This Tuesday, August 24, the first tourist cruise arrives in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, after more than a year of being closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The first ship will arrive in Puerto Vallarta from Long Beach, California, United States, and after departing Vallarta, it will continue its route to Mazatlán, Sinaloa, to later go to Los Cabos, Baja California Sur and finally return to its origin.
To allow the arrival of tourists to one of the most important tourist destinations offered by the Mexican Pacific, the authorities of the Integral Port Administration (API) of Puerto Vallarta, in conjunction with the authorities of the Secretariat of Jalisco and the Government of Mexico have announced part of the health protocols that must be followed, both by cruise ship employees and travelers.
The head of the Jalisco Tourism Secretariat, Germán Ralis Cumplido, was the one who pointed out that travelers who will arrive on the next four scheduled cruises will be asked for a PCR test as a health requirement to disembark and if they make stops at one or more cities will require another antigen test before boarding.
In addition, cruises must comply with the reduced capacity of 70 percent of their capacity.
“For example, in this case, it would be around 2,800 to 3,000 passengers that the cruise would bring, which are the largest there is and they are handling 70 percent of capacity as a protocol,” he added. The same occupancy limits will be followed by cruise companies Carnival Panorama, Carnival Cruise Line, and Carnival Splendor.
While on land, cruise passengers are required to remain masked at all times, with the exception of dining, drinking, and swimming. One notable restriction that was missing from the announcement is the earlier promise by the Governor of Jalisco that unvaccinated cruise passengers would not be permitted to disembark from cruises.
Miguel Ángel Maya, from the Puerto Vallarta API, clarified that there are still some sanitary protocols to be defined, but he expects that by noon this Friday, August 20, they will be formally announced.
Locally, work tables have been held with port service providers, tour operators, taxi operators, guides, and with Puerto Vallarta authorities to monitor compliance with sanitary measures during the visits that tourists make, such as social distancing, permanent use mask, application of disinfectant gel, temperature measurement and constant disinfection of all areas.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the cruise industry brought to Mexico more than 10 million tourists a year.
