Will Mera sail on 10/31/20?

[jules815]

My reservation indicates that it will. (I know that can change, and probably will)

 

You can't book for that date, but their website is showing like 10/31 might be the first one?

 

MSC Meraviglia - Miami's Best

MSC Meraviglia will offer 7-night Caribbean cruises from Miami. 

 

Starting October 31, 2020 through April 2021, MSC Meraviglia will depart every Saturday from Port Miami and cruise the Eastern and Western Caribbean. Every week, she will visit Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, our award-winning private island, exclusive to MSC guests. 

[Bgwest]

[CruisingFox27]

The CDC no sail order includes 31st Oct. MSC have already announced cancellation up to and including 31 Oct.

"MSC Cruises has today cancelled all other cruises in the Mediterranean from August 16 through to and including October 31, 2020. In addition, MSC Cruises announced the cancellation of all U.S. cruise departures through to and including October 31, 2020".

https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/23349-msc-gets-approval-to-restart-cruising-in-august.html

[Av8tor]

The terminology they use is confusing to me. 

Have you ever heard/seen "departures through to and including..."  a certain date?

I can understand 'to and including' and 'through and including,' but 'through to and including' has me somewhat baffled as to what they are really trying to say.

 

In the long run it doesn't really matter to me since I've already cancelled our Oct 31 2020 Seaside/Mera cruise, but I imagine others still booked on the 10/31 departures are wondering.

 

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, Av8tor said:

The terminology they use is confusing to me. 

Have you ever heard/seen "departures through to and including..."  a certain date?

I can understand 'to and including' and 'through and including,' but 'through to and including' has me somewhat baffled as to what they are really trying to say.

 

Perhaps English is the person's second language for whomever wrote that.

[CruisingFox27]

3 hours ago, Av8tor said:

The terminology they use is confusing to me. 

Have you ever heard/seen "departures through to and including..."  a certain date?

I can understand 'to and including' and 'through and including,' but 'through to and including' has me somewhat baffled as to what they are really trying to say.

 

In the long run it doesn't really matter to me since I've already cancelled our Oct 31 2020 Seaside/Mera cruise, but I imagine others still booked on the 10/31 departures are wondering.

 

All departures to and including 31st October are cancelled or all departures through to and including 31st October mean exactly the same thing. No sailing before 1st November. 

[sidari]

As usual with MSC they never choose the easy simple route in any news release.

There will be no MSC ships sailing until 1st November would have been the easiest way to explain it.

[Hlitner]

If I were a betting man (have been known to do that on occasion) I think it is very likely that the CDC will extend their no-sail order (affecting any ship at a US port) well past Nov 1.  Why?  The CDC is now soliciting public comments for a list of 28 questions that have to do with the resumption of cruising.  The comments are not even due until late September and then the CDC will need to sift through the thousands of comments.  The norm within our Federal government is that when an agency solicits public comments they will generally publish a follow-up document in the "Federal Register" where they list some of the comments and also publish the agency's reaction/responses.  It is hard to imagine all this will be done by the end of October.  From the questions it does appear that the CDC wants specific protocols for what a ship does if they get a case of COVID which would include arrangements with ports and land-based health care providers to accept patients.  This will be difficult to arrange for cruises from the USA.

 

Hank

[DCGuy64]

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

If I were a betting man (have been known to do that on occasion) I think it is very likely that the CDC will extend their no-sail order (affecting any ship at a US port) well past Nov 1.  Why?  The CDC is now soliciting public comments for a list of 28 questions that have to do with the resumption of cruising.  The comments are not even due until late September and then the CDC will need to sift through the thousands of comments.  The norm within our Federal government is that when an agency solicits public comments they will generally publish a follow-up document in the "Federal Register" where they list some of the comments and also publish the agency's reaction/responses.  It is hard to imagine all this will be done by the end of October.  From the questions it does appear that the CDC wants specific protocols for what a ship does if they get a case of COVID which would include arrangements with ports and land-based health care providers to accept patients.  This will be difficult to arrange for cruises from the USA.

 

Hank

That's a very sound analysis, Hank. Thank you.

IIRC the CDC is able to OK cruise lines on a case-by-case basis if they meet safety protocols, notwithstanding the general "No Sail" order. The eternal optimist in me keeps holding out hope that *some* cruises will still sail, even if not all, by the end of the year.

[Hlitner]

2 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

That's a very sound analysis, Hank. Thank you.

IIRC the CDC is able to OK cruise lines on a case-by-case basis if they meet safety protocols, notwithstanding the general "No Sail" order. The eternal optimist in me keeps holding out hope that *some* cruises will still sail, even if not all, by the end of the year.

