Health & Safety

The safety of our guests, our employees, and the communities we visit is our priority. We’ve partnered with experts in health and safety to design and implement protocols and procedures across our expedition fleet.

Health & Safety

COVID-19 | Your safety is our priority 

We continuously evaluate our health and safety procedures and update the information on this page. Therefore, the procedures including embarkation procedures are subject to change. Specific measures may vary per sailing due to local regulations, updates in scientific and medical advice, and the conditions at the time of sailing.  Instructions from local health authorities and changes in legislation may also impact our procedures and how we handle specific cases. Before your departure date, we will do our best to inform you of the latest requirements for your expedition if material changes are made before the sailing.  

What you do 

Please note that our embarkation procedures and requirements may differ to  national regulations. Therefore, it’s important that you read the information below, where we provide an overview of our procedures and requirements. 

We expect you to follow all applicable travel or quarantine restrictions you may be subject to, whether at home or at your expedition destination.

Joining your Hurtigruten Expedition 

COVID-19 vaccinations & pre-embarkation testing are no longer required for guests travelling on Hurtigruten Expedition ships*. 

While COVID-19 vaccinations will no longer be required for most Hurtigruten Expedition voyages, we still highly recommend that all guests travelling on our ships are fully vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters if eligible. However, some countries may require a booster dose to enter. Please check before travelling. 

During your voyage, it is your responsibility to meet all entry requirements for countries you visit at the time of sailing. If you are travelling to join the ship in another country or disembark in another country, please be aware that the entry requirements to travel by land or air may differ from the requirements to embark on the ship. We can’t accept responsibility if you are denied entry to a country because you don’t meet its entry requirements. 

*However, there will still be some voyages that will require guests to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19.  Please note: All guests aged 12 years and over, travelling on voyages to Antarctica and the Northwest Passage in 2023 and 2024 will still be required to be fully vaccinated with a primary Covid-19 vaccination series. All persons regardless of age must be fully vaccinated for West African Voyages. 

Please note the following national requirements: All persons entering Guinea Bissau must be either fully vaccinated or take a PCR test prior to entry according to local regulations.

Please note that the COVID-19 requirements are subject to change. All of our Hurtigruten Expedition crew are fully vaccinated. 

What is a primary vaccination series? 

You are considered to have completed your primary vaccination series 14 days after receiving the final dose of a vaccine approved by national medical authorities. Please note: A primary vaccination series refers to the initial number of doses required. It does not include booster doses. For example, the primary series of Moderna or Pfizer consists of two doses.    

The vaccine and vaccine certificate must comply with the local regulations in the area of the cruise.   

If you’re unable to be vaccinated, please contact us to discuss rebooking options.  If your booking was made prior to the adoption of this policy on 1 July 2021, and you are unable to get vaccinated in time for your departure, please contact us to discuss your options for refund or rebooking to a future departure.    

This vaccine requirement does not apply to Hurtigruten Norwegian Coastal Express voyages.  

Denial of boarding – exclusion policy

During the embarkation process, you may be denied boarding if you do not fulfill the requirements in our procedures. We particularly draw attention to the following:   

Guests who do not comply with the vaccination policy when required may be denied embarkation to the vessel.  For required voyages, you will be asked to provide vaccination documentation during the embarkation process. 

Following a medical assessment, guests may be denied embarking the vessel if they experience new onset symptoms of the following:      

  • Cough  

  • Shortness of breath  

  • Difficulty breathing  

  • Fever or chills  

  • Loss of taste or smell  

  • Vomiting or Diarrhoea   

Please note that during the medical assessment, you may be requested to take an antigen test if our medical team deems it necessary. 

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