In 2023, 30 cruise ships from 11 different cruise lines scored a perfect 100 during surprise health inspections from the CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program.
Unannounced health inspections are carried out twice each year for cruise ships that sail to and from U.S. cruise ports. Cruise lines do know when they will take place and ships must score at least an 85 to pass.
Three cruise lines had five ships score a perfect 100 this year: Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line.
Carnival Cruise Line had Carnival Celebration, Carnival Sunshine, Carnival Venezia, Carnival Conquest, and Carnival Panorama ace their health inspections.
Celebrity Cruises had Celebrity Millennium, Celebrity Edge, Celebrity Solstice, Celebrity Eclipse, and Celebrity Summit all score perfect 100s.
Norwegian Pearl, Norwegian Joy, Norwegian Sky, Norwegian Bliss, and Norwegian Sun were the five NCL ships to score a 100 during the year.
Royal Caribbean, the world’s largest cruise line, had four ships that aced their health inspections. They were Allure of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas, Jewel of the Seas, and Voyager of the Seas.
Oceania Cruises, a premium cruise line from NCLH, had three of their seven ships score a 100. They were Riviera, Regatta, and their newest ship Vista.
Holland America Line’s Rotterdam and Eurodam were the two ships from the cruise line to hit the 100 mark.
Disney Cruise Line also had two of their five cruise ships ace their health inspections. They were Disney Wonder and Disney Fantasy.
Four cruise lines had one ship in their fleet score a perfect 100: MSC Cruises, Viking, Silversea Cruises, and Saga Cruises. The ships were MSC Seascape, Viking Octantis, Silver Moon, and Spirit of Discovery.
Cruise ships are scored on a 100 point scale with points deducted when there is a pattern of similar violations or one significant violation.
During the six to eight hour surprise inspections, eight areas of cruise ships are inspected. They are the medical facilities, potable water systems, swimming pools and hot tubs, galleys and dining rooms, child activity centers, hotel accommodations, ventilation systems, and common areas of the ship.
Cruise lines pay a fee for the inspections that range from $1,300 to $23,920 depending on the size of the cruise ship.
Since reports from the Vessel Sanitation Program are released a few weeks after the inspections, it is possible to see another ship or two added to the perfect 100 list for 2023.
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