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Final payment made.

Problem is there may very well never be a vaccine and even if there is it may not "eliminate the problem" ... common cold has been around a while - no vaccine ... flu has been around a while, there is a vaccine but we still get flu outbreaks and even people who get the vaccine can get the flue if they get the wrong strain ... so saying its fair to wait on a vaccine is just a way of kicking the can down the road indefinitely.

This pandemic has made for a lot of changes in the cruising world from cancellations, lift and shifts, FCCs and everyone’s least favorite topic … REFUNDS! It definitely has made a lot of people take a new look at life and that is exactly what a few agents at MEI-Travel have done. Danette LeBlanc after 7 years with Mei-Travel is stepping away to spend time with her family. Her father has terminal cancel and she wants to spend all the time she can with him and the family at this time. Prayers to her and her family as they navigate this incredibly hard time. Also, Stephanie Hudson after 15 years has decided to take some time to step away and enjoy her new home on the coast of NC. While this is not her retirement home, I am sure after all this time a little break to put her toes in the sand is what she needs at this time. Wishing her all the best (and a little jealous). MEI-Travel is working over the next week to contact their clients with a new agent that is stepping into very big sets of shoes to fill, but the new agents can do it. It does take a little time to ensure that the new agent has everything and both Danette and Stephanie will be working thru June 30th to help with the transition of their clients. To say that this was a very hard decision for both of them is an understatement. Also, I want to thank all of you for allowing me to work with you all. Being able to chat with your guys almost daily for the past 5 years or more has helped me grow in knowledge of Royal and cruising. There is no way I can think of this group without thinking about all the group cruises – the laughter, the tears, the burning bus, the exploding toilet, the first stop at Perfect Day, St Patrick’s Day and the most expensive Guinness beer or two I have ever paid for… and the memories go on and on….. SHOTS! How could I not mention the SHOTS! But more importantly, Matt. The countless hours of planning for group events, looking up changes and many possible group cruises that never happened, there is just not enough time for me to write up how special my relationship with Matt and his family is. All of this made it very hard for me to make this change, but I am stepping away from MEI-Travel to pursue a new opportunity. This new opportunity will come with new challenges and a chance to spread my wings a little. I hope our paths cross on a cruise some day or maybe in the Orlando area some time (This time without my suitcase with me!). MEI-Travel has a team of agents that work with Matt and they work together to provide great service to you all. I know with cancellations coming in the very near future you might be concerned with all this change, but the team is there to help you all. See you on a cruise! Annette Jackson

And if I get quaratined on the ship, we're in an Owners Suite!!

It's never easy to say goodbye to a friend, let alone three amazingly talented friends. I know I speak for everyone here when I say we will miss your guidance, hard work, and positivity. For years I've advocated using "a good travel agent", and if there were a dictionary definition of that, it would have either of your three photos as examples. I wish you all the best of luck in your future endeavors and hope you remain part of our community here, and hopefully we will get to cruise again together soon.

We met two couples on the Harmony inaugural in Europe who did precisely that, their reasoning being it would be impossible to fully enjoy the ship and the ports in a one-week sailing. They planned their time so that they visited half of the ports the first week and the other half during the second week and got to enjoy a largely empty ship on the days they stayed on board. They were really pleased wih their decision.

I got another great pic last night of the skyline. I went on a fathers day ride on the quads with the guys.

Yes, of course. And the Air Force has its own spirited cry which can mean anything positive. Here are some examples: Hooah - Army; Hoorah - Navy; Oorah - Marine Corps; Nice Putt - Airforce.

I was checking pricing on some of my short term cruises and noticed that some of them have a nice, big military discount. It seems that they are showing up only on the really short term ones, but if you wanted to book now, get the military discount and L&S....well...could work. My Dec 6 Oasis cruise has a $675 military discount but the one the very next week (second half of my B2B) does not. Go figure. BTW, it seems that they are allowing the military discount AND the C&A balcony discount so that's a nice discount when stacked together.

Only if you were one of the many millions dying or one of the many nurses doctors required to work 24 hours a day.

