"When Cruising Begins" based on what....I think you will see a cruise here and there, very limited, maybe as early as early spring 2021, and it will grow from there. 

To me, "When Cruising Begins" means what it used to be, where I can book what ship I want, what time of year, the port of may choosing, etc.

For that to happen will b e a long, long time. Maybe Spring of 2022....there will be cruses before then, but it won't be what we are accustomed to. 

Of all our cruises, we have never picked up the Noro bug....I believe thats because we follow some common sense gjuidelines.

Example; I have seen too. many things in the windjammer....if we are not one of the first people in there when they open other doors, then we do not go.

I'm 68 years old, and have not stopped my routines, continued to work, etc ever since this started.

It all comes down to common sense and responsibility. 

I do not believe half the things the media reports..,,.its been nothing but inconsistencies, and every source is different.

and I am not brainwashed with this hysteria about mask wearing.

,

We are Diamond Plus, I am saying that only to show we have our history with cruising. When we go on a cruise, there are things we look forward to, expect,  and perhaps take for granted they will be there from the moment we drop off our luggage and throughout the cruise.

If the cruise lines implement too many changes and restrictions, to me, that woful;d take away the experience we have come to enjoy.

I'm not afraid to cruise, but if it changes to much then my cruising days are over. There are many other things I can do with my money, where I can have my freedoms and be myself.

We have deposits on 2 cruises in 2021....we will see how this all comes down by then.

Just pushing the can down the road, what else can they say?  Indefinitely would be the correct answer......come Dec-Jan it will be another new announcement.

Yesterday, my Wife and I went to U-Penn's Perelmen Medical Center in Philadelphia, which is, a Pulmonary - Lung Transplant facility. They take this pandemic very seriously due to the fragility of their patients,

Elevators: They have personnel stationed at the elevators, and only allow 4 people on at a time. Circles marked on floor showing where to stand.

We are both Diamond +, so have experiences on cruises. We both looked at each other and commented, can you imagine something like this on a cruise ship? No way.
Also, we met with a Pulmonary Specialist, one of the top in the country for Lung Transplants, research, etc. I asked him about a vaccine. He has been actively involved and said don't expect anything soon.....everything you hear is political. His words.

Cell Phones or TV's in your cabin....

Now if they broadcast all the shows in your cabin, expand room service to the MDR menu for everyone,  along with a few other things, you can social distance by staying in your cabin for the majority of the cruise....

Who is the public?

You have the faithful few that are still coming around these boards. They have one opinion.

Friends, Family and coworkers, mention planning a cruise and they will tell you I am out of my mind!

They have other things to think about, like re-opening schools, indoor dining, theaters, etc.

could all the new bookings be the people who have had their cruise cancelled, too the FCC and then BOOKED another cruise for sometime in 2021?

Lot of people cancelled, a lot of people booking

CDC is one thing....then you have the state governments deciding if they want the ports in their state open or not.

Here in the NJ/NY area, you have the Port Authority which regulates, controls, all shipping in/out of the area.

Even IF RCI followed all CDC guidelines, (which IMO they won't) the local authorities would take that under advisement.

Our Governor wants everyone who has traveled out of state to quarantine upon returning.  Imagine cruise ships coming in from visiting other islands?

Just my opinion.....the cruise industry is Dead until further notice. There is so much more to deal with before that happens again.

Aside from the faithful who are here on these boards, mention cruising to  any co-worker, friends, and they will look at you like you have 2 heads. (with masks on) They will say Cruising is Dead. The last thin g on anyone's mind in light of what is happening in your own town.

We are Diamond +, which means every cruise we have taken, and every cruise we may take in the future, we expect a certain atmosphere, experience, from the moment you check in and then step on the ship and feel it beneath my feet.

. I can picture it now.

Entering your stateroom for the first time, that first lunch in the windjammer after boarding, the MDR, Casino, the shows, the pool, and everything else we have come to take for granted and fully expect.
If that changes, which it will undoubtedly will, and whenever it may change, we will then re-examine.

We have a few booked for 2021, but I am beginning to feel it is not worth the angst.

We will probably cancel everything we have, and just hang it up until.....whenever that may be.

We can book a cruise whenever we feel we want to in the future.

Places like the airlines, Disney and other parks, are all announcing their policies so they can re-open....Royal Carib has said nothing....all they are doing is announcing one month at a time, coming out with FCC and other schemes, and taking new bookings just so they have some $$ to hold onto...otherwise, they cease to exist.

My opinion...its going to happen.

So, do you think the new bookings are related to the bookings that were cancelled?

Our cruise ws cancelled....turned around and booked (New booking) for a cruise in 2021.

I wonder how many new bookings are first time cruisers, not someone who had. cruise cancelled.

Marketing Hype...bookings are up..things are looking good!

Everything is a rumor because RCI is tight lipped and not telling anybody what's going on....other than extending the cancellations every month.

Enchantment is one of our favorite ships...looking at a cruise out of Baltimore in 2021.

