Constellation "Revolution"

[Gracie115]

For all those booked on Connie or any Celebrity ship I think this phrase that is on the front page of the Princess website probably is also true for Celebrity and all of us booked on ANY ship should keep in mind:

 

 We are currently assessing enhanced health and safety protocols in light of COVID-19 and how they may impact our future offerings. Our actual offerings may vary from what is displayed or described here. Stay updated on current Travel Advisories and Health & Safety protocols.   

 

In my opinion they will not start with all ships sailing and they WILL change ports as needed, so anything you/we have booked may change dramatically from what you booked mostly depending on what ports will allow ships in......

[canderson]

Why would they not start with as many ships sailing as possible?  If there really is a reduced capacity plan, it seems entirely possible that they will have enough remaining bookings to reach that lesser capacity.  Why not take on the additional income?  As is well noted, much of the lines' income is on-board spending.  That doesn't happen without pax on-board. 

 

Certainly there may be port changes.  You can't put in where you're not wanted.  I don't think modified itineraries will be any surprise to anyone.

 

[Gracie115]

4 hours ago, canderson said:

Why would they not start with as many ships sailing as possible?  If there really is a reduced capacity plan, it seems entirely possible that they will have enough remaining bookings to reach that lesser capacity.  Why not take on the additional income?  As is well noted, much of the lines' income is on-board spending.  That doesn't happen without pax on-board. 

 

Certainly there may be port changes.  You can't put in where you're not wanted.  I don't think modified itineraries will be any surprise to anyone.

 

They are going to have to go get all their crews back on ship, after health checks, there are going to be ports, possibly MANY ports that won't allow ships in for the rest of the year.  I would bet that MANY people have cancelled cruises that were planned for later this year (me among them) and I would bet that even fewer are booking cruises before 2021, cruise lines are not going to sail ships that are only 1/4 full......I think Princess was smart to put the heading on their site that whatever sailing you are looking at may be much different than what actually happens.....smart planning  (and believe me I'm not a fan them right now since I'm going on 90 days waiting on a refund....but I do think this is smart)  AND Richard Fain, CEO of RCL has stated that there will be fewer ships to begin with...…..

[canderson]

I guess if they want to leave Connie stranded in Europe, then they'll leave it 'stranded' in Europe at the end of the summer.  Otherwise, one would think my T/A cruise Oct 31 would likely happen, with or without pax.  Since the run seems likely, I'm guessing 'with', but we'll see.

 

[Gracie115]

11 hours ago, canderson said:

I guess if they want to leave Connie stranded in Europe, then they'll leave it 'stranded' in Europe at the end of the summer.  Otherwise, one would think my T/A cruise Oct 31 would likely happen, with or without pax.  Since the run seems likely, I'm guessing 'with', but we'll see.

 

 

You may be right, who really knows what/when/where any ships will start sailing again...?

[hcat]

What are the plans for Connie after the TA? 

When  is she due in Tampa, if plans hold?

 

 

[hcat]

24 minutes ago, hcat said:

What are the plans for Connie after the TA? 

When  is she due in Tampa, if plans hold?

 

 

Decided to check for myself..much as I dislike the Celebrity website

 

Results:

The Celeb website ( ugh) shows  Connie coming directly to Tampa  after the TA ( what a great itin! )

 

  Cruises from Tampa in Nov and Dec 2020 include Eastern, Southern and Western Carib... a vaiety of  7, 10, 5 and 11 night offerings. 

 

Is anyone here booked on these?

Do you think itins will change to shorter trips?  

All speculative but wondering????

 

[D C]

15 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

They are going to have to go get all their crews back on ship, after health checks, there are going to be ports, possibly MANY ports that won't allow ships in for the rest of the year.  I would bet that MANY people have cancelled cruises that were planned for later this year (me among them) and I would bet that even fewer are booking cruises before 2021, cruise lines are not going to sail ships that are only 1/4 full......I think Princess was smart to put the heading on their site that whatever sailing you are looking at may be much different than what actually happens.....smart planning  (and believe me I'm not a fan them right now since I'm going on 90 days waiting on a refund....but I do think this is smart)  AND Richard Fain, CEO of RCL has stated that there will be fewer ships to begin with...…..

