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I know that for a lot of people outside of this community, it may seem silly to be so upset about canceled/changed cruises. However, we all understand that vacations like these are a way to escape reality and make once-in-a-lifetime moments. We all come together to enjoy these fantastic ships and destinations and we truly get to appreciate the good times. So given the hard times at the moment and what may come up, I wanted to take a moment to appreciate this community. We will get through this and cheers to our next cruise vacation (whenever it may be)! (Also thanks to @Matt obviously lol)

This one is for @SpeedNoodles. https://www.wnd.com/2020/03/penguins-leave-habitat-go-exploring-aquarium-forced-shut-visitors/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=wnd-brief&utm_campaign=dailypm&utm_content=brief

If all else fails you can always hook your laptop up to your largest TV. Put on your cruising clothes and watch live blogs of cruises....I am sure we are all stocked up to make our own DBP. If that makes you sad, given this trying time, do what I do. Look at videos of cats, or any animal, riding out social distancing.

As someone who has been laid off twice in the last 12 months, I can tell you it sucks, but people are resilient (especially us Wongs) and that Chris (no relation) will bounce back from this.

Purely a guess. I will go with 1 July 2020

Now I wanna book an Antarctic cruise! ?

btw, if it's not obvious -- I'm an avid scientist at heart, if not by profession. My current career is in web application design and programming, but my Bachelors is in biology with a concentration in molecular biology and genetics. I also put in two years at Hoffman La-Roche doing cancer research before deciding that I didn't have the temperament for a career that's defined by years of failure with only rare successes. But I still keep up with science and developments along with whatever is going on in the computer science world.

Day 4 – Nassau The first two days of the cruise didn’t go by fast but now that we were stopping in ports the days started to fly by! Usually when we do this route, we do Cococay first, so it was unusual for us to do Nassau first and not get in there until 1PM. Four of us planned to do the Aquarium at Nassau tour through Royal Caribbean. My husband and I have done this tour a few times but since we were with a few who had never been we thought it would be fun for them. Yen met us on Deck 4 at 1:15 and escorted us off the ship and to the front of the line where wristbands were being handed out on the pier. We waited for a little while and then they had everyone with tours walk to the end of the pier. As I mentioned, we have done this before but the amount of people doing some sort of excursion was insane. The lines and the standing was so long and it was warm (thus the resulting V neck t-shirt sunburn I had). We all regretted saying that we didn’t need water when Yen asked us! We finally got on the shuttles and off we went to Atlantis. Out of all of times that we have done this same tour, this was by far the worst. The headphones weren’t working at first and usually, this tour brings you through the aquarium, around the outside of the grounds and then through the shark tunnel. After she walked us around the aquarium and near the pools the tour ended which was not what we were used to. We wanted to still see the shark tunnel, the baby turtle area and walk around still. Unfortunately, the shark tunnel was closed (it looked like there was some water leaking from the tank and it was closed). We did get to see the baby turtles and everyone said that was the highlight of the day. This first picture is of the tunnel the floating tube water park ride takes you through – I would love to do that sometime: We got back to the ship around 5 and had dinner at Jaime’s Italian with all 10 of us. Once again, all of our drinks were waiting for us at our table. The waiter brought us all of the appetizers for the table (two meat planks, Garlic Prawns, Arancini, Garlic bread, Bruschetta, etc.) We each ordered our own dinners and then we got a dessert plank with everything from the menu. Talk about food coma!! I don’t think I have ever eaten that much in my life! I am terrible at taking pictures at dinner but I can attest, the lamb chops and lasagna were both amazing!! Headed down to the casino after dinner to see my favorite bartenders and play some slots and Let it Ride. No big wins but we always have fun! We already earned Prime for the year so we didn’t need anymore points but we still gambled for fun.

I'm just hoping that if they do extend their resumption of cruises, they'll push out FCCs or refunds quickly. I'm really trying hard not to cancel my original June sailing and go full-on with my July sailing (Canada/New England), but I worry if I wait too much longer, I won't get the FCC quickly enough, and I'll put a bit of extra financial strain on myself. ? I'm not very good at this whole patience thing. ?

