The Future of Luxury Cruising (from a Regent-lover's point of view)

[Kwaj girl]

This "social distancing" cannot go on forever. Why should it?  There will always be "germs" and some will always get sick. Same thing happens with colds, flu, digestive illnesses.  You name it.  I, for one, will not "socially distance" nor isolate myself forever.

Edited April 26, 2020 by Kwaj girl

[Foggyzx9r]

15 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

You're welcome and I hope do too.

 Oh, and eliminate butlers.

Time to downgrade from our Penthouse booking in January😃

 

Having never been on a Regent ship, how good is the Medical centre setup. Staff and facilities? Something else that would probably have to be addressed?

[flossie009]

Thanks for starting the thread, and so sad to hear of your WC cancellation after all your planning and expectation 😒

 

20 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

Oh, and eliminate butlers.

A bit severe! Sounds like "the mob" moving in 😉

Perhaps - "Butlers to be redeployed to other duties"

Edited April 26, 2020 by flossie009

[seaknots]

17 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

I'm not encouraging speculation about when and if there'll be a vaccine, whether it will be effective or not, but assuming there is an ongoing risk of some kind

 

12 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

I don't think we need endless speculation here on this thread about whether the virus will be around or not.  Let's assume it will be in some form or other.

 

virus still around + no vacine = no cruises

[Wendy The Wanderer]

11 minutes ago, Foggyzx9r said:

Time to downgrade from our Penthouse booking in January😃

 

Having never been on a Regent ship, how good is the Medical centre setup. Staff and facilities? Something else that would probably have to be addressed?

 

Not sure what ship it is, but in general, the Penthouse experience is lovely, regardless of butlers or not.  The handful of times we've had butlers, we've basically told them to ignore us, except perhaps for delivering canapes in the afternoon.  Really not necessary for most of us.

 

I've never been in the medical centre on a Regent ship, but I'm thinking that they'll have to be enlarged, and the staff perhaps enhanced.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

13 minutes ago, Kwaj girl said:

This "social distancing" cannot go on forever. Why should it?  There will always be "germs" and some will always get sick. Same thing happens with colds, flu, digestive illnesses.  You name it.  I, for one, will not "socially distance" nor isolate myself forever.

 

Well part of my purpose in starting this thread was to think about ways in which cruising will change.  In my view, an increased sense of public hygiene will do a lot of good in the world, and I doubt if that world will be quite the same again, at least not for a long time.

 

I too am looking at an easing of physical distancing (that's what we call it here now), but I doubt if people will be crowded cheek by jowl for at least a year or two, and hopefully some of the increased sanitation initiatives will stick longer than that.

 

12 minutes ago, flossie009 said:

Thanks for starting the thread, and so sad to hear of your WC cancellation after all your planning and expectation 😒

 

A bit severe! Sounds like "the mob" moving in 😉

Perhaps - "Butlers to be redeployed to other duties"

 

Thanks Flossie.  On the one hand, we're gutted about the WC, but on the other, relieved.  There are bigger issues to worry about right now.

 

It just seems like the butlers are staff who are a bit redundant, eh?  If all staff have to be housed in their own cabins, something has got to go.  Probably there will be fewer passengers  as well.

[Guerncruising]

My very first Regent cruise, very first day at breakfast, said to my wife “I’m going to the medical centre with bronchitis”. Arrived and saw a nurse and then the Dr who swabbed my nose and my throat (sounds familiar?). We had a discussion whilst awaiting results. Antibiotics and using a nebuliser in the centre over a couple of days, all sorted. 

At the end of the cruise got the bill, all paid for by insurance. 

A good service, adequate facilities and no complaints. 

[Guerncruising]

24 minutes ago, Foggyzx9r said:

Time to downgrade from our Penthouse booking in January😃

 

Having never been on a Regent ship, how good is the Medical centre setup. Staff and facilities? Something else that would probably have to be addressed?

Whoops, forgot to quote!

