CDC says no more masks for the fully vaccinated---Will Seabourn drop the mask mandate onboard?

[sfvoyage]

18 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

 

So both of you are inferring that the simple word "intent" means they won't vaccinate all staff?  This seems a little bit of a stretch.

 

No, of course not!  I'm sure Seabourn will try hard to get their crew vaccinated.  However, the wording implies that Seabourn is not as committed to vaccinating all their crew, or is trying to hedge their bets, which is not as reassuring as other mass market lines (with a much bigger crew per ship) which have announced that their crew will be vaccinated.

Edited May 22, 2021 by sfvoyage

[RetiredandTravel]

"Intent"

 

Sounds like it was written by the legal department to me.   I'm sure they will try to have 100% vaccination but they can't guarantee that.

 

 

 

 

[sfvoyage]

20 minutes ago, RetiredandTravel said:

"Intent"

 

Sounds like it was written by the legal department to me.   I'm sure they will try to have 100% vaccination but they can't guarantee that.

 

That's what I think as well.  However, I wonder why the other cruise lines' legal departments don't ask marketing to add the "intent" wording to their marketing materials...

[SLSD]

2 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

 

So both of you are inferring that the simple word "intent" means they won't vaccinate all staff?  This seems a little bit of a stretch.

Words are important and most businesses choose them very carefully---especially when it comes to something as important as safety protocols following a pandemic.  I'm sure the word intent is very intentional.  

[Flamin_June]

Perhaps they are just being careful and realistic. The INTENT is to have all team memebers vaccinated. BUT the reality is that some people, desperate to work, may fake their vaccination credentials. OR, not everyone expected to work a particular cruise will have been vaccinated, so they may have to sail short staffed.  The intent word kind of covers Seabourn in both eventualities. Saying that ALL crew WILL be vaccinated is one thing .... the reality may be something else. Also, at THIS time, not all crew ARE vaccinated, so it is more honest to say that the intent is that all will be vaccinated in due course.

[markham]

Whatever the case is re crew vaccinations two things come to mind:

 

If Seabourn or an industry body could vaccinate all crew needing coverage they would do so. It is overwhelmingly the case now that national government health authorities own and distribute limited supplies of vaccines based on their own, largely age driven, priorities. But in time this will take care of itself re crew. (I strongly doubt any crew would falsify their vaccination credentials. Ridiculous.); and

 

Seabourn is well managed and smart enough to manage the isolation of any non-vaccinated crew for 2 weeks and then test them before passengers join. Ditto for restricting them from any onshore or ship visitor contacts.

We are confident all protocols will be executed for the 3 July Ovation cruise.

Happy and healthy sailing!

[cruiseej]

36 minutes ago, markham said:

If Seabourn or an industry body could vaccinate all crew needing coverage they would do so. It is overwhelmingly the case now that national government health authorities own and distribute limited supplies of vaccines based on their own, largely age driven, priorities.

 

But it's also true that governments eager to restore travel business have in some cases prioritized cruise ship crews. I believe that's happened in Greece and Ecuador to facilitate the resumption of cruising in those places. In San Diego, we've read about large groups of cruise ship crews -- mostly likely not US citizens -- getting vaccines. In southeast Asia, where a lot of people earn their living aboard cruise ships, and send much of their earnings back to their families, there may be similar impetus to get people vaccinated. 

[Hlitner]

A few things about Seabourn and COVID.   We are on one of the Ovation cruises in July and one of the online check-in steps where you read the terms/conditions and sign off is still not available.  Seabourn says they are still updating that section because of COVID issues.  As to vaccinations, I think it is a good bet that 100% of the crew will be vaccinated on the Ovation since to do otherwise would create some problems with the Greek government.   As to the Odyssey cruises out of Barbados (we are booked on that too) the current entry rules for Barbados are quite tough and for unvaccinated folks requires a 5 day Quarantine in one of 3 government approved facilities.  This would be complicated for crew members.  Fully vaccinated folks do not need to be quarantines (subject to another rapid test).