The crew part is the most risky, I think.  You'll have to get crews on board and have them isolate for 2 weeks before any ship is ready for sailing.  If any of them have end up with COVID, it will set everything back.   

 

In the near-term, ports will be a crap shoot.  Each port will need to develop a long-term strategy that allows tourism in general, since so many of them live and die by the tourist $$.

 

Hopeful that our November repo (FLL-SJU) on the Summit happens.

[Gracie115]

1 minute ago, D C said:

The crew part is the most risky, I think.  You'll have to get crews on board and have them isolate for 2 weeks before any ship is ready for sailing.  If any of them have end up with COVID, it will set everything back.   

 

In the near-term, ports will be a crap shoot.  Each port will need to develop a long-term strategy that allows tourism in general, since so many of them live and die by the tourist $$.

 

Hopeful that our November repo (FLL-SJU) on the Summit happens.

 

 

Agree...

 

I suspect that crew will be isolated "somewhere" BEFORE they step foot on a ship.  Maybe the cruise lines will work out a deal with a hotel or somewhere so that they can be assured they are clear of the virus prior to boarding a ship...….at least that's what I would do rather than chance an infection on the ship.....

 

[canderson]

1 hour ago, Gracie115 said:

I suspect that crew will be isolated "somewhere" BEFORE they step foot on a ship.

+1.  No point in bringing something aboard and having to start all over again with a never-ending cycle of quarantines.

[D C]

1 hour ago, Gracie115 said:

 

 

Agree...

 

I suspect that crew will be isolated "somewhere" BEFORE they step foot on a ship.  Maybe the cruise lines will work out a deal with a hotel or somewhere so that they can be assured they are clear of the virus prior to boarding a ship...….at least that's what I would do rather than chance an infection on the ship.....

 

That would make a lot of sense to isolate them before ever getting to the ship.  Sit in a hotel for 2 weeks, then board the ship.  Pretty much guarantees that the ship stays free of cases.

[Fouremco]

2 hours ago, Gracie115 said:

Agree...

 

I suspect that crew will be isolated "somewhere" BEFORE they step foot on a ship.  Maybe the cruise lines will work out a deal with a hotel or somewhere so that they can be assured they are clear of the virus prior to boarding a ship...….at least that's what I would do rather than chance an infection on the ship.....

 

 

50 minutes ago, D C said:

That would make a lot of sense to isolate them before ever getting to the ship.  Sit in a hotel for 2 weeks, then board the ship.  Pretty much guarantees that the ship stays free of cases.

Passengers outnumber crew members on every cruise ship, even on the luxury lines. On the Edge, for example, there are more than double the number of passengers when at full capacity (1:0.47 ratio). Additionally, a ship's crew is relatively static compared to the hundreds of thousands of new passengers who embark every week. Clearly, a far bigger threat of bringing COVID-19 aboard lies with the passengers, and whatever steps that are taken to mitigate the threat from passengers should be taken with crew members. To say that isolating crew members before boarding "Pretty much guarantees that the ship stays free of cases" totally ignores the most likely source of infection: passengers.

 

Given the cost of housing the entire fleet's crew for two weeks of isolation, and for isolating all new crew members rotating in at a later date, I doubt that Celebrity would entertain such a proposal to begin with. I also doubt that crew members, especially the fleet officers, would agree to such isolation without a strong protest. Nothing like starting to cruise again with a very disgruntled crew.

 

 

[Gracie115]

12 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

 

Passengers outnumber crew members on every cruise ship, even on the luxury lines. On the Edge, for example, there are more than double the number of passengers when at full capacity (1:0.47 ratio). Additionally, a ship's crew is relatively static compared to the hundreds of thousands of new passengers who embark every week. Clearly, a far bigger threat of bringing COVID-19 aboard lies with the passengers, and whatever steps that are taken to mitigate the threat from passengers should be taken with crew members. To say that isolating crew members before boarding "Pretty much guarantees that the ship stays free of cases" totally ignores the most likely source of infection: passengers.

 

Given the cost of housing the entire fleet's crew for two weeks of isolation, and for isolating all new crew members rotating in at a later date, I doubt that Celebrity would entertain such a proposal to begin with. I also doubt that crew members, especially the fleet officers, would agree to such isolation without a strong protest. Nothing like starting to cruise again with a very disgruntled crew.