But we have been considering what RCI will do about social distancing, and/or limited passenger #'s on a small ship.

if that becomes policy.

More easily done on one of the Mega ships.

The Vision clsss is the size ship that can pass under the bridges.

Just have to wait and see how all this plays out.

Nothing official, and we are not booking our next cruise till I see what will be.
We took the full $$ refund.
We're Diamond +, and have a certain expectation as to what we enjoy about being on a cruise ship.

If they take too much away, restrictive or otherwise, then its lost.

But no one knows, so we wait to see.

18 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Reopening is not causing the spikes. The blatant disregard of mask and social distancing is causing the spikes. A couple of weeks ago, we were at a reopened resort. While people were constantly reminded to wear masks, most didn't. And those "best buddies" that were doing virtual happy hours for the past three months were drunk and hugging each other, sharing whatever they brought with themselves. It was pathetic. 

 

RCI won't go "belly-up". But how fast they reopen will be totally dependent upon the passengers on the initial cruises. And if they behave like those on our flights and at the resort, then opening will be veeeerrrrryyy slow. 

By now people should know the precautions, etc...If people want to get sick, let them get sick. We are not going to stop it.
They will get sick, medical help (maybe) and recover with ant-bodies.
Also, some of the higher numbers because there is more testing being done.

19 minutes ago, Baron Barracuda said:

"I don't know," he said. "It won't be all of a sudden, all the ships start going, but which ship is very much a question of which markets are the most reopened.

"And I know that's frustrating. They would like to know which comes first. So would I, by the way.

But their opening cruises August 1st.....Right.

4 hours ago, Another_Critic said:

 

They did the opposite for my flight in Nov.  Went from a wide-body 767 to a narrow-body 737.

Yes but did they re-arrange the seat selections? They changed us to a wide body, 3 rows  3 seats each, or 9 across.

We could only select every other seat.  Which is fine, Wife and I have a row to ourselves with space in between.

3 hours ago, Skip2MySue said:

 

Hey B-52, I'm from Wall also.  Graduated in 1964 and lived there for 50 years.  Taxes drove us out and now live in The Villages Florida.

The way this state is headed, I may see you in Florida soon!

14 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

In other words,  NO source.

The NY/NJ Port Authority was giving a press conference. The primary concerns are the tunnels, bridges and mass transit in and out of the city.

A reporter asked about Cruise ship ports opening, and some one on the stage, NOT the person giving the press conference but one of those who stand in the background jumped in and said no cruises this year.

I went to the Port Authority web site that lists ALL the news releases, some a few times a day, and there is no mention about Cruise ships. Only talk concerning the ports are commercial cargo and oil shipping, supply chain issues.

1 hour ago, Baron Barracuda said:

Curious how long it will take to crew up once decision is made.   Returning crew to their homes took months and getting them back will be complicated given restrictions on international travel and scarcity of flights.  Expect they'll have to start moving people at least a month ahead of re-start.   That's something to keep an eye out for.

And the fact they will have to be trained, not only in their jobs but in implementing new procedures for dealing with the Virus.

Which by the way, RCI has not said a word as to what they are going to do.

Airlines, Disney and others are announcing what measures are going to be taken....

RCI gives the impression they're in no hurry. People with reservations and those looking to book do not have a clue.
I have flight reservations for Jan. and had to go and select new seat assignments, and choose a new departure time because they went with a larger plane, allowing more empty seats, spacing between passengers. Every other seat.
We are also going to Disney in Orlando, and I have been getting e-mail news updates on the progress to open.

I have reservation with RCI....and being told nothing.  They act like there's plenty of time.

Here in NJ...we still cannot go to restaurants, sporting events or church...New York is worse.

Opening the ports is not even on their radar.
Whatever the CDC or WHO say, the Port Authority will take it under advisement.

Restaurants are going way out of their way to show what they are doing for distancing, etc, to get the Gov's to let them open, with no luck.
Cruise ships have not shown or said anything.

There has been speculation they will go with larger ships with less capacity.....at least in the beginning.

I have been getting e-mails from United concerning our flights this Jan, 2021, to log in and cancel, re-book for another date, or modify existing reservations. I ignored these e-mails because I have no intent on canceling our flights.....utill yesterday.

When i finally went to my reservation, I found United had changed everything. And I needed to re-configure my reservation.
They changed the plane from an average size plane, to a Jumbo plane that holds considerably more people  (has the center row)

The seats I had previously selected were erased. I had to re-confirm the reservation, along with the date and departure time, AND I had to select new seat assignments.
What they did was Grey out every other seat so that you cannot select.

So now I have the same reservation, but on a much larger plane with less people onboard...with every other seat unoccupied to maintain distancing.
Had to do this for both flights, a roundtrip reservation.
I was also charged about $65 for 3 people, for some unknown reason.

Is this a concept to be followed by the Cruise Lines also?  Larger ships with less capacity?

The airlines are certainly doing it to get back in business.