Poll: Would you take an Orlando Caribbean 7 Day Cruise on 2/15?

[macandlucy]

16 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

I find it incredibly interesting that I made this post the exact same day that Trump confessed to Bob Woodward that COVID-19 was airborne and five times deadlier than the flu. I would like to think that had I had that information at the time, I would NEVER had made this post. On the one hand, I am incredibly ashamed that I ever expressed these thoughts, but on the other hand, I was just basing my opinion on the information I had available to me at the time. Unfortunately I hadn't had my own one-on-one conversation with Xi Jinping at that point....

I mean, in fairness, Jamie, you were right. The vast majority of people who went on that cruise would not have come back with Covid. It was probably riskier those days to ride the subways of NYC.

Don't beat yourself up -- most people were not very worried about it at the time.

[disneykins]

Glad to hear you went on the cruise. We were in a similar situation. We spent February at Disney World and then did the Dawn on March 1 and the Pearl on March 8. There were no Covid measures on the Dawn and the Pearl took our temperature on boarding  and restricted the buffet so we couldn't serve ourselves.

 

I was amazed at the number of times I would be in the rest room and men would leave without washing their hands. I'd never noticed it before but with the fear that was starting to grow, I thought more people would have taken the time.

 

We were at the port in Lauderdale for a Royal cruise on March 14 when it was cancelled and our MSC the following week was also cancelled.

 

Everyone was begging us to come home to Canada but we just took our time, enjoyed empty hotels and beaches as we drove up the east coast. We finally made it home on March 28, I think. It was weird driving home through deserted highways. The only traffic was trucks. All we could eat the last week or so was takeout, or whatever we could get at Publix. We made it home without any health issues, quarantined for 14 days and adapted to the new normal. 

 

Now we're itching to get on a cruise again, vaccine or no vaccine. I think MSC is showing the way to get us cruising again and we're willing to follow their guidelines. We're hoping to go again in the Spring to the Caribbean and later in the year to South Africa.

[JamieLogical]

1 hour ago, macandlucy said:

I think cruising can be safely resumed now, with mitigation strategies in place. With the correct protocols it can be as safe (or safer) that any land vacation we can currently take.

 

I'm with your parents on the early cancellation -- smart move at the time, imo. Early on, I'd show people you tube videos of trucks in Wuhan spraying vast quantities of bleach on the streets and ask, "Does that seem like a NORMAL response to a flu virus to you!?" Eyerolls is what I got back at the time. We also cancelled a cruise, and it was such a relief, such a huge relief to me at the time. I was very, very scared of it.

 

And now that I know more, I am way less scared than I once was. But, IMHO, I think your parents have swing a little too far in the other direction. It's true that for most people, it's similar to a flu, but it's far worse than a flu for people in high risk groups and even just outliers in the low-risk category.  Useless masks are useless, effective ones are not. Chances of catching it are low for most of us, depending on luck and (the biggie) how we behave around others. Seven million cases in the US with a population of about 330 million, with a now, overall declining infection rate. I know people say "what about the upcoming flu season! It's going to make everything so much worse!" Then I remind them that their covid mitigation efforts also work on the flu (hygiene, distancing, effective masks). We don't, imo, need to lock down. We just need to change our own, individual behavior for a while.

 

I would cruise again now, but I'd need improved air filtration, an effective mask rule, hand hygiene, opportunity for distancing. Enough to get the risk level to very low (most of it I can handle myself). I'd also want to know the plan for other pax if cases are detected on board (which I expect they will be).  If they find one case on board, I expect that case to be isolated. But if they find ten cases on board do they then plan to confine everyone to their cabins? I'd want to know that before sailing. What's the positive case threshold before the whole thing is locked down.

 

I do feel like so much of the contagion factor is within individual control. Another example from my own life -- the people who are now the "lock it down again-ers" are also doing things and tolerating risk that I wouldn't, even now, with my way lower fear level.  Hugging friends outside their bubble for example, or sharing car rides.  That's another interesting phenomenon.

 

Ultimately, we all have to decide what's right for each of us. If cruising doesn't feel safe now, I get it, and would never encourage someone to do something that feels unsafe.  But for those of us who feel the risk is managable, I think it's time to give us that choice again.

 

 

 

I think the challenges right now for cruising are more to do with ports than the ships themselves. I could see embarkation/debarkation being VERY hard to manage. Cruising on the Breakaway/Breakaway+ Class ships out of NYC several times, embarkation and debarkation are already mad-houses with tons of crowding. It would be so challenging to screen people and make sure they socially distanced and the process could still happen in anything remotely resembling an efficient manor. As it is, it takes a good 3-4 hours to get everyone off the ship and a good 5-6 hours to get everyone on the ship. Can you imagine if that process needed to be slowed significantly to account for screening and social distancing?

 

And then, beyond that, you have the ports themselves. The local, state, and country government regulations for where each of those ports is located all having their own restrictions and procedures... 

 

And beyond that you have all the travel around the cruise itself. Like right now, if you come into New York state from one of 34 different states, you have to complete a form and quarantine for 14 days. How will that be handled for all of the passengers traveling through NYC to/from cruise ships? Not to mention the fact that most countries aren't allowing travel from whole lists of other countries...

