Norovirus on Summit

[edjny]

I'm getting way freaked out about boarding this ship on 10/5. Ugh.

 

Why would you be any more concerned than walking into any crowded shopping mall or super market during flu season? Same risks and same precautions needed.

[CruisingChick]

I'm getting way freaked out about boarding this ship on 10/5. Ugh.

 

Don't. We had the exact same problem on our March 29, 2010 cruise on Mercury. Three sailings prior to ours all had horrible outbreaks as people were getting sick in Charleston, SC (embarkation port) and then bringing it on the ship. They delayed our boarding until at least 4:00 PM and did a deep cleaning. Actually I think the cruise before ours actually ended early so they could get everyone off the ship to clean and our boarding was still delayed.

 

No one on our sailing got sick. The ship was spotless. The only complaints some people had were the first 4-5 days (it was 11 nights) we could not serve ourselves anything. There was no bread on the tables in the MDR. The buffet you had to wait for the servers to get your food. That and the fact that every 5 seconds some one was telling you the best way not to get sick was to wash your hands often.

 

We didn't mind at all.

[mpace58]

Why would you be any more concerned than walking into any crowded shopping mall or super market during flu season? Same risks and same precautions needed.

Amen!

 

I've been on 2 cruises where Noro broke out. Aside from some inconveniences neither DW or I had any problems. Wash your hands, use the gel, don't touch too many common surfaces, we use our elbows to push the buttons on elevators, etc.

 

Oh and just got over a very nasty bug I caught while attending the Bass Pro shop grand opening. 5 days of fever, 10 days of coughing. :(

[ariawoman]

Why would you be any more concerned than walking into any crowded shopping mall or super market during flu season? Same risks and same precautions needed.

 

Ignorance is bliss, is my guess?

 

In this instance we know it was present and could still be. In the case you're speaking of, it might or might not be present...

 

Also I think it's because I had some form of noro in 2003, and it was the worst. Let's just say i needed a washing machine because I vomited so hard it caused, um, stuff to come out the other end...was NOT fun. This was while away in St Louis, presume it was on my flight as nobody else I knew had it.

 

I've been looking forward to (and desperately needing) this vacation for a year, so I'm just a bit worried as I don't want to lose out on my first trip to canada in my 39 years on the earth.

[CPT Trips]

All cruisers should wash their hands several times a day......wash hands while silently singing the Happy Birthday Tune so the time washing will be enough to kill any lil noro viruses.

 

Not sure how long it takes to sing that . . . CDC recommends 20 seconds. I wonder if there are enough sinks near the MDR to accommodate all pax, so I'll "freshen up" with the gel.

[baybeach11]

My husband and I were two of the unfortunates to come down with the rampant norovirus on Celebrity Summit last week. It hit us on the third day out and the CDC form questioned us about what we ate and where we ate it on the ship from Sept 22-23. We got it on Sept 24 and we seemed to be some of the first to get it. As soon as we got on the ship, we washed our hands constantly, accepted the Purell at every station and opportunity, did not touch railings, etc since we know all about the "outcomes" of noro. Unpleasant. So when we got it, I knew we had no chance after all our vigilance. But previous to our illness, I saw no cleaning or other preventive measures being done on the ship. Nor was I aware that the previous cruise had it. I saw folks sticking their heads under the glass around the buffet to look at food or to talk to the staff. Was the bread in the baskets at each dinner in the main dining room recycled or disposed of if it wasn't eaten since there were way too many pieces of bread in those baskets for any human to eat???

 

They did discover that this particular virus was a 2012 strain from Australia (or maybe NZ?). Everything was taken out of our cabins and cleaned as the week went on. I was told by a staff member that we were at Code 2 level, just under Code Red. But there were many folks not reporting their sickness as we listened to conversations around us. We also saw a girl at the airport trying not to be sick as she was heading around the terminal on our shuttle. Ugh. That figure for the staff also seemed really low as we talked to our staff and looked around the main dining room and as we moved through the ship. There were a couple nights in the theater that it was less than half full at the peak of the illness. Friends were still getting sick the last few days of the cruise. When we were in the clinic on Sept 24th, the nurse answered the phone and responded "It's starting." She listened and then answered, "More." Another question was asked and she said again, "More." IMHO, Celebrity was slow to acknowledge the illness, slow to begin protocol and shared little information until the CDC required them to make the public announcement about the outbreak. They obviously did not do a deep cleaning after the previous cruise, which many of you have stated that noro was present, the week before because we were allowed to board before noon. Oh, but we do get a credit equal some percentage of our daily rate for a future Celebrity cruise.

