Warning for Canadian cruisers re covid tests

[Fouremco]

13 minutes ago, darkblueerin said:

As of checking right now - all three are in stock.

 

I need the legit PCR test to board my cruise - the LAMP test I don't think is accepted?

The test requirements are specified on the MSC website:

 

U.S., Puerto Rico, & Canada residents: 
FULLY VACCINATED GUESTS 12 YEARS AND OLDER:
All fully vaccinated guests 12 years and older must provide documentation of a negative COVID-19 test at the pier. The test must be taken no more than 2 days before departure and the guest is responsible for the test and cost. Fully vaccinated guests must provide either a negative RT-PCR test, negative NAAT or negative antigen test.
 

Of these, the antigen test is your quickest and cheapest choice, available at pharmacies and other test sites across Canada. Also available from Switch Health if you prefer the DIY approach at a much lower cost than their LAMP test, but not as cheap as many pharmacies. Depending on your pre-cruise travel arrangements, you should be able to take your test in Canada to meet both the flight requirement and the cruise requirement. 

 

A LAMP test is one of several types of NAAT tests and should be acceptable to MSC if you don't go the antigen route. From the CDC:

 

NAATs can use many different methods to amplify nucleic acids and detect the virus, including but not limited to:

• Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)
• Isothermal amplification including:
  • Nicking endonuclease amplification reaction (NEAR)
  • Transcription mediated amplification (TMA)
  • Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP)
  • Helicase-dependent amplification (HDA)
  • Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)
  • Strand displacement amplification (SDA)

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/lab/naats.html

 

So you have lots of options. Don't go looking for a PCR test for boarding as it is unnecessarily more expensive. Just bear in mind that for your return to Canada, an antigen test in not sufficient; you'll need a PCR or NAAT test.

 

 

[darkblueerin]

MSC is being notoriously cryptic - here's the Canada site. I would gladly take a different test - I've emailed to see if LAMP is sufficient but I'm not holding my breath.

 

CARIBBEAN CRUISES - COVID-19: MEASURES TO EMBARK FOR CANADIAN RESIDENTS

 

For all sailings in the upcoming months, untill March 31st 2022, please note that all Guests will need to follow all of these requirements to be allowed on board: 

 

• All Guests (2 – 11 years old) need to provide a certificate of a negative RT-PCR test taken within 3 days before embarkation (i.e if you embark on your cruise on a Saturday,  you should take your COVID-19 RT-PCR test on the Wednesday before). Antigen COVID-19 test is not accepted to take a cruise (even though it is allowed to fly to the USA) and boarding will be denied. Guests (2 – 11 years old) will undergo an additional COVID-19 test at the terminal (free of charge), before boarding.
• All Guest (12 years old and over):
• need to provide a certificate of a negative RT-PCR taken within 3 days before embarkation (i.e if you embark on your cruise on a Saturday,  you should take your COVID-19 test on the Wednesday before).  Antigen COVID-19 test is not accepted to take a cruise (even though it is allowed to fly to the USA)  and boarding will be denied. If the COVID-19 RT-PCR test is done more than 2 days before embarkation, Guests will undergo an additional COVID-19 test at the terminal (free of charge), before boarding

Edited November 15, 2021 by darkblueerin

[Fouremco]

How very strange, their .com site stating one thing and their .ca site saying something completely different. I wonder how many Canadians refer to the .com site and are unaware of the huge difference in the testing requirements.

 

Best of luck getting it all sorted out.

[CruisinFinsUp]

 

Re:   Rexall  testing for travel - my pharmacy is on the list, so assuming the list is correct I'm going to try to go there.   I'll talk to my pharmacist for more info well in advance ....  

 

The problem I have is that the website states the results come back 24-48 hours.   

https://www.rexall.ca/covid-19/nasal-swab-test   for the travel tests.  

 

They also offer on the booking page, a 30 min Rapid Antigen test which is the only one I see on the Rexall website with a shorter turn around. 

But is that test valid for the CDC for flying into the US??     

All I can find re rapid tests on the CDC website is in the FAQ that 
"Rapid tests are acceptable if they are a viral test that meet the requirements under the Order."     https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html

But I cannot understand what specifically that means!   

