing ahead of the cruise at the boarding terminal for its Jan. 17 sail. This new test requirement applies to all passengers over the age of 2 and is in addition to the mandatory negative result of the pre-cruise test that must be presented at the terminal.
The notification letter, emailed to passengers, explains that due to the duration of the cruise and the widespread nature of the Omicron variant, everyone must be tested at the terminal before boarding the ship.
The statement reads: “Given the prevalence of the coronavirus variant and the duration of your cruise, we will evaluate all guests aged 2 years or older at the time of boarding, regardless of vaccination status.”
The new test requirement will be complementary, but it is mandatory and is in addition to the pre-cruise compulsory test that must be done within two days of sailing and presented at check-in. Prior registration is required for proof of boarding, and both proof and check-in will take place during scheduled arrival appointment windows.
Testing at the Charleston, South Carolina, cruise terminal will be conducted on passenger cars, with an exclusive lane for Covid-19 testing. Guests will need to park and wait for the results, emailed to them within approximately 15 to 20 minutes.
Guests must remain in their cars until everyone in their travel group has received a negative test result via email. Anyone who gets a positive result, along with their close contacts, will not travel. A contact number is provided for those who tested positive for further instructions.