Afraid of Quarantaine/Isolation in OV or inside - consider cancelling ?

[tinaincc]

1 hour ago, Virginia100 said:

Your response is pretty much where I think. For cruising to survive the testing needs to stop, passengers with no symptoms are left alone and if you get sick enough to see the on board medical group it’s treated like a common sickness not the bubonic plague. Masking needs to optional everywhere not country specific. And the testing includes not just pre boarding but the remaining country entry ones like the US. This will upset some but cruising will never recover to being profitable under current conditions. 
 

To be real honest if cruise lines want to be  so secure in their sailings just require the booster for all passengers and those over 50 the second booster.  I’m up to date with Moderna and getting my 2nd booster with Phizer in July, before my August cruise.

100% Agree

[tinaincc]

9 minutes ago, jelayne said:

The. You would most likely be invited leave the ship.

 

Is that an opinion Informed by any written guidance?

[tinaincc]

50 minutes ago, sunlover33 said:

You can’t decline, you have accepted the terms and conditions set out in the conduct policy. The section on quarantine is deliberately vague. It needs to be made clear the conditions of quarantine so guests are able to make an informed decision to cruise or cancel. If I was moved from my suite to a balcony that I could live with,  but an IV or inside never. If there is no clarity before sailing I’m inclined to cancel. 
 

Guest Health, Safety, and Conduct Policy

Celebrity Cruises
(Last Updated: January, 2021)

https://www.celebritycruises.com/company/customer-support/conduct-policy

Thanks for this link

[lexmiller]

7 hours ago, Ayewash said:

Ditto to concerns voiced about being more worried about testing positive and having trip and precious vacation time destroyed than about serious consequences of a Covid infection since we’re vaccinated and boosted.

 

What is the Covid protection which ends on 4/30 mentioned above?

 

We’re booked to sail from Southampton to Norway in July. Our flights are booked, to include allowing a week in UK before the cruise. Does anyone know if we can use the scheduled flights if we reschedule the cruise? I’m thinking I would rather spend two weeks in the UK.

This is Celebrity's Covid Assistance Program due to expire in just over a week:  

 

Covid-19 Assistance

Book a Celebrity cruise that’s sailing on or before April 30, 2022 and you’ll have the following reassurance at no extra charge:

100% cruise fare refund for you, and your Traveling Party, if any of you tests positive for COVID-19 within 10 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, Celebrity Cruises will cover the cost of COVID-19 related medical treatment onboard, any required land-based quarantine, and homebound travel for you and your Traveling Party.

 

Most of the other lines have extended their Covid assistance program.  Parent company Royal Caribbean has issued their updated policy, which does fade out aspects of the program but has extended the cruise fare refund if you test positive, until 3/31/2023.  Many passengers feel, as do I, that if covid tests remain mandatory, then refunding the cruise fare if you test positive on the mandatory test, should be an absolute.

 

Here is Royal's updated policy:

Guests will have the following COVID-19 Assistance at no extra charge. 

100% cruise fare refund for you, and your Traveling Party, if any of you tests positive for COVID-19 within 10 days prior to the cruise or at the boarding terminal, for cruises departing on or before March 31, 2023.

Pro-rated cruise fare refund if your cruise is cut short for reasons related to COVID-19, for cruises departing on or before April 30, 2022.

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 Traveling Party, for cruises departing on or before April 30, 2022.

 

 

[Julma]

2 hours ago, Guppy99 said:

If that is the case....then don't sail. Very simple solution.

I agree.  I do wish Celebrity would be clear and consistent as to what happens.  There seems to be a lot of flip flopping on where you isolate and how you quarantine.  Last time I cruised, just a few weeks ago, if you were a close contact or came down with symptoms, you quarantined in your cabin for approximately 24 hours or until you came back with 2 negative Covid tests.  If during that time you had a positive test, you would be moved to an isolation room and the Covid positive protocol would begin.  Now it seems, close contacts can move about the ship with a mask on, while awaiting test results. They are only quarantined in their stateroom for eating and/or drinking.  That's a big change.  

[Arizona Wildcat]

14 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

My point is it remains onboard in the staff from cruise to cruise? Should crews not be being switched out every time where possible?

The problem is how do you guarantee the new staff is not infected.  Impossible since many are asymptomatic and others are too soon to test positive or show symptoms.

