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Noro on Riviera again

RJB

By RJB,
in Oceania Cruises

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RJB

RJB

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The CDC was everywhere today. Everyone is very upbeat and positive all will be well. They're sanitizing tables and you have to wait for them to dry before next group can sit. Everyone is using the sanitizer and this is a new type ... Sticky, takes a while to dry. They were way backed up getting people into their cabins. We were lucky and our bags were already here when we came to our room. Library cabinets are locked for now; will be opened after 3 days if all is well. If it is, all else will return to normal, too.

 

The crew and staff are upbeat, hopeful and as wonderful as I remember. Ice in cabin in room is only by request though I can't figure that one out. We touch nothing. There is no salt, pepper, sugar...nothing on the tables.

 

We had a delicious surf and turf in Waves for lunch and a casual dinner in the Terrace for dinner. Hated not having the tables set and welcoming, but it's a small price to pay if we can be virus free. Everyone I've spoken to knows about the last cruise. So time will tell.

No change from our cruise. Cleaned tables and had to let them dry. Hope this works. Good luck, Richie

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Wren3

Wren3

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Thank you Heather for taking the time to write and let us know what is happening on the Riviera. It eases the minds of those who are scheduled for upcoming cruises shortly. Have a lovely journey and keep well.

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kazu "Live from...." Rare

kazu

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The CDC was everywhere today. Everyone is very upbeat and positive all will be well. They're sanitizing tables and you have to wait for them to dry before next group can sit. Everyone is using the sanitizer and this is a new type ... Sticky, takes a while to dry. They were way backed up getting people into their cabins. We were lucky and our bags were already here when we came to our room. Library cabinets are locked for now; will be opened after 3 days if all is well. If it is, all else will return to normal, too.

 

 

 

The crew and staff are upbeat, hopeful and as wonderful as I remember. Ice in cabin in room is only by request though I can't figure that one out. We touch nothing. There is no salt, pepper, sugar...nothing on the tables.

 

 

 

We had a delicious surf and turf in Waves for lunch and a casual dinner in the Terrace for dinner. Hated not having the tables set and welcoming, but it's a small price to pay if we can be virus free. Everyone I've spoken to knows about the last cruise. So time will tell.

 

 

That is all good news Heather. There should be no salt, pepper, etc on the tables and glad to hear they have put some protocols in place, it should all be lifted in 48/72 hours if everything goes well.

 

Fingers crossed for you. Enjoy :)

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londonmo

londonmo

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My husband and I were on the Riviera's 2/2 - 2/12 segment. We had no Noro problems, but certainly were aware of them and have wondered why the Riviera in particular has been so cursed by Noro.

 

Could the ship's extremely popular culinary classes be a contributing factor?

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LHT28 Holiday Sharing Rare

LHT28

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Not positive about this but, hope others who were on those 6 or 7 cruises can comment. Believe there has been extra cleaning on board since November.

There were reports on the Christmas cruise Jan 3rd cruise and other in Jan that had no issues with the virus

So if it was on the ship it was well hidden

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2295040

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2307023

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GeezerCouple Holiday Sharing Rare

GeezerCouple

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There were reports on the Christmas cruise Jan 3rd cruise and other in Jan that had no issues with the virus

So if it was on the ship it was well hidden

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2295040

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2307023

 

We were on the holiday cruise (including Christmas and New Years), and to the best of our knowledge, there was not any noro problem.

 

We discussed it (delicately) with a few crew, and they acknowledged the previous problems, but indicated that it was "over".

Obviously, they could have been mis-informed or simply not quite telling us what they knew.

 

However, we saw no sign of any unusual cleaning, and certainly no "goo" that needed to dry, etc.

 

We had been VERY nervous about this, given the previous few cruises and the difficulties with noro.

IF we had had insurance with CFAR (at 75%), we may have cancelled.

But we didn't have CFAR coverage for this trip, so we sort of grit our teeth and hoped for the best.

 

It was our first and long overdue Oceania cruise, and we had a WONDERFUL time, truly.

 

We agreed that we couldn't wait for another opportunity to get back on the Riviera, and perhaps the Marina.

(Given that our favorite restaurants were Jacques and Red Ginger, and we enjoyed some of the special areas on the Riviera, we aren't yet sure if the R ships will be as good a fit for us. But if the itinerary is right, we'll definitely give them a try.)

 

We hope that THIS time, Oceania gets the virus under control.

It is puzzling that there seemed to be at least 2 cruises (ours and the next) where noro wasn't a problem... and then it was baaaaaack.

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Toranut97

Toranut97

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My husband and I were on the Riviera's 2/2 - 2/12 segment. We had no Noro problems, but certainly were aware of them and have wondered why the Riviera in particular has been so cursed by Noro.

 

Could the ship's extremely popular culinary classes be a contributing factor?

 

This would seem a good question - but I believe that Marina also offers culinary classes, and there has been no plague there, I believe .

 

Donna

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iamkingofall

iamkingofall

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We have always noticed the procedure getting on and off the ship with the ID cards issued to guests. The security person who takes your card has just touched the cards of the hundreds of people before you.

 

At our gym we hold up our cards and the receptionist wands the cards ... the cards never leave our hands. No transmission of pathogens.

 

Given the recent norovirus situation on the Riveria wouldn't this make sense?