[flossie009]

29 minutes ago, Foggyzx9r said:

Time to downgrade from our Penthouse booking in January😃

 

16 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

Not sure what ship it is, but in general, the Penthouse experience is lovely, regardless of butlers or not.

 

I agree with Wendy for Mariner as the PH suites offer much more space.

However the advantage on Voyager is marginal and on Navigator the size of suites is the same.

On Explorer & Splendor the D, E & F suites are the best value, IMO.

............. and for a UK booking if your voyage includes Europe the PH price includes Business Class flights.

 

Wendy, sorry to take your thread off-topic.

[mj_holiday]

Social distancing would not be required if (and that is a big IF) the antibody tests can quickly tell when someone is contagious.  The reason we social distance now is that we have no way of knowing who is contagious.  I realize that the tests need more research/testing which seems to be happening.   Cruise lines and airlines and others venues need to develop a process to ensure that contagious people (passengers and staff) can be identified when they become contagious.  If the test is simple (another big IF) like saliva on some kind of litmus paper, then this can be done at set times/places based on itinerary.  Then processes need to be developed for recommended ports of call and information coming from the public health at ports regarding any issues they are currently having  (similar to other current diseases) 

[Kwaj girl]

Antibody testing for COVID-19 prior to embarkation on a ship or plane or whatever is one thing....but what about all the other contagious diseases out there...like the flu, the common cold, Norovirus.....and all the others?   One could just as easily be "infected" by an asymptomatic carrier of any of these things in any space where people are in close contact.  

[RJ2002]

14 minutes ago, Kwaj girl said:

Antibody testing for COVID-19 prior to embarkation on a ship or plane or whatever is one thing....but what about all the other contagious diseases out there...like the flu, the common cold, Norovirus.....and all the others?   One could just as easily be "infected" by an asymptomatic carrier of any of these things in any space where people are in close contact.  

 

As we come out of this situation and resume cruising, I suspect (hope!) that most people will have an increased awareness of hygiene and safer practices in close quarter surroundings.  Both Genting Cruise Lines (which includes Crystal) and Princess have released their 'enhanced' health guidelines.  Princess makes no mention of distancing that I can see, and Genting makes reference to enhanced spacing in dining venues.  Neither make any statement about maintaining a six foot social distance while onboard, and I doubt we will see that sort of specific guidance from any line.  

 

http://gentingcruiselines.com/media/1267/20200408-genting-cruise-lines-announces-enhanced-preventive-measures-setting-new-standards-for-the-fleet-and-the-cruise-industry.pdf

 

https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/plan/Health-Advisory-and-Travel-Safety-Procedures.pdf

Edited April 26, 2020 by RJ2002

[mrlevin]

11 minutes ago, Kwaj girl said:

Antibody testing for COVID-19 prior to embarkation on a ship or plane or whatever is one thing....but what about all the other contagious diseases out there...like the flu, the common cold, Norovirus.....and all the others?   One could just as easily be "infected" by an asymptomatic carrier of any of these things in any space where people are in close contact.  

 

Antibody testing only shows if someone has had the disease; how about the rest of us that are great at social distancing and never get the disease; are we not allowed to cruise?

 

And what about the moral hazard?  If I am feeling sick a couple days before the cruise I can cancel and lose all my money or I can travel to port (possibly via multiple airports and aircraft) then get refused boarding on ship wherein I get 100% of my cruise only fare reimbursed.  There are many of us that don't carry cancellation insurance just medical and medivac.  Will cancellation insurance become mandatory?

 

Marc

[Travelcat2]

8 hours ago, SusieQft said:

That NY Magazine article is dated April 9.  They have been studying the effect of light on the virus, and sunlight exposure was the item that wiped it out most quickly as reported in that explosive press conference on April 23.  I'm not sure they isolated exactly what frequency light did the job, but the presumption was that it was some part of the UV spectrum.  That study is still unpublished and obviously a little more work needs to be done, but light has been shown to kill Covid-19. 