 

Or is there somewhere else in the West GTA (Mississauga / Oakville / Burlington) that is a good place to go for fast travel testing results?   We want to get tested on a Monday,  we fly on Tuesday and cruise (Princess) on Wednesday.     Should I check ShoppersDM ???  

 

Thanks, cause this is clear as mud!  

 

 

Edited November 15, 2021 by CruisinFinsUp

[RealBatman]

I am planning to use either a walk-in Calgary pharmacy prior to our departure at the end of January, or to use the Switch Home Rapid Antigen kit. I read in this thread that the Switch kits are back ordered which made me wonder if there is an expiry date on the kits, as I might put in my order soon in order to have it on hand. I contacted Switch Health and asked about expiry dates, here is the reply:

 

   "The RT lamp test has a one year expiry date

    The rapid antigen has a two-year expiry date"

 

Now I have to decide which way to go! LOL!  The complexities of 1st world problems! 🙂 

Edited November 15, 2021 by RealBatman

[Bluemoose]

has anyone obtained Antigen or PCR tests in the USA ?  we are planning to drive down in early Feb, taking 3 or 4 days, so we'll need to get tested in the US.... I believe CVS, Walgreens etc can do them, but I'm worried about the turn around time ?   I read earlier in this post you can get a rapid test at the port for $105 USD ? 

[CruisinFinsUp]

20 minutes ago, CruisinFinsUp said:

 

Re:   Rexall  testing for travel - my pharmacy is on the list, so assuming the list is correct I'm going to try to go there.   I'll talk to my pharmacist for more info well in advance ....  

 

The problem I have is that the website states the results come back 24-48 hours.   

https://www.rexall.ca/covid-19/nasal-swab-test   for the travel tests.  

 

They also offer on the booking page, a 30 min Rapid Antigen test which is the only one I see on the Rexall website with a shorter turn around. 

But is that test valid for the CDC for flying into the US??     

All I can find re rapid tests on the CDC website is in the FAQ that 
"Rapid tests are acceptable if they are a viral test that meet the requirements under the Order."     https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html

But I cannot understand what specifically that means!   

 

Or is there somewhere else in the West GTA (Mississauga / Oakville / Burlington) that is a good place to go for fast travel testing results?   We want to get tested on a Monday,  we fly on Tuesday and cruise (Princess) on Wednesday.     Should I check ShoppersDM ???  

 

Thanks, cause this is clear as mud!  

 

 

 

 

too late to edit - I'm gonna read the multipage thread on testing sites instead!    

 

Thanks! 

 

[Fouremco]

33 minutes ago, CruisinFinsUp said:

 

Re:   Rexall  testing for travel - my pharmacy is on the list, so assuming the list is correct I'm going to try to go there.   I'll talk to my pharmacist for more info well in advance ....  

 

The problem I have is that the website states the results come back 24-48 hours.   

https://www.rexall.ca/covid-19/nasal-swab-test   for the travel tests.  

 

They also offer on the booking page, a 30 min Rapid Antigen test which is the only one I see on the Rexall website with a shorter turn around. 

But is that test valid for the CDC for flying into the US??     

All I can find re rapid tests on the CDC website is in the FAQ that 
"Rapid tests are acceptable if they are a viral test that meet the requirements under the Order."     https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html

But I cannot understand what specifically that means!   

 

Or is there somewhere else in the West GTA (Mississauga / Oakville / Burlington) that is a good place to go for fast travel testing results?   We want to get tested on a Monday,  we fly on Tuesday and cruise (Princess) on Wednesday.     Should I check ShoppersDM ???  

 

Thanks, cause this is clear as mud!  

 

 

Rapid antigen tests are perfectly acceptable for travel to the US. 

 

Here's a more detailed discussion of the tests on the CDC website:

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/lab/resources/antigen-tests-guidelines.html

[CruisinFinsUp]

8 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

Rapid antigen tests are perfectly acceptable for travel to the US. 

 

Here's a more detailed discussion of the tests on the CDC website:

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/lab/resources/antigen-tests-guidelines.html

 

Thanks very much.   I'm seeing from the other thread that its ok too.    

