Shots for October 2019 Panama Canal w/ Costa Rica and Caribbean Cruise

[teacher1977]

Just booked the October 2019 Panama Canal with Costa Rica and Caribbean cruise on the Island Princess today and when I looked at the CDC information regarding vaccinations it appears that there is a long laundry list of shots required and recommended, with  Measles at the top of the list for every port. My husband and myself were both born prior to 1957 so should be exempt for the Measles and of course do not  have a written vaccination record from when we were children.  However it appears that Princess may require written proof.  Are we expected to be re-vaccinated just so we have written proof?  Got the HEP A  prior to doing Northern Europe and the Baltics three years ago and brought written proof and never had to show it.  Anyone know what is really expected by Princess??  I will be contacting my family doctor this week to see what she is recommending in the way of shots.

[riffatsea]

We were on the Panama Canal cruise in December and no one asked us for proof of vaccination.

Where do you see that Princess wants this??? BTW none of those shots listed by the CDC are "required" either. They may be "suggested" but no one I know has gotten tons of shots for that cruise.

 

 

[blondee419]

tl;dr: CDC recommends Hep A, typhoid & malaria. It's up to you if you want to pay for them since not all is covered by insurance. 

 

Hi Teacher, 

I just finished FLL-LA on Island through the Canal. I got Hep A, Typhoid, and Malaria.  Typhoid and Malaria are NOT generally covered by insurance, so be forewarned. The bugs weren't horrible, though when we were in the canal and for the day in Panama, there was a specific request to keep the doors closed so that insects didn't fly inside.  I don't know that the insects were that bad (it was April), so maybe see what the bug situation is before you commit.  You do need to go ahead and do the Typhoid (course of 3 live vaccine pills) pretty soon if you decide to do that - i think you need to take it about 2 months in advance? The Malarial drug started 1 week before exposure, through the time in the affected area, and continue about 1 week after (21-28 day course of pills, depending on what your doctor says).  I will note my mom was a public health nurse and insisted I do the minimal CDC recommendations (The above three) and my doctor concurred. That was all that was recommended. Nothing was actually *required*. 

Anywho - enjoy your cruise! 

 

~Blondee419 
 

[Aus Traveller]

Malaria was eradicated from the Panama Canal Zone by the time the canal opened in 1914 - more than a hundred years ago. We have travelled through the Canal several times and would not consider taking anti-malarial medication. I would take the medication if I was going to countries known to have malaria. Check the internet for these.

 

Measles may be on the list because there has been a reported measles outbreak in USA. I cannot see why typhoid would be required unless you were going to live in the local villages and drink untreated water.

 

In my opinion, the recommendations for vaccinations etc. are given for travel to a country assuming you are going to stay there, eat the local food and drink the local water. This doesn't apply if you visit briefly on a cruise ship. There is no separate list for such visitors. Most vaccinations carry a small risk of side effects. Therefore I choose not to have the vaccinations unless they are required. BTW, I do not mean flu shots (good idea to have this in my opinion) and the standard measles, whooping cough and diptheria shots etc that are given to children.

[JF - retired RRT]

We've been on Caribbean cruises multiple times (7,8,9?) and through the canal twice. No vaccinations requested and we didn't catch any unwanted critters...with the exception of "bed bugs" that were eating DH and not me until we were moved to a different cabin.

[richmke]

On 5/12/2019 at 4:32 PM, teacher1977 said:

My husband and myself were both born prior to 1957 so should be exempt for the Measles and of course do not  have a written vaccination record from when we were children.  However it appears that Princess may require written proof.  Are we expected to be re-vaccinated just so we have written proof?

 

I was born in the questionable years of the Measles Vaccine, so I asked my Doctor about getting the recommended booster. My Doctor ordered a "Measles, Mumps, Rubella Antibody Test". It showed adequate levels of antibody, and I didn't need a booster. That test result is a substitute to proving vaccination.

 

I'm guessing that Princess won't care, unless ... if there is an active Measles outbreak in the immediate area you are going to, or was one on the ship you were on, they may want to check everyone before they board to prevent the spread on the ship.

[SargassoPirate]

On 5/12/2019 at 7:02 PM, riffatsea said:

We were on the Panama Canal cruise in December and no one asked us for proof of vaccination.

