Cruises in the near future - Contingency plans?

[LisaLisa87]

We're supposed to be sailing on Epic in just over 4 weeks. Like most people cruising in the next couple of months, we're in wait-and-see mode right now as things seem to be changing day to day. Up until a couple of weeks ago, we still had every intention of going, but our feelings have started to shift. At this point, we're hoping that NCL will either cancel the cruise or allow us to cancel and credit the fare toward a future cruise. I don't think either of those scenarios is likely, though, so we've put some contingency plans in place in the event we decide we're not comfortable proceeding. Incidentally, we did purchase travel insurance but sadly did not pay extra for CFAR. Here's our contingency plan, so far:

 

We've booked a hotel room in Fort Lauderdale, which we can cancel without penalty until 3 days before. We'd like to have the ability to drive home, and if we're going to be quarantined, we'd much rather be on land than on a ship! In this scenario, we would shorten our trip and fly (or drive) home a few days early.

 

We've withdrawn our upgrade bids, so if we end up cancelling we won't risk being out any additional money. We'll probably make a final decision 5-7 days out, and at that point, if we decide not to go, I'll cancel all the extras attached to our reservation as well as all our plans in the ports. If we do decide to go, I'll submit new upgrade bids (or look at prices for upgrading directly).

 

Worst case scenario is that we'll cancel both the cruise and the hotel and move our flights to a later date. We'd eat the cruise fare, but fortunately we booked with Southwest so wouldn't have to worry about change fees.

 

For others booked on cruises sailing in the near future, what contingency plans, if any, have you made?

 

p.s. I realize there is another thread about cancelling due to Coronavirus, but a lot of that discussion is more general. I'm hoping to hear about specific steps others with upcoming cruises are taking. 😊

Edited March 5, 2020 by LisaLisa87

[JamieLogical]

I am sailing on the Bliss for a B2B in 10 days. I am going by myself the first week and then my SO, parents, brother, and his SO are joining me for the second week. My main concern right now is if I go for that first week, something happens, and the second leg gets canceled. I am flying one-way for my solo leg and then supposed to be driving back with my SO at the end of the second leg. If that sailing gets canceled, I will have to fend for myself to get home. Not that that would be catastrophic.

 

For us, right now, there is ZERO consideration of choosing not to go of our own volition. Most of my concerns are around the cruise(s) getting canceled or being quarantined at some point on/after the cruises.

[cruisekitty22]

We have no intention of canceling our cruise either.  We sail March 22-29, 2020 on the Bliss for  7 days.   We will be prepared no matter what happens. 

[Travelling2Some]

In terms of a Plan B, I feel fortunate that ours is a Baltic cruise.  We can easily turn it into a DIY trip using trains and the overnight ferries that connect most of the Baltic capitals if our ship does not sail.  We have non-refundable airfare and the cruise is only part of a much more extensive European journey.  It will be a different kind of trip but better in that we can stay as long as we want in each port instead of having just one day there.  I'm not making the alternative hotel reservations though until we see which way the wind is blowing.

[LisaLisa87]

8 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

I am sailing on the Bliss for a B2B in 10 days. I am going by myself the first week and then my SO, parents, brother, and his SO are joining me for the second week. My main concern right now is if I go for that first week, something happens, and the second leg gets canceled. I am flying one-way for my solo leg and then supposed to be driving back with my SO at the end of the second leg. If that sailing gets canceled, I will have to fend for myself to get home. Not that that would be catastrophic.

 

For us, right now, there is ZERO consideration of choosing not to go of our own volition. Most of my concerns are around the cruise(s) getting canceled or being quarantined at some point on/after the cruises.

 

I totally get why you would proceed as planned. The part of your post I've emphasized in bold is a big part of why we're reconsidering. I keep reading about companies who are requiring their employees who travel out of the country to self quarantine before returning to work. For now that seems to be confined mostly to countries where the risk level is high, but I think these types of restrictions will continue to escalate. I also *really* don't want to be quarantined on a ship (partly because I'm claustrophobic), and while my company would be understanding, DH's would not.

[JamieLogical]

2 minutes ago, LisaLisa87 said:

 

I totally get why you would proceed as planned. The part of your post I've emphasized in bold is a big part of why we're reconsidering. I keep reading about companies who are requiring their employees who travel out of the country to self quarantine before returning to work. For now that seems to be confined mostly to countries where the risk level is high, but I think these types of restrictions will continue to escalate. I also *really* don't want to be quarantined on a ship (partly because I'm claustrophobic), and while my company would be understanding, DH's would not.

