New Vaccination policy on RCL

[Iamcruzin]

3 minutes ago, BOOKBOOKBOOK said:

 

There is still time to cancel, but this is financially disadvantageous for many people who either have nonrefundable deposits or don't want to take a 100% FCC that would end up making them pay additional out-of-pocket to cover the spread of a more expensive cruise/itinerary in the future, especially if they already booked a great deal 1-2 years prior.

 

The Bermuda itinerary has been cancelled, and consumers were offered a full refund or 125% FCC, so no issues there. The Nassau itinerary is committing to all guests 16 and over fully vaccinated (12 and over starting Aug. 1) plus limited capacity, so risk of outbreak is super low.

 

People who don't have access to the vaccine or not willing to get it who are under the age of 16 won't be on the Nassau itineraries, and this is precisely why vaccinated people booked. The science suggests that vaccines are the way to go in terms of getting us back to cruising quickly, safely, and normally.

 

I think people who are complaining about unvaccinated people being on the ship are the people booked for US July cruises that still haven't received word about what kind of health protocols will be followed. Everyone who has booked a cruise for US July wants to minimize the chance of any mishaps pertaining to the virus, and I would very much like to see protocols similar to the ones Royal and Celebrity are already doing out of the Caribbean in June. If Royal suddenly announced that vaccines were optional for US July sailings, people would want to cancel in droves, but they would be losing out on a nonrefundable deposit or taking a suboptimal 100% FCC that isn't super flexible.

All true but they had to know by now that this might be an issue when they booked even if it was 2 yrs ago and it should come as no surprise or hard feelings toward those not vaccinated. I didn't book a cruise because I didn't want to invest time and money in such uncertainties.  I'm vaccinated so I'm not worried about traveling. The cruise industry still has too many unknowns, obstacles and uncertainties. The vaccine is the least of the problems.

[Iamcruzin]

9 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

As per royals email all adults must be fully vaccinated.  Those that have not yet been able to get vaccinated or refuse to get vaccinated will just have to wait till things change.  

Royal doesn't want to take any chance and have cdc shut them down again, that would be devastating.

except for the line in post #1  that states anyone over 2yrs old who are not vaccinated need to test negative for covid. So to me that reads anyone 2yrs to death don't need a vaccine to board.

[zekekelso]

7 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

All true but they had to know by now that this might be an issue when they booked even if it was 2 yrs ago 

If anyone knew this was a potential issue two years ago, please contact me. I’ve got a few questions about where the stock market is going 🙂

Edited May 22, 2021 by zekekelso

[Mapleleafforever]

5 hours ago, RoyalC said:

RCI should say age 2-11 as I believe they are requiring vaccines for all guests over 11. Poor wording. Bad policy too. Either everyone should have it or not. Kids go to schools. Remember, those are "super-spreaders." 

They could pass it on. This policy will draw lawsuits too for many reasons.

Lawsuits for what?

[jrapps]

7 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

except for the line in post #1  that states anyone over 2yrs old who are not vaccinated need to test negative for covid. So to me that reads anyone 2yrs to death don't need a vaccine to board.

I don't know if they adjusted the language but this is what is on the RCL website right now..seems very clear:

 

Royal Caribbean guests age 16 and older must complete all doses of their COVID-19 vaccine at least 14 days before their sailing. For sailings departing after August 1, the age requirement for vaccination will change from 16 to 12 years of age. Guests under the age of this requirement don’t need to be vaccinated and will receive a SARS-Cov-2 test before boarding. 

 

"Guests under the age of this requirement". There is no ambiguity.

Edited May 22, 2021 by jrapps

[coffeebean]

17 hours ago, Heymarco said:

@coffeebean Did you see the exciting news about family cruising? 😇 

Do you mean having a certain percentage of un-vaccinated passengers which is for the kids? Yes, I'm happy for you that you can cruise with your family, just not on NCL.

[BOOKBOOKBOOK]

30 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

All true but they had to know by now that this might be an issue when they booked even if it was 2 yrs ago and it should come as no surprise or hard feelings toward those not vaccinated. I didn't book a cruise because I didn't want to invest time and money in such uncertainties.  I'm vaccinated so I'm not worried about traveling. The cruise industry still has too many unknowns, obstacles and uncertainties. The vaccine is the least of the problems.

