Carnival Cruise Line opens Camp Ocean for first time since pandemic

Carnival Cruise Line on Friday reopened its Camp Ocean kids club for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic forced a total shutdown of the global cruise industry.

Camp Ocean is Carnival’s supervised children’s program available across the fleet, but will initially be open only for fully vaccinated children between the ages of 5 and 11.

RELATED: Carnival introduces high-energy Zumba-based classes for cruising kids

RELATED: Celebrity Cruises suspends vaccine mandate for 5 to 11 year old passengers

Carnival Cruise Line resumed service in early July, departing from Galveston, Texas, and Miami.

The cruise line requires 95% of passengers to be fully vaccinated, with the 5% allowance accomodating families with children younger than 5 years of age.

The Camp Ocean facilities, however, will not be available to all children.

Prior to the pandemic, Camp Ocean divided children into three age groups – Penguins (ages 2 to 5), Stingrays (6 to 8) and Sharks (9 to 11).

The Penguins group has not yet reopened, and all other age groups will need to be fully vaccinated, following the FDA’s approval of COVID-19 vaccines for children as young as 5.

Carnival said it has implemented enhanced protocols for Camp Ocean that are consistent with other onboard procedures, including mandatory face masks, limited capacity, encouraged physical distancing, twice daily deep cleanings of the spaces, and one-parent-per-family drop-offs and pick-ups.

Activities will be adjusted as needed to meet these guidelines, the cruise line said. The service remains a free, all-day, drop-off kids’ camp where different age groups have separate play areas filled with age-appropriate toys, games, crafts, and videos.

RELATED: AIDA Cruises opens LEGO store and play area aboard AIDAprima

RELATED: Disney Wish will be pakced with new kids experiences and facilities

The ocean-inspired facility offers a variety of fun and engaging experiences ranging from educational activities to crafts and active games. Activity sessions will be offered daily, and guests can refer to the HUB App during their sailings for times and details.

In addition to Camp Ocean, the Circle “C” and Club O2 facilities for 12-14 year olds and 15 to 17 year olds will continue to be open for vaccinated teens.

Carnival Cruise Line is one of the first to reopen its kids facilities for passengers younger than 11.

Norwegian Cruise Line and Disney Cruise Line continue to restrict bookings only to fully vaccinated passengers 5 and up, while Royal Caribbean International has reopened its Adventure Ocean youth program— only with smaller room capacities to allow for physical distancing, and mask mandates for children older than 2 years.