Safer together
We care deeply about your safety, health and wellbeing. This is as true now as it has always been ever since we first began sailing in 1893, perhaps even more so.
We’ve introduced several new procedures throughout all our ships, designed to keep you safe from Covid-19. We’ll be constantly updating these measures in accordance with the latest guidelines from local authorities.
Ørjan Olsvik, Professor of Medical Microbiology at The Arctic University of Norway, will also be advising us and support our onboard medical teams on how to make our sailings even safer. Professor Olsvik has over ten years’ experience working with the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) in America, advising cruise liners in virus and disease outbreak protocols and served with the World Health Organisation (WHO), UN and NATO.
You can rest assured; you and your adventure are safe with us.
Last edited: 1/5/2021 9:19 AM
Pre-boarding
To protect other guests and our crew, we need to ensure that those boarding our ships are Covid-clean and free from any infections. It is important that you are able to truthfully confirm that you have no symptoms of Covid-19 before you can board our ships.
Before you embark the ship, you will be required to submit a self-declaration form where you confirm you have had no symptoms of Covid-19 or contact with anyone who has symptoms of Covid-19 in the last 14 days.
You will also need to confirm that you agree to comply with any relevant and current travel restrictions from the Norwegian authorities (for journeys starting and ending in Norway).
Please look out for an email with this self-declaration form 24 hours before your departure. The form has fillable fields for you to type your responses in and can be returned to us by email. If you are not able to fill out the form digitally, there are paper copies available once you arrive at check-in.
Please take care to fill in all the required information. We may have to exercise our right to refuse your embarkation where parts of the form are missing or incomplete.
Embarkation and disembarkation
Whenever you board or go off the ship, we ask all, whether guest or crew, to take a number of precautions, such as the use of face coverings, forehead scans and thorough hand hygiene.
- You will need to wear face masks during embarkation and disembarkation.
- You are prompted to wash or disinfect your hands when embarking or disembarking the ship.
- You will have your temperature checked by our contactless fever scanner. We may conduct this procedure at any given time during the trip.
- Expedition cruises: A negative Covid-19 test, no more than 72 hours-old, will be required by all guests and our entire crew before embarking. You will receive information on testing requirements before your departure date.
- Expedition cruises: Our medical team will through the Health scan decide to and conduct rapid Covid19 tests upon embarkation as well as during the voyage. Expedition Only
Social distancing
We have put down floor markings, increased in-cabin services, and adjusted how we operate so as to provide more socially distanced space for you when on board.
Masks and facial cover
Social distancing isn’t always possible. Our crew therefore wear face masks or face shields in public areas, food handling areas and during housekeeping and maintenance in guest cabins. Guests will also need to wear face masks in certain situations.
All guests will be required to wear face masks during embarkation and disembarkation, in hallways, stairways, lecture halls and in the Science Center and where Social Distancing is not possible.
Cleaning
We have always followed the highest standards when it comes to cleaning our ships. These are even more enhanced with new cleaning protocols to prevent the spread of Covid-19. We ask all guests to uphold regular hand hygiene by washing with soap and water or using alcohol-based hand sanitiser. Hand sanitiser stations are placed near all public areas.
All public areas are frequently sterilised, using electrostatic cleaning on our coastal ships, and UV light and electrostatic cleaning on our expedition ships. In addition to thorough daily cleaning, all cabins are fully disinfected after check-out.
COASTAL
- Public areas are disinfected with electrostatic spraying using BarrierTech that have been proven and certified to eliminate Covid-19 using the guidelines from The European standard.
- Cabins are disinfected with BarrierTech,a cleaning and disinfectant proven to eliminate viruses, including Covid-19, on all surfaces. BarrierTech is made in Norway and certified using the guidelines from the European standard.
- Strict cleaning routines are secured through internal and external hygiene inspections. External partners are used to implement both planned and unannounced hygiene inspections on all ships.
- We do regular checks of HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) filters, and the quality of the drinking water.
EXPEDITION
- Strict cleaning routines are maintained through internal and external hygiene inspections. External agencies conduct scheduled and unannounced hygiene inspections on all our ships.
- A full disinfection of the ship is carried out each day with electrostatic spraying using Micro Quat Extra, proven and certified to eliminate Covid-19 as per guidelines from The German Society for the Control of Virus Diseases (DVV).
- We do regular checks of HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) ventilator filters and the quality of the drinking water.
- All cabins are disinfected with Drysan Oxy, a cleaning agent proven to kill viruses, including Covid-19, on all surfaces. Drysan is certified by The German Society for the prevention of Virus Diseases (DVV).