 

I saw that page as I was roaming the CDC attestation form and its background --   All I wanted to find was if there is only one "rapid antigen" type so  When Rexall says "rapid antigen" that is the same as what the CDC wants?      There are so many different testing types I'm wanting to check and recheck !     

With my luck, I'd end up getting the wrong kind of test !    I was thrown off by the pharmacy websites calling the other tests "travel" tests!     

 

Thanks again!    

[GeriatricNurse]

5 hours ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

Great information, thank you! We are in the Bayridge area so all those locations are very convenient. Next time I’m on Princess I’ll pop into that Guardian…how much are they charging?

Hey, I live in the Bayridge area too!  I would highly recommend 'Guardian Medix Pharmacy', (613-542-5222)!  I just got off the 'phone with the Pharmacist, 'Naju George', to confirm my appointment.  The cost is $20 and no tax!

[*Miss G*]

8 hours ago, Bluemoose said:

has anyone obtained Antigen or PCR tests in the USA ?  we are planning to drive down in early Feb, taking 3 or 4 days, so we'll need to get tested in the US.... I believe CVS, Walgreens etc can do them, but I'm worried about the turn around time ?   I read earlier in this post you can get a rapid test at the port for $105 USD ? 

 

Assuming you’re driving down to Florida, I’ve read of happy campers who’ve used BeeperMD.  It’s free of charge and they come to you. 

[*Miss G*]

10 hours ago, darkblueerin said:

Has anyone done the Switch Health at home PCR test? I'm thinking it's my best option for my MSC cruise in a few weeks, but I haven't heard anyone's personal experience with the timeline of it. 

I did it Friday night but only because I entered Canada and won the “random testing” draw. I wouldn’t recommend it for tight timelines for many reasons. Besides the long wait for a nurse, the first available Purolator pickup of the kit was this afternoon. I was told results will take about four days but the one I had in July took two. 

[darkblueerin]

24 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

I did it Friday night but only because I entered Canada and won the “random testing” draw. I wouldn’t recommend it for tight timelines for many reasons. Besides the long wait for a nurse, the first available Purolator pickup of the kit was this afternoon. I was told results will take about four days but the one I had in July took two. 

Thank you so much for this info. I’m struggling with how to plan this out when I live somewhat rurally and the most local test I can find is 150 + a 145 courier fee!

[*Miss G*]

19 minutes ago, darkblueerin said:

Thank you so much for this info. I’m struggling with how to plan this out when I live somewhat rurally and the most local test I can find is 150 + a 145 courier fee!

 

Wow. Don’t know your circumstances but, if it were me, I’d opt for a test at the airport. 

[darkblueerin]

I’m flying out of DTW and I can’t see that they offer them there?

[gnome12]

12 minutes ago, darkblueerin said:

I’m flying out of DTW and I can’t see that they offer them there?

If you are flying out of DTW you don't need a test to either cross the border by car, nor to fly domestically in the US. What does your cruise line require, and how long are you in the US before you sail? Can you do a test in your departure port?

[*Miss G*]

10 minutes ago, darkblueerin said:

I’m flying out of DTW and I can’t see that they offer them there?

Ah. I see your dilemma. If you are flying to Florida on the day of your cruise I would check to see if your cruiseline provides testing at the terminal. If you are arriving in Florida a day or two early I would book with BeeperMD.  I do not have any info on anywhere other than Florida so my apologies that I can’t help you. 
 

If you go to Google Maps and enter “Covid testing near DTW” you will find a number of options but you will need to verify they will do rapid travel testing as a number of US walk-in clinics and pharmacies are not testing anyone without symptoms. Good luck. 

[darkblueerin]

4 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

If you are flying out of DTW you don't need a test to either cross the border by car, nor to fly domestically in the US. What does your cruise line require, and how long are you in the US before you sail? Can you do a test in your departure port?

MSC is requiring a PCR test - I get into Orlando around 10pm the night before and am supposed to embark at 11am.

[Fouremco]

12 hours ago, darkblueerin said:

MSC is requiring a PCR test - I get into Orlando around 10pm the night before and am supposed to embark at 11am.

