Should you be worried about Ebola on your forthcoming cruise ?

There is no getting away from the growing ebola situation and the media coverage surrounding it.

Naturally people are going to have general concerns about whether there will be risks to them and their cruise holiday so I thought I would share some information and my opinions on this.

Firstly no one has got a crystal ball, if you are going on a cruise at some point in the future that is not going to visit one of the effected West African countries then you might as well continue as you normally would.  The cruise lines are not going to go against government advice and sail passengers to somewhere that is deemed to be of risk to them.

Cruise lines will keep a watch on the situation and make any changes if necessary. I do have some clients of mine that are booked onto a Fred Olsen cruise that was meant to visit some West African itinerary’s and the ship will now not be visiting these places.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO), unless you are travelling to a country with an active Ebola outbreak, work in a health-related job where care of a patient with Ebola is ongoing or live in close quarters with an infected person (spouse, children), you are at very low risk of contracting Ebola. Per WHO, “the risk of infection for travellers is very low since person-to-person transmission results from direct contact with the body fluids or secretions of an infected patient.”

There’s an exception: Countries with a Level 3 Travel Health warning. A Level 3 Travel Health warning from the CDC urges the public to avoid non essential travel to a specific country or region. In the case of Ebola, the warning covers most of West Africa with a specific focus on Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Cruise lines will not let clients cancel or change their cruises (apart from standard terms and procedures) just because they decided that they are worried about Ebola and I can understand why.  If you are going on a cruise to somewhere that is not deemed a risk without an outbreak then I can’t see how there would be any more risk posed then popping to your local supermarket, as far as I know there hasn’t been advice to the contrary.

Please be rest assured though, cruise lines are very responsible and professional and they will adequately deal with any relevant situations should they arise.

I obliviously hope that the ebola situation is resolved as fast as possible and anyone effected by this horrible virus has my deepest sympathies.

As far as I am concerned though regarding booking cruises for my passengers at the moment it is business as usual.