It’s every guest’s responsibility to comply with the MSC travel requirements and your country’s official travel requirements before departure. MSC Cruises has worked with the authorities in all of the regions and countries in which the ships operate to ensure its protocol meets and exceeds the required health and safety measures. The below details are subject to change.

Vaccination requirements

Testing requirements

Starting 1st of April for all Grand Voyages (except those sailing from Brazil)

A negative RT-PCR or Antigen test within 48 hours prior to embarkation is highly recommended but not required

ONLY FOR GRAND VOYAGES SAILING FROM BRAZIL :

ALL GUESTS FROM 12 YEARS OLD MUST BE FULLY VACCINATED (they must provide a valid vaccination certificate);

ALL GUESTS from 3 to 11 years old , if not fully vaccinated, MUST PROVIDE a negative RT-PCR or Antigen test within 24 hours prior to embarkation
(as required by local authorities regulation)

All Crew members are required to be fully vaccinated and are regularly screened according to MSC Cruises Health & Safety protocol. 

For more information visit our FAQ section. 

Last updated: 28th March 2023

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there might be international travel restrictions depending on your cruise destination and your country of residence. 

The wearing of face masks is highly recommended. In certain circumstances this recommendation might be due to a mandatory requirement in accordance with applicable health authorities regulations of a country or port of call visited. When ashore, guests must also follow any local regulations regarding face mask usage. These protocols are subject to change.

Other requirements such as a COVID-19 test  a Passenger locator form (PLF) may still be necessary for national or international mobility requirement: it’s every guest’s responsibility to verify this requirement before departure. For more information, it is recommended to check your country’s competent authorities official channels. 

To verify all the required documents, passports and visas for your cruise, please click here.

As during a cruise, you may be exposed to specific COVID-19 risks that may not be usually covered by existing insurance policies, to ensure your peace of mind is strongly recommended – for all new reservations from 1 July 2022 onwards - for all guests to have in place an insurance policy that specifically covers them against COVID-19 related risks, such as cancellation, interruption, repatriation expenses, quarantine, medical assistance and related expenses, as well as hospitalization. If you have no insurance in place, please note that you might be exposed to additional costs that could not be covered by the Company. 

The insurance should be in place to cover you and your family, from the confirmation of your booking until the end of the cruise, or your cruise and flight. 

To fully protect you from the above risks, MSC offers a COVID Protection Plan - an insurance policy specifically designed for these COVID-19 risks - that can be added to the cruise whilst making the booking. The Covid Protection Plan is applicable to all departures on sales. Before finalizing the reservation, it will be possible to add to the cruise the MSC COVID-19 Protection plan at the price 29€ per person (MSC Grand Voyages) and 45€ (MSC World Cruise).

Alternatively, you may travel with another insurance policy covering the above risks.

Guests are able to go ashore independently according to local requirements which are continually monitored and subject to change. Guests who are travelling 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. 

A COVID-19 test or Passenger locator form (PLF) may still be necessary for national or international mobility requirement: it’s every guest’s responsibility to verify this requirement before departure. For more information, it is recommended to check your country’s competent authorities official channels. It is the responsibility of each Guest to ensure they are in compliance with any local regulations related to COVID-19 testing when returning to their final post cruise destination.