Sail Safe Policy

[LakeLifeTexas]

So RSSC announced their current covid policy yesterday- vaccines and mask required.  We are both vaccinated but personally refuse to wear mask.  We currently fly between our homes and have no choice but to mask up on the airlines- although we do travel less because of this policy.  However, if RSSC requires mask we will cancel our reservations.  Just not an enjoyable way to spend $3000 per day for us.

 

Everyone has their on position on this issue, as it should be.  What are your thoughts?

Edited April 7, 2021 by LakeLifeTexas

[mrlevin]

Masks aren't required; they said they will wait to see closer to sailing what the prevalent guidance says.

[flossie009]

9 minutes ago, LakeLifeTexas said:

What are your thoughts?

Regent's choice on what rules to impose for the health, safety & comfort of guests & crew and to ensure that the company is in compliance with the laws & protocols of the locations visited during the cruise itinerary.

Your choice as to whether or not to cruise with Regent.  

[fizzy]

Just now, flossie009 said:

Regent's choice on what rules to impose for the health, safety & comfort of guests & crew and to ensure that the company is in compliance with the laws & protocols of the locations visited during the cruise itinerary.

Your choice as to whether or not to cruise with Regent.  

While I totally agree with everything that you just said, I can't imagine the enforcement  of this rule to be simple without actually removing people from the ship. 

[LakeLifeTexas]

29 minutes ago, mrlevin said:

Masks aren't required; they said they will wait to see closer to sailing what the prevalent guidance says.

The email we received had a link to their complete Sail Safe policy.  Here is what we read...

FACE COVERINGS
Face coverings are currently required for guests while indoors except for in their own accommodations and while eating and drinking in restaurants, bars and lounges or outdoors when physical distancing is not possible.
Face coverings may be required in certain settings
to comply with local requirements, for example in terminals for embarkation and disembarkation or at ports of call.
We will continue to monitor public health guidance, including from the CDC, at the time of your voyage and modify requirements accordingly.

[LakeLifeTexas]

16 minutes ago, flossie009 said:

Regent's choice on what rules to impose for the health, safety & comfort of guests & crew and to ensure that the company is in compliance with the laws & protocols of the locations visited during the cruise itinerary.

Your choice as to whether or not to cruise with Regent.  

Agree- we all have choices.  

[LakeLifeTexas]

33 minutes ago, mrlevin said:

Masks aren't required; they said they will wait to see closer to sailing what the prevalent guidance says.

The email we received had a link to their entire Sail Safe policy.  Here is what we read...

FACE COVERINGS
Face coverings are currently required for guests while indoors except for in their own accommodations and while eating and drinking in restaurants, bars and lounges or outdoors when physical distancing is not possible.
Face coverings may be required in certain settings
to comply with local requirements, for example in terminals for embarkation and disembarkation or at ports of call.
We will continue to monitor public health guidance, including from the CDC, at the time of your voyage and modify requirements accordingly.

[flossie009]

43 minutes ago, mrlevin said:

Masks aren't required; they said they will wait to see closer to sailing what the prevalent guidance says.

 

12 minutes ago, LakeLifeTexas said:

We will continue to monitor public health guidance, including from the CDC, at the time of your voyage and modify requirements accordingly.

 

Protocols will undoubtedly develop as the amount of cruising ramps up, the roll-out of vaccines worldwide accelerates and risks are further evaluated.

 

 

27 minutes ago, fizzy said:

I can't imagine the enforcement  of this rule to be simple

 

There will always be some (selfish?) guests who will challenge any rules/protocols in place. This will just be another challenge for the ship's officers and staff to manage.

[FengShui@Sea]

45 minutes ago, fizzy said:

While I totally agree with everything that you just said, I can't imagine the enforcement  of this rule to be simple without actually removing people from the ship. 

I have been witness to what happens when cruise guests disobey the rules and it isn’t pretty.  You are confined to your cabin, usually with someone posted outside your door 24/7, and your cruise account is cut off.  This happened to a couple across the hall from us who drank too much and got into a rip roaring fight out in the hallway at 2 a.m.  They were in an inside cabin!!  😳 

Edited April 7, 2021 by FengShui@Sea

[Pcardad]

49 minutes ago, flossie009 said:

 

 

Protocols will undoubtedly develop as the amount of cruising ramps up, the roll-out of vaccines worldwide accelerates and risks are further evaluated.

 

 

 

There will always be some (selfish?) guests who will challenge any rules/protocols in place. This will just be another challenge for the ship's officers and staff to manage.

 

If a client doesn't like the new (as in created after buying the fare) rules, Regent can refund their cash and move on. The problem is going to occur when people start losing a LOT of money because they didn't sign up to sail on a floating ICU ward. Regent is going to either refund the money or get hit with a class action.

[ronrick1943]

I really don't see what the problem is, like others have said you have a choice.  If mask are required, I'll wear a mask.  It's not what I'd like to do--but It's the thing to do for everyone's safety if asked.  It seems like a lot of people didn't care about mask wearing a while back---but a lot of people lost their lives because people didn't care about others---that I care about.  

[Pcardad]

There should be no need if everyone is vaccinated. There will be no outbreak spreading across the ship and no hospitalizations of serious illnesses (if the CDC is to be believed). It should be no different than a normal Regent cruise. 

 

Going ashore is a different matter.

