Horrible planning and decision making by Royal

[broberts]

1 minute ago, aquasea said:

... Just think, cruising has gone on for months in Europe, without a problem. ...

 

Can you produce any actual data to substantiate this claim? 

[Goodtime Cruizin]

1 minute ago, Ocean Boy said:

I thought it was an FCC and not a refund?

 

Pobably. TBH, I don't know. I haven't booked 14 cruises during a pandemic then complain about it to a message board of cruisers like they can help my situation.

 

[broberts]

1 minute ago, Heymarco said:

Even then, how many people caught covid onboard and had to be dropped off? It should be easy to discern and understand the level of risk. Don’t forget, overall vaccination rates are still lower in Europe too. So if it works for them….

 

And we would know about these drop offs because the cruise lines are so forthcoming with negative news. 🙄

[kearney]

27 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

My big question is what % will the CDC require for a ship to return to home port if unvaccinated people have covid?      that is my fear, my vacation being cut short because a bunch of unvaccinated people get covid and CDC will require a ship to stop sailing and return home.    I am not afraid of getting covid, everyone in my house had covid this winter (except for me).   

 

We are fully vaccinated and ready to go but want to know before I go thru all the hoops of flying, hotels, transportation, etc. that royal will not reimburse me for if a cruise is cut short.   

I agree that they have not been clear on what their procedures will be. the CDC guidance..is confusing to me... I would like to see the various cruise lines layout what happens. It may be a function of how many are sick. Likely they will be isolated along with anyone who was in contact with them...  Actually this happened to us with DH got Norovirus... and then a few days later.. I got it... A recent Royal ship had a few crew who tested positive... they were removed from the ship and it sailed on... now it did not visit ports like a regular cruise ship... and I am not sure the crew members were actually ill.

 

I purchased travel insurance and it does include coverage for Covid related issues. Now if I recall the Cruise with confidence has some Covid coverage of some sort.. can't recall if it was Celebrity or Royal or both... you might check the website .. I will see if I can find it..... here is some info... not complete..but helpful https://www.royalcaribbean.com/sgp/en/royal-promise

Edited June 6, 2021 by kearney
added link

[Ocean Boy]

4 hours ago, coffeebean said:

Mixing vaccinted passengers with un-vaccinated passengers in port is the poor planning the OP was referring to. I agree with the OP and find this type of planning to be a disaster waiting to happen.

 

Why assure passengers they will be on a 100% vaccinated ship only to mingle them with un-vaccinated passengers when they arrive in port. That just does not make any sense to me.

 

4 hours ago, coffeebean said:

You might add the risk of a vaccinated person transmitting the virus to others is very LOW too. Being vaccinated is a win win, not only for the individual but for the good of the community.

So on one hand you are saying that vaccinated passengers should not mix with unvaccinated and on the other hand you are saying that it shouldn't be a problem.🤔

[Sunshine3601]

10 minutes ago, aquasea said:

We should all stop living in fear. If you are vaccinated you will be OK. You will be outdoors, in the sun and fresh air, which is THE BEST for your health and immune system. Go and HAVE FUN!!!

so you are okay with a cruise possibly being cut short because a % of unvaccinated passengers get or have covid onboard?    that is our concern, not catching covid, but being sent back home after paying all the money to get on the ship (flights, transportation, hotel, etc)  and have only 3 or 4 days on a ship that was supposed to be 7 or 14 days. 

[ccndfw]

4 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

So how does RCI reconcile the Bahamian vaccination mandate with Florida's mandate to not allow proof of vaccination to be required?

I’m sure the Bahamas wants their tourism dollars back and they probably will change their policy. I would guess the other cruise lines will probably follow RCI as well. 

[Ocean Boy]

20 minutes ago, BecciBoo said:

Agreed, the key to it all is, I'm vaxd, tested positive for Antigens...ain't worried about nuttin honey.

Did you mean tested positive for antibodies?

[Sunshine3601]

3 minutes ago, kearney said:

I agree that they have not been clear on what their procedures will be. the CDC guidance..is confusing to me... I would like to see the various cruise lines layout what happens. It may be a function of how many are sick. Likely they will be isolated along with anyone who was in contact with them...  Actually this happened to us with DH got Norovirus... and then a few days later.. I got it... A recent Royal ship had a few crew who tested positive... they were removed from the ship and it sailed on... now it did not visit ports like a regular cruise ship... and I am not sure the crew members were actually ill.

 

I purchased travel insurance and it does include coverage for Covid related issues. Now if I recall the Cruise with confidence has some Covid coverage of some sort.. can't recall if it was Celebrity or Royal or both... you might check the website .. I will see if I can find it.

the CDC and Royal have said if a certain % of passengers test positive on board the ship will return to homeport.    this is why they have to have port agreements in place.      But nowhere have I heard or read what that % is.     Earlier this year  I recall reading CSO from CDC and I believe it said 1.5% of passengers, has that changed?    What is the actual %.     