At this point, your travel arrangements very much limit your test options, especially as MSC requires a PCR test. You will probably arrive in Orlando too late for a PCR test taken that night, but one possibility is Fast Test at the airport. Unfortunately, I don't know what hours they are open, or even if they will test arriving passengers. And it will cost you dearly for an urgent test. Anyway, this link provides their contact information and price list for the various tests.

https://fasttestnow.as.me/orlando?_gl=1*1dhk92y*_gcl_aw*R0NMLjE2MzcwNzQwNzQuQ2owS0NRaUF5czJNQmhET0FSSXNBRmYxRDFlTjAwbzhqZWdaRU9wWXVYMnJtVFlKbllhei1jckx6V2pwckZHNlItcDBSY3E0M3ZQUWVHVWFBa1c4RUFMd193Y0I.

 

 BeeperMD is another possibility for Orlando. They offer a Rapid RT-PCR test but the price is $399 USD, or about $500 CAD.

 

Personally, I would start looking for a Canadian test facility. You say that you live in a rural area, but you should be able to locate a test site within a couple of hours from home. According to the MSC information that you provided in your post #52, the test can be taken "within 3 days before embarkation", which means that you would not need to get a harder to find and more costly rapid test. You could get tested on Thursday, pack on Friday, fly on Saturday and board on Sunday. Here's a list of Ontario SDM stores that offer their International Outbound Travel Test at a cost of $150 CAD:

https://covid-19.shoppersdrugmart.ca/en/testing/international-outbound/on/locations

 

 

[GeriatricNurse]

18 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

At this point, your travel arrangements very much limit your test options, especially as MSC requires a PCR test. You will probably arrive in Orlando too late for a PCR test taken that night, but one possibility is Fast Test at the airport. Unfortunately, I don't know what hours they are open, or even if they will test arriving passengers. And it will cost you dearly for an urgent test. Anyway, this link provides their contact information and price list for the various tests.

https://fasttestnow.as.me/orlando?_gl=1*1dhk92y*_gcl_aw*R0NMLjE2MzcwNzQwNzQuQ2owS0NRaUF5czJNQmhET0FSSXNBRmYxRDFlTjAwbzhqZWdaRU9wWXVYMnJtVFlKbllhei1jckx6V2pwckZHNlItcDBSY3E0M3ZQUWVHVWFBa1c4RUFMd193Y0I.

 

 BeeperMD is another possibility for Orlando. They offer a Rapid RT-PCR test but the price is $399 USD, or about $500 CAD.

 

Personally, I would start looking for a Canadian test facility. You say that you live in a rural area, but you should be able to locate a test site within a couple of hours from home. According to the MSC information that you provided in your post #52, the test can be taken "within 3 days before embarkation", which means that you would not need to get a harder to find and more costly rapid test. You could get tested on Thursday, pack on Friday, fly on Saturday and board on Sunday. Here's a list of Ontario SDM stores that offer their International Outbound Travel Test at a cost of $150 CAD:

https://covid-19.shoppersdrugmart.ca/en/testing/international-outbound/on/locations

 

How about 'Vector Health Labs'?

 

[Fouremco]

3 minutes ago, GeriatricNurse said:

22 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

At this point, your travel arrangements very much limit your test options, especially as MSC requires a PCR test. You will probably arrive in Orlando too late for a PCR test taken that night, but one possibility is Fast Test at the airport. Unfortunately, I don't know what hours they are open, or even if they will test arriving passengers. And it will cost you dearly for an urgent test. Anyway, this link provides their contact information and price list for the various tests.

https://fasttestnow.as.me/orlando?_gl=1*1dhk92y*_gcl_aw*R0NMLjE2MzcwNzQwNzQuQ2owS0NRaUF5czJNQmhET0FSSXNBRmYxRDFlTjAwbzhqZWdaRU9wWXVYMnJtVFlKbllhei1jckx6V2pwckZHNlItcDBSY3E0M3ZQUWVHVWFBa1c4RUFMd193Y0I.

