Before booking your cruise, please check HERE if you are allowed to embark according to your country of residence. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there might be international travel restrictions depending on your cruise destination and your country of residence. 

In addition, travel requirements might be different according to your cruise destination. Please select your destination below.

• The Bahamas & Caribbean (from U.S. port)
• Southern Caribbean 
• Mediterranean
• MSC Lirica cruises to Greece, Cyprus, Turkey and Israel
• Northern Europe
• Dubai, Abu Dhabi & Qatar
• Grand Voyages & MSC World Cruise

For countries requiring RT-PCR, NAAT or antigen testing, the test must be taken no more than the designated time based on the destination. 
Example: RT-PCR test must be taken no more than 2 days before boarding the ship. Your boarding time is 5pm on Friday, therefore the test cannot be taken before Wednesday at 5pm. 

For U.S. and Puerto Rico residents departing on cruises from a U.S. port:

All guests 12 years and older must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 at the time of embarkation. 

MSC encourages but does not require fully vaccinated guests based on the dates above, to purchase travel insurance either through MSC Cruises or another provider. If you choose to purchase travel insurance through MSC Cruises, the purchase must be made prior to final payment.

View full details of MSC Cruises travel insurance

MSC Cruises provides COVID-19 assistance at no extra charge for U.S. and Puerto Rico residents who are fully vaccinated.  Children under the required vaccination age based on the dates above, regardless of vaccination status, traveling with fully vaccinated parents/guardians (with proof of vaccination) also benefit from this assistance.    

If you test positive for COVID-19 within 14-days prior to your cruise, you and your traveling party will receive a full refund.

If you test positive for COVID-19 at the terminal, you and your traveling party will receive a full refund and assistance, if required, with land-based quarantine.

If you test positive for COVID-19 during your cruise, you and your traveling party will receive a pro-rated refund and assistance, if required, with onboard medical care and land-based quarantine.

For non-U.S. residents departing on cruises from a U.S. port: 

Purchase of travel insurance with coverage for COVID-19 is required through the country of residence of each guest.

If purchased through MSC Cruises, it must be purchased prior to making the final payment on your booking

You must either purchase travel insurance through MSC Cruises or present documentation at the pier with sufficient coverage purchased from another provider or you will be denied boarding.

View full details of MSC Cruises travel insurance

For ALL guests departing on cruises from outside a U.S. port:

Purchase of travel insurance with coverage for COVID-19 is required through the country of residence of each guest.

If purchased through MSC Cruises, it must be purchased prior to making the final payment on your booking

You must either purchase travel insurance through MSC Cruises or present documentation at the pier with sufficient coverage purchased from another provider or you will be denied boarding.

Guests that purchase insurance other than the one offered by MSC Cruises must provide proof of their valid travel insurance policy that has a minimum of (a) $25,000 per person in medical expense coverage and (b) $50,000 coverage for emergency medical evacuation, both with no COVID-19 exclusions.  The insurance policy must name the guest as the policyholder or beneficiary.  Guests must bring a printed version of the insurance policy, showing the name of each of the covered guest(s) and a description of the coverage in the policy. This documentation will be reviewed by our staff at the terminal prior to boarding.  Without it, guests will be denied boarding.

View full details of MSC Cruises travel insurance

We are extending our enhanced health and hygiene measures to all MSC transfers, including:

- Cleaning and sanitization of all vehicles before any new group of guests

- Availability of hand sanitization stations and disinfectant mats for footwear

- Appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) for all drivers

- Reduced number of guests with selected seats empty to ensure social distancing

According to our enhanced cleaning and sanitation protocols, every guest stateroom will be thoroughly cleaned on a daily basis, with special attention to 40 frequently-touched areas, such as door handles, power switches, control panels, remote controls, desks and bathroom surfaces.

Every stateroom will also go through a deep cleaning at the end of each cruise before the next guests arrive for their cruise vacation.

All public areas and public restrooms will be deep cleaned and sprayed with disinfectant each night, as well as regularly sanitized throughout the day. For example, public toilets will be cleaned every 20 minutes, and all cleaning staff will wear appropriate PPE.