I agree that the CDC can OK cruise lines (or even ships) on a case by case basis.  But the unanswered question (for any line) is what they will do when they get 1 or more cases of COVID aboard.  Note I said when and not if...because it will happen.  And at the moment no US based cruise line has been able to reasonably answer the question.  To satisfy the CDC they are going to need a port willing to accept the ship (with sick folks) and have arrangements with a local hospital, transfer entity, etc.  And what happens to the thousands of others on the ship.  At the moment the accepted idea would be to quarantine, at a land based facility, everyone aboard and have an aggressive testing program to ensure everyone is negative before being released,  And then there is the question of who will pay for the quarantine, testing, medical care, etc.  Keep in mind that nearly all the travel insurance now has a clause that "excludes" any charges related to COVID.  

 

Hank 

[DCGuy64]

20 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

I agree that the CDC can OK cruise lines (or even ships) on a case by case basis.  But the unanswered question (for any line) is what they will do when they get 1 or more cases of COVID aboard.  Note I said when and not if...because it will happen.  And at the moment no US based cruise line has been able to reasonably answer the question.  To satisfy the CDC they are going to need a port willing to accept the ship (with sick folks) and have arrangements with a local hospital, transfer entity, etc.  And what happens to the thousands of others on the ship.  At the moment the accepted idea would be to quarantine, at a land based facility, everyone aboard and have an aggressive testing program to ensure everyone is negative before being released,  And then there is the question of who will pay for the quarantine, testing, medical care, etc.  Keep in mind that nearly all the travel insurance now has a clause that "excludes" any charges related to COVID.  

 

Hank 

Great comments, you ask some excellent questions. I've been trying to keep up with some of the various entities that are trying to work through all of this. The Healthy Sail Panel has some recommendations, and the EU has its own guidelines, which include reserving 10% of cabin space for quarantining of sick passengers. I know that MSC is now offering COVID-19 insurance for only 18 Euros pp and in fact is automatically including that in the cruise fare price (I was toying around with their Italian site yesterday and saw that). It includes the right of the cruise line to deny passengers boarding if they test positive upon embarkation, but with a full refund of their money. One thing I would caution all cruise fans is that there is no 100% perfect solution. There's an old saying that goes something like "don't make the perfect the enemy of the good." I hope people will resist the temptation to categorize any COVID outbreak on any ship as a disaster and/or somehow "proof" that cruising is over forever. We've had COVID outbreaks in the USA at various beaches, in various restaurants and bars, and even in Congress, but no one is seriously suggesting we shut down the beaches, the food & beverage industry or all of government because of that. This is definitely a work in progress, and it'll take time + numerous setbacks in order to fine-tune everything. No doubt about that.

[rkacruiser]

5 hours ago, Hlitner said:

I agree that the CDC can OK cruise lines (or even ships) on a case by case basis. 

 

I would like to know on what basis that Uncruise was able to get permission for Wilderness Adventurer to cruise from Juneau recently.  That cruise didn't turn out too well.  

[BermudaBound2014]

2 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I would like to know on what basis that Uncruise was able to get permission for Wilderness Adventurer to cruise from Juneau recently.  That cruise didn't turn out too well.  

 

CDC no sail only applies to ships that carry 250 or more passengers.The Wilderness Adventure on Uncruise holds a grand total of 60 passengers (30 cabins). 

[Hlitner]

15 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I would like to know on what basis that Uncruise was able to get permission for Wilderness Adventurer to cruise from Juneau recently.  That cruise didn't turn out too well.  

I believe that Uncruise ship was able to sail because it carried fewer than 50 passengers which exempted them from the CDC order.  Have no clue why the Alaskan authorities OK'd the cruise other then the fact that all their passengers and crew did comply with the strict State rules.  Everyone had been tested prior to the cruise.  

 

I think that cruise showed the problem with any cruise which is that testing is not adequate to screen out all cases.  

 

Hank

[rkacruiser]

2 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Have no clue why the Alaskan authorities OK'd the cruise other then the fact that all their passengers and crew did comply with the strict State rules.  Everyone had been tested prior to the cruise.  

 

So, my question is:  which authority has the superior authority to decide which cruises may sail from United States ports?  The State of Alaska?  The Federal CDC?  

[rkacruiser]

21 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

CDC no sail only applies to ships that carry 250 or more passengers.The Wilderness Adventure on Uncruise holds a grand total of 60 passengers (30 cabins). 

 

Thanks for your response.  That "permission" surely didn't turn out well.  And, maybe, indeed, set back the date when cruises from American ports may be able to occur.  

 

Maybe this is another indication that there are some "issues" within the CDC that have been exposed that need to be addressed.