 

I think there is little chance of you being quarantined ON the ship for any significant length of time. The Diamond Princess debacle proved how risky and ineffective that strategy was. Even with the Grand Princess right now, I think they will likely move those passengers off of the ship in the next day or two and they were supposed to be sailing for another week plus. So, if anything, they are getting off the ship sooner than planned, not being held longer. I am sure wherever they are moved to for quarantine will suck too, though.

[HeatherLynne]

We cruise in April with 2 teens. I would reschedule for a cruise next year in a heartbeat if it were an option. A full refund would be even better. But since they are not offering anything like that yet, we're still planning on going. We leave from a port near where we live so we will take a car service to the port and back instead of risking leaving a car in a parking lot for weeks if quarantined. We are planning on taking extra weeks of medications with us along with sanitizer. And we were just talking about bringing Clorox wipes and spray with us for our room too. In reality, I know it won't really help to clean our room, but it will make us all feel better in that space at least. I've also cancelled our upgrade offer in case we decide to cancel last minute. I don't have insurance and don't want to be out additional $$. We have a balcony room booked which will be fine for us.

 

We're all healthy so I'm not worried about the sickness itself. I'm worried about being trapped in a quarantine somewhere besides my house. For now we are in a sit tight and wait mode. We're hoping things will take a turn for the better between now and when we leave. 

[susanf31]

Cancelling is not an option as we have about 40 people sailing Encore 3/22 for our stepdaughter's wedding.  We are on pins and needles that the cruise might get cancelled or ports changes when she has gone to great planning and expense to have a beach wedding on St. John during our St. Thomas stop.

 

We are trying to look on the bright side.  Perhaps the ship will not be as crowded as we anticipated due to many cancellations.  We also might end up with upgrades if the ship is significantly less than full.

 

If the cruise does get cancelled, we have no Plan B for 40 people all flying in to Miami on 3/21!  I guess maybe we'll all rent cars and drive down to the Keys and find a place to have a last minute, waterside ceremony.  

[LisaLisa87]

2 minutes ago, HeatherLynne said:

We cruise in April with 2 teens. I would reschedule for a cruise next year in a heartbeat if it were an option. A full refund would be even better. But since they are not offering anything like that yet, we're still planning on going. We leave from a port near where we live so we will take a car service to the port and back instead of risking leaving a car in a parking lot for weeks if quarantined. We are planning on taking extra weeks of medications with us along with sanitizer. And we were just talking about bringing Clorox wipes and spray with us for our room too. In reality, I know it won't really help to clean our room, but it will make us all feel better in that space at least. I've also cancelled our upgrade offer in case we decide to cancel last minute. I don't have insurance and don't want to be out additional $$. We have a balcony room booked which will be fine for us.

 

We're all healthy so I'm not worried about the sickness itself. I'm worried about being trapped in a quarantine somewhere besides my house. For now we are in a sit tight and wait mode. We're hoping things will take a turn for the better between now and when we leave. 

 

We're sailing with our 16yo DD, which is another factor in all of this. Missing additional school during her junior year would not be ideal, but luckily her school has an established e-learning program and she'll have her school-issued iPad with her.

 

We are also planning to take wipes and sanitizer and will thoroughly wipe down all the surfaces in our room and around our seats on the plane. Not sure how much that'll help, but like you, it'll make me feel better! We have a minisuite booked, so at least we'd have the ability to get fresh air if we're confined to our room for any length of time.

[LisaLisa87]

6 minutes ago, susanf31 said:

Cancelling is not an option as we have about 40 people sailing Encore 3/22 for our stepdaughter's wedding.  We are on pins and needles that the cruise might get cancelled or ports changes when she has gone to great planning and expense to have a beach wedding on St. John during our St. Thomas stop.

 

Wow! ! I hope everything goes smoothly and your stepdaughter's wedding takes place on the beach in St. John as planned!

[HeatherLynne]

8 minutes ago, LisaLisa87 said:

 

We're sailing with our 16yo DD, which is another factor in all of this. Missing additional school during her junior year would not be ideal, but luckily her school has an established e-learning program and she'll have her school-issued iPad with her.

 

We are also planning to take wipes and sanitizer and will thoroughly wipe down all the surfaces in our room and around our seats on the plane. Not sure how much that'll help, but like you, it'll make me feel better! We have a minisuite booked, so at least we'd have the ability to get fresh air if we're confined to our room for any length of time.

