AIDA Cruises - new itineraries, new protocols

[Honolulu Blue]

Since AIDA is a Carnival Corporation line and the board dedicated to it here is all but dead, I decided to put what I found here.

 

I found out that AIDA is offering some special cruises in August that are ready to be booked.  They also have some new procedures in place.  It's all located at https://www.aida.de/kreuzfahrt/angebote-buchen/leinen-los.40236.html .  The page is in German, so if that's not one of the languages you can easily understand, you should run it through your favorite translator to get the gist of it.

 

The cruises are all for three days, all from different German ports, and all are cruises to nowhere.  I'm pretty sure they're open only to German travelers.

 

These are some points that I found of interest about how they intend to handle these cruises:

• Passengers provide a health questionnaire and are temperature checked upon embarkation
• If you live in, or have traveled to a region that's considered "hot", you'll have to present a recent negative test
• Check-in and check-out times are both pre-booked and strictly enforced.
• Passengers need to reserve seats for all restaurants on the app prior to the trip
• No health note required, but it is suggested to consult a doctor before cruising if you have one or more of the conditions that we've heard about throughout this pandemic
• Guest Services only wants to handle limited issues in person; for the rest, it's recommended to call
• Come to the restaurant or bar wearing your you-know-what.  It doesn't have to be worn at the table
• No self-service buffet, of course
• There will be shows.  Social distance, of course - performers from passengers, and passengers from each other
• Passengers will have to wear their you-know-what before, during, and after all shows
• Bingo and art auctions made the cut, among other things
• Pool parties and discos (haven't heard that term much since 1979) did not make the cut
• Some wellness services are available - the spa, hairdresser, nail care, and massages were specifically mentioned
• Mentioned as not being available are the sauna and facials
• The fitness area is open - minimum distance is 2.5 meters
• Pool capacity is limited
• The casino is open (with social distancing)
• Shops are open.  They sell you-know-whats and hand sanitizer.  Capacity is limited, please socially distance and wear your mmm mmm mmm.
• The self-serve laundromat is not open
• Generally keep 1.5 meters away from everyone else at all times
• Wear your you-know-what in all public areas when you can't socially distance
• They will not provide you-know-whats for free
• There are some exceptions to those who can walk around without a you-know-what
• General ship occupancy is reduced; I didn't see a percentage or specific count
• Muster drill is adjusted so that fewer people are in each area

 

There are many more points covered; if you're interested in something I didn't mention, go digging around the site and look through the various FAQs.

 

Overall I found it interesting to look at. This might be a template for what we see from other cruise lines in the future.

 

And now you can move on to the latest ship cancellation discussion.

Edited July 9, 2020 by Honolulu Blue

[2Shoes2Go]

Thank you for sharing! 

[Georgie562]

Duplicate post..

Edited July 9, 2020 by Georgie562

[Georgie562]

50 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

Come to the restaurant or bar wearing your you-know-what.  It doesn't have to be worn at the table

 

50 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

Passengers will have to wear their you-know-what before, during, and after all shows

 

51 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

Wear your you-know-what in all public areas when you can't socially distance

 

51 minutes ago, Honolulu Blue said:

They will not provide you-know-whats for free

 

 

 FACE MASK a.k.a FACE COVERING 😷

[Saint Greg]

basically wear a mask the entire cruise except when in your room or at a bar or table.

[Essiesmom]

Hmmm...my mind is wandering all over the place....Why not the sauna?  Shower first, wear your you now what...only...

 

Can you see a Bare Necessities cruise where everyone has to wear a you know what...???   EM

[Georgie562]

It will be interesting come Halloween time to see all these costumes with masks 😷🤪

Edited July 9, 2020 by Georgie562

[HaveWeMetYet]

17 minutes ago, Saint Greg said:

basically wear a mask the entire cruise except when in your room or at a bar or table.

Basically forget cruising for me if this is what is required.

[cruiser man 60]

At least it's a restart for cruising in Europe, the protocols may put a lot off but can maybe be tweaked as the virus continues to decline in Europe.

cant see anything happening in USA or South America anytime soon as seems virus out of control there.

