Apex moving to Athens for 7 night cruises for summer 2021

[cruiserchuck]

54 minutes ago, BunnyCat said:

Hello, I am just wondering if anyone has encountered this problem that my husband and I have.  We signed up for the Apex sailing from Athens on June 19 and a back to back (same route) June 26.  We paid and were booked.  We went ahead and purchased our round trip airline tickets and made hotel reservations for a before and after stay in Athens.  Today we got notice by telephone that it was Celebrity’s policy that back to back weren’t allowed!  We were shocked because we were sold both sails without any mention of this “policy”.  We were told we have to cancel one of them.  We called and asked what was the reason for this policy.  The person was unable to give us any rationale for this “policy” or any reason why we were not informed at the time of purchase.  We declined to cancel as we believe it is not justified.  Please let me/us know if you’ve encountered a similar problem.  Thanks in advance. We were so looking forward to this trip!

 

The bad news is Celebrity is going to cancel one of your cruises whether you agree or not.  With COVID cases surging in both the US and Greece, I doubt American citizens will be allowed on these cruises anyway.  

[Bruin Steve]

1 hour ago, BunnyCat said:

Hello, I am just wondering if anyone has encountered this problem that my husband and I have.  We signed up for the Apex sailing from Athens on June 19 and a back to back (same route) June 26.  We paid and were booked.  We went ahead and purchased our round trip airline tickets and made hotel reservations for a before and after stay in Athens.  Today we got notice by telephone that it was Celebrity’s policy that back to back weren’t allowed!  We were shocked because we were sold both sails without any mention of this “policy”...

It's not an easy explanation...

I was originally booked on back-to-back cruises in 2020, moved them to 2022, now moved them again...I've spoken a LOT with Celebrity on this and other related subjects.  As best as I can explain, this is the story on back-to-backs:  When the CDC started delving into the idea of restrictions on cruises should they allow cruising to resume, the recommendations included restricting cruises to 7 nights or less (along with things like limiting the ships' capacity).  The logic behind the shorter cruises was that less time confined and exposed to others who MAY have the virus would lessen the chance at people catching the virus.

 

Of course, the CDC cannot issue regulations that apply to travel in places other than the US...However, Celebrity and other cruise lines looking to restart bought into the recommendations and decided to institute them as "policy".  The "look" of ignoring CDC recommendations would not be good PR.  So, Celebrity made that the policy even though they do bend it a little for certain things...for example, some of the Apex sailings are for 8 nights...But, the idea of back-to-back cruises becomes an issue...Two back-to-back cruises really become one 14 night cruise.  So, Celebrity went back and redefined the limitation to bot allow back-to-back cruises.  Of course, they didn't really put all of this into force in a coordinated way.  And they were in a hurry to get things moving.

 

However, the back-to-back ban, like any other policy or rule, may not be permanent...They can change it at any time...especially if the pandemic improves or the more sailings go off without any minimum number of Covid cases.  Unfortunately for you, your sailings are early on in the restart.  And the timing becomes problematic as there are other arrangements one needs to make in advance...hard to do that if you don't know if and when things change.  Key is making ALL arrangements, including air travel, at refundable rates.

 

Other ideas (something we considered) would include rebooking the two with a week off in between.  Then plan on flying to Athens for cruise #1, then spending a week in Greece--Athens or nearby islands--then back to the port for cruise #2...They wouldn't be "back-to-back", you'd still get both in...and you'd have a nice vacation overall.  If they change the rules before you go, MAYBE you can later restructure it to a back-to-back and either get the airline to move your flight date...or move your land trip to a pre-cruise...

Edited April 9, 2021 by Bruin Steve

[SeaHunt]

 

Here's another thread discussing this:

 

 

JMO on the initial sailings they're limiting your exposure - they want you off that ship and not exposed to (or exposing) another group of new passengers the following week. Sorry that the agents were unaware until being brought up to speed on policies, I know it's so disappointing. 

 

 

[steamboats]

8 hours ago, C-Dragons said:

 The cruise lines were required by the CDC to restrict sailings to 7 nights when they return to service, so that probably is the reason.

 

Nope, none of those cruises do go to any US port. Therefore the CDC rules are not applying.

