New Covid Variant

[jacpansea]

Do you think there will be any issues with the Christmas sailing on the Caribbean Princess? I know nobody can foresee the future, I’m just hoping to hear from those of you who have been paying attention to the cruise sites during covid. We stopped living 21 months ago and are so looking forward to this. I mentally need it! We are both vaccinated and boosted. 

[MissP22]

It's got to have a decremental effect on the travel industry. I suspect the masking & distancing will continue on most cruise ships unless there's a major breakout which could put the cruise ships on hold once more. Hopefully it won't be as bad as anticipated. 

I don't know if they could survive another year like 2020. 😢

[Fletch1]

I think it will only effect you if there are confirmed cases there...which I don't think is the case at this stage. 

 

Here in Australia, we have 5 confirmed cases in the past 24 hours or so. It is a case of "wait and see" here as to how bad it is and going to be. Reports coming out of South Africa tonight say it is far more contagious than the Delta variant, but the effects generally are only mild.......as I said......"wait and see"!!!

[Doug R.]

I see no need to be "Chicken Little" at this time. As the meme based on the British WW2 poster says, "Keep Calm and Monitor Developments."

[nocl]

8 hours ago, jacpansea said:

Do you think there will be any issues with the Christmas sailing on the Caribbean Princess? I know nobody can foresee the future, I’m just hoping to hear from those of you who have been paying attention to the cruise sites during covid. We stopped living 21 months ago and are so looking forward to this. I mentally need it! We are both vaccinated and boosted. 

I do not expect an impact with Christmas sailings.  Even if the new variant is as infectious as Delta I would not expect it to have a major impact in the US for a few months (based upon looking at how fast Delta moved).

 

That said it may make some of the island destinations nervous and they may put more restrictions in place.  So do not be surprised if their are changes in itinerary.

[Level six]

When we were on the Grand Nov 5-20, the cruise consultant onboard said masks will probably be required through 2022 on Princess. So, maybe that will help with outbreaks if they occur. 

[loge23]

Too early to tell. Other cruise lines have successfully managed operating since last Spring; so can Princess with a robust plan in place. There will be other variants - it's really a matter of learning to live with this with known safety measures and yes, vaccines. 

[mjmalino]

The way I am looking at it is this, the cruise lines sailed through Delta right after they started sailing again. I think  they will keep their protocols in place for the foreseeable future, and I think, that as long as the passengers/crew adhere to them they will keep the cases to a minimum and the ships will continue to sail no matter what Covid sends our way. Frankly, I think that if we stop living every time a new variant comes around we will never do anything.

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, Level six said:

When we were on the Grand Nov 5-20, the cruise consultant onboard said masks will probably be required through 2022 on Princess. So, maybe that will help with outbreaks if they occur. 

OMG - I hope not.  Man, I'd want them to be optional by Fall 2022.  This Omicron sounds like getting a cold so far.  Are we going to have ask mandate forever?  39 days on Princess with a mask is not my idea of fun.  We shall see.

[Level six]

10 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

OMG - I hope not.  Man, I'd want them to be optional by Fall 2022.  This Omicron sounds like getting a cold so far.  Are we going to have ask mandate forever?  39 days on Princess with a mask is not my idea of fun.  We shall see.

That's what she said. 

 

I am a "masker" and I have to admit, it was hard to wear for 15 days.  But, I still did, in every single indoor place.   I feel bad for medical professionals and all those who have to wear them all the time, including the crew.  It did impact my cruise some, but I am still glad I went. Like you said, we shall see. 

[Ronnieslady]

4 hours ago, Level six said:

When we were on the Grand Nov 5-20, the cruise consultant onboard said masks will probably be required through 2022 on Princess. So, maybe that will help with outbreaks if they occur. 

I was onboard the Grand from the Nov. 10-20. That future  cruise consultant seemed to really know her stuff.  I was impressed by her. Some of the past Future Cruise Consultants, I knew more about what was going on, than he or she did.  They were worthless.  If she told you about the mask thing, I would trust her that she was right.  
Thanks for the new info,

Grace

[deadzone1003]

Heard they only caught this variant because the people who had the new variant had to take a PCR test in order to travel (does it sound like many of the members of this forum?).  Basically, they were asymptomatic or the symptoms were so mild they thought they had something else.  No loss of taste or smell, very little coughing, mostly fatigue or tiredness for a few days.  Question is how many people who have this new variant are hospitalized?  If none, maybe this is the covid variant you should catch in order to gain natural immunity.

[nbsjcruiser]

Glass half full on this for me. From everything I've read, Covid should eventually mutate to a less harmful variant. The cases they've discovered thus far are mild symptoms and it is highly transmissible. Maybe this could be the beginning of the end. I'm sure hoping so.

[memoak]

Since not all rapid antigen tests seem to identify it Princess may change to requiring PCR tests 

[PrincessLuver]

4 hours ago, mjmalino said:

The way I am looking at it is this, the cruise lines sailed through Delta right after they started sailing again. I think  they will keep their protocols in place for the foreseeable future, and I think, that as long as the passengers/crew adhere to them they will keep the cases to a minimum and the ships will continue to sail no matter what Covid sends our way. Frankly, I think that if we stop living every time a new variant comes around we will never do anything.

 

But where will they sail.....as counties continue to close their borders it could be a problem for the cruise lines....it really does not seem like things are getting any better after a year and a half of living with Covid....hope Princess survives but cruises to nowhere will not be that popular in the long run.....

[c-boy]

my gut tells me to ....

 

 

 

 

 

 

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some how this looks wrong   😳

Edited November 30, 2021 by c-boy

[azbirdmom]

42 minutes ago, memoak said:

Since not all rapid antigen tests seem to identify it Princess may change to requiring PCR tests 

 

As someone who is going on a cruise early next year who will require a test within 2 days of cruising, I certainly hope they are able to distribute enough of the rapid antigen tests that can detect this variant by the time we need them.  It is difficult if not impossible to reliably get PCR test results back in two days.

[mjmalino]

58 minutes ago, PrincessLuver said:

 

But where will they sail.....as counties continue to close their borders it could be a problem for the cruise lines....it really does not seem like things are getting any better after a year and a half of living with Covid....hope Princess survives but cruises to nowhere will not be that popular in the long run.....

I am hoping that there will be countries that will allow cruisers in, even if it is with a "bubble" excurison requirement.

[SinbadThePorter]

On 11/30/2021 at 2:56 AM, Doug R. said:

I see no need to be "Chicken Little" at this time. As the meme based on the British WW2 poster says, "Keep Calm and Monitor Developments."

 

Now is not the time to panic.

 

There will be plenty of time for panicking later on. 😊

Edited December 1, 2021 by SinbadThePorter

[jacpansea]

The Caribbean Princess has some cases on it right now. It’s at yellow.

[Host CJSKIDS]

Please see the Red Banner on top that CC has recently replaced in regards to Covid discussions.  Laura has set some great guidelines in regards to covid discussions.