Personally, I do not believe a single word of anything coming out of China. I think the chances that they have -0- new cases is -0-. They've just quit testing.

I don't think anyone has enough clear vision of where society is heading to accurately guess a date. Once it peaks globally and begins to decline and stays trending downward then at that point in time plus 4 - 6 weeks is when cruise lines can begin to think about starting operations on a limited basis. Until it's in our rear view mirror there will be no cruising. If the cruise lines jump the start line and COVID-19 flares up again then once again cruise ships will be front page news and they can't afford for that to happen.

I still think it's unfair how the cruise industry is called out on this while it happens every day in life. Someone with the virus rode a train last week. Hundred exposed to that person in close quarters. Someone with the virus went to the grocery store. Hundred exposed to that person in close quarters. Someone went to church two weeks ago with the virus. Hundred exposed to that person in close quarters. Those hundreds that have been exposed are now in the community spreading it. Yet when the same thing happens on a ship it makes the front page. In Colorado there are 277 cases with 2 deaths. No cruise ships here. We have lots of people flying in to go skiing, bringing the virus with them, in an airplane in close quarters with hundreds of others.

I'd like to echo this, PLEASE don't jump into the stock market willy nilly! Timing the stock market is impossible and if you aren't invested wisely and with a lot of diversity it is extremely risky. Don't do options. If you want to buy some stocks right now please be doing a lot of research over the next couple weeks before making any decisions. Talk with a professional financial planner and stay away from day trading. Look for solid companies with a history of beating the S&P for the bulk of your investing. You can put a Little into higher risk, higher reward companies but that should also be diversified with many others and should be a small part of your portfolio. If you don't plan on keeping these stocks for the next 10 years then just DONT DO IT. If you just go with your gut you are going to lose, do your homework. Also please do not invest or stop investing in a company because of how you feel about them. Money doesn't care. Read their balance sheets. How much debt do they have compared to savings? What are their profit margins? ect.... God bless! Cruise and be Merry!

I can understand that. I work from home often and have set myself up in the living room. My wife is now home for 14 days and yesterday she sat next to me and started watching Chicago Fire or some crap like that and I about lost it ?

So while I understand your desire for a rapid release of some medical option to treat this novel virus, I've actually been involved in presenting the trials of new drugs to the FDA (WAAAAY back when I was getting my Masters degree and doing whatever basic temp work I could find to pay the bills). Yes, it's a bureaucracy of byzantine proportions. But it's very much built on the rigors of science and thorough testing. The FDA is probably looking at a few really important points that must be clarified before they start instructing doctors to administer it en masse: Just because this drug is effective against SARS does not guarantee it's going to be effective against Covid-19. As you noted, the two are cousins. A big difference is that Covid appears to include genetic material from a virus that infects bats, which is something that does not normally happen and could lead to big differences in the drug's efficacy. If it is effective against Covid-19, what is the minimum effective dose? It could be a lot higher than what's needed to treat SARS, so much so that the side effects rapidly outweigh the benefits and severely limit the apply to supply the drug to a broad population. OR it could be (a lot) lower, meaning there's more to go around and patients get fewer side effects. What side effects? Look here; they aren't pleasant. If it's effective, how much does administering the drug reduce the patient's symptoms vs. no drug? And how much does it reduce the duration of the illness? When I was helping to put together a presentation on a new weight-loss drug to the FDA, this was a big topic during the presentations. You have to show statistically significant reduction in one, the other, or both to get approval. Why? Because... even a cheap drug will make the manufacturer a ton of money at times like these with high demand and tightening supply, and people will find ways to price gouge without crossing the legal border. And if it's only minimally effective at treating the disease, there's little reason to separate the patients who are already facing possibly large medical bills from this disease from even more of their money. The same line of questioning will apply to the drug Remdesivir, along with additional questions about how safely purely it's manufactured. Don't scoff at this; compounding pharmacies, especially overseas ones, have been taking a beating over the poor quality of their products as certain states in the US that still support the death penalty have been going to them more and more in their quest for the lethal injection cocktails they need to perform executions, which have been outlawed here and in many countries and require novel alternatives. Believe me, we all want something that will let us get out of our homes faster and back to normal ASAP. But science and tests for safety and efficacy don't care about that; the research takes as long as the research takes. Yup, I've been on that side of the work in my past as well (though not for anything nearly as urgent). Some regulations can be loosened to help speed things along a bit, but the work still has to be done and proven. Consider the flip side: We rush out this drug without fully testing it, and it's not just ineffective but leads to thousands of deaths as people who would have been hospitalized were given the pills and sent home instead of being admitted to the hospital. No one in the FDA who's a licensed MD and scientists wants that on their conscience.