 

As for Greece it was announced that there are no B2B allowed due to the PCR-test you need prior to boarding. As B2B counts legally as two separate cruises the test for the first cruise is not valid for the second one.

 

TUI Cruises had the same in Greece. No B2B cruises.

 

steamboats

[GlobalMethod]

1 hour ago, steamboats said:

As for Greece it was announced that there are no B2B allowed due to the PCR-test you need prior to boarding. As B2B counts legally as two separate cruises the test for the first cruise is not valid for the second one.

Yes ... all accurate steamboats ... also the PCR-test is highly valid but usually takes a minimum of 24 hours to assess. Those of us who have done B2B cruising know that we are usually told we must step off the ship for a period to time to formally recognize that the cruises are separate.

[cruisemom42]

5 hours ago, GlobalMethod said:

the PCR-test is highly valid but usually takes a minimum of 24 hours to assess.

 

Testing places that can process your results onsite can turn around the results in just a few hours. Only if the sample has to be sent elsewhere for process should it take that long.

[Bruin Steve]

The idea that you cannot do a back to back because you can't board without a Covid test makes little sense....largely because there are many countries you cannot enter after a cruise without a Covid test either.  The easy answer is to provide Covid testing toward the end of the cruise just prior to disembarkation.  The same Covid test that would apparently clear the disembarking passenger to return home would also work to clear the back-to-back passenger for the next sailing.

 

And this is from the Celebrity website "Health and Safety" page:

 

Testing & Screening

Safe vacations start with prevention. Every guest 18 years and older will require proof of full vaccination two weeks prior to sailing. Guests 2 and older will be required to take an antigen test at the terminal prior to boarding and again at debarkation, if required for country re-entry. Booked guests will be updated as requirements evolve.

 

So, it appears they HAVE taken this into consideration and will administer those tests prior to disembarkation--so, a returning passenger would ALSO have a recent negative Covid test, no?

[Ken the cruiser]

14 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

The idea that you cannot do a back to back because you can't board without a Covid test makes little sense....largely because there are many countries you cannot enter after a cruise without a Covid test either.  The easy answer is to provide Covid testing toward the end of the cruise just prior to disembarkation.  The same Covid test that would apparently clear the disembarking passenger to return home would also work to clear the back-to-back passenger for the next sailing.

 

And this is from the Celebrity website "Health and Safety" page:

 

Testing & Screening

Safe vacations start with prevention. Every guest 18 years and older will require proof of full vaccination two weeks prior to sailing. Guests 2 and older will be required to take an antigen test at the terminal prior to boarding and again at debarkation, if required for country re-entry. Booked guests will be updated as requirements evolve.

 

So, it appears they HAVE taken this into consideration and will administer those tests prior to disembarkation--so, a returning passenger would ALSO have a recent negative Covid test, no?

This is from the Celebrity Heath and Safety Protocol page associated with their new Greek cruises.

 

Celebrity Cruises Requirements: Adult guests and crew members must have proof of full vaccination administered two weeks prior to embark. Children under the age of 18 must have a negative PCR test result within 5 days of embarkation. Celebrity will administer an antigen test to all guests 2 and older at the terminal and again at debarkation for country re-entry.

 

How will children under the age of 18 get a negative PCR test to qualify for the second leg? My uninformed guess is this is one of the issues why the policy was made; although this doesn't appear to be an issue on the new RCCL itineraries or possibly on any other cruise lines with new start-up cruises. I know Crystal doesn't have any issues with booking B2B cruises, but they require all passengers to be vaccinated.

 

Health & Safety Protocols for Sailings | Celebrity Cruises

[Bruin Steve]

4 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

...from the Celebrity Heath and Safety Protocol page associated with their new Greek cruises.... Celebrity will administer an antigen test to all guests ... at debarkation for country re-entry.

 

How will children under the age of 18 get a negative PCR test to qualify for the second leg?

Ken, that might be your answer right there:  Celebrity will administer the test at debarkation (which, really means PRIOR to debarkation.  It would do little good to do a test as the people leave the ship and head to the airport for a flight home...BUT, if you can get results quickly enough for that flight home, you can have them quickly enough for the next sailing...)