Food and beverage
Enjoying the delicious food on board is a big part of your experience sailing with us. We have reorganised our restaurants to ensure you can keep your mind on your meals and not have to worry about anything else.
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We offer more seating sessions and individual plating instead of self-service buffets.
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Our chefs will serve your choice of meal directly to your plate.
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All menus on board can be accessed digitally through your smartphone.
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The kitchen will uphold its usual high standards of hygiene and quality.
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All utensils, cutlery and crockery are disinfected between dining sessions.
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We ask you to arrive for your meals at the agreed time to minimise queuing.
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At the restaurant entrance, we test temperatures with a contactless scanner.
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We have placed hand disinfectants at the restaurant’s entrance.
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All à la carte purchases are registered on a touch-free card to limit the use of cash.
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We offer take-aways all day if you choose to dine in the privacy of your cabin.
Excursions and going ashore
We work closely together with our local excursion partners to make sure that these unique optional experiences are in line with national and industry guidelines, as well as the procedures on our ships.
SHORE EXCURSIONS
Some shore excursions may be temporarily adjusted from their description to comply with new requirements. Possible changes include:
- Reduced group sizes where needed to enable social distancing
- All buses used for transfer to and from excursions operate at 50% capacity and are cleaned and disinfected between trips.
- All equipment provided for excursions is cleaned and disinfected between use.
- Guests will need to wear a face mask during shore excursions indoors and on transfer buses, but not when outdoors and a minimum one-meter social distance can be maintained.
- Guides/staff/bus drivers who are in contact with Hurtigruten guests must wear a face mask.
EXPEDITION LANDINGS
- Tender boats are disinfected by the designated Hygiene Team before each group enters the Boat, all pontoons and rails are disinfected
- Landings are conducted only in close corporation with the local authorities. No shopping or coffee shop/restaurant visits. All groups guided by trained Expedition teams to ensure no contamination
- All community landings max 100 pax on shore in max 40 pax cohorts guided by 2 Exp Team members per Cohort
- Face masks are required by both crew and guests from disembarking to and from the Tenderpit and during the entire Landing and cruising
- All personal tech equipment for activities is washed and carefully disinfected after each use
- No individual disembarking in community Landing sites
- Exception only on Nature Landings, both guided cohort principal and masks on landing site
Health & Safety Officer
Every ship has a dedicated Health & Safety Officer and team on board. The team is at your service any time of the day when you are travelling with us.
When sailing along the Norwegian coastline, we are never far from land and can quickly access the onshore health services.
There is also a dedicated Health & Safety Officer on board who will be working with the team to carefully monitor Covid measures
Expedition cruises: Our expedition ships are equipped with a small hospital on board and there is always a doctor and at least one assistant nurse as part of the crew.
Coastal: The ships we currently have sailing along the Norwegian coastline on the coastal voyage have a nurse as a part of the crew.
Symptoms on board
It is our responsibility to make sure that you, other guests and our crew are protected against infections when travelling with us. Therefore, if you or anyone you know develops symptoms of Covid-19 during the cruise, please alert us straight away.
If you notice that you or someone you know starts to have symptoms related to Covid-19, it is imperative that you immediately notify the crew.
The sooner you tell us, the faster we can act to contain any possible spread by immediately carrying out tracking protocols in coordination with the local authorities.
Guests who have symptoms will be required to isolate in separate cabins. We will do everything possible to make you as comfortable as possible during the quarantine period.
Crew standards and practices
The crew are there to ensure your experience with us is as smooth and as enjoyable as possible. To keep you and the rest of the crew safe, we ask each crew member to follow a number of stringent protocols.
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Every crew member is required to follow guidelines from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
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All crew members follow Norwegian rules for quarantine to be able to embark on the ship and must undergo daily temperature readings and health checks.
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Before embarking, they must have completed the Covid-19 course for hygiene procedures and infection management, as well as an extensive internal training programme.
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They have undergone thorough first-aid training and know how to access health professionals should any medical issue arise.
Throughout the ship, you will see helpful floor markings to indicate safe social distances.
We have also cut the seating capacity of our restaurants and lecture halls but increased the number of sessions. You can now book the time you would like to take your meals in advance.
The same system applies for use of the ship’s facilities, such as the swimming pool, outdoor hot tubs, sauna and gym. Booking in advance means we can help guests maintain social distancing and sanitise these areas in between.
If you don’t feel like leaving your cabin too often, you can also benefit from a range of in-cabin services: