Canada is dropping their mask mandate on planes and trains, and its vaccine requirement. Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said, “We are able to do this because tens of millions of Canadian rolled up their sleeves and got vaccinated.”
Beginning October 1, no traveler will have to:
- Submit public health information through the ArriveCAN app or website;
- Provide proof of vaccination;
- Undergo pre- or on-arrival testing;
- Carry out COVID-19-related quarantine or isolation;
- Monitor and report if they develop signs or symptoms of COVID-19 upon arriving in Canada;
- Undergo health checks for travel on air and rail;
- Wear masks on planes and trains.
Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said that this decision does not mean the pandemic has ended, but the “decision again was driven by the evidence that we have seen over the last few weeks and months, which is that the transmission and cost of transmission of COVID-19 on our health-care workers, hospitals and including those patients who have seen backlogs in their surgeries and treatments over the last two years and a half … are now almost entirely driven by domestic transmission of COVID-19. That’s where we need to invest our energy.”
This also applies to cruise ships! Cruisers will also no longer be required to test before boarding, be vaccinated, or use ArriveCAN.
This announcement comes on the heels of an open letter from a group of members of Parliament and border-city mayors asking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Joe Biden to end the “unnecessary” border rules in hopes the border communities can begin to recover economically. Duclos did say these concerns were part of the decision to lift COVID-19 measures.
How about you? Are you scheduled on a cruise to Canada soon? Or will this make you reconsider cruising to Canada?