Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan relax COVID rules for visitors (updated)

Seatrade Cruise News reached out to several cruise lines after the news broke Friday and will update this story with any reaction and insights. It's possible there could be different rules for cruises. 

Jeff Bent, managing director of Worldwide Cruise Terminals, operator of Kai Tak Cruise Terminal, spoke to the government there.  As of yet, there are no revisions to Hong Kong policy specifically regarding cruises. However, Bent said: 'The direction of opening is clear, and we hope that further announcements regarding cruise and other social distancing protocols will be made soon.'

No special visas for eligible countries nor mandatory hotel quarantine

Japan will fully open on Oct. 11, with no special visa needed for eligible nations, including the US, nor any visitor cap, while Hong Kong and Taiwan are doing away with mandatory hotel quarantine for arrivals.

International arrivals to Hong Kong will no longer have to spend three days in a quarantine hotel, according to Reuters, but will need to self-monitor for three days and can't go to restaurants or bars during that time.

Tawain will fully reinstate its visa-exempt entry scheme Sept. 29 for nationals of eligible countries to engage in activities that do not require a permit, including tourism.

No international Japan cruises since early 2020

Japan has been operating domestic cruises but has not hosted internatinal ships since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020 when Diamond Princess experienced a highly publicized outbreak and was held at the Port of Yokohama for a lengthy isolation under the Ministry of Health.

Taiwan and Hong Kong had stints of cruises for residents

During parts of the pandemic, first Taiwan and later Hong Kong sanctioned domestic cruises and cruises to nowhere, respectively, for residents, and the now defunct Dream Cruises had operated a ship from each. Taiwan, in fact, was one of the first places globally to resume cruises, in late July 2020. 

Royal Caribbean International's Spectrum of the Seas sailed from Hong Kong for a couple months until early January, when strict measures to stem the Omicron variant were imposed.

Due to the subsequent uncertainty about when cruising could restart, Spectrum was redeployed to Singapore and is scheduled there through April 2023. Last month, news broke that Royal Caribbean was applying to return to Hong Kong.

Updates add Jeff Bent's Hong Kong information and clarify that domestic cruises have been operating in Japan