The end is near?

[les37b]

Just been emailed an interesting news article, which featured a photo of Silver Cloud at Tower Bridge suggesting the CDC were about to lift cruising bans in the US if conditions met.

 

A breakthrough we'd all been hoping for?

 

https://www.businessinsider.com/cruise-travel-could-open-july-cruises-resume-summer-2021-4

 

Cruise travel could resume in July as new CDC guidelines allow ships to sail if 95% of passengers are vaccinated

 

 

 

Hopefully more info to follow.....

 

Fingers crossed.

 

 

 

[Qld13]

I don't think I am misunderstanding this, but would you go on a cruise knowing 2% of crew and 5% of passengers would be unvaccinated!! As a vaccinated passenger you can still get Covid, but hopefully not severely, if any of the 5% of unvaccinated passengers have covid but don't come down with it themselves until 14 days into your wonderful 30 day cruise, which would see you spend the remainder confined to your suite. I think everyone has to be vaccinated.

[Observer]

9 hours ago, Qld13 said:

I don't think I am misunderstanding this, but would you go on a cruise knowing 2% of crew and 5% of passengers would be unvaccinated!! 

 

You would not know that they would be unvaccinated. The CDC has set a floor, a minimum.  I anticipate that all passengers and crew will be expected to show proof of vaccination.  There may be a very small handful for whom the vaccine is for some powerful medical reason contraindicated.  The 2/5% exemptions allow cruise lines to accommodate such cases.

[bigmjh]

5 hours ago, Observer said:

 

"... The CDC has set a floor, a minimum.  I anticipate that all passengers and crew will be expected to show proof of vaccination ..."

And, herein lies the problem ... until there is a GOOD, verifiable proof of vaccination this will be for "show" only. Any of the anti-vaxxers can easily circumvent the requirement and inexpensively purchase fake "proof of vaccination" cards online. 

[rkacruiser]

16 hours ago, Qld13 said:

I think everyone has to be vaccinated.

 

With verifiable proof of such.  I envision at some point, if one is unvaccinated for whatever reason, it will only be "socially acceptable" to say:  "I am vaccinated."  

[RetiredandTravel]

I'm fully vaccinated.  If someone doesn't want to get vaccinated that's their business.  In my opinion for multiple reasons the cruise lines will require vaccination and proof of it.  There is always the exception but I can't imagine a large number of people who are taking Silversea and aren't vaccinated would forge documents to board. 

 

Maybe our illustrious politicians in DC could come with up with an official proof of vaccination and high penalties for forgeries.

Edited May 1, 2021 by RetiredandTravel
typo

[Observer]

The longstanding Yellow Card (The International Certificate of Vaccination) was also vulnerable to forgery.  But it served the world well for decades.  I agree that SS guests are unlikely to resort to forgery, and I can imagine that all guests will be subject to testing at least for a while.  In the opinion of many people, more secure (electronic?) documentation of immunization raises issues of privacy/civil rights/etc. 

[les37b]

Funnily enough, having booked a short cruise to nowhere in August on a line insisting all crew and passengers are vaccinated. I ask about proof and was told that the hand written card would be good enough as it stated name, date, brand and batch. I suggested that could easily be forged and was told until we have something else, that's what we need.

 

These details are available digitally inside the UK NHS app, so that can at least verify, but not necessarily easy for all.

 

In the meantime, I've already seen that those cards I was told would be ok for proof, has been ruled out as verification.

 

They need to pull their fingers out 

[rkacruiser]

22 hours ago, Observer said:

The longstanding Yellow Card (The International Certificate of Vaccination) was also vulnerable to forgery.  But it served the world well for decades.  I agree that SS guests are unlikely to resort to forgery,

 

If it is not broke, let's not fix it.  I have lived long enough to learn that an "improvement" leads to disappointment, followed by another "improvement", followed by another disappointment, ad nauseum.  

