Beautiful Virgin Islands

Saturday, Oct 18, 2025

Decision time! Thursday deadline looms for BVI cruise resumption

Decision time! Thursday deadline looms for BVI cruise resumption

A decision on whether the BVI will see cruise passengers for the upcoming season is expected to be made within the coming days.

The BVI has been given until tomorrow, September 2 to decide whether it will accept vaccinated cruise passengers without administering additional COVID-19 tests upon their arrival in the territory.

The current protocols require all fully vaccinated persons coming into the territory to take a rapid antigen test upon arrival at the territory’s ports of entry.

“Now, we have up until I think it’s Thursday to respond to the industry or we would lose the industry in terms of most of it for the rest of the season and perhaps next year. That is the long and short of it,” Premier Andrew Fahie disclosed in blunt terms during a Transportation-For-Hire Industry Meeting held with taxi drivers and other stakeholders last evening.

After being asked to reconsider the current regime, the Premier said he pleaded for extra time to consult with stakeholders before coming to a decision on the matter, hence the consultation session held last evening.

Commenting on the abrupt nature of the meeting and decision, the Premier said: “We didn’t get much time with it. In case you’re wondering, how come now they come, we didn’t get much time with it. We have to make a decision.”

The territory’s leader said the health sector has put forward solutions but the government thought it best to consult with stakeholders first before implementing any of those proposals.

The Premier further noted that doing nothing was not an option and urged the stakeholders to “come together for a common cause and balance lives and livelihoods”.

BVI’s testing regime impractical


Meanwhile, Managing Director of the BVI Ports Authority, Oleanvine Maynard revealed that cruise lines felt the BVI’s entry testing regime was impractical.

According to officials in the cruise industry, precious hours will be wasted for hundreds or even thousands of passengers to be tested after only arriving for a day stop in the BVI.

Furthermore, they said the physical space and shelter to administer the tests are not available at the BVI’s cruise pier.

Maynard described the BVI’s situation as complex and added that having health and safety protocols in place is important, but said these must be workable.

Cruises will go elsewhere with BVI’s existing protocols in place


Marketing Director at the BVI Port Authority, Natasha Chalwell said the BVI is one of the only Caribbean destinations with testing protocols that prohibit the free flow of passengers.

“So, as we look at safety protocols, we have to look at that customer experience. But essentially, what the cruise lines have said to us, because that protocol is just really not practical for time, for finances, for the guest experience. Unfortunately, they will just choose other ports or other destinations. And within our region, we’re not seeing many destinations or ports with that particular requirement. So, they will go next door,” Chalwell said.

Stakeholders held robust discussions on various options such as a bubble for visitors and periodic COVID-19 testing for industry stakeholders among other mitigating measures.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
×