Boarding delays, Ovation of the Seas.

[NSWP]

Not Ovation related but when we were waiting to board our flight from Avalon to Sydney last month for our P&O Jewel cruise to tassie, there was this lady in line who was going on the same cruise as us so we got talking about ships, how many we've done, what we've done etc, I made the comment that I was bummed because my fiancé and I had to cancel our cruise on Voyager in March due to me landing back on Dialysis in 2014, she turned around and said that she didn't really like Explorer OTS as they had confined/locked her to her cabin for gastro, she got annoyed because it was her "only chance" to see the ice show so she "broke out" of her cabin and went to the ice show, the crew were looking everywhere for her on the ship :eek: and when they finally found her she got into a lot of trouble. Her and her partner/travel party were laughing about it though as if it was funny.

 

I was gobsmacked, my brother said to her and this is why people get sick because of people like you and she went right off at him :roll eyes: I said to her no he's right, did you even THINK about the people with low immune systems/who get sick easily? Think about the staff? Think about all the poor tourists who might have spent their holidays confined to a cabin/hotel room because you were selfish and didn't stay in your cabin? She called us all a bunch of nasty names I won't repeat and then said she hopes we miss the ship. We ended up sitting right behind her at white bay while waiting to board, I really wanted to walk over to her and slap her across the face...as someone who has a low immune system it made my blood boil hearing her story! :mad: Thankfully I practice hand washing and sanitising like a crazy monster so I've never gotten sick on a ship before but man it's amazing how selfish people are.

Well said, I am Coeliac and we have low immune systems, catch everything. We should get stuck into these dirty, hygenic pax. I always thought Aussies were hygenic, wrong !! Most of the Brits are better.

Edited December 30, 2016 by NSWP

[shireboi]

She started moving at 6:50pm. Close, but not "pretty damn close". :p ;)

 

 

walked pass around 5.15 - the top deck looked empty - and no one on balconies - can only assume muster was on.

 

At 5.30 - The World passed by and under the bridge - looked... mmmm rather different that other cruise ships.

 

Will post some images later.

[gbenjo]

She started moving at 6:50pm. Close, but not "pretty damn close". :p ;)

 

My mistake,...... I said 6:30pm sail away it was actually scheduled for 6:45pm so 6:50pm is PRETTY DAMN CLOSE :D:D:D......allowing for the farce ;)

[OzKiwiJJ]

My mistake,...... I said 6:30pm sail away it was actually scheduled for 6:45pm so 6:50pm is PRETTY DAMN CLOSE :D:D:D......allowing for the farce ;)

 

In that case, I agree. :D

[avalon007]

Thanks! Though, as the article you linked to states, no matter how many times you wash your hands, etc, you're still at the mercy of the ship's cleaning processes and staff. But, for sure, these are good steps to take. I also intend to avoid the large buffet restaurant with the hand cleaning station - that station is there for a reason! - and only eat at the "specialty" restaurants. Fingers (after washing hands thoroughly) are going to be firmly crossed!

 

Don't be over concerned, but do be educated about Norovirus. :)

 

The hand sanitiser stations are everywhere on the ship, not just at the buffet.

 

Most hand sanitisers don't kill Noro because they are not anti viral only anti bacterial.

 

Alcohol-based gels or wipes do not kill Norovirus. Anything marked “antibacterial” but not “antiviral” may not necessarily kill viruses of any kind. The ingredients benzalkonium chloride and benzethonium chloride are effective against Norovirus in concentrations of at least .013%.

Norovirus - Emetophobia Help

http://www.emetophobiahelp.org/norovirus.html

 

So what we do is use 2 products that contain this ingredient - one is wet ones - we wipe down our cabin handles, light switches, door knobs, TV remote etc on first arriving.

 

Then we use an Aussie hand sanitiser called Hands First that contains 0.1% benzalkonium chloride, it has no alcohol in it so doesn't dry your hands out & last up to 5 times longer than most hand sanitisers & continues to remain active for up to 4 hours after application - which is perfect for cruising- also it's a foam so much easier to apply. You can get a handy purse size that is great for taking to the restaurants.

 

Things to be aware of - don't avoid the windjammer buffet - just be aware - we always take our food from the back rather than the front of the trays which are closest to where unthinking people place the handles of the serving utensils on top pf the food or kids just use their hands!

 

Also, we never rest our cutlery on the table but rest them on the side of our plate or on a spare plate so they never contact the potentially not so clean table.

 

Noro is often transferred into your mouth by your own hands, so when eating an ice cream cone for example I always throw away the part I was holding, same for toast or biscuits.

 

Also, don't eat unwashed fruit like apples - give them a good wash first.

 

The drinks staff usually always give you drinks with a part covered straw if you use one, this way their hands never contact the part you put in your mouth. Make sure that always happens.

 

Try not using the hand rails down the side of the halls etc unless you have to, use a knuckle rather than a finger tip to press lift buttons.

 

Always wash your hands with soap for an extended time especially when leaving public toilets on the ship & use a paper towel to open the door if it isn't automatic so you don't touch the handle after the dirty non washers!

 

So far I have been on 12 cruises & never had Noro - doesn't mean it can't happen, but just by being conscious of what you touch & put into your mouth can help.

 

When I get home, we use no anti bacterial products at all in our house - but when cruising I just apply the appropriate common sense approach as I know I'm mingling with thousands of people, some who are clueless, selfish & to be honest down right dirty! :D

 

Have fun - I'm on your cruise I think - 9 Jan?

[6666oz]

You can get some good wipes at the super market that contain benzalkonium chloride and benzethonium chloride, thats what I use to wipe down the touchable surfaces in the cabin, so far so good, might chuck in a can of

glen 20 for the loo.

 

Been on a couple of cruises when the virus hit, mad panic and lots of cleaning by the crew in bio hazard suits, not funny to watch.

 

If you ride in a lift push the button with a pen

[cruisine21]

Pine o clean wipes contains 0.26% benzalkonium chloride. A lot of people misleadingly believe Glen 20 kills noroviris.

[Homerclese]

Have fun - I'm on your cruise I think - 9 Jan?

 

Thanks for all that and yes that's our cruise alright.

 

Those precautions make sense and, really, as somebody with an undiagnosed phobia about germs a lot of these are the precautions that I take in my daily life anyway. We've travelled quite a bit in third world and developing countries and never caught anything but we have caught something a couple of times here in Sydney and, with young children, once or twice a "bug" has travelled home from school that was just impossible to avoid.

[NSWP]

At the end of the day they did pretty good getting 5000 on in 5 hours, 1.30pm to 6.30pm.