That was the one sailing I got the $18/day package on! Another reason I don’t want to lose that sailing.

I sure hope that they start up again before July 15th!! ??

@Neesa I just saw that too about DCL. I hope Royal does the right thing this time and follows suit. ?

I agree, this would be my guess as well. My May Oasis is slipping away. Hello 125% FCC.

I was posting my observation to . I guess people don't like reality , calling it negative thinking. But I am in touch with my friends form Europe and it is not naive. What is worrying me is people why are not taking all what is happening seriously. I live in Florida and people are everywhere . Whit that kind of behavior I am afraid is going to be lot of people sick and worst . I have cruise book for May 24-th. With Harmony of the Seas and they way how is now I am afraid it will not be possible to have any type of cruising for some time. Next cruise I have in October and January. I am not planing to cancel my May cruise yet. I will wait last moment hoping some miracle will happened. Cursing is Only what make me really, really happy!

So here is the link, although you'll have to scroll to the entry for 3:22 PM today (March 19) -- https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/03/19/coronavirus-latest-news/ I will correct my earlier statement, and admit that I got the key part of it wrong -- it has not been debunked that the drug is effective; what was incorrect was that the FDA was approving use of the drug immediately, when in fact they are insisting on extensive clinical trials first. Since I can't directly link to that specific entry and I don't know how far you'll have to scroll to get there in even a few hours, I'm quoting the entire piece here (it's short), with emphasis added for the key points: So it's in testing and they are trying to confirm both that it works and that the current dose in use is not excessive. Since I was mistaken about that, I did a bit of searching to learn more. Here's another article that covers some basics about the drug, what's known, and what isn't yet. And another article from Wired that goes into more depth about the roots of the document that started all of this speculation. Per both articles, the biggest problem right now is that none of the work that's indicated it may be beneficial was done in a double-blind study. In fact, after reading the Wired article, it seems that wasn't even any actual testing done by the authors; instead it's more of a "meta study" looking at the results of a bunch of other studies and making an effort to extrapolate efficacy against Covid-19. So there is a lot of risk of confirmation bias or other bias in the document's authors that might result in overstating the real effects of the drug. This is why the FDA is (rightly) insisting on proper double-blind clinical trials. Key quote from that Wired article: So it may have potential use, from the sound of it more as a way to reduce the symptoms than to outright kill the virus. If true, that'll be fantastic so we have a way to reduce the number of hospitalizations, or at least shorten them while patients' immune systems get a chance to fight off the virus. But like with so much else, it's going to take time and careful study to confirm one way or the other. I'll hope for it to work along with you, but in the meantime we'll have to keep calm and carry on.

The FCC is used for the cruise fare portion of each individual guest. KSF is an awesome promo, except in times like this where you are trying to use a FCC. Because the kids are not paying a cruise fare, you will not be able to use/apply their FCCs to any sailing that involves KSF. You will only be able to apply the FCC to those who are paying a cruise fare.

This article just showed up as a link from a Brit YouTuber I’m subscribed to. Article published today. Italy wants the world to see what this virus is really like. https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-they-call-it-the-apocalypse-inside-italys-hardest-hit-hospital-11960597 Key quote: I’m not one to pray, but sending prayers to the people of Italy that they come out the other side of this soon. This is starting to look like 1918 in a scary way. Hopefully other countries see this, spread the word, and people who have thought all the instructions to stay home was just hype (I’m looking at all those college kids who decided to go to Miami Beach for spring break) will finally get it.