Where do you see that Princess wants this??? BTW none of those shots listed by the CDC are "required" either. They may be "suggested" but no one I know has gotten tons of shots for that cruise.

 

 

 

When you are on the Princess website and manage your bookings, there are a series of pop-ups that you must click on to acknowledge.  I decided to copy each one to a Word document for future reference.  Here is a cut-and-paste of the pop up regarding vaccinations.  The bold is mine.

 

3. It is the guest's responsibility to check with their travel advisor, the government authorities for the countries visited, and/or medical professionals to determine/verify visa and vaccination requirements and/or recommendations at sailing. Princess assumes no liability for a guest's failure to do so. Failure to present required travel documents, visas, and/or vaccination certificates at cruise check-in will result in denial of boarding without refund of the cruise or cruisetour fare. Visas issued onboard may include a service fee and prices are subject to change. See the Cruise Personalizer and Travel Summary for additional details. Visit the Cruise Answer Place at: www.princess.com/faq/.

 

By clicking Continue you acknowledge you have received the above notification.

 

This information is provided as general guidance. Because governmental and medical vaccination requirements and recommendations change periodically you must check with your travel advisor, government authorities for the countries you will visit and/or medical professionals to determine or verify the actual requirements and recommendations at the time of sailing. Princess assumes no liability for the passenger's failure to do so. Failure to present required travel documents, visas or vaccination certificates at cruise check-in will result in denial of boarding without refund of the cruise or cruisetour fare.

 

By clicking Continue you acknowledge you have received the above notification.

 

One could infer from this that you should bring your vaccination certificate with you.

 

Edited May 14, 2019 by SargassoPirate

[riffatsea]

1 hour ago, SargassoPirate said:

 

When you are on the Princess website and manage your bookings, there are a series of pop-ups that you must click on to acknowledge.  I decided to copy each one to a Word document for future reference.  Here is a cut-and-paste of the pop up regarding vaccinations.  The bold is mine.

 

3. It is the guest's responsibility to check with their travel advisor, the government authorities for the countries visited, and/or medical professionals to determine/verify visa and vaccination requirements and/or recommendations at sailing. Princess assumes no liability for a guest's failure to do so. Failure to present required travel documents, visas, and/or vaccination certificates at cruise check-in will result in denial of boarding without refund of the cruise or cruisetour fare. Visas issued onboard may include a service fee and prices are subject to change. See the Cruise Personalizer and Travel Summary for additional details. Visit the Cruise Answer Place at: www.princess.com/faq/.

 

By clicking Continue you acknowledge you have received the above notification.

 

This information is provided as general guidance. Because governmental and medical vaccination requirements and recommendations change periodically you must check with your travel advisor, government authorities for the countries you will visit and/or medical professionals to determine or verify the actual requirements and recommendations at the time of sailing. Princess assumes no liability for the passenger's failure to do so. Failure to present required travel documents, visas or vaccination certificates at cruise check-in will result in denial of boarding without refund of the cruise or cruisetour fare.

 

By clicking Continue you acknowledge you have received the above notification.

 

One could infer from this that you should bring your vaccination certificate with you.

 

 

Actually , NO it doesn't mean you MUST bring vaccination certificates with you and does not say that! It says CHECK to see if any vaccinations are REQUIRED and IF REQUIRED show proof of vaccination BUT there are NO vaccinations required for cruisers to those countries.

"Suggested" vaccinations are not the same as "required" ones!

Edited May 14, 2019 by riffatsea

[satxdiver]

I have been through the canal and around the horn both.  I talked to my physician before I went on both the cruises and he told me that the malaria vaccination is not needed and is hard to get.  His advice was to stay out of the jungle.  

[Alaskanb]

If you read this carefully it comments on precautions for the Panama Canal Zone

https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/panama

[riffatsea]

The above link is very informative as it gives examples of who might want a shot or not.

It does not say that any shots are "required" by any of the countries involved.

Since the shots are not "required" you do not need to prove you've had them!

Most cruisers don't spend lots of time in the jungle and really only sun screen and mosquito repellant are needed.  We went on a canoe trip up the river to visit the Embera tribe and I didn't even see a mostquito!! It is not as if you are going to any port to live or stay for any length of time.

[memoak]

The only times I have had "required" shots were when we cruised from the Amazon area of Brazil and when we visited Devils Island

[Thrak]

You need exactly ZERO shots for a Panama Canal cruise.