[travelhound]

7 hours ago, Saint Greg said:

basically wear a mask the entire cruise except when in your room or at a bar or table.

Maybe that's a good reason to have a beer in your hand at all times 🙂

 

[Saint Greg]

48 minutes ago, travelhound said:

Maybe that's a good reason to have a beer in your hand at all times 🙂

 

 

Well if they consider having a drink in your hand an exemption then I'd be good. I doubt it though.

[jimbo5544]

Interestingly, I was just going to post something similar.  I actually think this would be a good idea of a “soft” start.  We are scheduled to go to Beaches T&C the day after they open, much similar.  There remains some kinks to be worked out, mostly logistics that might work from anywhere other than the US, but we will see.  

[MsTabbyKats]

8 hours ago, HaveWeMetYet said:

Basically forget cruising for me if this is what is required.

 

Why would anyone even bother?  I can wear a mask, social distance and not get a facial at home!

Too bad the reviews will be in German.

[travelhound]

36 minutes ago, Saint Greg said:

 

Well if they consider having a drink in your hand an exemption then I'd be good. I doubt it though.

Do I have to wear a mask while snorkeling?

[joeyancho]

1 hour ago, travelhound said:

Do I have to wear a mask while snorkeling?

Only if the fish wear them 

[Joe817]

8 minutes ago, joeyancho said:

Only if the fish wear them 

And they have to be approved by the CDC

[RWolver672]

18 hours ago, HaveWeMetYet said:

Basically forget cruising for me if this is what is required.

 

9 hours ago, MsTabbyKats said:

 

Why would anyone even bother?  I can wear a mask, social distance and not get a facial at home!

Too bad the reviews will be in German.

 

Same here.  At least at home I don't have to wear a mask all day.  

[travelhound]

10 hours ago, Joe817 said:

And they have to be approved by the CDC

Yup, the CDC is a joke.

[Honolulu Blue]

21 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

Can you see a Bare Necessities cruise where everyone has to wear a you know what...???   EM

 

Yeah, it's kind of tough to see.  But from what little I know about that crowd, they're a practical lot.  They don't go around nekkid everywhere, all the time - even on the ship or at a resort.

 

Not my thing, but the next BN cruise looks to be in February.  I would imagine it's in some jeopardy.

[travelhound]

On 7/10/2020 at 8:09 AM, Honolulu Blue said:

 

Yeah, it's kind of tough to see.  But from what little I know about that crowd, they're a practical lot.  They don't go around nekkid everywhere, all the time - even on the ship or at a resort.

I saw the CEO of Carnival on CNBC, and he said that the Aida Cruises in August had very strong demand, despite all the limitations.

[joeyancho]

I read the protocol for these cruises. It sounds more like punishment than a Carefree vacation. Include me out

[Melchy]

The whole cruise industry will be keeping a very close eye on AIDA, Hapag-Lloyd, hurtigruten and cmv (if they actually do put to sea) in August/September. 

 

The pax can almost most be considered as guinea pigs as the new protocols are assessed for efficacy. 

 

There’s some talk going around that with onshore social distancing rules being relaxed, cruising might actually be safer. Which seems optimistic to me. Time will tell. 

 

If they’re right....... they cut short the horrendous loses. Get it wrong, and that’s their ships banged-up with quarantined pax. Not a cheap gamble. 

Peter

[Honolulu Blue]

3 hours ago, Melchy said:

The whole cruise industry will be keeping a very close eye on AIDA, Hapag-Lloyd, hurtigruten and cmv (if they actually do put to sea) in August/September. 

 

The pax can almost most be considered as guinea pigs as the new protocols are assessed for efficacy. 

 

There’s some talk going around that with onshore social distancing rules being relaxed, cruising might actually be safer. Which seems optimistic to me. Time will tell. 

 

If they’re right....... they cut short the horrendous loses. Get it wrong, and that’s their ships banged-up with quarantined pax. Not a cheap gamble. 

Peter

 

The stakes are high, but the cruise lines have to try.  The alternative is slowly bleeding cash and dying.  Is the world ready for cruising under these limitations?  Who knows?  It seems we'll find out fairly soon.