Gimer

Just in from crew friend in Manila.   

Email from a crew member's spouse from Manila.  

Island Princess has 1,990 plus Filipino crew onboard and they are from Regal, Crown and Island Princess.  Life onboard is like being a passenger.  Their dinner is served in the Horizon Court at separate dining times for the three groups, and they must stay separate.  Their temperatures are taken twice a day, once at 9 am and then 6 pm.  They are allowed to use the gym and see movies in the Princess Theater.  The assigned Crew Bar is located on the outside deck with set hours and for open air, not in an enclosed area.  Casino is closed and no free internet.  They are expecting to arrived in Manila around the end of the month.  Then they will go into a Philippine Health Department for 14 day quarantine.  After they are released to go home, their Local City Government will make them do another 14 days self-quarantine again.  His contract ended in early March and he has not worked since.  It will take him 90 days to get home whereas when they fly, it's takes about 19 hours.  

Just received photo from crew and it from two days ago..

Just received photo from crew friend in Manila.  

Thanks for the Heads Up.  

Currently Island Princess is about 400 mile from Cape Town, So. Africa.  Crown Princess is only 50 miles out .  

Something is happening in Manila Bay.  Those 23 Cruise ships that were anchored in Manila Bay have now moved into the South China Sea.  I was wondering if it was way to congested in the Bay? 

I don't think we'll see this ever again, 22 Cruise Ships in one area.  

Just checked on Island Princess and they are 3000 miles from Cape Town, South Africa.  Crown Princess who is ahead of her, has only 1200 miles to go for Cape Town.  HAL Nieuw Amsterdam and Volendam is only 400 miles from Cape Town.  

Just heard on our local news the three cruise ships will tie up in Oakland Harbor for their 3 months for their stand down.  One already in and it's the Seven Sea Mariner.  Two more and one is the Norwegian Jewel coming in Tuesday and another Norwegian ship not yet named.  

Go to Marine Traffic and here are their names: Pacific Aria, Pacific Adventure, Explorer Dawn, Queen Elizabeth, Carnival Splender, Carnival Spirit, Carnival Panorama, Costa Venezia, Sun Princess, Majestic Princess, Golden Princess.  These are anchored in Manila Bay.  

Just outside Manila Bay, in the South China Sea are Pacific Dawn, Pacific Explorer, Costa Serena, Costa neo-Romantica, Ruby Princess, Sapphire Princess, Sea Princess, Royal Princess, Celebrity Solstice, Voyager of the Sea and HAL Eurodam.   These are doing random circling and doing their 14 days quarantine.  Earlier in the week, there were 16 cruise ships in the Bay.  

Somewhere I read that there were about 19,000 Filipino Crew working on Cruise Ships and that was a year ago.  Just showed up on Marine Traffic the three ships that left Long Beach last week and they are about 1,000 miles out, also heading for Manila.  They are HAL Eurodam, Carnival Panorama and Royal Princess.  I can't imagine what impact this will do to the Philippine economy with so many at home and un-employed.  

Today Island  Princess is about 900 miles from Fortaleza and Crown is only 450 miles ahead of Island.  Just check with Marine Traffic and there are 12 ships in Manila Bay and five more ships heading there.  The twelve are Costa Serena, Costa necRomantic, Pacific Aria, Pacific Explorer, Explorer Dream, Sea - Sun - Majestic & Sapphire Princess, Spectrum of the Sea, Voyager of the Sea, and Pacific Dawn.   Those five ships heading to Manila Bay are Carnival Spirit (100 miles), P&O Pacific

Adventure (300 Miles), Celebrity Solstice (600 miles), Ovation of the Sea (800 miles) and Ruby Princess is just south of Palau with another 1,200 miles to go.   That's a lot of Crew Members going home.   The Philippine Coast Guard just secured two local Cruise Ships docked at Pier 15, Port Area, Manila, to be used to quarantine Filipino Crew members that have flown home.  Earlier, the Grand Princess Crew were housed at Tarlac Sport's Village for their 14 days quarantine.  

Maybe cheaper, but guessing with 5000 crew members from ten plus ships, where will you house them for their 14 days quarantine?  Tarlac/Clarks Housing they use for Grand's quarantine held 446 members.

Not only Princess is returning all it's crew.  Right now in the Manila Bay, there are a total of ten Cruise Ships anchoring and waiting their 14 days quarantine period to end.  Princess has the Sun, Sea, Sapphire and Majestic.  RCCL has Voyager of the Sea and Spectrum of the Sea.  Carnival's Spirit.  Cunard's Queen Elizabeth and two more which are Pacific Dawn and Pacific Explorer.  Heading for the Philippines from the west coast is the Princess Royal, HAL's Eurodam and Carnival's Panorama, who left LA area last week.  

