Unlike upon air travel to some foreign destinations, you do not need vaccinations to travel aboard a Caribbean cruise. Most island visits are limited to single port day trips, which have a low risk of exposure to illness. Infants on cruises to Trinidad and travelers on one-way cruises should consider precautionary vaccines, which can make the difference between a fabulous Caribbean vacation and a major headache.

Before Your Trip

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that you are up to date on all vaccinations, including seasonal flu, measles/mumps/rubella and varicella before taking a cruise. Talk to your doctor to find out if your immunizations are current. If you recently enrolled in college, you should be up to date on all state-required vaccinations.

Infant Travelers

If your Caribbean cruise includes a port stop in the island of Trinidad, you may be exposed to yellow fever, which is especially harmful to young travelers. The CDC recommends that infants under the age of nine months get vaccinated prior to a Trinidad cruise. Infants do not need this vaccine for cruises to Trinidad's sister island, Tobago, or if the cruise travel is limited to Trinidad's Port of Spain area.

One-Way Cruise Immunizations

If you are taking a one-way cruise that ends in the Caribbean, you may be staying for an extended period time in your final port before heading home. Long-term stays in the Caribbean come with a risk of typhoid, rabies and hepatitis A and B. The exposure risk is higher if you are visiting local areas outside the main tourist ports or impoverished communities that do not have access to clean water and medical supplies. To prevent a rabies infection, ask your doctor for a pre-exposure rabies vaccination.

Tips and Considerations

Dengue and malaria, which are both transmitted by mosquito bite, are concerns in Kingston, Jamaica and Great Exuma, Bahamas. The CDC does not recommend a malaria vaccine, but you should avoid mosquito exposure during your port visit. If you are prone to travel stress or have a high susceptibility to illness due to age or health problems, other vaccinations may be needed before your Caribbean cruise. Motion sickness shots are also available if you are prone to seasickness.

About the Author

Leah Waldron is the head of Traveler Services at First Abroad, a gap year travel company based in Boston and London. As a travel, research and LGBT news writer, Waldron has publication credit on magazines and newspapers including "Curve Magazine," "USA Today," "The Sun Sentinel" and the "The Houston Chronicle." Waldron has a bachelor's and master's degree in creative writing from Florida State University.

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