 

Well aren't you the thinkin feller . Your right . If all it takes is to touch a contaminated card .But that doesn't really explain why the biggest problem being on The Riviera .But does make me think that a small pack of wipes kept with you might help . I just don't see how they can eliminate virus from every inch of human contact . Not particularly thrilled to be scheduled for the TA on 4/11 . 5 days in the middle of the pond where it would take an aircraft carrier with a chopper to get my butt off of there . :confused::confused:

Edited by iamkingofall
I like to see my own literary prowess
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Travelcat2

Travelcat2

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Norovirus season should be over in April (according to what I've been reading). While not making the CC board until today, Oceania's sister company, Regent, has been in "code red" for the past 10 days and has been going through similar measures as was taken on the Riviera.

 

Fingers crossed that things will return to normal on the Riviera soon (like this week!)

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sa cruiser52

sa cruiser52

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Of course we are exposed to germs when we travel, but IMO this is a bit different when it's been a repetitive problem. I caught a cold on an RC cruise once (and stayed in our suite for the duration of the cruise), and have been sick after flying, but those situations are not the same as what people on these cruises have experienced.

 

I just think that a small goodwill gesture on Oceania's part for those on affected cruises would be appreciated. Necessary? Perhaps not, but as a passenger, if I were offered $100 as a cruise credit or OBC on a future cruise to make up for any inconvenience I'd experienced, I'd certainly appreciate it and have a very positive feeling towards the company. Going above what's required never hurts.

 

And for Oceania to bring the ship back two days early, it sounds like they believe it's a significant enough problem to warrant additional attention. Kudos to Oceania for addressing the issue and treating passengers right.

I am sure that Oceania did not come back early on their own, the CDC has procedures to follow. They came back early to clean the ship again so they would not lose the Feb 22nd cruise revenue.

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wcc19

wcc19

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No I don't think it's the crew and I believe their numbers are low ... that is usually the case in these instances. It's almost always the passengers. Believe me the crew could not report to work if they had noro. You are pretty much stuck near a bathroom. It's not like they can just hide out and not be noticed. Also the crew is much more aware of Noro (unlike passengers) and take the proper precautions 24/7. If only passengers would do the same.

 

Also I don't know where you're getting your numbers from. The ship only holds 1250 pax double occupancy. 10% would be 125 pax if the ship was full and not 919.

 

One hint to prevent spreading Noro is no shaking hands. That is one of the easiest ways to spread the virus. On Azamara for instance, officers and crew only "fist bump" and don't shake hands. I for one appreciate that.

 

eroller - I think you missed post #92 which gave a link to the CDC inspection report done on the Riviera in December.

This report cites 4 crewmembers, 3 in food service, who had symptoms of acute gastroenteritis and who continued to work and eat in the crew mess for many hours - or a full day in one case - before reporting. All 4 were disciplined for their actions. Your notion of the squeaky clean behavior of crew is not borne out by the facts.

Other interesting findings from the report:

-The ship's Outbreak Prevention and Response Plan (OPRP) had incorrect information that the disinfectant could be left for a 30 second contact time, when the actual minimum contact time is 5 minutes.

-The OPRP did not have procedures for notifying embarking passengers of an outbreak, which it is required to have.

- On the Nov 18 TA, which we were on, the ship did not follow required procedure for reporting the outbreak to the CDC's VSP.

 

It's fascinating reading - check it out.

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LHT28 Holiday Sharing Rare

LHT28

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Well, I just read that the world cruise is now code red for noro. See it's not just the Rivera, and they have 4 months left.

That is too bad I hope they get it under control quickly

 

Only about 1/3rd of the passengers are on the full RTW cruise others come & go

 

It is too bad they wait until they hit 2% to implement the code Red

after 2 cases they should start reminding people to wash their hands & take precautions as well as removing any condiments from the tables & food areas

Edited by LHT28
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JVNYC

JVNYC

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Norovirus season should be over in April (according to what I've been reading). While not making the CC board until today, Oceania's sister company, Regent, has been in "code red" for the past 10 days and has been going through similar measures as was taken on the Riviera.

 

Fingers crossed that things will return to normal on the Riviera soon (like this week!)

 

This is an interesting post....I didn't know Noro was seasonal. Is this accurate? If so, I'll just avoid winter cruises all together.

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RJB

RJB

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We have always noticed the procedure getting on and off the ship with the ID cards issued to guests. The security person who takes your card has just touched the cards of the hundreds of people before you.

 

At our gym we hold up our cards and the receptionist wands the cards ... the cards never leave our hands. No transmission of pathogens.

 

Given the recent norovirus situation on the Riveria wouldn't this make sense?

Not true, On the last cruise, 2/12 they did not touch our cards ever. When leaving and re boarding cards were scanned. Even after the crew needed to see cards in dining rooms and bars they were looked at and not touched.

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TravelerThom

TravelerThom

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Norovirus season should be over in April (according to what I've been reading)...
I guess the virus did not get the memo for our May cruise on Marina :rolleyes:

What a load of misinformation

While Norovirus is always around, it is seasonal, as shown by this graph from CDC:

trends-outbreaks-fig1a.jpg

IMO to paint the previous poster with the broad brush of "What a load of misinformation" is itself misinformation.

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jeaniemat

jeaniemat

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I think that the main problem is in the washrooms. If someone leaves a cubicle and washes their hands they have to turn the tap on, if they have noro virus it can then be on the tap, they thoroughly wash their hands but have to touch the same tap to turn it off, picking up the virus again on their hands, same goes for any other person following. Not sure what the system is on Riviera but it makes sense for all cruise ships to have sensor activated soap and water, this would greatly reduce the spread. Personally I never touch the taps or door handles in public washrooms, I always use wipes or a tissue to turn on and off and to exit. Sensor activation is something that O should consider unless in place already.

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