 

 BeeperMD is another possibility for Orlando. They offer a Rapid RT-PCR test but the price is $399 USD, or about $500 CAD.

 

Personally, I would start looking for a Canadian test facility. You say that you live in a rural area, but you should be able to locate a test site within a couple of hours from home. According to the MSC information that you provided in your post #52, the test can be taken "within 3 days before embarkation", which means that you would not need to get a harder to find and more costly rapid test. You could get tested on Thursday, pack on Friday, fly on Saturday and board on Sunday. Here's a list of Ontario SDM stores that offer their International Outbound Travel Test at a cost of $150 CAD:

https://covid-19.shoppersdrugmart.ca/en/testing/international-outbound/on/locations

 

How about 'Vector Health Labs'?

 

I'm not familiar with Vector Health Labs, but they seem to be concentrated in Toronto and Thunder Bay. As I don't know where @darkblueerin lives, I thought the broad-based SDM would be a good starting place. The fact that Vector offers 2-hour, same day and next day PCR results makes it a viable option for those living nearby.

[darkblueerin]

37 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

I'm not familiar with Vector Health Labs, but they seem to be concentrated in Toronto and Thunder Bay. As I don't know where @darkblueerin lives, I thought the broad-based SDM would be a good starting place. The fact that Vector offers 2-hour, same day and next day PCR results makes it a viable option for those living nearby.

Thank you for all your help! I managed to find one in Windsor for a good price - booked it the Thurs night for embarkation Sunday. 

[Fouremco]

17 minutes ago, darkblueerin said:

Thank you for all your help! I managed to find one in Windsor for a good price - booked it the Thurs night for embarkation Sunday. 

Excellent news! I'm really happy that you have one less thing to worry about!

[DHP1]

On 11/15/2021 at 11:00 AM, Fouremco said:

The test requirements are specified on the MSC website:

 

U.S., Puerto Rico, & Canada residents: 
FULLY VACCINATED GUESTS 12 YEARS AND OLDER:
All fully vaccinated guests 12 years and older must provide documentation of a negative COVID-19 test at the pier. The test must be taken no more than 2 days before departure and the guest is responsible for the test and cost. Fully vaccinated guests must provide either a negative RT-PCR test, negative NAAT or negative antigen test.
 

Of these, the antigen test is your quickest and cheapest choice, available at pharmacies and other test sites across Canada. Also available from Switch Health if you prefer the DIY approach at a much lower cost than their LAMP test, but not as cheap as many pharmacies. Depending on your pre-cruise travel arrangements, you should be able to take your test in Canada to meet both the flight requirement and the cruise requirement. 

 

A LAMP test is one of several types of NAAT tests and should be acceptable to MSC if you don't go the antigen route. From the CDC:

 

NAATs can use many different methods to amplify nucleic acids and detect the virus, including but not limited to:

• Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)
• Isothermal amplification including:
  • Nicking endonuclease amplification reaction (NEAR)
  • Transcription mediated amplification (TMA)
  • Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP)
  • Helicase-dependent amplification (HDA)
  • Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)
  • Strand displacement amplification (SDA)

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/lab/naats.html

 

So you have lots of options. Don't go looking for a PCR test for boarding as it is unnecessarily more expensive. Just bear in mind that for your return to Canada, an antigen test in not sufficient; you'll need a PCR or NAAT test.

 

 

This is not good for us Canadians.  We would have to pay extra in order to get the test results back on time.  Rapid Antigen Test is cheap and you get results back in less than 3 hours. I will assume other cruise lines will eventually follow the same requirements.  Trusting I’m wrong.  

Edited November 16, 2021 by DHP1

[Fouremco]

5 minutes ago, DHP1 said:

This is not good for us Canadians.  We would have to pay extra in order to get the test results back on time.  Rapid Antigen Test is cheap and you get results back in less than 3 hours. I will assume other cruise lines will eventually follow the same requirements.  Trusting I’m wrong.  

As @darkblueerin points out in post #52, there is a discrepancy between the requirements as stated on the .com site and the .ca site, with the latter specifying PCR tests only for Canadians. However, MSC is an exception, and I really don't foresee other lines going to a PCR requirement for cruises out of the US. JMO