Which vaccinations do you need to cruise?

When cruising, you’re visiting a number of different countries within a short space of time. It’s always advisable to consult to your GP before going on holiday to check what vaccinations you need and to determine the health requirements for particular countries in your itinerary.

One of the best places to check what is required is by visiting the Fitfortravel website. This offers free, interactive, and up-to-date health information on staying healthy when travelling abroad.

We advise checking this for your chosen destinations and speaking with your GP, practice nurse or private healthcare provider, to discuss health risks and where additional measures are required.

Below, we have highlighted country-specific information on health risks and any holiday injections to help you determine what additional measures you may need to take in order to travel healthy!

Africa

In Africa, there are a number of ports which have both required and advisory measures to consider when visiting here.

Main requirements include holiday jabs for Hepatitis A, Tetanus, and a yellow fever certification if you have visited areas with risk of yellow fever transmission. You can see which areas you are at risk of yellow fever here, as defined by the World Health Organisation. Additional advisory vaccinations include Hepatitis B, Diptheria, Rabies, and Typhoid – though these depend on your specific port.

These ports with specific injections and health requirements are listed below:

• Algeria
• Angola
• Benin
• Cameroon
• Cape Verde
• Comoros
• Republic of the Congo
• Cote d’Ivoire
• The Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Djibouti
• Egypt
• Equatorial Guinea

• Eritrea
• Gabon
• The Gambia
• Ghana
• Kenya
• Liberia
• Libya
• Madagascar
• Mauritania
• Mauritius
• Mayotte
• Morocco
• Mozambique

• Namibia
• Nigeria
• Reunion
• Saint Helena
• Sao Tome and Principe
• Senegal
• Seychelles
• Sierra Leone
• South Africa
• Sudan
• Tanzania
• Togo
• Tunisia

Asia

Asia is another destination with a number of ports which require specific vaccinations and health requirements prior to your cruise travel.

Required injections include Hepatitis A, Tetanus and a yellow fever certification for travellers coming from countries at risk of transmission. You can find which countries are specified risk areas here to give you an idea of what conditions are required to enter the country. Other injections include Hepatitis B, Rabies, Diptheria, and Typhoid – though this all depends on where you are cruising to.

Ports where you may need to consider vaccinations and health requirements, include:

• Bangladesh
• Brunei
• Cambodia
• China
• Timor-Leste
• Hong Kong
• India

• Indonesia
• Japan
• Macao
• Malaysia
• Maldives
• Mongolia
• Myanmar

• Philippines
• South Korea
• Singapore
• Sri Lanka
• Taiwan
• Thailand
• Vietnam

Australasia

Australasia covers destinations across both Australia and New Zealand, as well as islands across the South Pacific.

Here, the main inoculations to consider include Hepatitis A and Tetanus, with the yellow fever certification also required in a number of ports for those who have visited risk areas of contamination, you can find these risk areas here. Other vaccinations include Hepatitis B, Diptheria, Rabies, and Typhoid.

There are plenty of ports that need you to consider your health and vaccinations for before visiting, such as:

• American Samoa
• Australia
• Christmas Island
• Cook Islands
• Federated State of Micronesia
• Fiji
• French Polynesia
• Guam

• Kiribati
• Marshall Islands
• Nauru
• New Caledonia
• New Zealand
• Niue
• Northern Mariana Islands
• Palau

• Papua New Guinea
• Pitcairn
• Samoa
• Solomon Islands
• Tokelau
• Tonga
• Tuvalu
• Vanuatu

Caribbean

As one of the most popular cruise destinations, there are plenty of ports to visit across the Caribbean. The main vaccinations for Caribbean cruises are Hepatitis B and Tetanus, though these are advisory rather than required. You may also need yellow fever certification in some ports, depending on whether you have visited risk areas. You can see which areas are considered at risk of yellow fever contamination here, as defined by the World Health Organisation.