Very excited about this news! So excited that we changed our Serenade July 2021 sailing to the Quantum out of Seattle! This change leads me to wonder if QOS will receive a refurb/update besides the laser tag to appeal to the American market. Since this ship has been in the Asian market for quite some time, it has a noodle shop among other Asian specialties and interests. Does anyone have any idea? Heard anything? Granted, we will still be in the #teamCK crew as we will be Sky Class, but just wondering about some of the other offerings. So Psyched! Now, if we could get that intern to show up again! Thanks Sharla at MEI for making this happen!!

Like someone else posted, with the 125% FCC, if I miss my first cruise due to cancelation by RC it's a win win for me. Lemonade outta lemons !

As of now NOTHING official from RCI about anything past April 10 or Alaska- so hang tight! Hoping for some good news !

I just thought we all needed something super-cute to take our minds off of current events. I thought of you. ??

While the lifeblood of any zoo is its visitors, the best time I ever had in my 16 years as a zookeeper when we were closed down for 6 weeks. We always did things like this, and we also got so much done when we didn't have to worry about maintaining an opening/closing schedule. It was a magical time ?

I have noticed that I haven't seen an RCL promotional email land in about two weeks +/-.

sadly this is so true.. They quit testing + I would multiply their death toll by 10. Anyway, This is day 8 since kids school closed.. with no end in sight. getting tired.

Royal tends to do it with company ships. For example TUI + RCI, or RCI + RCI. Here's Liberty and Allure a few years ago:

I am fortunate that my company (a national retailer) closed all of their 600+ stores for the next 2 weeks. I am not sick, but I have chosen to quasi self quarantine. IOWS, I will still go to the store when I run out of milk, but otherwise I am staying at home. We live in No VA. I actually laughed/shook my head when I did my 1st milk run. There is a nail salon next to the grocery store and a hair salon on the other side of the store. I am watching women walk in and out. Seriously, what don't you understand about social distancing? On top of that any woman with nails knows that long nails can be a petri dish to carry those germs....YEP bc I work for a retailer the minute this virus became an issue in the US I cut down my nails to protect myself and my customers. I am also semi-ticked at a few of my friends that own small businesses. 1 is in NJ and 1 is in Florida. 1 owns a yoga business and she is saying if you are tired of being locked in your home, come on down. The other owns a craft attached to a café (every women knows what I mean...you and your friends paint something while your drink wine or coffee) She posts everyday about how they are still open, and holding classes, serving coffee etc. I get they are small businesses and need to pay rent, but what I don't get is that they are going to stretch how long this thing will last if they just shut their doors like my retailer did. As of yesterday, my boss called me to say, he was not sure how long we will be closed. Our company will re-evaluate on Mar 28th. Rumor is if we have to remain close after the 28th, than I will go unpaid. Those people, such as the person getting their nails done, or my friends with small businesses, may indeed impact my own pay because of remaining open. They actually are also impacting the travel industry. I feel for the crew. Think about it. Many of the staff are supporting families back home. No grats., and they are losing a huge pay check. Several of my friends are airline pilots. They are now worried about being furloughed just like after 9/11. Small businesses are risky, and contribute a huge amount of money to our economy, and they use this as a defense of why they are staying open, but they also are not realizing how they are impacting the economy negatively in the long run by staying open. Done venting.

I have no idea if people are staying in or going out here in Minnesota because I only get out to drive to work and back. Honestly, this hasn't changed a lot from my normal habits. I do know that non-medical 911 calls are down in numbers, but after a week of being stuck at home I expect the domestic calls to soar.

06 June 2020 the first Saturday of the month. We are not cancelling our 28 June 2020 so if RCCL cancels we will take the 125% FCC and apply to the Thanksgiving sailing. Just saw DCL pushed final payments for their summer sailings back 30 days. I wonder if RCCL is considering this? My balance is due at the end of this month, I guess we will see. (Always pay balance last possible moment, nothing worse then the feeling of missing a price drop because you paid the balance early.)

I’ve heard Royal do this before. They do it sometimes

This is gonna be a truly sucky few months! Man its all so depressing.