 

Once they fine tune the details, it might be possible for artificial UV lights to be used to keep surfaces pretty much virus-free.  At the presser, there was a somewhat lengthy discussion of using UV lights just below a high ceiling (i.e. away from the people in the room) in conjunction with ceiling fans to circulate the air up there to keep the virus at a minimum in the room air.

 

The idea of having UV lights along with ceiling fans sounds very positive but likely cannot be implemented prior to the resumption of cruising.  There is still the question as to why places that are hot and sunny still have the virus.  This may take some time to figure out.

 

In terms of other comments, please do not take away our butlers.  I do not see how they present any risk whatsoever.  Most of the time we are in communication via telephone or we leave him notes.  The Regent Experience would not be the same without them.

 

In terms of "distancing" (no matter what it is called in different places), we all know that viruses (like colds) are fairly easy spread but are not fatal.  Covid-19, on the other hand could be.  Not being on top of each other on a ship is important (as has been proven in states like ours that continue the practice) needs to be continued as much as possible.  If someone is comfortable being on a bus with something coughing and not always covering their mouths behind them is not an issue, I find that scares.  

 

We are out and about in our city - shopping mainly - and distancing is working just fine.  Thankfully we have had no deaths in our county in 10 days and are averaging one new case a day so it does work.  While masks are not required here, when I see young people walking into a grocery store at 7:00 a.m. (a time reserved for seniors and those at risk) with no mask - no gloves - not following the one-way rules in the market, etc.  These are the people that truly scare me and put so many at risk.

Edited April 26, 2020 by Travelcat2

[wcsdkqh]

16 minutes ago, mrlevin said:

 

And what about the moral hazard?  If I am feeling sick a couple days before the cruise I can cancel and lose all my money or I can travel to port (possibly via multiple airports and aircraft) then get refused boarding on ship wherein I get 100% of my cruise only fare reimbursed.  There are many of us that don't carry cancellation insurance just medical and medivac.  Will cancellation insurance become mandatory?

 

 

I highly doubt this policy will continue when and if cruising resumes. If you show up sick and are denied boarding (for whatever reason), either your 3rd party insurance will cover, or you will be SOL. It's called personal responsibility.

Edited April 26, 2020 by wcsdkqh
Corrected punctuation

[DeepFreeze63]

A really interesting thread. Be nice if this was made a "sticky" so we could later see how our speculations turn out!

 

DW and I have been thrilled with our 18 Regent cruises and have looked forward to the 4 more that are booked (1 paid for) BUT we will not cruise again until there is a vaccine that puts our health risk about what the flu season does. Furthermore, I won't do a "luxury" cruise that isn't "luxury" - no masks, no social distance restrictions and probably no "letter from my physician". I would accept a requirement for a letter stating that we have gotten an annual Flu and COVIDXX shot. Otherwise, we will spend the significant cash that we would have provided to Regent on some of the great U.S. and local attractions and restaurants.

 

Also, I agree with Mark that any vaccine priority should be for the employed - without a revived economy our speculation is irrelevant.

[Travelcat2]

16 minutes ago, wcsdkqh said:

 

I highly doubt this policy will continue when and if cruising resumes. If you show up sick and are denied boarding (for whatever reason), either your 3rd party insurance will cover, or you will be SOL. It's called personal responsibility.

 

Agree about personal responsibility but many people have no symptoms whatsoever.  Only a test prior to boarding would really work.  In terms of losing your money, I believe that Regent will ultimately allow people that are determined to have the virus prior to boarding will be given a refund in the form of FCC's for some time to come.

 

For those discussing suite size (not sure why that would matter), the ship that would seem most vulnerable is the Navigator (not because I'm not a fan of her - simply because of her size and how crowded areas can become when the weather is inclement).

Edited April 26, 2020 by Travelcat2

[Wendy The Wanderer]

1 hour ago, Travelcat2 said:

The idea of having UV lights along with ceiling fans sounds very positive but likely cannot be implemented prior to the resumption of cruising.  ...

 

Unfortunately the UV solution is not simple, since UV lights are bad for us in other ways.  We'll see what comes of that. 