Many of the places in the Caribbean require certain health requirements or vaccinations, which ensure you stay healthy during your stay. These include:

• Anguilla
• Antigua & Barbuda
• Aruba
• Bahamas
• Barbados
• Bonaire
• British Virgin Islands
• Cayman Islands
• Cuba
• Curacao

• Dominica
• Dominican Republic
• Grenada
• Guadeloupe
• Haiti
• Jamaica
• Martinique
• Montserrat
• Puerto Rico
• Saba

• St Barthelemy
• St Kitts & Nevis
• St Lucia
• St Martin
• St Vincent and the Grenadines
• Sint Eustatius
• Sint Maarten
• Trinidad and Tobago
• Turks and Caicos
• US Virgin Islands

North America & Central America

Despite its size, there are only a few cruise ports in North America & Central America which ask you to consider health requirements. The main injections include Hepatitis A and Tetanus. You may also be required to carry the yellow fever certification in some places, particularly if you have visited countries at risk. If you need to check these risk areas, you can find these here, as defined by the World Health Organisation.

Other injections to consider include Hepatitis B, Diptheria, Rabies, and Typhoid. We recommend consulting your GP before visiting the following ports:

• Belize
• Costa Rica
• El Salvador
• Guatemala

• Honduras
• Nicaragua
• Panama
• Bermuda

• Canada
• Greenland
• Mexico
• Saint Pierre and Miquelon
• USA

Europe & Russia

Another popular cruise destination, Europe is a fantastic place to explore during a cruise. There aren’t many strictly required vaccinations prior to visiting Europe, though it’s always best to speak to your GP just in case. Particular considerations for vaccinations include Tetanus and Tick-borne Encephalitis, as well as Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Diphtheria, and Rabies.

Europe and Russia both offer a number of countries across multiple regions, some of which require more health and travel considerations than others, including:

• Albania
• Belgium
• Bosnia Herzegovina
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Cyprus
• Denmark
• Estonia
• Faroe Islands
• Finland
• France

• Georgia
• Germany
• Gibraltar
• Greece
• Iceland
• Ireland
• Italy
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Malta
• Monaco
• Montenegro

• Netherlands
• Norway
• Poland
• Portugal
• Romania
• Russian Federation
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Sweden
• Turkey
• Ukraine
• United Kingdom

Middle East

An up-and-coming cruise destination, the Middle East also comes with health requirements and vaccinations for visiting its ports. Main requirements include Tetanus and yellow fever certification, which depends on other places you have visited and if they are considered risk areas. You can see these areas which are listed as risk areas for yellow fever here.

If you’re planning a cruise which visits ports in the Middle East, it’s always best to discuss your travels with your GP to determine what health requirements are needed for ports such as the following:

• Bahrain
• Iran

• Jordan
• Oman

• Qatar
• United Arab Emirates

South America & Antarctica

A huge destination, across two continents, there are plenty of places to cruise in South America and Antarctica for a fantastic holiday experience. Main vaccinations required for sailings to Antarctica and South America include Tetanus and yellow fever certification, though this is dependent on risk areas visited including those highlighted here.

Other advisory requirements include Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Diptheria, Rabies, and Typhoid. In order to make sure your trip is as good as can be, the following ports have specific health requirements for you to follow:

• Antarctica
• Argentina
• Brazil
• Chile

• Colombia
• Ecuador
• Falkland Islands
• French Guiana

• Guyana
• Peru
• Uruguay
• Venezuela

When you’re picking your cruise itinerary, it’s always advisable to check what is required in terms of vaccinations, health requirements and certifications. This will enable you to travel safely and be reassured that you can explore each destination protected.

We advise everyone who is concerned with their health while cruising to speak with their GP for professional advice on what vaccinations and health requirements are needed in order for you to visit specific destinations. It is always best to arrange a pre-travel consultation up to eight weeks before departure, to allow for plenty of time should you need additional treatment or vaccinations.