 

Hank

[Flamin_June]

We are planning to resume cruising with Seabourn early next year - and I believe that Seabourn will do everything it can think of to ensure all crew (and passengers) are vaccinated and tested. The question is: why has Seabourn said the intent is to vaccinate all crew instead of saying all crew will be vaccinated? I was throwing up a few plausible reasons why intent was used. Not quite clay pigeons, but happy for people to shoot 'em down. I really do hope that it is a ridiculous notion that crew would try to fake their vaccination status, but phony certificates are being touted already, and my faith in human nature has taken a few knocks over the last year, while my awareness of the prevalence of human stupidity and selfishness has grown.

[sfvoyage]

5 hours ago, Flamin_June said:

I really do hope that it is a ridiculous notion that crew would try to fake their vaccination status, but phony certificates are being touted already, and my faith in human nature has taken a few knocks over the last year, while my awareness of the prevalence of human stupidity and selfishness has grown.

And that's why, in addition to the vaccination requirement, daily testing should be carried out.  Fake vaccination credentials are real - not just for the crew, there are no shortage of anti-vaxxers among the rich and powerful.  Better to err on the safe side, at least in the early months of the vaccine roll-outs, when everyone is still learning and collecting data and figuring out how best to beat and control the pandemic. 

[RetiredandTravel]

Considering that Seabourn employees come from all over the world I think the only way to ensure that all employees are vaccinated and with an approved vaccine is for Seabourn to have a vaccination program.    Many employees may come from countries that don't have vaccines or an approved vaccine.  

 

There are just to many uncertainties around these Covid issues for us to start cruising probably for at least a year.

 

[Twitchly]

On 5/15/2021 at 2:42 PM, RetiredandTravel said:

The vaccines are wonderful but there is still a 5-6% chance of getting Covid,  if you do its hopefully less serious.   

It’s actually much better news than that. This is a misunderstanding of the statistic behind vaccine efficiency. (Most of us have made the same mistake!) 

 

From the article linked below:

 

“One common misunderstanding is that 95% efficacy means that in the Pfizer clinical trial, 5% of vaccinated people got COVID. But that's not true; the actual percentage of vaccinated people in the Pfizer (and Moderna) trials who got COVID-19 was about a hundred times less than that: 0.04%.”

 

“What the 95% actually means is that vaccinated people had a 95% lower risk of getting COVID-19 compared with the control group participants, who weren't vaccinated.”

 

https://www.livescience.com/covid-19-vaccine-efficacy-explained.html

Edited May 26, 2021 by Twitchly

[fdnycruiser]

From the Silversea board. The crew vaccination didn’t go as planned. 

I guess the best laid vaccination plans can go awry.  Just got this from Silversea regarding our June 18th cruise on the Moon:

 

Dear Esteemed Guest, 

 

Thank you for trusting Silversea for your upcoming cruise on the brand new Silver Moon. The time to restart cruising has arrived and the ship is beautiful. We are all eager to welcome you in Athens. 

 

We are writing today to let you know that there is a slight complication. It had long been planned that Silver Moon’s crew would receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which, as you may know, requires just one dose. However, due to a delay in its delivery, our crew will now receive the Pfizer vaccination, which means they will need two shots instead of one. This means that they will have only received their second dose on June 13 – five days prior to Silver Moon's June 18 departure date. 

 

The CDC's definition of ‘fully vaccinated’ suggests that all recipients of the Pfizer vaccine must let two weeks pass after the second dose before they are considered fully vaccinated. A study of the Pfizer vaccine by Public Health England showed a range of efficacy between 52% and 97% by 21 days after the first dose. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study among vaccinated healthcare workers showed a single dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine was 82% effective. 

 

Silversea has decided to operate the cruise as planned, departing on June 18. Please note that, while we have opted to welcome only vaccinated guests and crew, Silversea is following the European Healthy Gateway onboard protocols on our Greek itineraries, which have been designed for cruise vessels operating without the mandatory requirement of vaccinations.

 

If you would prefer to amend your voyage, we would be more than happy to change your booking to another sailing in Silver Moon's inaugural season in Greece. Moreover, should you have made private air and hotel arrangements, Silversea will be happy to support the necessary changes. 