[RJ2002]

1 minute ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

Unfortunately the UV solution is not simple, since UV lights are bad for us in other ways.  We'll see what comes of that. 

 

I saw something on the news recently about hotels using UV to disinfect guest rooms.  Because the UV light is so damaging to humans, the lights were mounted on a robot-type thing that was maneuvered into the room and then activated remotely.  It has some sort of safety feature where it deactivates if it detects any movement.  I could see that perhaps being an option in the suites, but using UV in more expansive public areas seems like a daunting proposition.  Like you say, we'll see....

[mrstanley]

Agree 100 percent with Deepfreeze63!!!

 

[GrJ Berkshire]

31 minutes ago, RJ2002 said:

 

I saw something on the news recently about hotels using UV to disinfect guest rooms.  Because the UV light is so damaging to humans, the lights were mounted on a robot-type thing that was maneuvered into the room and then activated remotely.  It has some sort of safety feature where it deactivates if it detects any movement.  I could see that perhaps being an option in the suites, but using UV in more expansive public areas seems like a daunting proposition.  Like you say, we'll see....

II thought that this lights idea was a 'discredited' idea from TPOUS 2 days ago along with ingesting disinfectant.

 

[Foggyzx9r]

10 minutes ago, GrJ Berkshire said:

II thought that this lights idea was a 'discredited' idea from TPOUS 2 days ago along with ingesting disinfectant.

 

He had I presume picked up the current research to produce more effective LED lights that produce UVC. Maybe he thought it could be inserted via an orifice.🤪. 

If you follow the links I put in my first post they are used as a practical application. As RJ2002 has indicated they are used in hotels and over here they are used in hospitals on mobile solutions.

Back on track I put distancing in as a start up position not necessarily long term. 
 

 

[SusieQft]

2 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

There is still the question as to why places that are hot and sunny still have the virus.

Yes, this is still a question, along with what will happen in the summer.  But sunlight will not help anywhere that people congregate indoors.  This could at least partially explain the virus in hot and sunny places.

 

2 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

In terms of other comments, please do not take away our butlers.

Maybe we could have an opt-out program for the butlers.  Those who want a large suite but not a butler could get a lower price.  Or, to say EXACTLY the same thing in a different way, they could charge extra for the butler, above and beyond the cost for that level of suite without the butler.  (Sorry, I just could not resist this one.)

 

2 hours ago, Travelcat2 said:

If someone is comfortable being on a bus with something coughing and not always covering their mouths behind them is not an issue, I find that scares.  

We have been faced with this in the past, as well as in a restaurant and even people getting in the pool and coughing severely.  All of these are especially gross, since they are difficult for others to simply distance themselves.  Hopefully people will be more aware of how irresponsible this is in the future, and perhaps those impacted will be less reticent to call them out on it.

Edited April 26, 2020 by SusieQft

[Travelcat2]

Here is a article from the U.K. regarding artificial UV light.  Apparently the distance between the UV light and and humans is a big issue.  The danger seems to be when you are close to the artificial light.

 

https://ec.europa.eu/health/scientific_committees/opinions_layman/artificial-light/en/index.htm

 

This leaves more questions than answers.  If a suite, for instance, had a UV light that was turned on for an hour a day would that help?  What about the theater having them on prior to opening (when no one is there?).

[JMARINER]

17 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

I don't think we need endless speculation here on this thread about whether the virus will be around or not.  Let's assume it will be in some form or other.

 

Then we can speculate about how this will change cruising.  Okay?

IMO, speculating is not going to produce any result that will ever be realized .

 

Cruising will not return until there is a vaccine or unless there is a near 100% cure rate protocol or medicine  discovered. 

 

Like it or not people will not go and more importantly the Cruise lines will not want to take the liability. Even now there are hundreds of Covid19 lawsuits against them. they might defend against current law suits because they didn't know the risk with the Covid19 infection. How do they do counter this issue going forward. Putting any kind of waiver in the contract would be unenforceable. 

 

J