[macandlucy]

3 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

I think the challenges right now for cruising are more to do with ports than the ships themselves. I could see embarkation/debarkation being VERY hard to manage. Cruising on the Breakaway/Breakaway+ Class ships out of NYC several times, embarkation and debarkation are already mad-houses with tons of crowding. It would be so challenging to screen people and make sure they socially distanced and the process could still happen in anything remotely resembling an efficient manor. As it is, it takes a good 3-4 hours to get everyone off the ship and a good 5-6 hours to get everyone on the ship. Can you imagine if that process needed to be slowed significantly to account for screening and social distancing?

 

And then, beyond that, you have the ports themselves. The local, state, and country government regulations for where each of those ports is located all having their own restrictions and procedures... 

 

And beyond that you have all the travel around the cruise itself. Like right now, if you come into New York state from one of 34 different states, you have to complete a form and quarantine for 14 days. How will that be handled for all of the passengers traveling through NYC to/from cruise ships? Not to mention the fact that most countries aren't allowing travel from whole lists of other countries...

That stuff sounds like cruise line logistics -- something they'll have to (I assume are right now) figuring out. Off the top of my head, I'd start with enforced times to show up at embark.

 

If NY keeps its 14 day quarantine in place, then I imagine cruise lines would not choose NY as an embark/debark port. I also assume that airlines would change flight schedules to reduce plane changes on routes that shop in places like NY where quarantines are in place, as that better suits the needs of their customers. Just a guess.

 

The cruise lines, I'm sure, are in communication with the ports, and are working things out with them in advance.  I think it's the new reality that there will be covid-related changes to itins, even while on a sailing. That could happen. Things are different now. 

 

With respect, I think many people are looking at cruising resumption through the lens of the way we used to cruise. I think it will be very different from that. My guess is that there will be no massive crowds of people at embark and debark because the lines will change how those things are done in response to covid. And, in the end, if I showed up, and there was for some inexplicable reason (!) a huge crowd, I'd do what I do everywhere else where people gather  -- pop on my good mask, and maybe even pop a second one over that.

[sanger727]

Wow, this thread is a  bit of a time capsule. Kinda wish we could go back to when we thought it was "just the flu" and we were safe from it in the US. Times have certainly change. I would have been one of the people in February who would have thought anyone who canceled a Caribbean cruise of this was being paranoid. In early March thought it was still no big deal and couldn't believe countries were shutting down. Then our shut down hit in mid march and it started to kick in that this was a big deal. Never would have guessed how far reaching this would still be in September!

[JamieLogical]

9 minutes ago, macandlucy said:

That stuff sounds like cruise line logistics -- something they'll have to (I assume are right now) figuring out. Off the top of my head, I'd start with enforced times to show up at embark.

 

If NY keeps its 14 day quarantine in place, then I imagine cruise lines would not choose NY as an embark/debark port. I also assume that airlines would change flight schedules to reduce plane changes on routes that shop in places like NY where quarantines are in place, as that better suits the needs of their customers. Just a guess.

 

The cruise lines, I'm sure, are in communication with the ports, and are working things out with them in advance.  I think it's the new reality that there will be covid-related changes to itins, even while on a sailing. That could happen. Things are different now. 

 

With respect, I think many people are looking at cruising resumption through the lens of the way we used to cruise. I think it will be very different from that. My guess is that there will be no massive crowds of people at embark and debark because the lines will change how those things are done in response to covid. And, in the end, if I showed up, and there was for some inexplicable reason (!) a huge crowd, I'd do what I do everywhere else where people gather  -- pop on my good mask, and maybe even pop a second one over that.

 

 

To be clear, my response was more a reaction to your assertion that cruising could resume today. I think the pieces that are outside of the cruiselines' control are the reasons why cruising couldn't resume immediately. The cruise lines don't run the ports, even the embarkation/debarkation. Those are typically run by port authorities. 

[macandlucy]

1 minute ago, JamieLogical said:

 

 

To be clear, my response was more a reaction to your assertion that cruising could resume today. I think the pieces that are outside of the cruiselines' control are the reasons why cruising couldn't resume immediately. The cruise lines don't run the ports, even the embarkation/debarkation. Those are typically run by port authorities. 

Ah, well I apologize for not making clear that what I meant was that I think cruising could safely resume today (with protocols).

 

Some ports are open to receiving cruise ships now or will be in the very near future. I cannot remember which ones, but I did read that a while ago. Itineraries would have to be modified to address that of course, and I expect they will be.

[HowardK]

Looking back as I had 5/20 on the Encore booked I had at some point been considering the same 3/15 Escape i believe some of you on this thread were discussing and booking last minute. By the time mid-February rolled around I already had concerns in the back of my mind about my May cruise. Turns out I had that 3rd week in March reserved off and thats when everything started.

I don't know how they would resume with the terminal being crowded - its impossible to pick an exact time to arrive based on traffic, flights etc... One of course has to go through several layers of people to get to the terminal itself, bus/train/plane, hotel, cab, dropping bags off with porters etc..

One could leave home with a 98.6 temperature and arrive at ship at 100 maybe even due just to a warm day or rushing to the port etc.

Heck- when you are crossing 12th avenue to get to the terminal you are coming in contact with people leaving from the prior week!!

Looking back to mid-February I was in new york overnight for a concert, on subways, busses, even waiting in a vestibule at a diner with 15 people waiting to get in- no distancing there- 

Personally, even if they make changes on board such as less people, masks, spacing- there is no way to filter on every combination of interaction required to get to the ship.

I made my final payment in December- and this didn't even appear in the news until 4 days later. Had it appeared before my 120 payment due, I might have had second thoughts but there wouldn't have been any information at the time.