Just received email from wife of crew member onboard Island Princess,  They just left the Bahamas on April 24 and heading for Manila and expecting to take 39 days transit home.     

Email from Crew Member at home now, wrote---   "After arrival, each ship must do their 14 days quarantine onboard at anchorage and get recheck and then are release and the Philippine Government then requires an additional 14 day quarantine in house, before cleared."  

Three ship from the west coast are heading for Manila and the East coast is going to use Crown and Island Princess to return all Filipino Crew from those 6 ships around the Bahamas.  Expecting to take 32 days transit home, going south/east, passing South Africa.  departure day not yet announced.  Barista friend on board now.  Long way to go home.  Thirty two days travel and another 28 days quarantine.  Two more months before they are really home. TOUGH ! 

Received email from a crew member in the P.I.  Those 6 Princess Ships nestled around the Bahama will be transshipping the Filipino Crew on to Crown and Island Princess and heading east, going around South Africa and expecting to take 32 days.  On arrival , both ships will be quarantine for 14 days and then release to go home and then again required another 14 days quarantine at home.  Date of departure not yet disclosed.   

Currently, Majestic, Sapphire, Sea and Sun Princess are anchored around Manila anchorages, doing their 14 days quarantine.  Also along side of Sea and Sun is the Queen Elizabeth.  

Ken / Darlene,  Hey, if you're going to miss Ruby - Sept. 26, come join us on Star (Sept. 27th---) for their California Coastal 7 Days and staying onboard for their Pacific Northwest Coast 7 Days (Oct. 4) as a B2B.  These two cruises are Sunday to Sunday.  I'm booked in the same stateroom.  I've not held a Meet & Greet for a year now.  Seems not as many are interested.  Oh well.  Then I'm doing Ruby's first Hawaiian Cruise out of San Francisco on Oct 24.   Stan

Howdy Ken & Darlene.  Ditto Cheers....  We should be on Grand today, but with this pandemic, looks like we'll miss two more cruises and hoping we get back to normal cruising in July.  Stay healthy, and be vigilant.  Stan

W O W !  St. Mark Square.  I was stationed in Vicenza and would go to Venice once a month.  Was there back in '57 and still looks the same.  

Tom, I'll be joining you, hopefully on the Ruby's Dec. 23, 2020 Hawaii cruise.  Hoo Rah !!!   Our Senior community here is in total lock down.  Every activities are closed down.  Even the rent-a-cops won't leave their shack.   The 4 swimming pools are down and even all the activities staff are off.  Our Safeway store shelves were  empty for 9 days and now that our seniors have stocked up on everything, the store manager is looking for people to come in to shop.  Just waiting those 9 days, there are now all the TP and other stuff I want and NO lines.   There are a few with regular flu and the pollen here is causing more havoc.   We'll make it.  Take care and stay healthy and be vigilant.   Stan  

Hi Tom,  How's it going?  So far we have two cruise cancelled and now waiting to hear if our May 13 is also a bust.   Crew friends still on Grand right now and all are working everyday.  Also heard from the Grand crew in the Philippines and those 446 that were sent home for their 14 days quarantine have one more days left before they get to return home.  See you down the line.   Stan

Still over 100 crew on board and all are still working, sanitizing the whole ship.  

Tom, we'll joining you on the Ruby out of San Francisco in December.  Our Star Princess for May 13 to Alaska is "A wait and just see what Princess will do"  and we were cancelled for our Grand March 29 and April 5, 2020 cruises.  We will miss Grand Princess.  We also have a B2B cruise booked on Star Princess for Sept/Oct.  All these cruises were booked a year ago.  No matter what happens, we'll be ready to cruise.  Cruising is NOT work, it's a Life Style.  Stay safe, be vigilant and we'll see you on a future cruise.   Stan

Yes, she is a GRAND ship and we will miss her.  Fran and I have cruise on her 26 times and have made wonderful Crew/friends for life.  Two wrote saying the Philippines are in-home Quarantine until April 12.  Supermarkets are empty and people buying everything.  Sounds like us here.  Be vigilant, we'll make it and we will be Stronger.   

Ron, same cancelled March 29, Grand's First Ocean Medallion cruise.  My Medallions are now in with my collection of Military Challenge coins. 

F Y I :   Email from Grand's Crew.  "Grand's crew arrived in Manila, Philippine on chartered plane on Sunday, March 15, 2020 (15 hours ahead).  Being sent to Clark Pampanga (Clarks Air Base) for their 14 Days quarantine."