The on board policies have changed because 20-30 cases of covid will net you a couple hundred close contacts.  Covid is not a one rule fits all situation.

Edited April 18, 2022 by Arizona Wildcat

[jelayne]

1 hour ago, ace2542 said:

I actually do since the crew are not swapped out every sailing the outbreak will likely  be passed from one sailing to another and the current silhouette outbreak likely came up from the crew to the passengers?

The  vast.majority of crew have not been able to leave the ship since the start of their contract and when they joined they were isolated for 14 days.  The crew that do get off the ship are those whose job requires them to be on land in a port.  

Our stateroom attendant and waiters have not bee. On land in 7 months.  I

believe passengers have brought Covid on to the ships.

[Denny01]

So ‘we’ are all going crazy over very low possibles of: 

  1 - Catching COVID while onboard.

  2 - Being moved to a non-balcony SR…..I’ve only seen one poster reporting they were isolated in an OV SR, not an Inside, and two others said they had Balconies. 

  3 - don’t want to be tested because we might get a ‘false positive’

 

And to reduce the chance of testing positive posters are suggesting:

   1- Not report that I’m sick and just fake it, spreading it to the waitstaff and of course you Won’t remain in the SR since you already showed how selfish you are, and spread it to others.

  2 - play “SeaLawyer’ and refuse to be tested……..Boy do I want to watch that one. The US Constitution which some think gives them the right to infect anyone around them doesn’t apply At Sea. And your ‘interpretation’ of a contract will be as affective as ‘its my right to infect anyone I wish’! I’ve been involved in Sea Law…..but be my guest, its entertaining for the staff. 

 

And one of my favorite reasons not to be quarantined or how X should handle it all: 

  1 - Insist that I’m ‘slightly claustrophobic’…….whaaaat??? I don’t like getting into a full elevator either. I think we are All ‘slightly claustrophobic’. 

   2 - Just let us stay in our SRs and spread us throughout the ship……and all will just be fine (for us). 

   3 - Since a majority of people in the UK only get sore throats with COVID, lets just drop all this worry about COVID and just accept what happens. Yeah, a ship full of older people basically in an oversized building all together dining every night with 100’s++, sitting with many others in common areas every night…..what could go wrong with a highly contagious virtual disease that’s killed millions and keeps evolving?? 

 

Enough. I know some are well-meaning, but…….

 

Den

 

 

[tinaincc]

16 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

So ‘we’ are all going crazy over very low possibles of: 

  1 - Catching COVID while onboard.

  2 - Being moved to a non-balcony SR…..I’ve only seen one poster reporting they were isolated in an OV SR, not an Inside, and two others said they had Balconies. 

  3 - don’t want to be tested because we might get a ‘false positive’

 

And to reduce the chance of testing positive posters are suggesting:

   1- Not report that I’m sick and just fake it, spreading it to the waitstaff and of course you Won’t remain in the SR since you already showed how selfish you are, and spread it to others.

  2 - play “SeaLawyer’ and refuse to be tested……..Boy do I want to watch that one. The US Constitution which some think gives them the right to infect anyone around them doesn’t apply At Sea. And your ‘interpretation’ of a contract will be as affective as ‘its my right to infect anyone I wish’! I’ve been involved in Sea Law…..but be my guest, its entertaining for the staff. 

 

And one of my favorite reasons not to be quarantined or how X should handle it all: 

  1 - Insist that I’m ‘slightly claustrophobic’…….whaaaat??? I don’t like getting into a full elevator either. I think we are All ‘slightly claustrophobic’. 

   2 - Just let us stay in our SRs and spread us throughout the ship……and all will just be fine (for us). 

   3 - Since a majority of people in the UK only get sore throats with COVID, lets just drop all this worry about COVID and just accept what happens. Yeah, a ship full of older people basically in an oversized building all together dining every night with 100’s++, sitting with many others in common areas every night…..what could go wrong with a highly contagious virtual disease that’s killed millions and keeps evolving?? 

 

Enough. I know some are well-meaning, but…….

 

Den

 

 

It is perfectly appropriate to be worried about catching C19 especially on a cruise ship where you would be at the mercy of the ship ever-evolving protocols. Isn't it what we all have been trying NOT to get for the past two years? It is also entirely reasonable to ASK what contractual obligations are in such situations.

 

Instead of making your fellow cruisers out to be malicious why not try to see the glass half full and assume positive intent.  Or, better yet, not feel the need to post your virtue on posts that don't apply to your specific viewpoints?