 

Most travel insurances will cover for covid issues for medical but they will not reimburse you the expense of your flight, hotel, food, car transportation to and from airport, cruise terminal, etc. if a cruise is cut short.    At least I have not found one that will cover all of that.    I believe I read Royal will reimburse you cruise fare if a cruise is cut short.

[mauraoel]

I am still shaking my head at all the grumbling... are these people not getting of in Cozumel or the Grand Bahamas where most of the population isn't vaccinated?  

 

The only unvacinated on adventure are the kids below 16 prior to August and below 12 there after... hmm the population that is the least affected by covid. What am I missing?

[kearney]

I believe if you are unvaccinated... like young children... heading to Nassau... you need to be tested within a few days of travel... so Nassau is not mandating vaccination.. they were I believe earlier..but made a change a few months ago

 

A few thoughts on those with concerns about $ of delays... do check your travel insurance and see if you have Covid coverage...if you purchased policy pre covid..might not be included... Also Royal has some support... this explains some of their plans...(I wish it was more detailed) https://www.royalcaribbean.com/sgp/en/royal-promise

[aquasea]

9 minutes ago, broberts said:

 

Can you produce any actual data to substantiate this claim? 

Yes, follow many youtubers who are in UK and Germany and they have been cruising all year. The Very Unofficial Travel Guides with Morgan, he is from Hamburg and has videos of his Mein Schiff and Mein Shiff 2  and also Aida cruises he has taken all this year. Also, Emmacruises and there are a few more! No problems.

[broberts]

3 minutes ago, Heymarco said:

That’s a conspiracy theory if I ever heard one. Quick call the NY Post, cruise ships quietly dumping Covid patients all across Europe.

 

I just pointed out that the lack of evidence does not constitute proof.

 

If you want to claim that there have been no covid related issues on European cruises, provide some data to support the contention.

[Sunshine3601]

11 minutes ago, Heymarco said:

Even then, how many people caught covid onboard and had to be dropped off? It should be easy to discern and understand the level of risk. Don’t forget, overall vaccination rates are still lower in Europe too. So if it works for them….

Yes, the sailings in Europe and Asia have been working but let's remember those sailings have Very strict protocols in place.     Masks basically required at all times.   

 

[ccndfw]

1 minute ago, Sunshine3601 said:

so you are okay with a cruise possibly being cut short because a % of unvaccinated passengers get or have covid onboard?    that is our concern, not catching covid, but being sent back home after paying all the money to get on the ship (flights, transportation, hotel, etc)  and have only 3 or 4 days on a ship that was supposed to be 7 or 14 days. 

Most people haven’t read the terms of their agreement to sail, but unless something has changed in recent years,  cruise ships always have the right to change the itinerary.  I know people that went on a cruise and there was horrible weather and they only had one port stop and not the four on their original itinerary.    I was also stuck waiting to embark for six hours while the ship was being cleaned due to the Norovirus outbreak on the previous sailing.  This is all part of the risk you take with cruising… none of the port stops are guaranteed.  

[aquasea]

7 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

so you are okay with a cruise possibly being cut short because a % of unvaccinated passengers get or have covid onboard?    that is our concern, not catching covid, but being sent back home after paying all the money to get on the ship (flights, transportation, hotel, etc)  and have only 3 or 4 days on a ship that was supposed to be 7 or 14 days. 

It won't be. The CDC has guidance and they say if vaccinated, you do not need to even quarantine if you come in contact with a covid + person. Gosh, guys, you need to calm down. Cancel if you are afraid. There was a ship full of crew and 5 tested +. They then removed those 5 and kept on going. No one else got it, but they ended up testing negative a little bit later on. They won't stop the ship, they won't quarantine everyone. They will make sure that one person is taken care of. This is not March 2020 anymore.

[Ocean Boy]

14 minutes ago, aquasea said:

There is something we are all forgetting. The CDC has guidance and in that guidance they state if you are vaccinated you do not need to quarantine even if you have come in contact with a covid positive person. Only those who are not vaccinated would need to. That was the last I have read, unless they updated it further. 

You are correct. The only issue is that the CDC has treated the cruise industry differently than the rest of the universe. Hopefully, things will be handled at sea as they are on land.

[Sunshine3601]

8 minutes ago, Heymarco said:

That’s a conspiracy theory if I ever heard one. Quick call the NY Post, cruise ships quietly dumping Covid patients all across Europe.

no need to exaggerate but yes, it has happened several times on MSC sailings out of Italy.     I have been reading the posts and live reviews on their threads since they started sailing last summer.   They handled and all was fine.   but again, they are not going to be operating under the protocol of the CDC and the CSO, etc etc. 

[Ocean Boy]

2 minutes ago, aquasea said:

 They won't stop the ship, they won't quarantine everyone. They will make sure that one person is taken care of. This is not March 2020 anymore.

I would prefer to hear that from Mr. Fain or Mr. Beylay than from you.