[Kate45]

As others have mentioned, I too am getting very nervous about our upcoming cruise. We have seven previous cruises under our belts and have never "caught" anything. We are taking four newbies with us this time, and would hate for any of them to get sick. I'm sure it would turn them off cruising forever!

Please, please,please, those of you on the Summit in the next few weeks, please report back so we can know the status.

[Ardie12]

As others have mentioned, I too am getting very nervous about our upcoming cruise. We have seven previous cruises under our belts and have never "caught" anything. We are taking four newbies with us this time, and would hate for any of them to get sick. I'm sure it would turn them off cruising forever!

Please, please,please, those of you on the Summit in the next few weeks, please report back so we can know the status.

 

We are on a Nov 9 sailing. I will certainly report back. I generally don't do a lot of buffet dining, but I think perhaps I shall avoid it altogether this time. I also don't plan on using any of the public restrooms.

[CruisinCadie]

We were on the Oct. 5-19 sailing, and there were no reported cases of noro on that trip. Boarding was delayed until 5 pm for deep cleansing, and they were EXTREMELY diligent about everyone using hand sanitizer whenever you entered any public venue. For the first week, the buffet was covered with plastic wrap and waiters served everything, including coffee and water. Restrictions were slowly relaxed, the buffet was back to normal by mid-cruise, and bread baskets and salt and pepper shakers were returned to the dining room tables the last two nights. The public restrooms were cleaned constantly.

 

In other words, unless they have problems on the current sailing, I don't think you have anything to worry about. Have a wonderful trip.

 

Kathy

[dkjretired]

There was also noro on the Eclipse in May this year and its not on there :eek: there were enough cases to go to "code red" on the cruise I was on (11-25th May) and boarding was delayed because of deep cleaning after the cruise

 

I assume that you were on a European cruise. The cruise line is not required to report to the CDC unless a US Port is involved. That is why it is not on the list.

 

Here is a great source of info on illness outbreaks on Cruises...It covers just about everywhere, if your cruise was May 25th it is on there.

 

http://www.cruisejunkie.com/outbreaks2013.html

 

Make sure you scroll down to the synopsis...

[JMG]

As others have mentioned, I too am getting very nervous about our upcoming cruise. We have seven previous cruises under our belts and have never "caught" anything. We are taking four newbies with us this time, and would hate for any of them to get sick. I'm sure it would turn them off cruising forever!

Please, please,please, those of you on the Summit in the next few weeks, please report back so we can know the status.

 

We got off the Summit yesterday 10/26 and had no problems. We boarded on time after the previous cruise and everything appeared to be per usual. They did have staff in many of the public restrooms during peak dining hours so that you do not have to touch the door handles with your clean hands.

 

Practice good hygiene and you should not have a problem.

[phoenix_dream]

I am glad the virus issue on this ship appears past, and I certainly agree 100% that one should practice good hygiene. But sadly that alone cannot always prevent the spread of illness. On our last cruise we had no reported noro, but there was a nasty cold virus going around. I took all the necessary precautions, washed my hands obsessively like I was a surgeon, and yet the last day of the cruise I came down with it. Many others on my roll call reported coming down with it right at the end (or just after) the cruise as well. All you can do is practice the best hygiene you can, avoid sick people when you see them, and try to forget about it.

[purduemom1]

I am glad the virus issue on this ship appears past, and I certainly agree 100% that one should practice good hygiene. But sadly that alone cannot always prevent the spread of illness. On our last cruise we had no reported noro, but there was a nasty cold virus going around. I took all the necessary precautions, washed my hands obsessively like I was a surgeon, and yet the last day of the cruise I came down with it. Many others on my roll call reported coming down with it right at the end (or just after) the cruise as well. All you can do is practice the best hygiene you can, avoid sick people when you see them, and try to forget about it.

 

You are right, sometimes, no matter how careful we are, we can't avoid catching an illness. Unfortunately, some illnesses are airborne in addition to surface contact so careful hand washing won't help with the germs spread by coughs and sneezes. Sorry you got sick but at least you managed to stay well until the end of the cruise.