 

Looks like I am unable to change your mind if you think that people who booked a July 2021 cruise in July 2019 should have known COVID-19 would come knocking. 😂

 

There are no surprises or hard feelings toward those not vaccinated until there are. If it so happens that unvaccinated guests (either by choice, medical reasons, or too young) are the cause of an outbreak, a port being removed from an itinerary, or having indoor dining privileges removed for all guests, things will undoubtedly become an issue.

 

How is the vaccine the least of the cruise industry's problems when the most talked about issues are DeSantis's stance and the CDC's 95%/98% vaccination requirements for passengers/crew? Cruise lines right now as we speak are vaccinating crew at various US ports. I'm curious to hear what you think the cruise industry should be thinking about as they navigate through restarting.

[not-enough-cruising]

1 hour ago, BOOKBOOKBOOK said:

 

 

 

I think people who are complaining about unvaccinated people being on the ship are the people booked for US July cruises that still haven't received word about what kind of health protocols will be followed. Everyone who has booked a cruise for US July wants to minimize the chance of any mishaps pertaining to the virus, and I would very much like to see protocols similar to the ones Royal and Celebrity are already doing out of the Caribbean in June. If Royal suddenly announced that vaccines were optional for US July sailings, people would want to cancel in droves, but they would be losing out on a nonrefundable deposit or taking a suboptimal 100% FCC that isn't super flexible.

I believe the most recently posted vaccination protocol is for all North American sailings, not just Caribbean embarkation.  

[newcruzer2]

45 minutes ago, jrapps said:

I don't know if they adjusted the language but this is what is on the RCL website right now..seems very clear:

 

Royal Caribbean guests age 16 and older must complete all doses of their COVID-19 vaccine at least 14 days before their sailing. For sailings departing after August 1, the age requirement for vaccination will change from 16 to 12 years of age. Guests under the age of this requirement don’t need to be vaccinated and will receive a SARS-Cov-2 test before boarding. 

 

"Guests under the age of this requirement". There is no ambiguity.

I completely Agree THIS statement from Rccl is totally clear, it was the language in the op's rccl statement which I thought IMHO could have been Interpreted differently 🙂

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, Sunshine3601 said:

As per royals email all adults must be fully vaccinated.  Those that have not yet been able to get vaccinated or refuse to get vaccinated will just have to wait till things change.  

Royal doesn't want to take any chance and have cdc shut them down again, that would be devastating.

Royal is definitely being risk adverse while they are restarting,,,, as they should be. Doesn't necessarily have to be the CDC, it can just be public opinion of the safety of cruising. They don't want to be the subject of another The Last Cruise documentary on HBO. Not good for the cruise line business, in general. While new case counts continue to go down in the US, the worldwide new case counts are as high as they have ever been... and there are more people on a cruise than folks from the US. 

[BOOKBOOKBOOK]

19 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

I believe the most recently posted vaccination protocol is for all North American sailings, not just Caribbean embarkation.  

 

Whoops, you're right, completely forgot haha. But yeah, would love to see cruise lines adhere to the 95%/98% passenger/crew vaccination rule and bypass test sailings to get us to normal cruising again ASAP. It's looking like they will be going with that path considering how much the cruise lines are investing time and money to get crew vaccinated at US ports as we speak.

[coffeebean]

6 hours ago, exm said:

so the test for kids is done on the spot? No need to scramble before my trip? Great news!

Not so great if a child has a false positive then must submit to another test. If that test is positive, the family does not sail. Would be a bummer if the family flew to the embarkation city. Kids can be asymptomatic for Covid so there is always the possibility of a positive test.

[coffeebean]

4 hours ago, livingonthebeach said:

The Florida law that bans vaccine passports, has several exemptions, namely for hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, ambulatory surgical centers, physician offices and ambulance providers, among many other health care providers.

 

Since there are already several exemptions, and although cruise ships are not health care facilities, but are considered a health risk according to the CDC, I see no reason why cruise lines can not be exempt -- especially since the governor desperately wants cruising to restart in the state.  

Didn't DeSantis specify that cruise lines were NOT exempt?

[livingonthebeach]

Just now, coffeebean said:

Didn't DeSantis specify that cruise lines were NOT exempt?

 

Yes he sure did, on many occasions, but this is one thing IMHO he should back off on.  He exempted healthcare so it's not like a exemptions aren't there and he is perfectly able to extend exemptions to cruise lines -- not saying he will do it but it would be unwise not to. 

[Blauelini]

1 hour ago, coffeebean said:

Didn't DeSantis specify that cruise lines were NOT exempt?