[Sunshine3601]

2 minutes ago, ccndfw said:

Most people haven’t read the terms of their agreement to sail, but unless something has changed in recent years,  cruise ships always have the right to change the itinerary.  I know people that went on a cruise and there was horrible weather and they only had one port stop and not the four on their original itinerary.    I was also stuck waiting to embark for six hours while the ship was being cleaned due to the Norovirus outbreak on the previous sailing.  This is all part of the risk you take with cruising… none of the port stops are guaranteed.  

Nothing is guaranteed in life for anything but you do what you can to make the best of it and know your risk and options.      yes I have had port changes and had to deal with noro breaks out on ships.     

So what is the % of passengers that Royal and CDC will require for a ship to return back to homeport.      If a ship has 2000 passengers it may be 200 or 250 people which most likely won't happen but you better believe these cruise ships are not going to take any chance of being shut down again by CDC.

[aquasea]

5 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

the CDC and Royal have said if a certain % of passengers test positive on board the ship will return to homeport.    this is why they have to have port agreements in place.      But nowhere have I heard or read what that % is.     Earlier this year  I recall reading CSO from CDC and I believe it said 1.5% of passengers, has that changed?    What is the actual %.     

 

Most travel insurances will cover for covid issues for medical but they will not reimburse you the expense of your flight, hotel, food, car transportation to and from airport, cruise terminal, etc. if a cruise is cut short.    At least I have not found one that will cover all of that.    I believe I read Royal will reimburse you cruise fare if a cruise is cut short.

Have you read their protocols recently. I could have sworn they said they will take care of that passenger at their expense. Please go, for instance, to Royal Caribbean Protocols.

You’re taken care of

Book a Royal Caribbean International cruise that’s sailing on or before October 31, 2021 and you’ll have the following reassurance at no extra charge.
 

COVID-19 Assistance*

• 100% cruise fare refund for you, and your Travelling Party, if any of you tests positive for COVID-19 within 14 days prior to the cruise or at the boarding terminal.

• Pro-rated cruise fare refund for anyone who has their cruise cut short due to testing positive for COVID-19 or being suspected of having COVID-19 during the cruise.

•If you test positive for COVID-19 during the cruise, Royal Caribbean will cover the costs of COVID-19 related medical treatment onboard, any required land-based quarantine, and travel home for you and your Travelling Party.

*Last modified April 30, 2021. Subject to change. “Travelling Party” means your family members living with you in the same household and travelling companions assigned to your stateroom on the cruise. Conditioned upon compliance with the RCG COVID-19 Policies and Procedures in effect at the time of the cruise. Additional terms and conditions apply. See our COVID-19 Refund and Cancellations Policy and your Cruise Ticket Contract for details.

 

[aquasea]

6 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

You are correct. The only issue is that the CDC has treated the cruise industry differently than the rest of the universe. Hopefully, things will be handled at sea as they are on land.

If you go, for instance, to Royal they now have this:

You’re taken care of

Book a Royal Caribbean International cruise that’s sailing on or before October 31, 2021 and you’ll have the following reassurance at no extra charge.
 

COVID-19 Assistance*

• 100% cruise fare refund for you, and your Travelling Party, if any of you tests positive for COVID-19 within 14 days prior to the cruise or at the boarding terminal.

• Pro-rated cruise fare refund for anyone who has their cruise cut short due to testing positive for COVID-19 or being suspected of having COVID-19 during the cruise.

•If you test positive for COVID-19 during the cruise, Royal Caribbean will cover the costs of COVID-19 related medical treatment onboard, any required land-based quarantine, and travel home for you and your Travelling Party.

*Last modified April 30, 2021. Subject to change. “Travelling Party” means your family members living with you in the same household and travelling companions assigned to your stateroom on the cruise. Conditioned upon compliance with the RCG COVID-19 Policies and Procedures in effect at the time of the cruise. Additional terms and conditions apply. See our COVID-19 Refund and Cancellations Policy and your Cruise Ticket Contract for details.

[Ocean Boy]

17 minutes ago, ccndfw said:

I’m sure the Bahamas wants their tourism dollars back and they probably will change their policy. I would guess the other cruise lines will probably follow RCI as well. 

If they are going to change it don't you think that they had better do it soon?

[kearney]

8 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

the CDC and Royal have said if a certain % of passengers test positive on board the ship will return to homeport.    this is why they have to have port agreements in place.      But nowhere have I heard or read what that % is.     Earlier this year  I recall reading CSO from CDC and I believe it said 1.5% of passengers, has that changed?    What is the actual %.     

 

Most travel insurances will cover for covid issues for medical but they will not reimburse you the expense of your flight, hotel, food, car transportation to and from airport, cruise terminal, etc. if a cruise is cut short.    At least I have not found one that will cover all of that.    I believe I read Royal will reimburse you cruise fare if a cruise is cut short.

The policy I have included trip interruption for covid.. does include return airtravel.. now ... in the past..unrelated to covid... insurance covered hotel room and meals when ice closed ATL airport.. I haven't poured over the policy...

[ccndfw]

1 minute ago, Ocean Boy said:

If they are going to change it don't you think that they had better do it soon?

You know how it works there… Everyone’s on island time and nothing happens in a hurry!