 

 

Edited April 18, 2022 by tinaincc

[papaflamingo]

7 hours ago, Tigerfnan23 said:

 

I was wondering this as well.  If you're boosted you shouldn't need to do any onboard testing, or at least that was my understanding.  

When we sailed on Reflection for New Year's there was no testing required other than the pre-boarding test.  As I said, we did have cases on board but it had no impact on the cruise (other than them).  New Year's Eve was 2 days before we disembarked and there was a huge party on the pool deck with no masking or any other noticeable difference other than masked crew members.  

The only on board testing required will be if you get sick or if you are known to have been around someone who tests positive.  

[papaflamingo]

7 hours ago, Ayewash said:

Papa flamingo I’m not sure if contacts of Covid positive passengers are tested. Moreover, as we all know, even after vaccination and booster, anyone can develop a trivial upper respiratory illness due to Covid, thus creating the moral obligation to be tested (e.g. Jet Blue). 

I am not positive, but if you are identified as in contact with someone who tests positive you'll be tested.  But again, our Dec. Reflection cruise had cases but we weren't in the least affected by them.  They were a very small percentage of the cruise (about 150 was what I heard), and it was never officially broadcast as to how many had Covid.

[sippican]

1 hour ago, Guppy99 said:

How exactly to you know what "most other cruise lines" are doing? How do you even know what exactly Celebrity is doing on any singe ship and any single sailing?  You don't.  Just because you are weary of the situation doesn't mean it's over.

 

Perhaps you've missed the thread regarding isolation on the Silhouette TA, which is currently sailing. First hand accounts.

Edited April 18, 2022 by sippican

[ace2542]

36 minutes ago, jelayne said:

Our stateroom attendant and waiters have not bee. On land in 7 months.  I

believe passengers have brought Covid on to the ships.

How is it getting onboard then? Are people faking tests or bribing to get onboard while positive? How did it get into the silhouette then which has been at sea for a week? The significant amount of coughing would appear to hint at significant spread onboard?

Edited April 18, 2022 by ace2542

[RichYak]

28 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

I know some are well-meaning

As I imagine you thought you were as you scold fellow CCers.

[emmas gran]

8 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

How is it getting onboard then? Are people faking tests or bribing to get onboard while positive? How did it get into the silhouette then which has been at sea for a week? The significant amount of coughing would appear to hint at significant spread onboard?

Simple answer Passengers. In September on Silhouette the crew told us and we saw they were not able to go ashore on an around the UK cruise. They had shopping delivered to the ship by Amazon or whoever in ports they were calling in. 
Don’t blame crew unless you are sure of the facts.

Edited April 18, 2022 by emmas gran

[sippican]

6 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

How is it getting onboard then? Are people faking tests or bribing to get onboard while positive? How did it get into the silhouette then which has been at sea for a week? The significant amount of coughing would appear to hint at significant spread onboard?

 

There are a gazillion possibilities. People could have caught it on their flights, in the airport, hotels, restaurants, stores,  taxi, bus, ..... They wouldn't test positive before boarding and the disease would become active days later.

[wrk2cruise]

59 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

My point is it remains onboard in the staff from cruise to cruise? Should crews not be being switched out every time where possible?

 

Positive crew have routinely been removed from ships on embarkation days and moved to out of service ships like Summit (in January) and Infinity currently.  This helps keep the ship numbers low week to week.  Not sure what will happen when soon all ships will be in service and deployed over a wide geography.

 

Crew also is required to mask whenever outside their cabins and are tested every other week.  To me this means the risk is more from passengers boarding than from the crew.  Once it's onboard it's shared between passengers and crew.

Edited April 18, 2022 by wrk2cruise

[RichYak]

8 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

How is it getting onboard then? Are people faking tests or bribing to get onboard while positive? How did it get into the silhouette then which has been at sea for a week?

A negative test is a snapshot in time and covid has an incubation period. Passengers can test negative and still bring covid onto a cruise ship.

[papaflamingo]

6 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

How is it getting onboard then? Are people faking tests or bribing to get onboard while positive? How did it get into the silhouette then which has been at sea for a week? The significant amount of coughing would appear to hint at significant spread onboard?