Yes he did. He was specifically asked this question about cruise ships and he was firm on vaccine passports not being allowed. And yes Florida has authority over the ports the cruise ships dock at contrary to what some have said.

 

Some need to remember,  while the cruise industry is good for the economy,  vaccine passports is bad for his re-election in 2022. Votes outweigh cruises all day and twice on Sunday. 

Edited May 22, 2021 by Blauelini

[dswallow]

1 hour ago, coffeebean said:

Didn't DeSantis specify that cruise lines were NOT exempt?

 

The law is written ambiguously when it comes to a federal requirement for proof of vaccination. This is where the CDC steps in with the requirement previously stated.

 

If the law even manages to not get tossed out.

[livingonthebeach]

4 minutes ago, Blauelini said:

Yes he did. He was specifically asked this question about cruise ships and he was firm on vaccine passports not being allowed. And yes Florida has authority over the ports the cruise ships dock at contrary to what some have said.

 

Some need to remember,  while the cruise industry is good for the economy,  vaccine passports is bad for his re-election in 2022. Votes outweigh cruises all day and twice on Sunday. 

 

I could be wrong but as far as I know, it is the County Mayors of the port cities that have the authority. Do you have a source that says otherwise?

[Blauelini]

1 hour ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

I could be wrong but as far as I know, it is the County Mayors of the port cities that have the authority. Do you have a source that says otherwise?

County mayors cannot ignore Florida law.

[harkinmr]

9 hours ago, Iamcruzin said:

You missed the line that says that all unvaccinated guest over the age of 2 must have a negative covid test.

That is not an exception to the vaccine requirement. It says ALL guests 16 and over (12 and over as of August 1) MUST be vaccinated. Those unvaccinated over 2 must be tested. That is between 2 and 15/12 depending on date of sailing. This is not ambiguous at all.  Clearly ALL adults must be vaccinated to sail.  

[Iamcruzin]

3 hours ago, BOOKBOOKBOOK said:

 

 

 

How is the vaccine the least of the cruise industry's problems when the most talked about issues are DeSantis's stance and the CDC's 95%/98% vaccination requirements for passengers/crew? Cruise lines right now as we speak are vaccinating crew at various US ports. I'm curious to hear what you think the cruise industry should be thinking about as they navigate through restarting.

The CDC is the main issue and if cruises can't start from Florida they will start in Puerto Rico, NY, NJ, Texas. California, and any other port on the east or west coast. DeSantis needs to get out of his own way.

[James4me]

22 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Google it, it's been said for several months by many medical professionals.   

I want to hear your source please.

[BOOKBOOKBOOK]

10 minutes ago, James4me said:

I want to hear your source please.

 

https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/what-are-your-chances-of-getting-covid-after-being-vaccinated/2384408/

 

The vaccination does not offer 100% guarantee protection from catching COVID-19. However, risk of hospitalization and/or severe symptoms is extremely low for fully vaccinated people catching COVID-19.

Edited May 23, 2021 by BOOKBOOKBOOK

[livingonthebeach]

26 minutes ago, Blauelini said:

County mayors cannot ignore Florida law.

 

Not saying they are ignoring Florida law rather that the ports of cities have jurisdiction over what happens at the ports.  Can you cite something that says the contrary? 

[Blauelini]

6 minutes ago, livingonthebeach said:

 

Not saying they are ignoring Florida law rather that the ports of cities have jurisdiction over what happens at the ports.  Can you cite something that says the contrary? 

 Read under Legal Questions Remain. Whether you believe me or not, frankly don't care. I assure you, with the type of employment I hold for the last 20 years, Florida law governs all ports.

 

https://www.cruisehive.com/will-desantis-vaccine-passport-ban-block-cruises-from-florida/50469

[livingonthebeach]

14 minutes ago, Blauelini said:

 Read under Legal Questions Remain. Whether you believe me or not, frankly don't care. I assure you, with the type of employment I hold for the last 20 years, Florida law governs all ports.

 

https://www.cruisehive.com/will-desantis-vaccine-passport-ban-block-cruises-from-florida/50469

 

You cite a cruise blog and under the "Legal Questions Remain" is this: "A cruise ship in port falls under local jurisdiction; however, whether that jurisdiction lies with the CDC or the state government remains never-ending."  So the answer is it is not clear according to Cruise Hive.  

 

I would be more interested to know what information you have with the type of employment you've held for the last 20 years in Florida if you're able or care to share.