 

Should you decide to change your cruise or should you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at any of the following numbers:

 

 ASIA +65 6223 1846 

AUSTRALIA +1300 306 872

AUSTRIA  +43 8000 68 762

BELGIUM +32 2 401 1432

DENMARK +45 7014 2898

GERMANY +49 69 2222 12283

FINLAND +358 9 2319 5040

FRANCE +33 1 7070 9622

IRELAND +353 (01) 6110 560

ITALY +39 02 3604 9211

JAPAN / KOREA: +81 (0) 3 6868 8834

LATAM +1 888 978 2840

MONACO +377 9770 2424

NETHERLANDS +31 20 713 9298

NEW ZEALAND +0800 701 427

NORWAY +47 2103 3400

SWEDEN +46 8 5068 5493

SWITZERLAND +41 4458 07181

SPAIN +34 9380 01962

UNITED STATES AND CANADA +1 844 885 8417

UK +44 (0) 207 340 0700

 

 

We look forward to hosting you on the beautiful Silver Moon. 

 

 

Best personal regards,

 

Roberto Martinoli

[sfvoyage]

3 hours ago, fdnycruiser said:

From the Silversea board. The crew vaccination didn’t go as planned. 

 

I guess the best laid vaccination plans can go awry.  Just got this from Silversea regarding our June 18th cruise on the Moon:

 

Dear Esteemed Guest, 

 

Thank you for trusting Silversea for your upcoming cruise on the brand new Silver Moon. The time to restart cruising has arrived and the ship is beautiful. We are all eager to welcome you in Athens. 

 

We are writing today to let you know that there is a slight complication. It had long been planned that Silver Moon’s crew would receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which, as you may know, requires just one dose. However, due to a delay in its delivery, our crew will now receive the Pfizer vaccination, which means they will need two shots instead of one. This means that they will have only received their second dose on June 13 – five days prior to Silver Moon's June 18 departure date. 

 

The CDC's definition of ‘fully vaccinated’ suggests that all recipients of the Pfizer vaccine must let two weeks pass after the second dose before they are considered fully vaccinated. A study of the Pfizer vaccine by Public Health England showed a range of efficacy between 52% and 97% by 21 days after the first dose. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study among vaccinated healthcare workers showed a single dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine was 82% effective. 

 

Silversea has decided to operate the cruise as planned, departing on June 18. Please note that, while we have opted to welcome only vaccinated guests and crew, Silversea is following the European Healthy Gateway onboard protocols on our Greek itineraries, which have been designed for cruise vessels operating without the mandatory requirement of vaccinations.

 

If you would prefer to amend your voyage, we would be more than happy to change your booking to another sailing in Silver Moon's inaugural season in Greece. Moreover, should you have made private air and hotel arrangements, Silversea will be happy to support the necessary changes. 

 

Should you decide to change your cruise or should you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at any of the following numbers:

 

 ASIA +65 6223 1846 

etc... edited out for space

 

We look forward to hosting you on the beautiful Silver Moon. 

 

 

Best personal regards,

 

Roberto Martinoli

 

Kudos to Silversea for being fully transparent and for offering their guests full flexibility.

[sfvoyage]

https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/25113-cdc-significantly-relaxes-cruise-rules-for-fully-vaccinated-passengers.html

 

The above came out yesterday and looks quite promising.

 

Has anybody read anything else about this?  I was hoping to corroborate the above with more neutral news sources but haven't found much else yet.

[cruiseej]

The CDC's guideline changes are certainly heartening, but there's a lot of room for different implementations of safety standards. What really matters to us as passengers is what rules each cruise line will adopt. Yesterday's news included Celebrity announcing it had CDC approval to begin cruising  from Florida on June 26 with mostly-vaccinated crew & passengers, and Royal Caribbean to begin test cruises the week prior -- two different approaches to complying with the latest CDC rules for cruises to or from US ports.

 

Equally important it knowing that today's policies may not be tomorrow's, as the virus and the world will continue to evolve and frequent changes/fine-tuning/tweaking will be required. Right now, we're looking forward to loosening of restrictions -- e.g. limited or no marks -- but in the next few months after cruising has been underway for awhile, there may need to be selective tightening of rules as well as they try to strike the right balance between a high degree of safety and unattainable perfection & complete absence of Covid.

[RetiredandTravel]

The most encouraging news from the Silversea letter was that they are administering the vaccines on employees.   Seems the best solution for Silversea, its employees and guests.

 

Agreed SF the transparency was very refreshing.