 

Our teens have school issued chrome books. Maybe it would be a good idea to bring those. Then they could log in with google classroom and stay caught up on some work at least. I hate to bring them with us, but it might make us all feel better. Our schools are doing deep cleans and talking about the possibility of closures as it is, so they may have experience with running classes fully online by the time the cruise goes anyway. What a weird situation to see unfolding right now! Oh, and we have a mini suite too. I got that wrong. Not that it makes much difference. I love to cruise with a balcony. Extra glad we have one this time.

 

[JamieLogical]

16 minutes ago, susanf31 said:

Cancelling is not an option as we have about 40 people sailing Encore 3/22 for our stepdaughter's wedding.  We are on pins and needles that the cruise might get cancelled or ports changes when she has gone to great planning and expense to have a beach wedding on St. John during our St. Thomas stop.

 

We are trying to look on the bright side.  Perhaps the ship will not be as crowded as we anticipated due to many cancellations.  We also might end up with upgrades if the ship is significantly less than full.

 

If the cruise does get cancelled, we have no Plan B for 40 people all flying in to Miami on 3/21!  I guess maybe we'll all rent cars and drive down to the Keys and find a place to have a last minute, waterside ceremony.  

 

Ugh, I have only been on seven cruises and three of those have had missed/rescheduled ports. The very first night of my very first cruise, we were rerouted due to a medical emergency on board and they changed the order of all the ports we were going to and swapped Ochos Rio for Freeport. I rode in the elevator that night with a man who was visibly stressed. He had been scheduled to get married in Freeport the next day. Since then, any time I meet anyone who is planning on attending a wedding at a port on a cruise, I think of that guy and his wedding party. A risk people take with any destination wedding, but even more so with a cruise destination wedding. Cruises miss/reschedule ports ALL THE TIME, even when there isn't a natural disaster or global pandemic to deal with.

[Cap'n Ron]

We are booked on the Escape leaving the 14th, but waiting to see what happens to the Grand Princess.  At this point, they should let everyone leave and go home.  The virus is already spreading across the country and these limited quarantines won't stop the eventual spread.  I'm far less concerned with the virus, and worry more about being stuck on the ship or an off-site facility. 

 

Tried calling NCL today, but they won't budge an inch on their policy.  At this point, waiting to see what happens over the weekend and may end up cancelling next week if the Grand Princess is quarantined as that will set the precident on how the US will handle this.

 

Would welcome NCL offering FCC to those wishing not to go.  I'd rebook tomorrow for June if they'd allow it.  My wife is a teacher, so being stuck for weeks in quarantine won't be good for her job.

Edited March 5, 2020 by Cap'n Ron

[G-DawgMN]

 We are doing an Alaska cruise in May and have no intention of cancelling at this point. We of course will be more concerned if/when the virus spreads, but we feel it's still low risk. 

  Worst case scenario, it gets cancelled. We have insurance so we'll be reimbursed for any expenses outside of the cruise.

 

 

[LisaLisa87]

15 minutes ago, Cap'n Ron said:

We are booked on the Escape leaving the 14th, but waiting to see what happens to the Grand Princess.  At this point, they should let everyone leave and go home.  The virus is already spreading across the country and these limited quarantines won't stop the eventual spread.  I'm far less concerned with the virus, and worry more about being stuck on the ship or an off-site facility. 

 

Tried calling NCL today, but they won't budge an inch on their policy.  At this point, waiting to see what happens over the weekend and may end up cancelling next week if the Grand Princess is quarantined as that will set the precident on how the US will handle this.

 

Would welcome NCL offering FCC to those wishing not to go.  I'd rebook tomorrow for June if they'd allow it.  My wife is a teacher, so being stuck for weeks in quarantine won't be good for her job.

 

Thanks for sharing your experience with calling NCL. I had been wondering whether it's worth the time it takes to call them. Apparently not!

 

I'm with you and a couple of others on this thread in that I'm much less worried about getting sick than on the possibility of some type of quarantine situation.

[LinnieRed]

We JUST booked a cruise for March 29 leaving from NOLA. This is a replacement for a trip to Europe that we had to cancel due to one of us being unable to fly currently. 
we have zero intention of canceling. Unless NCL does not sail we are on that ship! I don’t even care if we don’t go to any ports. 
 

[Cap'n Ron]

9 minutes ago, LisaLisa87 said:

 

Thanks for sharing your experience with calling NCL. I had been wondering whether it's worth the time it takes to call them. Apparently not!