Before the cruise, the collection of contact details for each guest is mandatory in case of important updates. Proceeding to the web check-in allow guests to receive cruise tickets, travel documentation and mandatory health questionnaires. On embarkation day, guests should arrive at the time indicated on their cruise ticket to facilitate responsible social distancing, with travel documentation, vaccination certificate (must be valid for the whole duration of the cruise), and proof of a negative COVID-19 test. Test must meet stated travel requirements by country of residence and cruise destination (check above Travel Requirements section). A newly designed processes for embarkation has been implemented to manage the guest flow, to limit lines and contacts.

Before the cruise, MSC Cruises invites all guests to download for free the MSC for Me* app to start booking additional services, to secure space and to ensure a seamless onboard experience. 

*MSC For Me is only available on select ships

Yes. As part of our comprehensive and enhanced health and safety protocols, we have a contingency response plan in place with all the relevant authorities in the ports where the ships will call.

We have COVID-19 testing equipment on board for Real Time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and antigen swab testing.

All MSC Cruises’ ships are equipped with state-of-the-art medical services and an increased number of qualified medical staff onboard, supported by dedicated 24/7 ashore Medical Team. We continuously monitor the health of our guests and crew with contactless temperature checks during the cruise; in case of flu-like symptoms, guests should immediately notify the Medical Centre and free treatment will be provided.

Our bars will be open and ready to serve our guests with their favorite cocktail or aperitif. To ensure we comply with the current social distancing recommendations, we will limit the capacity of each venue. Face masks do not need to be worn by our guests when seated in bars and lounges, but only when entering the venue.

You can save time by personalizing your cruise even before getting onboard. Login on our website and you can easily add drink packages or dining experiences to your cruise and take advantage of our pre-booking discounts!

For a contactless experience, guests will access restaurant and bar menus from their personal mobile device by scanning a QR code while on board. Before the cruise, MSC Cruises invites all guests to download for free the MSC for Me app (available on select ships) to browse all the onboard restaurants, bars and lounges and to ensure a seamless onboard experience like making restaurant reservations.

The casino remains fully functional under the new protocols with added sanitation and social distancing measures in place, including frequent sanitizing of chips, replacing playing cards on a regular basis and a reduced number of seats at gaming tables.

Guests will be able to go ashore independently according to local requirements which are continually monitored and subject to change. Guests who are traveling with unvaccinated children are also able to go ashore independently. For the best ashore experience, we recommend all guests explore destinations with the comfort, convenience, and safety of an MSC Cruises Shore Excursion, bookable pre-cruise and on board. 

MSC Cruises offers a large variety of shore excursions. Some excursions are available only to guests holding the EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate/Green pass or, from extra Schengen countries Travelers, the equivalent COVID-19 certificate, while other excursions are open to those not in its possession, guaranteeing in both cases the highest health and safety standards. More information about the tours are available here. Please note that guests holding the EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate/Green pass or the equivalent COVID-19 certificate (for extra Schengen countries Travelers), travelling with children over 12 years old who do not hold an EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate/Green card or the equivalent COVID-19 certificate (for extra Schengen countries Travelers), will be considered as Guests not holding the EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate/Green pass or the equivalent COVID-19 certificate (for extra Schengen countries Travelers), for excursions purposes: children will be requested to do the free COVID-19 test on board to participate to the excursion (or the booked excursion will need to be changed for another tour not requiring the green pass).

The EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate / Green Pass is a digital certificate with a QR code issued by countries in Europe to show the following:

•  The guest has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, taken at least 14 days beforehand, using a vaccine recognized by the European Medicines Agency (EMA)

• The guest has recovered from COVID-19 within the last six months
•  A guest who has a negative result for a molecular or antigen test performed in the last 48 hours

A copy of the EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate / Green Pass or, from extra Schengen countries Travelers, the equivalent COVID-19 certificate (digital or paper format), and a personal ID or passport, must be shown during the tour at all required entry checks.  

This is a regulation coming from the local authorities and MSC Cruises is not responsible if access is denied at one of the venues on the selected tour. Every port of call offers also a variety of excursions that do not require the EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate (Green Pass) or, the equivalent COVID-19 certificate (for extra Schengen countries travelers). Guests not in possession of a valid certificate can change excursions but availability is limited for some tours. Alternatively, Guests can contact the MSC Excursions office on board during the cruise: a free test will be arranged.