@Crazycruiser50 This is possible but has no bearings on all of the cruises schedule. It could be they foresee the industry starting back in May or June and these particular workers contracts ended during this time ...thus they start back in August. I think COVID will need at least 60 days to run its course. Maybe another few weeks after to get things to a new normal.

I will guess Memorial day for "all travel" but as far as cruises I would too agree that the first week of June is looking good. April is not going to happen.

@WAAAYTOOO just for fun, I'll say June 15th.

I'm more optimistic: Based on China's cases, the virus started about mid January and on about Feb. 4th the upward curve started to head downward. So maybe from about a month from when it started in USA, it will start declining. My prediction is May 1st for Royal Caribbean to start sailing. But April 11th would be wonderful!

@JLMoran in the beginning of all of this, when word started leaking out, and I was following a number of leaked reports out of China, it became evident to a number of medical & geneticist professional personnel, in these areas, their strong suspension, this is an engineered virus...especially when it was revealed the virus had a HIV protein enzyme attachment to it; which is not natural causing. One reason I personally wrestle with the official reporting versus the leaked reporting I was following. The HIV attachment, from my understanding, is what makes it more difficult to tackle or treat the ailment, vs a regular respiratory infection. Hence now, it's clear, the reason it was suggested to the President, to have FDA investigate & fast track the use of Chloroquine as a weapon against this virus, because of the HIV component. Remember, Chloroquine has been used effectively against "autoimmune disorders"...apparently, as well as, use of Remdesivir, an anti-viral...which together makes sense. Many of the leaked reports states one of the geneticist working on the virus, had an unreported accident, fearful of repercussion, violated proper containment protocols, left the facility, and infected not only some fellow coworkers; but, patrons at the wet markets, that is said to be "ground zero". Apparently facility officials knew of the seriousness the situation, reported it to local officials & military personnel; and, they quickly started rounding up persons in contact with this genetic researcher. It was sometime later, local police & military started quarantine segments of communities within a certain zone, long before the call to quarantine the whole city & neighboring cities. Word apparently didn't get out to after many Chinese citizen start to realize something more dramatically serious was happening around them, after witnessing huge number of people collapsing & dying around them...many in the middle of the street; against what state run media and local officials was telling them. Started recording scenes & reporting on media sites what was visually happening & leaking out the information to the rest of the world. If it wasn't for the good doctor, that credited, as being the 1st credible profession to come out & expose what was happening, it may have been a number of days later, if not weeks, before the world discovered what has happened in China. So FDA Commish Hahn seriously need to fast track use of these medicines in conjunction with what ever treatments that is being provided now; and, quickly get a grasp of this pandemic. I'm sure other government are aware of the potential success of these drugs; and, may already be ahead of the curve, in using them, and can easily report/share their findings on the use of these drugs.

I see Allure is docked at the RC terminal at Southampton now..

The same hypothesis could be said for cruisers in their 50's or 60's. For any seasoned cruiser at any age. The true spenders tend to be new-to-cruise. Anyone Diamond or above doesn't spend much on board relative to new to cruise. Diamond happy hour drinks take away a lot of on board revenue.

Level 4 advisory (not ban) means the US advises Americans to return home and not travel internationally because the US govt may be unable to assist in bringing you back. It has nothing to do with the spread of coronavirus (that was covered under level 3), and yes, you are still legally allowed to travel internationally.

I get the safety issues ...but do you really think if able they will go months and months with ships docked? I cant see it.

Not Fort Lauderdale. There is not a single person on the beach as the mayor closed the beach down & enforces 24/7 with police.

I was on the Oasis last week and had the pleasure to talk to Chris several times. He was scheduled to begin vacation on 3/15. Based on conversations with other crew members, there were many others ... this may be related to why some are scheduled to go home soon.

June 14 since our cruise is booked for June 7 ?

Now we are talking: https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/5214/

we did Dunn River falls privately and it was great. We hired a private driver who picked us up at the port, took us to the falls (before all the cruise ship guests arrived), and then to lunch at Scotchies which was awesome. I always do excursions privately to stay away from the crowds.