 

Another note to consider here:  At the conclusion of each cruise, there are well over a thousand people who will already stay onboard for the next cruise...they're called the "crew"...

[Fouremco]

1 minute ago, Bruin Steve said:

Ken, that might be your answer right there:  Celebrity will administer the test at debarkation (which, really means PRIOR to debarkation.  It would do little good to do a test as the people leave the ship and head to the airport for a flight home...BUT, if you can get results quickly enough for that flight home, you can have them quickly enough for the next sailing...)

 

Another note to consider here:  At the conclusion of each cruise, there are well over a thousand people who will already stay onboard for the next cruise...they're called the "crew"...

For boarding, the U18 passengers require a negative PCR test. The tests conducted by Celebrity aboard prior to disembarkation is an antigen test and would not satisfy the requirements for boarding for the second leg.

[Ken the cruiser]

4 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

Ken, that might be your answer right there:  Celebrity will administer the test at debarkation (which, really means PRIOR to debarkation.  It would do little good to do a test as the people leave the ship and head to the airport for a flight home...BUT, if you can get results quickly enough for that flight home, you can have them quickly enough for the next sailing...)

 

Another note to consider here:  At the conclusion of each cruise, there are well over a thousand people who will already stay onboard for the next cruise...they're called the "crew"...

But X is only giving antigen tests prior to debarkation, not PCR tests. Like @Fouremcosaid.

Edited April 10, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[little britain]

 

Thanks for the info re the tests.  I suspect that info may change! 

Edited April 10, 2021 by little britain

[Bruin Steve]

I guess you could always just limit back-to-backs to vaccinated adults?

 

I am figuring that, at some point, Celebrity changes this policy.  The CDC guidelines also said no cruises longer than 7 nights, but some of the new Apex cruises are 8 nights.  Celebrity still wants to sell those cruises...and the more their restrictions cause them to turn away sales, the more painful it is to them.  They probably just need the initial restricted cruises to go without problems before they expand their market by removing the restriction. JMHO.

[KWW88]

19 hours ago, BunnyCat said:

Hello, I am just wondering if anyone has encountered this problem that my husband and I have.  We signed up for the Apex sailing from Athens on June 19 and a back to back (same route) June 26.  We paid and were booked.  We went ahead and purchased our round trip airline tickets and made hotel reservations for a before and after stay in Athens.  Today we got notice by telephone that it was Celebrity’s policy that back to back weren’t allowed!  We were shocked because we were sold both sails without any mention of this “policy”.  We were told we have to cancel one of them.  We called and asked what was the reason for this policy.  The person was unable to give us any rationale for this “policy” or any reason why we were not informed at the time of purchase.  We declined to cancel as we believe it is not justified.  Please let me/us know if you’ve encountered a similar problem.  Thanks in advance. We were so looking forward to this trip!

Unfortunately regardless of whether you feel it is justified or not, Celebrity can and very likely will cancel second leg.  While CDC has not authority in Europe where this cruise will embark from, Celebrity absolutely needs to prove to the CDC that they can successfully resume safe cruises in the US.  I believe this is why they are not currently allowing B2B cruises.  Once they have done this, as other lines have in Europe and Asia, it may finally show CDC that they have a concrete plan, it took them long enough but at least they are making moves in the right direction.  Best of luck!

[steamboats]

I don´t think it´s a requirement by Celebrity but by the Greek authorities that you need a fresh test for the second leg.

 

There were definitely no B2B cruises allowed last year with TUI Cruises and they do allow B2B on the Canary Islands. So it might not be a requirement by the cruise line but the country.

 

steamboats

[C-Dragons]

1 hour ago, KWW88 said:

Unfortunately regardless of whether you feel it is justified or not, Celebrity can and very likely will cancel second leg.  While CDC has not authority in Europe where this cruise will embark from, Celebrity absolutely needs to prove to the CDC that they can successfully resume safe cruises in the US.  I believe this is why they are not currently allowing B2B cruises.  Once they have done this, as other lines have in Europe and Asia, it may finally show CDC that they have a concrete plan, it took them long enough but at least they are making moves in the right direction.  Best of luck!

Agreed.

