After thought of a holiday cruise 2021

[shanni-shanni]

Although we enjoyed our cruise ( Dec. 22, 2021- Jan.9, 2022), the stress of flying back and forth ( with 2 connections each) and the 4 covid testings we had to do just does not make it worthwhile. 

 

We are not going again soon.

[john2003]

That is very unfortunate. I gather some Canadians have been able to cope with the hassles but I quite understand your feelings. YVR to FLL is always a bit of a struggle. We used to find it not too bad from Victoria through Seattle on Alaska as it was at least a straight line. That changed when we had a horrible experience in SEA.

 

[OlsSalt]

1 hour ago, shanni-shanni said:

Although we enjoyed our cruise ( Dec. 22, 2021- Jan.9, 2022), the stress of flying back and forth ( with 2 connections each) and the 4 covid testings we had to do just does not make it worthwhile. 

 

We are not going again soon.

 

Cruise industry needs to get this feedback. Thanks for posting this. Hassles and uncertainties do not make this a vacation .......yet. Thanks to all those who braved the first trial rounds of this new world of cruise ship vacations.

[Loreto]

2 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

 

Cruise industry needs to get this feedback. Thanks for posting this. Hassles and uncertainties do not make this a vacation .......yet. Thanks to all those who braved the first trial rounds of this new world of cruise ship vacations.

I agree!  We have a long planned Hawaii/Mexico cruise next month, then a family Alaska cruise in June.  DH said after Alaska it is time to take a break from cruising for awhile.  We did Alaska last August and the Sea of Cortez Holiday cruise in Dec.  All the extra planning and testing was just to stressful, especially for upcoming Hawaii.

[shanni-shanni]

19 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

 

Cruise industry needs to get this feedback. Thanks for posting this. Hassles and uncertainties do not make this a vacation .......yet. Thanks to all those who braved the first trial rounds of this new world of cruise ship vacations.

The cruise line actually doesn't have anything to do with our stress. It is the airline and government regulations that did us in.

 

Tom

[OlsSalt]

3 hours ago, shanni-shanni said:

The cruise line actually doesn't have anything to do with our stress. It is the airline and government regulations that did us in.

 

Tom

 

Cruise industry trade groups are part of the hospitality industry dialogue - which I believe is the fifth largest part of the US economy.  (Need to fact check this).  

 

The sooner all parts of the hospitality industry get all their parts moving together, the better for everyone. Moving from pandemic to endemic is one way to cool the heat on this present very unfortunate situation. 

 

A pre-covid 2019 look at the travel and hospitality industry - prepared by Deloitte:  

 

https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/consumer-business/us-consumer-2019-us-travel-and-hospitality-outlook.pdf

Edited January 15, 2022 by OlsSalt

[OmarOak]

1 hour ago, OlsSalt said:

 

Cruise industry trade groups are part of the hospitality industry dialogue - which I believe is the fifth largest part of the US economy.  (Need to fact check this).  

 

The sooner all parts of the hospitality industry get all their parts moving together, the better for everyone. Moving from pandemic to endemic is one way to cool the heat on this present very unfortunate situation. 

 

A pre-covid 2019 look at the travel and hospitality industry - prepared by Deloitte:  

 

https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/consumer-business/us-consumer-2019-us-travel-and-hospitality-outlook.pdf

Most of us in the hospitality are supportive of pandemic mitigation measures.

 

We require all of our employees to be fully vaccinated. We require all of our guests to demonstrate proof of vaccination.

 

No exceptions and wouldn't have it any other way.  

[Sue from Canada]

6 hours ago, shanni-shanni said:

Although we enjoyed our cruise ( Dec. 22, 2021- Jan.9, 2022), the stress of flying back and forth ( with 2 connections each) and the 4 covid testings we had to do just does not make it worthwhile. 

 

We are not going again soon.

At least you can sail to Hawaii and back from Vancouver.  I hope things will be better by the time I set set this August.  I can't handle all the stress with covid testing etc.

[ski ww]

Your're right doesn't sound like much of a break. But I think as long as we have this virus going strong, it will not get better soon. Pray for the numbers to start coming down & then maybe things can get back to normal. 

[Schooner-ca]

We are currently on Zuiderdam and have been since December 22. I would agree that the flight down from YVR to FLL was stressful. We are about to disembark in Fort Lauderdale. Travelling back to Vancouver through Montreal on Air Canada. I’m not too concerned about this trip home as we are flying widebody service back to Canada. We have also chosen seats and are much more relaxed than we were when we flew down. 

[VennDiagram]

15 hours ago, shanni-shanni said:

Although we enjoyed our cruise ( Dec. 22, 2021- Jan.9, 2022), the stress of flying back and forth ( with 2 connections each) and the 4 covid testings we had to do just does not make it worthwhile. 

 

We are not going again soon.

 

We live in sort of the middle of the country.  Even in the before-times, we often felt that the mental and physical toll of flying home after vacation negated a good part of our enjoyment of the vacation.  I cannot imagine how exhausting it is now.  I  understand your decision.  Even if we could afford a warm weather vacation of any kind right now (we can't), I don't think we would take one because of all the additional aggravations involved.

[shiner6]

We just returned from a landbased trip to Mexico from DFW which in "pre-covid times, was a breeze"!  This trip was different/ extremely stressful getting there and testing to come back. While we enjoyed our vacation, it made me do a lot of thinking about future travel to foreign countries.  I found that even though we stayed at a 5star resort, management's response to Covid testing was at best "a 1star experience".  I cancelled our 2 cruises to Europe next year and am going to examine my options for spending my vacation dollars in the future.   We will continue to cruise, as I believe they are the leaders in covid safety in the travel industry at this time.

[Boatdrill]

1 hour ago, VennDiagram said:

 

  Even in the before-times....

