When you’re booking a cruise vacation, you’re picturing ocean breezes, endless buffets, and that balcony selfie at sunset — not sanitation scores and thermometers. But behind the scenes, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is quietly grading cruise ships on something that matters just as much as the view: public health.
And in 2025, only a small fraction of ships earned a flawless 100.
How the CDC Grades Cruise Ships
Through its Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP), the CDC inspects ships carrying 13 or more passengers that visit U.S. ports on international itineraries. Each vessel is evaluated on a 100-point scale covering food safety, potable water systems, housekeeping, medical facilities, pest control, pools, and ventilation systems.
A score of 86 or higher is considered satisfactory. An 85 or lower? That’s a fail.
Out of 191 cruise ships inspected in 2025, just 24 — about 13% — achieved a perfect sanitation score of 100. That’s the gold standard.
The current “Green Sheet” report from the CDC can be found here.
The Ships That Aced It
A 100 means inspectors found no significant violations. Food held at safe temperatures. Proper backflow prevention protecting drinking water. Galley equipment spotless. Medical reporting protocols dialed in. In short, these ships are running a tight, clean operation.
Several major cruise lines landed on the spotless list.
Among them: Norwegian Gem from Norwegian Cruise Line Celebrity Apex from Celebrity Cruises, and Royal Caribbean standouts like Icon of the Seas and Utopia of the Seas. Luxury lines showed up strong, too. Seven Seas Grandeur from Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Silver Ray from Silversea Cruises both earned perfect marks.
Cruise Ships Scoring 100
| Cruise Ship | Cruise Line | Date |
| Norwegian Gem | Norwegian Cruise Lines | 12/12/2025 |
| Oceania Insignia | Oceania Cruises | 12/7/2025 |
| Silver Ray | Silversea | 12/5/2025 |
| Seven Seas Grandeur | Regent Seven Seas | 12/4/2025 |
| Oceania Vista | Oceania Cruises | 12/3/2025 |
| Seabourn Encore | Seabourn Cruise Line | 12/2/2025 |
| Celebrity Eclipse | Celebrity Cruises | 11/22/2025 |
| Celebrity Apex | Celebrity Cruises | 11/15/2025 |
| Explora I | MSC Cruise Management (UK) Ltd | 11/12/2025 |
| Rotterdam | Holland America Line | 10/26/2025 |
| Viking Polaris | Viking Epedition Operations | 10/6/2025 |
| Oceania Allura | Oceania Cruises | 9/28/2025 |
| Norwegian Encore | Norwegian Cruise Lines | 9/28/2025 |
| Crystal Serenity | Crystal Cruises LTD | 9/27/2025 |
| Jewel of the Seas | Royal Caribbean International | 9/12/2025 |
| Norwegian Star | Norwegian Cruise Lines | 8/7/2025 |
| Utopia of the Seas | Royal Caribbean International | 7/21/2025 |
| Viking Orion | Viking Ocean Cruises II Ltd. | 7/12/2025 |
| Ovation of the Seas | Royal Caribbean International | 7/1/2025 |
| Icon of the Seas | Royal Caribbean International | 6/4/2025 |
| Adventure of the Seas | Royal Caribbean International | 6/3/2025 |
| National Geographic Venture | Lindblad Expeditions | 5/24/2025 |
| Celebrity Solstice | Celebrity Cruises | 5/22/2025 |
| Westerdam | Holland America Line | 5/18/2025 |
| Carnival Luminosa | Carnival Cruise Lines, Inc. | 5/1/2025 |
| Viking Neptune | Viking Ocean Cruises II Ltd. | 4/22/2025 |
| Disney Wish | Disney Cruise Lines | 4/18/2025 |
| Viking Sea | Viking Ocean Cruises II Ltd. | 3/31/2025 |
Ships that Barely Squeaked By
Not every ship hit perfection — but several passed with only a few points to spare.
Ships like Carnival Dream (89), Queen Elizabeth (89), Queen Mary 2 (87), and Carnival Pride (86) technically cleared the CDC’s threshold. That means they’re considered satisfactory.
But inspection reports show they could use more attention to detail.
Some violations included delays in reporting AGE — Acute Gastroenteritis — cases. AGE typically involves vomiting or diarrhea and must be reported quickly so isolation protocols can kick in. Slow reporting can delay containment measures, increasing the risk of onboard illness spread.
Inspectors also noted flies near food areas on certain ships and improper cleaning of plateware, utensils, and galley equipment. When dish racks are overloaded or surfaces aren’t fully sanitized, bacteria can linger. These aren’t catastrophic failures, but they are operational gaps that can impact cruise ship hygiene standards if not corrected fast.
Passing is good. Precision is better.
Cruise Ships Scoring Less Than 90
| Cruise Ship | Cruise Line | Score | Date |
| Carnival Dream | Carnival Cruise Line | 89 | 4/13/2025 |
| Noordam | Holland America | 89 | 06/20/2025 |
| Koningsdam | Holland America | 89 | 07/10/2025 |
| Queen Elizabeth | Cunard | 89 | 7/12/2025 |
| Norwegian Epic | NCL | 89 | 03/11/2025 |
| Queen Mary II | Cunard | 87 | 8/8/2025 |
| Carnival Pride | Carnival Cruise Line | 86 | 7/13/2025 |
| Victory I | Victory Cruise Line | 86 | 7/29/2025 |
| MSC Magnifica | MSC | 86 | 05/17/2024 |
| MSC Meraviglia | MSC | 86 | 12/09/2025 |
| Carnival Magic | Carnival Cruise Line | 85 | 9/28/2025 |
The One Ship That Failed
Only one vessel failed inspection in 2025: Villa Vie Odyssey.
The violations were more serious.
Inspectors cited potable water hoses lacking appropriate backflow protection. Backflow prevention devices stop contaminated water from flowing backward into clean drinking water systems. Without that safeguard, there’s a risk — even if small — that wastewater or contaminated liquid could enter potable water lines.
That’s a major public health concern.
The report also documented two open containers of cream held at 56°F inside a refrigerator reading 55°F. Cold foods must be maintained at 41°F or below. These products were discarded immediately, but the temperature control failure was noted.
Across food service areas, approximately 30 pieces of hot- and cold-holding equipment were out of order. A seam between a fryer and prep table was soiled with more than a day’s worth of dried food debris. Serving utensils and cups were improperly loaded into racks, preventing effective washing, rinsing, and sanitizing.
In short, inspectors found systemic sanitation breakdowns.
What This Means for Travelers
Here’s the big picture: the vast majority of cruise ships met CDC standards in 2025. Only one failed. Many passed with strong scores. And a select few achieved perfection.
For travelers planning a cruise vacation, checking CDC sanitation inspection scores is a smart move. These public reports offer transparency about cruise ship health inspections, food safety practices, and onboard hygiene protocols.
Because at the end of the day, your biggest worry at sea should be whether to hit the pool or the buffet first — not whether the kitchen thermometer is doing its job.
why is Princess cruise line excluded from this report???
It’s not! If you look at the Green Sheet from the CDC that I have linked in the article, you will see all of the Princess ships (listed alphabetically amongst the other ships) along with their ratings. None of the Princess ships scored a perfect 100. But good news, none scored under 90, either. In this article, I only specifically mentioned ships with those scores.