[BubbaBoat]

Beware of those X Athens cruises on Apex (Especially in June and July) as the Greek gov has placed restrictions on X.  Passengers will not be allowed to hop off at ports UNLESS they are part of an X scheduled excursion...So, no roaming on your own.  

Edited April 14, 2021 by BubbaBoat

[Bruin Steve]

10 minutes ago, BubbaBoat said:

Beware of those X Athens cruises on Apex (Especially in June and July) as the Greek gov has placed restrictions on X.  Passengers will not be allowed to hop off at ports UNLESS they are part of an X scheduled excursion...So, no roaming on your own.  

I don't think anyone who writes such restrictions really thinks these things out much...

 

Say you fly into Athens before the cruise, get there maybe a day or two before, check into a hotel in Athens, wander on your own, eat in restaurants, etc.  You are out amongst unvaccinated people, people carrying the virus, etc.  You are NOT on a Celebrity shorex.  Then, you get on a ship with a fully vaccinated crew and fully vaccinated passengers...and two days later, you get off in Santorinini, and NOW you are a safety risk?

[BubbaBoat]

I totally agree.  Was it a way for X to negotiate a restart of cruising or is it a way for X to make more $$$$?

[Fouremco]

27 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

I don't think anyone who writes such restrictions really thinks these things out much...

 

Say you fly into Athens before the cruise, get there maybe a day or two before, check into a hotel in Athens, wander on your own, eat in restaurants, etc.  You are out amongst unvaccinated people, people carrying the virus, etc.  You are NOT on a Celebrity shorex.  Then, you get on a ship with a fully vaccinated crew and fully vaccinated passengers...and two days later, you get off in Santorinini, and NOW you are a safety risk?

Maybe the potential threat posed to the residents of Santorini is judged by Greek authorities to be more serious than that posed to residents of Athens. The latter has significantly greater medical facilities than those on the island, and is far better equipped to deal with any cases resulting from your wanders about the city.

Edited April 14, 2021 by Fouremco

[Kitekat]

She's left Barbados and is on her way to Gibraltar before heading to Piraeus.

[Miaminice]

7 hours ago, Bruin Steve said:

I don't think anyone who writes such restrictions really thinks these things out much...

 

Say you fly into Athens before the cruise, get there maybe a day or two before, check into a hotel in Athens, wander on your own, eat in restaurants, etc.  You are out amongst unvaccinated people, people carrying the virus, etc.  You are NOT on a Celebrity shorex.  Then, you get on a ship with a fully vaccinated crew and fully vaccinated passengers...and two days later, you get off in Santorinini, and NOW you are a safety risk?

sure, but the same regulations apply to other lines only stopping in Athens. They were invented end of summer last year when only few cruises with Tui Cruises were allowed. They started from Crete and ended in Crete. B2B were not allowed and you had to fly in and out of Crete directly on chartered flights. From the moment you boarded the plane - in Germany - it was one closed bubble.

 

[GlobalMethod]

11 hours ago, Bruin Steve said:

Say you fly into Athens before the cruise, get there maybe a day or two before, check into a hotel in Athens, wander on your own, eat in restaurants, etc.  You are out amongst unvaccinated people, people carrying the virus, etc. 

The good news, reading the local tea leaves, is that even with the current spike in infections,  restaurants probably will reopen mid-May ... Hooray! ... 

[drarill]

11 hours ago, Fouremco said:

Maybe the potential threat posed to the residents of Santorini is judged by Greek authorities to be more serious than that posed to residents of Athens. The latter has significantly greater medical facilities than those on the island, and is far better equipped to deal with any cases resulting from your wanders about the city.

Maybe, Celebrity is planning to vaccinate every resident in Santorini. Less than 12,000 people   https://santorinigreece.net/info/

Edited April 15, 2021 by drarill

[GlobalMethod]

1 hour ago, drarill said:

Maybe, Celebrity is planning to vaccinate every resident in Santorini. Less than 12,000 people   https://santorinigreece.net/info/

Greece will do it ... maybe ... (I say it this way since they change things often overnight) ...

https://news.gtp.gr/2021/01/26/greece-has-4-phase-plan-vaccination-greek-island-residents/