Also known as BC. Before COVID.  

Example: "We haven't been on a ship since 2019 BC".   😀

Edited January 15, 2022 by Boatdrill

[Ferry_Watcher]

17 hours ago, john2003 said:

That changed when we had a horrible experience in SEA.

Sorry to hear that my friend.  :  (

[OlsSalt]

14 hours ago, OmarOak said:

Most of us in the hospitality are supportive of pandemic mitigation measures.

 

We require all of our employees to be fully vaccinated. We require all of our guests to demonstrate proof of vaccination.

 

No exceptions and wouldn't have it any other way.  

 

A bifurcated hospitality industry may be the answer - offerings for those who still demand zero tolerance.  And offerings those who have learned to live with, or return to,  the uncertainties of travel and its potential disease exposures.

 

CDC dedicates an entire webpage to "travelers" in regards to standard infection exposures and precautions.  Travel has never been zero tolerance and worry free. 

[john2003]

11 hours ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

Sorry to hear that my friend.  :  (

Thx. I should add that prior to this experience using Alaska through SEA was our preferred routing for many trips and had always gone smoothly.

[blackfly]

Celebrity just cancelled all Mediterranean cruises on the Infinity.  Now scrambling to find a replacement cruise.  HAL Oosterdam seems to have a good itinerary.  Infinity’s departure port said Venice but it was actually Ravenna.  Oosterdams departure also says Venice but does anyone know exactly where it will be based.  

[Ichiban Nekko]

We had a terrific Holiday cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Of course, we also had the luxury of a non-stop flight home from FLL. We underwent COVID testing on return just to be sure (with the desired results).

 

Sadly, we have subsequently cancelled a land-based trip to the Canadian Rockies and an Alaska Cruisetour - scheduled for late spring 2022. We were concerned about the cross-border testing requirements (which can change at any time), but even more concerned about possible impacts of being in enclosed rail cars and/or motor coaches for hours at a time. There would also be long periods in airplanes and airports for both trips. 

 

This Omicron variant is still going strong. The continued politicization of mask-wearing and vaccination status also contributed to our decision. Too many fellow passengers on board the NA ‘forgot’ that they signed a contract with HAL to wear a mask except when actively eating and/or drinking. Thankfully, we had a balcony cabin we could retreat to.

 

I guess we’re back to wine tours for the foreseeable future. You know the one where you put a glass of wine in each room of your home and then wander around…

 

[Vict0riann]

15 hours ago, blackfly said:

Celebrity just cancelled all Mediterranean cruises on the Infinity.  Now scrambling to find a replacement cruise.  HAL Oosterdam seems to have a good itinerary.  Infinity’s departure port said Venice but it was actually Ravenna.  Oosterdams departure also says Venice but does anyone know exactly where it will be based.  

 

When we sailed Eurodam in the Med in October, the itinerary said Venice, we actually checked in in the Venice Cruise Passenger Terminal, bags taken, tests, etc., there, then we were bussed to the ship  in Trieste (a 2+ hour drive).  Not quite as far as Ravenna!  (Evidently a couple of earlier cruises had departed from Marghera, the industrial port of Venice, and only a 15-minute ride from the cruise terminal.)

[Horizon chaser 1957]

12 hours ago, Ichiban Nekko said:

I guess we’re back to wine tours for the foreseeable future. You know the one where you put a glass of wine in each room of your home and then wander around…

Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘bathtub gin’, doesn’t it? 😁

[Iris5383]

On 1/15/2022 at 2:45 PM, OlsSalt said:

 

A bifurcated hospitality industry may be the answer - offerings for those who still demand zero tolerance.  And offerings those who have learned to live with, or return to,  the uncertainties of travel and its potential disease exposures.

 

CDC dedicates an entire webpage to "travelers" in regards to standard infection exposures and precautions.  Travel has never been zero tolerance and worry free. 

I can't imagine cruising on a ship where vaccines were not required. It would be like early 2020, where no port would allow docking and with people getting deathly ill. What crew members would want to be assigned to such a journey?

[OlsSalt]

1 hour ago, Iris5383 said:

I can't imagine cruising on a ship where vaccines were not required. It would be like early 2020, where no port would allow docking and with people getting deathly ill. What crew members would want to be assigned to such a journey?

 

The official narrative about "covid" is changing, regardless of one's own personal reactions. Bi-furcated cruises does not mean co-mingled cruises. 30% still remain injection-free, so they would be the group willing to cruise together without this particular mandate.  

 

Some of us can imagine cruises with no strict protocols because so far the current restrictions are not particularly effective as we hear every day.  We also learn more every day about those with acquired immunity due to past infections.  

 

One size no longer fits all - as we follow the accumulating trial and error data. 

Edited January 24, 2022 by OlsSalt

[iancal]

We do not plan to travel unless it is for 6-8 weeks.  

 

Willing to put up with the travel hassles for a long land trip, but certainly not for a shorter fly down, fly home cruise.

[MISTER 67]

We refuse to fly anymore, last time was 2014. 

We live in Florida and now only take cruises that start and finish in the Sunshine state. It limits us to basically Caribbean cruises but that's OK because for us the ship is the destination and really don't care what the itinerary is. The only good thing about air travel is that it gets you to your destination fast unless you have connections that can turn into nightmares, been there, done that. Everything else about flying stinks, it's not like it was back in the day when the airlines aimed to please and your fellow passengers were civil and didn't behave like cretins and boors.

Edited January 25, 2022 by MISTER 67

[KirkNC]

22 hours ago, iancal said:

We do not plan to travel unless it is for 6-8 weeks.  

 

Willing to put up with the travel hassles for a long land trip, but certainly not for a shorter fly down, fly home cruise.

We are the exact same.