France is the first European country to require a booster shot against COVID for cruise tourists who want to disembark in French ports.
Starting 2022, shore leave in French cruise ports will be allowed only with booster vaccination for all passengers age 18+. Cruisers will need to take the 3rd booster dose 14 days prior to the start of the sailing if they want to take shore leave in the country.
The restriction will not affect passengers whose itinerary includes stopping in French ports and they'll be able to take the cruise, however, they'll not be allowed to go out in port. And this applies to individual/organized shore excursions by the lines regardless of the cruise company.
The latest announcement will impact the cruise ships currently sailing to ports in France over the winter season. AIDA's AIDAprima and MSC's MSC Magnifica make weekly calls at Port Le Havre (Paris, France).
The German-based line AIDA informed guests about the new requirements on its official website:
“Booster vaccination necessary for going ashore in France. The following official requirement is relevant for all guests who are planning to go ashore in France: From December 15, 2021, people aged 65 and over will only be considered fully vaccinated after booster vaccination, and from January 15, 2022, people aged 18 and over. This means that if the second vaccination was more than 7 months ago (at Johnson & Johnson 2 months after the first vaccination), a booster vaccination is necessary before departure. There must be at least 14 days between the booster vaccination and the start of the journey. If you have not received a booster vaccination by then, it is unfortunately not possible to go ashore in France.”