New Disney Cruise Line 2022 Safety Procedures: What You Need to Know

My family and I recently returned from a Disney Cruise Line vacation on the Disney Fantasy. This was our third Disney cruise, but our first on the Fantasy. It was also the first time that we sailed with the new health and safety procedures. This was the safest that I have felt in a long time. Learn more below.

The new practices begin well before you board. All passengers who are eligible must be fully vaccinated before boarding. There are no exceptions. Children under five must submit the results of a PCR test. We didn’t have any children in our party, so that isn’t something that I can speak about from experience.

Two weeks before the cruise we were required to upload our vaccine cards to Safe Passage. The link is found on the Disney Cruise Line website. Disney was very good at emailing information, instructions, and updates.

We needed to take a clear picture of each vaccine card and upload them to the Safe Passage website. We all needed to create an individual account, and our accounts were linked through our reservation number.

It took a couple of days, but we then received emails that our cards had been accepted. We only needed to sign in to one account to see the results for all three of us. Don’t forget your Safe Passage email address and password, because you’ll need it again right before you board.

We were supposed to visit San Juan, Puerto Rico and Philipsburg, St. Maarten. Two days before we sailed, we received an email that our itinerary had changed to Cozumel and Costa Maya, Mexico. We were a bit disappointed, but also happy that our cruise hadn’t been canceled.

Everyone is required to take a rapid COVID test when arriving at the port. Again, there are no exceptions. The test is administered there, you don’t have to find a place to take one last minute. We drove, and we were given our tests in the parking garage. There was another testing area for people who arrived a different way.

It’s a simple self-swab nasal test. There were several people on hand to help us through the process and answer questions. We then parked and waited for the results.

We had been told that it might take up to 45 minutes to receive the results, but we got the email about 20 minutes later. The results are not in the email, you’ll need to sign in to the Safe Passage website once again. You will be able to check all the people on your reservation at the same time. If anyone receives a positive test, your whole party will not be allowed to board. There is no retest, and Disney will work with you immediately to either reschedule or get you a refund.

Fortunately, we received the all clear. A Cast Member checked our results before we were allowed to proceed to the terminal.

Once onboard there were several extra safety precautions taken. The most noticeable was that masks are required in all indoor areas for anyone who is two or older. This includes indoor photos. The only exception is when eating or drinking, but you need to be seated to remove your face covering. Most of the other passengers did not have a problem with the rule.

The Disney Cruise Line Navigator App is essential right now. We started using it right after we boarded because we needed it to check-in for our Muster Drill. We headed to our Muster Station, scanned the code, and went over the instructions with the Crew Member there. It was simple.

On past cruises, we would receive our Key to the World Cards in the terminal. They are now left outside of your stateroom door.

There was no Sail Away Party. I thought that I would miss that, but it was fine without it. We were still able to head to Deck 11 and wave to people onshore as we left, it was just quieter.

On past cruises, we’ve been required to wash our hands when entering Cabanas and use wipes when entering the three main restaurants. This was still the case. There were also hand sanitizer dispensers at each elevator stop. They weren’t limiting the number of people in the elevators, but our cruise had only 1,345 passengers, so there was rarely a wait and the elevators weren’t crowded.

There were no children in our party, so I can’t speak from experience about the Kids Clubs. I do know that parents needed to reserve times. There were several announcements about times being available, so it seemed like it wasn’t difficult to get a spot. It’s a Small World Nursery was closed.

The pools had a limit on how many people could swim at a time. After a few minutes, a lifeguard would blow a whistle and the groups would change. This sounds like it would be a pain, but there was usually not the maximum number of people in the pool, so the swimmers could stay in as long as they wanted. We rode the Aquaduck three times in a row without waiting.

The Navigator App continued to be important throughout the cruise. There are no paper Navigators anymore, so it was the key to finding everything. The app was tailored to our reservation, so it told us which restaurant to dine in and when, gave information on showtimes that worked with our dining rotation, etc. The menus for the restaurants throughout your cruise are also on the app.

There was no Pirate Night. We still had a taste of it, because several characters dressed up in their pirate costumes. Many of the passengers dressed up as well. There was no special menu that night.

Even though there were no deck parties, there were a couple of character dance parties on Deck 11. The characters would dance on the stage, and families would stand on a socially distanced dot. There were dots or markers in other places, mostly for pictures or food lines.

There was never a moment on the Disney Fantasy when I felt like there was more that Disney could have done to keep us safe. It was a much-needed break from reality.