You can get the Omicron or the newer variants even if vaccinated.  I have been vaxxed and boosted and got Covid in Jan.  Because of the vaccination it was a remarkably mild case with almost no symptoms.  I only got tested because we had friends coming to visit.  So if you follow most threads, ships aren't deviating or returning to port early, most on the ship don't even know there is any Covid, and those who get it aren't showing much in the way of symptoms.  

Covid could be caught enroute to the ship, from the hotel the night before boarding, at any port stop.  So no, people aren't faking it or bribing to get on board.  

[papaflamingo]

6 hours ago, canderson said:

Contact tracing can get you tested, symptoms or not.

Yes, but the only people who would be in contact are the person's party and possibly if on a bus on shore.  It's not like they test the whole ship.  As I said, we were on Reflection in Dec. and had around 150 cases.  No one really noticed any interruption or difference on the cruise other than the crew tended to be more deliberate in masking.  I think the cases were predominantly among crew members.

[RichYak]

5 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

the only people who would be in contact are the person's party and possibly if on a bus on shore

Or someone that you sat near at dinner, or at a bar, or in the theater. What if it was one of your waiters that tested positive? Or the Future Cruise consultant that you sat with for 20 minutes? There are plenty of ways to be deemed a close contact unless you just stay in your cabin.

[ace2542]

11 minutes ago, RichYak said:

A negative test is a snapshot in time and covid has an incubation period. Passengers can test negative and still bring covid onto a cruise ship.

Then surely testing should be daily or twice daily even?

[RichYak]

1 minute ago, ace2542 said:

Then surely testing should be daily or twice daily even?

Which of course isn't reasonable, so you mitigate as best you can knowing that some covid will likely make it on board each sailing.

[Ommadawn]

8 hours ago, ace2542 said:

Here is an interesting thought for discussion. How long into the future do you think you will be allowed to cancel and receive refund because you are concerned about being quarantined for the entire trip? These refunding options won't be around forever.

 

I wouldn't have anywhere near as much problem quarantining as long as it was in the cabin for which I paid.

[cangelmd]

50 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

So ‘we’ are all going crazy over very low possibles of: 

  1 - Catching COVID while onboard.

  2 - Being moved to a non-balcony SR…..I’ve only seen one poster reporting they were isolated in an OV SR, not an Inside, and two others said they had Balconies. 

  3 - don’t want to be tested because we might get a ‘false positive’

 

And to reduce the chance of testing positive posters are suggesting:

   1- Not report that I’m sick and just fake it, spreading it to the waitstaff and of course you Won’t remain in the SR since you already showed how selfish you are, and spread it to others.

  2 - play “SeaLawyer’ and refuse to be tested……..Boy do I want to watch that one. The US Constitution which some think gives them the right to infect anyone around them doesn’t apply At Sea. And your ‘interpretation’ of a contract will be as affective as ‘its my right to infect anyone I wish’! I’ve been involved in Sea Law…..but be my guest, its entertaining for the staff. 

 

And one of my favorite reasons not to be quarantined or how X should handle it all: 

  1 - Insist that I’m ‘slightly claustrophobic’…….whaaaat??? I don’t like getting into a full elevator either. I think we are All ‘slightly claustrophobic’. 

   2 - Just let us stay in our SRs and spread us throughout the ship……and all will just be fine (for us). 

   3 - Since a majority of people in the UK only get sore throats with COVID, lets just drop all this worry about COVID and just accept what happens. Yeah, a ship full of older people basically in an oversized building all together dining every night with 100’s++, sitting with many others in common areas every night…..what could go wrong with a highly contagious virtual disease that’s killed millions and keeps evolving?? 

 

Enough. I know some are well-meaning, but…….

 

Den

 

 

Denny, I kind of agree with much of what you are saying, overlooking hyperbole because I think you are pointing out over-reaction, except for statement # 1. I actually think it’s pretty easy to catch Covid and test positive on ships right now. I wouldn’t be shocked if the real rate on Celebrity is running close to 10% in the passengers if you could get an accurate number of everyone testing positive within a week of return.

I work in healthcare and have been around people literally knee deep in Covid for 2 years and have had at 2 solid documented exposures, but didn’t get it until this last cruise. Masks used property work really, really well. I’m pretty sure I got it in the thermal suite.

My next cruise is in 3 weeks, I’ve restarted isolation and masking today and this time I will continue masking onboard, regardless of what the Celeb policy is. Undecided about ship tours.