[LakeLifeTexas]

44 minutes ago, ronrick1943 said:

I really don't see what the problem is, like others have said you have a choice.  If mask are required, I'll wear a mask.  It's not what I'd like to do--but It's the thing to do for everyone's safety if asked.  It seems like a lot of people didn't care about mask wearing a while back---but a lot of people lost their lives because people didn't care about others---that I care about.  

So what will you do if mask are not required?

[2012_Alaska_bound]

3 minutes ago, LakeLifeTexas said:

So what will you do if mask are not required?

 

That is an interesting question. I for one could go either way, with or without masks required. It seems like the people who don't want masks are more adamant than those who are willing to wear masks on the cruise.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

7 minutes ago, LakeLifeTexas said:

So what will you do if mask are not required?

I'd probably wear a mask in places off the ship, like excursion buses, tours with groups.  In the theater perhaps, or other crowded space.  Since we spend much of our public time sitting in a bar or restaurant eating and/or drinking, the mask is moot for much of our time on the ship.

[chelseabelsea]

Having the vaccine does not mean you are 100% protected from either getting or transmitting the virus. We wear masks to protect not just ourselves, but everyone else we come into contact with. It’s a small price to pay for contributing to the end of this awful pandemic, n’est ce pas? 😊

[JVNYC]

1 hour ago, Pcardad said:

There should be no need if everyone is vaccinated. There will be no outbreak spreading across the ship and no hospitalizations of serious illnesses (if the CDC is to be believed). It should be no different than a normal Regent cruise. 

 

Going ashore is a different matter.

 

Where are you getting your information from?  Vaccines are not a cure....you can still get Covid and you can still transmit Covid.  How do you know that there won't be an outbreak on the ship?  Everyone hailing vaccines as a cure needs to do some real reading. 

 

Edited April 7, 2021 by JVNYC

[Pcardad]

6 minutes ago, JVNYC said:

 

Where are you getting your information from?  Vaccines are not a cure....you can still get Covid and you can still transmit Covid.  How do you know that there won't be an outbreak on the ship?  Everyone hailing vaccines as a cure needs to do some real reading. 

 

Everything I have read says the vaccine is 100% protection against serious illness. And who am I going to spread it to if everyone on board has been vaccinated...statistically not many people. At worst, according to all data, they get something akin to the regular flu AFTER being vaccinated.....or no symptoms at all.

 

A ship with EVERYONE vaccinated is the safest spot on the planet - Mr. Del Rio is correct.

 

I will play by the rules and I have done so. But there is no reason to hide like a scared rabbit if EVERYONE is vacinnated...so I don't intend to.

[JVNYC]

8 minutes ago, Pcardad said:

Everything I have read says the vaccine is 100% protection against serious illness. And who am I going to spread it to if everyone on board has been vaccinated...statistically not many people. At worst, according to all data, they get something akin to the regular flu AFTER being vaccinated.....or no symptoms at all.

 

A ship with EVERYONE vaccinated is the safest spot on the planet - Mr. Del Rio is correct.

 

I will play by the rules and I have done so. But there is no reason to hide like a scared rabbit if EVERYONE is vacinnated...so I don't intend to.

 

All good points, however there is so much we don't really know about these vaccines.  How long do they last?  Will another one be needed in 6 months, 1 year, 5 years, etc.  No one has the answers yet.  There really aren't great statistics.  I'm not a scared rabbit, I'm also not a guinea pig. 

[ronrick1943]

If a mask isn't required, maybe not, but most likely yes I would---I'd have to look at all the facts given by the medical scientist at the time (and Regent isn't one of them).  

[Pcardad]

Pfizer still at 91+% after 6 months according a recent study....extremely good news...certainly good enough to go on a cruise with only other vaccinated people.

 

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2021/04/pfizer-covid-vaccine-91-effective-least-6-months

[ronrick1943]

1 hour ago, Pcardad said:

Pfizer still at 91+% after 6 months according a recent study....extremely good news...certainly good enough to go on a cruise with only other vaccinated people.

 

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2021/04/pfizer-covid-vaccine-91-effective-least-6-months

I'd say yes it is and I'm ready to cruise........not tomorrow - but soon.

[CruisetheCs]

We may not know some of the answers about potential Covid transmission among the vaccinated until all are vaccinated.  I would assume that would be a very safe environment. And, if everyone is vaccinated, masks may not really be necessary onboard. 

 

However, I think it unlikely that companies or government agencies will be willing to lift mask policies without some definitive studies.

 

Also there will continue to be uncertainty about vaccine efficacy because of new Covid strains that will likely show up. Questions will arise about whether the new strains are covered by the current vaccines, etc. That is another reason I think mask policies will not be dropped anytime soon.

 

[Pcardad]

By the time Regent sails, all this will be worked out.

[johncb7]

It seems that a few potential travellers are more concerned with not being able to travel than their own personal well being and that of other guests. To me, at the moment, with covid spreading like wildfire in many parts of Europe with the associated close down of attractions and curfews who in their right mind would even consider travelling. Covid vaccinations in a Europe, UK aside, are very low with new strains regularly occurring. The risk of bringing covid onboard after a port if call is potentially high. Stay at home, keep safe and wait to see what happens. One thing is certain, cruising will never be the same again for a long time if ever. If you don’t want to protect yourself and others please stay at home.