 

 

Completely disagree.....I suspect that the CDC will demand some kind of protocol from all the lines that assures that staff at the very least are clear of COVID19 before they approve the lines coming to US ports......and then, of course, protocols going forward for how to keep checking..... at least they would start out "clean"   I don't think ANYTHING guarantees the ship stays free of cases but I absolutely believe the lines will have to prove that, at the very least, crew is free of it when they start back up and I know of no way to do that except to quarantine them for 14 days.....maybe use a ship that's not coming back immediately, I don't know, but they're going to have to do something along these lines to make all the powers that be everywhere satisfied that the ships are at least starting out clean.

[D C]

43 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

 

Passengers outnumber crew members on every cruise ship, even on the luxury lines. On the Edge, for example, there are more than double the number of passengers when at full capacity (1:0.47 ratio). Additionally, a ship's crew is relatively static compared to the hundreds of thousands of new passengers who embark every week. Clearly, a far bigger threat of bringing COVID-19 aboard lies with the passengers, and whatever steps that are taken to mitigate the threat from passengers should be taken with crew members. To say that isolating crew members before boarding "Pretty much guarantees that the ship stays free of cases" totally ignores the most likely source of infection: passengers.

 

Given the cost of housing the entire fleet's crew for two weeks of isolation, and for isolating all new crew members rotating in at a later date, I doubt that Celebrity would entertain such a proposal to begin with. I also doubt that crew members, especially the fleet officers, would agree to such isolation without a strong protest. Nothing like starting to cruise again with a very disgruntled crew.

 

 

I wasn't clear in my response. 

Right now, the fleet is free of COVID as far as we know.  If the crew stayed onboard, the fleet would remain COVID-free and could start back up as COVID-free.  No issues whatsoever.   Naturally, whether the ship remains free of any disease is dependent on those coming and going from the ship at any port, crew included.  

[G&G]

7 hours ago, hcat said:

Decided to check for myself..much as I dislike the Celebrity website

 

Results:

The Celeb website ( ugh) shows  Connie coming directly to Tampa  after the TA ( what a great itin! )

 

  Cruises from Tampa in Nov and Dec 2020 include Eastern, Southern and Western Carib... a vaiety of  7, 10, 5 and 11 night offerings. 

 

Is anyone here booked on these?

Do you think itins will change to shorter trips?  

All speculative but wondering????

 

Yes, booked on 11/21 & 12/13. These two cruises plus the 12/3 sailing are currently only 44% to 56% full, with only suites almost sold out. No shorter trips if ships sail with less passengers; better chance for social distancing.

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, Gracie115 said:

Completely disagree.....I suspect that the CDC will demand some kind of protocol from all the lines that assures that staff at the very least are clear of COVID19 before they approve the lines coming to US ports......and then, of course, protocols going forward for how to keep checking..... at least they would start out "clean"   I don't think ANYTHING guarantees the ship stays free of cases but I absolutely believe the lines will have to prove that, at the very least, crew is free of it when they start back up and I know of no way to do that except to quarantine them for 14 days.....maybe use a ship that's not coming back immediately, I don't know, but they're going to have to do something along these lines to make all the powers that be everywhere satisfied that the ships are at least starting out clean.

That, of course, is one of the huge benefits of Cruise Critic, we get to see a wide variety of opinions. And as opinions, they can be neither right nor wrong. I too disagree with you on this issue, but fully respect your right to express it. The one thing that we can both agree on is that we want to see a return to cruising in a safe and healthy environment free of COVID-19.

 

[Gracie115]

Just now, Fouremco said:

That, of course, is one of the huge benefits of Cruise Critic, we get to see a wide variety of opinions. And as opinions, they can be neither right nor wrong. I too disagree with you on this issue, but fully respect your right to express it. The one thing that we can both agree on is that we want to see a return to cruising in a safe and healthy environment free of COVID-19.

 

 

Yes, we absolutely agree on that!!!!  😁😁

[canderson]

2 hours ago, D C said:

Right now, the fleet is free of COVID as far as we know.  If the crew stayed onboard, the fleet would remain COVID-free and could start back up as COVID-free. 