 

I'm with you and a couple of others on this thread in that I'm much less worried about getting sick than on the possibility of some type of quarantine situation.

 

You're welcome!  I even elevated to a supervisor, and no luck at this point.  She did mention the policy could change in the coming days, but nothing yet.  Fingers crossed, and now I've got to look for a backup plan should we stay home.  At least we live in Florida, so alternatives shouldn't be too bad.

[oracer]

We are going to Rome in June.  Our only concerns is that of travel restrictions from the US to Rome and back starting to get pretty intense.  I believe by June this "fear" should be subsided, but worrying about travel restrictions since I can't get to Rome by car.   I have travel insurance, so if things start going south, I know 100% of everything I put into this will be refunded.   

[hamrag]

32 minutes ago, Cap'n Ron said:

....Tried calling NCL today, but they won't budge an inch on their policy....

 

Why should they? Right now, there is no reason to.....but that may change in the coming days and weeks!

[Cap'n Ron]

2 minutes ago, hamrag said:

 

Why should they? Right now, there is no reason to.....but that may change in the coming days and weeks!

Because we are in uncharted waters, and many folks have jobs and children that would be negatively impacted if more quarantines occur.  Viking is allowing folks booked to cancel and reschedule up to 2 years out.  That's awesome customer service and the other cruiselines should follow.  I still want to go, and I'm not asking for a refund, just the ability to move my sailing with credit. 

[SplashOfWater]

We have no plans to cancel our Port Canaveral to Seattle cruise on the Sun in May. We will see what NCL does as we get closer to sail date. If they cancel the cruise I am sure we will receive a refund and/or future cruise credit. We have a one-way flight on Delta to get us back to Orlando. We would be out $400 for the flight, but are prepared to eat that cost.

 

I am also watching the roll call for the Bliss NYC to Seattle cruise in mid-April, to see if NCL modifies or cancels that cruise. Whatever they do there they would probably do to our cruise too.

[travelinmama]

42 minutes ago, KSSS2013 said:

 We are doing an Alaska cruise in May and have no intention of cancelling at this point. We of course will be more concerned if/when the virus spreads, but we feel it's still low risk. 

  Worst case scenario, it gets cancelled. We have insurance so we'll be reimbursed for any expenses outside of the cruise.

 

 

 

[maryivo]

This whole thing is very scary and I wasn't nervous before but I'm starting to get nervous now!  We sail in June out of NYC....hopefully will be fine by then but you never know it could be worse! UGh! Thankfully NCL moved their final payment date so I'm still in the cancellation window without penalty.

[travelinmama]

We too are doing NCL Jewel 5/25. Which one are you on? I am just a tad frustrated right now. LONG story.. I found a detailed article saying that NCL is relaxing its policy but when I called, no one knew anything of it. It has been the same info that I am seeing on multiple sites so who knows. NCL originally told me they were not allowing anyone Chinese passport holders to board (3 in our group fall into that category but live in the US)!!  Then they changed that. Things are evolving quickly. I will attach the article I found. I just emailed the author to get his source because oddly enough, NCL knows NOTHING of this!!

 

https://www.travelagentcentral.com/cruises/norwegian-uniworld-update-change-policies-over-coronavirus

[dcipjr]

We recently got off the Joy on a 16-day cruise. It was amazing, and we didn't have any trouble onboard, though the lines were a bit long on the embarkation and disembarkation days. 

 

I did think about canceling (as a contingency plan), but it didn't get to the point where I was ever serious about canceling. I decided that the cruise was paid, the travel arrangements were booked, and there was no immediate danger to us by going on the cruise. There was the possibility of quarantine, but nothing imminent.

 

The situation has definitely evolved since we boarded on February 14th. If we were doing the same cruise on March 14th, would I go? At this time, I would still say yes. There's still no immediate danger. I would proceed with caution, of course, and if anything were to happen that would suggest that we would be assuming an undue risk by going, I would reconsider.

 

I'd say to keep your options open. Make the best decision that you can, given the information available to you at the time. That's all we can really do in life.

 

Am I planning to cruise again in the next 6 months? No, but that's mostly because we weren't planning on traveling during that timeframe anyway. It seems as though reducing unnecessary travel could help slow the spread of the virus, and we don't have anything booked. So I'm looking at this as a time to stay closer to home. 

 

I still bought a couple future cruise certs onboard, and hopefully by the time I'm ready to use them, the situation will have stabilized a bit.