[christraveller]

In British Columbia, using an app with two factor authentication (sign in, they send a code to the cell number on file, and you enter that), we can see our most recent prescriptions, doctors’ visits and now…drumroll..immunization records. 

if this is what it takes to travel…. ####  my  privacy rights. I would rather

- travel

- not infect others

 

To stretch the vaccine supply, the second jab will be 4 months after the first. 
 

High taxes, but an effective system when the chips are down. 
 

Of course, Your Mileage May Vary. 

 

[ChutChut]

On 4/30/2021 at 11:45 PM, Qld13 said:

I don't think I am misunderstanding this, but would you go on a cruise knowing 2% of crew and 5% of passengers would be unvaccinated!! As a vaccinated passenger you can still get Covid, but hopefully not severely, if any of the 5% of unvaccinated passengers have covid but don't come down with it themselves until 14 days into your wonderful 30 day cruise, which would see you spend the remainder confined to your suite. I think everyone has to be vaccinated.

But what happens when you get off of the ship and are surrounded by many unvaccinated people in far away port cities. Then they infect you and you bring it back on? The risk is still present.

[ChutChut]

15 hours ago, christraveller said:

In British Columbia, using an app with two factor authentication (sign in, they send a code to the cell number on file, and you enter that), we can see our most recent prescriptions, doctors’ visits and now…drumroll..immunization records. 

if this is what it takes to travel…. ####  my  privacy rights. I would rather

- travel

- not infect others

 

To stretch the vaccine supply, the second jab will be 4 months after the first. 
 

High taxes, but an effective system when the chips are down. 
 

Of course, Your Mileage May Vary. 

 

Privacy rights are huge, though....

[Arlopop]

2 hours ago, ChutChut said:

Privacy rights are huge, though....

They are, but there are any number of countries where proof of vaccinations are required in order to enter.  Adding one more vax to the list doesn’t feel particularly egregious to me.

[cece50]

2 hours ago, ChutChut said:

But what happens when you get off of the ship and are surrounded by many unvaccinated people in far away port cities. Then they infect you and you bring it back on? The risk is still present.

That’s why you get the vaccine.  Freedom is fraught with risk.  Either you take a risk while minimizing that risk or you stay in your safe place with no risk.  Choice is always yours.  As a business, cruise operators cannot control every aspect and that is why you as a consumer must decide for yourself.  Personally, with the vaccine behind me, I feel very good about travel.  That being said,  we will wait until 2022, because we chose not to deal with all the restrictions onboard especially the masks at this time. 

Edited May 3, 2021 by cece50

[jollyjones]

4 hours ago, ChutChut said:

But what happens when you get off of the ship and are surrounded by many unvaccinated people in far away port cities. Then they infect you and you bring it back on? The risk is still present.

That is why for the near future you will only be allowed off the ship on SS excursions with tested tour guides and no mixing with the locals. 

[Lois R]

18 hours ago, ChutChut said:

But what happens when you get off of the ship and are surrounded by many unvaccinated people in far away port cities. Then they infect you and you bring it back on? The risk is still present.

They call it keeping everyone "in a bubble"......excursions will only be with SS......you will only be interacting with other cruise ship guests.  And  I spoke with my SS rep yesterday and she also told me the tour guides will have been vaccinated as well.  They are doing everything they can to make everything as safe as possible.

[A Tucson Guy]

If India gets well quickly, I wonder how they will do the Taj Mahal post extension tour which we have signed up for. Call me the eternal optimist!! We are on Moon Dubai to Mumbai this November.

[bigmjh]

5 hours ago, A Tucson Guy said:

If India gets well quickly, I wonder how they will do the Taj Mahal post extension tour which we have signed up for. Call me the eternal optimist!! We are on Moon Dubai to Mumbai this November.

IMHO ... I wouldn't put any money on that.

[RetiredandTravel]

1 hour ago, bigmjh said:

IMHO ... I wouldn't put any money on that.

 

Yes not very likely.

 

Much better chance than an individual with a fake CDC vaccine card going to a state penitentiary for 10 years tho.