A substantial part of the crew isn't aboard at present.  You'll have noted that the lines were busy trying to supply transportation for them.  Neither are the entertainers, which is a WHOLE 'nuther issue.

[Luv2Crus40]

10 hours ago, hcat said:

Decided to check for myself..much as I dislike the Celebrity website

 

Results:

The Celeb website ( ugh) shows  Connie coming directly to Tampa  after the TA ( what a great itin! )

 

  Cruises from Tampa in Nov and Dec 2020 include Eastern, Southern and Western Carib... a vaiety of  7, 10, 5 and 11 night offerings. 

 

Is anyone here booked on these?

Do you think itins will change to shorter trips?  

All speculative but wondering????

 

We're booked on the 12/13/20 10 Day Caribbean cruise on Connie out of Tampa, FL.  We've got our flights, hotel and everything lined up.  This cruise is to replace our cancelled May cruise on the Summit.  We are REALLY hoping this cruise happens.  We have until 7/31/20 to Lift and Shift to next year, or wait until mid-September to cancel the cruise if the virus is still raging, or wait until they cancel the cruise and we'd get FCC again.   Still keeping our fingers crossed.

[hcat]

4 hours ago, G&G said:

Yes, booked on 11/21 & 12/13. These two cruises plus the 12/3 sailing are currently only 44% to 56% full, with only suites almost sold out. No shorter trips if ships sail with less passengers; better chance for social distancing.

Sounds like a great   combined itin... With bookings low,  maybe they will cut things off and have the low numbers needed without cancelling anyone,,..esp if suites are booked..higher revenue, fewer pax.

[lakegirl16]

We were booked on the Connie for 2/26/21  in a Sky Suite.  Booked early and got an amazing rate and perks.  If the virus is still lurking in February, assuming the Connie is sailing, I'm not quite ready to be on a cruise.  Didn't want to loose the rate and perks, so we did a lift and shift for 2022.  Didn't want to wait it out and see what happens, so we'll see what happens with the ship and cruises and hopefully sail (maybe on a refurbished ship) in 2022. 

[sn2792]

We were booked on the Connie for 2/26/21  in a Sky Suite.  Booked early and got an amazing rate and perks.  If the virus is still lurking in February, assuming the Connie is sailing, I'm not quite ready to be on a cruise.  Didn't want to loose the rate and perks, so we did a lift and shift for 2022.  Didn't want to wait it out and see what happens, so we'll see what happens with the ship and cruises and hopefully sail (maybe on a refurbished ship) in 2022. 

We were also booked in SS for the 2/26 cruise with a good rate and a ton of onboard credit. We also shifted it to February 2022. I agree, it would be nice to have a refurbished ship, but not counting on it.






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[hcat]

12 hours ago, Luv2Crus40 said:

We're booked on the 12/13/20 10 Day Caribbean cruise on Connie out of Tampa, FL.  We've got our flights, hotel and everything lined up.  This cruise is to replace our cancelled May cruise on the Summit.  We are REALLY hoping this cruise happens.  We have until 7/31/20 to Lift and Shift to next year, or wait until mid-September to cancel the cruise if the virus is still raging, or wait until they cancel the cruise and we'd get FCC again.   Still keeping our fingers crossed.

What hotel did you book?

We are debating booking a pre cruise hotel or driving up from the Venice area day of the cruise...guess this would be the right time to reserve something for Jan 2021.

[Algebralovr]

My thought is that Infinity may stay in India for a bit, until time to bring crew back. Then, it can bring a load of crew back the same way it delivered them home, back to CN for some, Apex for others, and finally across the Atlantic for many others.  Guessing it will still be a while, though.

 

I’m booked for the Dec 23 holiday cruise on CN this year.  It is the 12 night Canal Touch Cruise.  There is not one in 2021 holidays.  I’m rather stuck, lift and shift does not apply.

 

If she ship sails from Tampa, I’ll be on her, even if we don’t bother with any of the ports.  It is a 16 hour drive from my home to Tampa.

[Luv2Crus40]

We decided on the Tampa Westin for one night and just plan to hang around the hotel.  Flying in Saturday afternoon.  Westin appears to be in a quiet area.  But if noise doesn't bother you, there's other good downtown hotels within walking district of restaurants, etc. and closer to the cruise ports, some with very good rates.