Has anyone done an Alaska cruise tour land 1st recently?

[con3]

Hi, I am trying to understand the covid testing for the land tour and cruise. I know we need a negative test within 2 days of the land tour. On Celbrity's website it says to bring an emed test kit to take before the cruise or they will have them for a cost. Does anyone know what they are charging for those tests? Just wondering how it is all working. Thanks for any info.

 

Connie

[D. B.]

.We did the Alaska Land Tour/Cruise in mid June.

 No Pre Land Tour Covid test required. A Negative Covid Test is Required Before you get to Seward for boarding The Ship.   On the next to last day of the Land Tour we were in Fairbanks and we were assured someone from X would help us complete the Abbot Tele Test we Bought from X and brought along.

 We had Tried doing them on our own in the past and had nothing but frustration and wasted $ so assistance was something we were looking forward to.

 We were Told to get on a Bus at our Hotel and we were taken to a Convention Center along with 48 other guests.

 Long story Short. There were NO Celebrity Agents at that site. Nobody knew Anything about any tele Test X  testing other than an On Site vendor doing $178 Covid Tests so we were stuck spending $$ for that as well as the $ we spent on the Abbot tele tests we bought from X.

 I was disgusted with the total lack of organization and poor treatment that  resulted!

 Once on the Ship X offered us a $300 FCC to cover our Lost $$ but the way things were mishandled at Fairbanks would give me pause to recommend anyone do a Tour with X.

 

 

[PRH]

We were req4to show evidence of a negative test before boarding thd land tour bus last week.  A negative eMed covid test before boarding this week.  eMed very simple.  Watch a YouTube video beforehand will make it easy.  Our guide suggested testing while close to Anchorage justbin case positive as it would be easier and cheaper than if we tried in Seward where public wifi in the terminal is uneven. 

[D. B.]

We don't have computers with cameras. We tried doing it on the phone (Cell phone camera) First time Emed said their system would not work with our Iphone 13? Tried it with another phone and the Emed call dropped out 1/2 way thru the test. Reestablished contact and they said the first test ($33) was now Void. Tried again and once again the Call dropped out  after starting the test. (Another $33) so we gave up and asked Celebrity if someone could help us get this done and were TOLD Sure No Problem.

   Lucky for us when we started the Tour (before the Cruise) we did Not have to show a negative Covid test (June 2022) so X must have changed the requirements since then.

 We have done 30+ cruises with X but I would NEVER take another Tour with them.

[lexmiller]

Our cruise tour began on June 11 in Anchorage with our cruise on the Millennium out of Seward, beginning June 17.  The "rules" for testing for the pre-cruise land tour were as they are now - VERY VAGUE and INCOMPREHENSIBLE and thus meaningless - so we did not have to show any proof of testing whatsoever.  Here is the verbiage:

 

All Celebrity Cruises requires all guests ages 2 and older to present a digital or physical copy of a negative COVID-19 test result taken within 2 days of the land tour start date. This test may be taken as either an Antigen or PCR test and is not required to be monitored testing.

 

You see the whole point, there, right?  "IS NOT REQUIRED TO BE MONITORED TESTING" - meaning, it is totally OK to use an at home test, don't have to go to CVS, don't need to use Binax Emed - if it is not required to be monitored, then you can do it yourself - that is what "not required to be monitored" means.  So, we did a free at home test, brought our plastic test kit showing we were negative (physical copy - refer to the "rule" above), as well as a screen shot of the test results (digital copy) - absurd, right?  Obviously, everyone agrees, as we didn't need to show anything.  

 

But yes, we did of course need to test for the cruise, but we prefer to use the Binax EMed telehealth tests - we use our cell phones - so we tested on our own in our hotel in Homer, Alaska.  The vast majority of the people on our tour (we did land tour 10B), also used the Binax test, and the people that we uncomfortable with the test were assisted by fellow guests in the process - we had all become good friends at this point, there were only 22 of us on a 6 night tour.  Our guide offered to help but overall, we helped each other as needed and it all went very very well.  And no one tested positive!  The land tour and the cruise were wonderful!

[Jim_Iain]

13 hours ago, D. B. said:

We don't have computers with cameras. We tried doing it on the phone (Cell phone camera) First time Emed said their system would not work with our Iphone 13? Tried it with another phone and the Emed call dropped out 1/2 way thru the test. Reestablished contact and they said the first test ($33) was now Void. Tried again and once again the Call dropped out  after starting the test. (Another $33) so we gave up and asked Celebrity if someone could help us get this done and were TOLD Sure No Problem.

   Lucky for us when we started the Tour (before the Cruise) we did Not have to show a negative Covid test (June 2022) so X must have changed the requirements since then.

 We have done 30+ cruises with X but I would NEVER take another Tour with them.

That I don't understand.   I have an iPhone 13 Pro Max and no problem at all doing a test with eMed.      You could do a trial and pretend like you are going to do a test and go through the section where they test your equipment and then disconnect before the tester signs on.

[lexmiller]

23 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

That I don't understand.   I have an iPhone 13 Pro Max and no problem at all doing a test with eMed.      You could do a trial and pretend like you are going to do a test and go through the section where they test your equipment and then disconnect before the tester signs on.

Yes, I forgot to reply to this point in the OP's post - we too use our iPhones for the tests - fully supported absolutely.  We have an 11 and the 13 Pro Max - both work perfectly.  We did buy, from Amazon, a standing bendable arm for the phone which helps immensely, as we don't have to hold it or prop it up.  

[D. B.]

After wasting 2 Abbott test kits I ask if we would be given assistance in Anchorage and TOLD "Absolutely! Don't worry. There will be someone there to assist you" and there Was Not.

 End of story. Disgusted with the way things were done.