Ampurp85, you bring up some good points ..... you are correct about Hotels/Resorts, etc. not being like a cruise ship. TBF I think the fundamental or base risk of becoming infected by SARS-CoV-2 is probably higher, perhaps the highest of all conveyances or venues. I also think that because of the scrutiny cruise lines receive and esp. that received during the early phases of the pandemic, risk reduction is a higher priority within the cruise industry than it is within other venues. Of course how effective those risk reduction measures might be remains to be seen. Its hard to objectively evaluate this process. So, I'm just going to say, all things considered, there is a high probability that infection risk aboard ship is going to be less than or equal to the risk of infection on an aircraft, hotel, resort or theme park where similar dining and entertainment venues are present and distancing and masking requirements are already in place. You may have a different opinion on this and I respect that. My opinion that the CDC's No-Sail-Order is foolish (inappropriate is a less emotionally charged word to describe it) is based on the comparative risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection between similar venues. It is also based on the likelihood that the cruise lines know all the costs of handling a passenger or crew member testing positive for C-19 and have experience with and protocols in place to do that where other venues we've discussed don't and may be ill-prepared to do so. I suspect our discussion about this will be moot in a matter of days but it nevertheless is an outlet for the frustration I'm experiencing over the lack of necessity, the arbitrariness of it, inherent in the CDC's actions that amount to an unjustifiable and nearly complete shut down of the cruise lines. We know that the virus has a high rate of transmission. We know that transmission can be mitigated by various measures. I have a high degree of confidence that while the cruise lines can not completely eliminate the risk of transmission, they can substantially reduce it and reduce it more effectively than any comparable venue. As well, they are better prepared to deal with infections that do occur while sailing, limit additional exposures and deal with all of that better than anyone else. JMO, YMMV.

If it helps, we got our refund back within 2 weeks for our deposit on the Brilliance Group Cruise. I'm holding out hope for the Anthem GC. It's too soon for me to know about next summer.

It's possible there may be no vaccine but there is the possibility that society will reach a herd immunity eventually if a vaccine is never realized. That's not guaranteed either. At some point there will likely be some level of balance reached where life can more closely resemble what it was like before CV-19. Until then the CDC is unfortunately doing the right thing with cruise ships from a perspective of containing virus spread. Theme parks are probably best to remain closed right now. Sporting events with large audiences in close proximity are probably best to remain closed right now. Music concerts and movie theaters are probably best to remain closed right now. Even if some areas are opening these items back up right now there is a lot of evidence to suggest that is not the best course of action from a public health perspective. So while cruise ships in North America are being kept from sailing by the CDC there is a part of me that acknowledges that is probably the right thing to do right now.

Been there and cruised that ? The older I get the more I enjoy just watching y'all have fun while I mostly hang out on the ship.

My guess is that the Royal CS reps will not know (or can't confirm) for sure until Royal makes their official announcement (tomorrow I believe) either way in response to the CLIA announcement. I know, the waiting stinks! Everything is pointing toward further cancellations, but it's not official until it's official... is that a Yogism?

The new TA"s should be encouraged to be a part of this group........ The relationships built here are second to none. @AnnetteJackson, take care of yourself. Thank You for everything that you've done for so many. You will surely be missed.

As did I. I saw the email from David in my inbox, mentioning that Beth is taking over our reservations and it was signed by Beci. I like the team effort from MEI.

I would hazard a guess the price reduction is down to port fees being less on the Harmony sailing since it has fewer stops than your original Allure TA. Anyway, now that it's sorted you have something to look forward without a constantly niggling worry in the back of your mind.

FWIW, it always appeared to me that Pullmantur was never financially great, even before COVID.

Hopefully they pick up some crew members before returning. I suspect they will need to be retrained before the Caribbean season starts. I plan to call today and reschedule my Allure TA to Alaska in Aug-Sept 2021. I made a preliminary call yesterday and was told there was not a problem with rescheduling since it was booked refundable. Everything will be carried over to the Alaska cruise ... even the OBC. My cruise planner purchases will be refunded. The wait for that refund is the only downside.

Wow my lift and shift was done over night after I filled the online form in yesterday ? a quick call to get cabins next to each other and all done and they seem to have reduced the price in my favour ?

push me ^^^^^ and all will change!!!!

Having done the 5 day to Bermuda out of Bayonne a lot and the 9 day out of Bayonne to Caribbean once, I wouldn't mind combining them both for a two week adventure. @ehw51 As far as same itinerary, never have (never any B2B), but would without question, especially if it's a ship we have never sailed before as you cannot do it all in 7 days. One of the cons to cruising is you're at port for a few hours, knowing you're coming back the next week allows you to see a little bit more.

Because there is no benefit to be gained by anyone higher up to apply pressure.

@JeffB @Ampurp85 As a reader I've thoroughly enjoyed your posts - you've disagreed respectfully and intelligently. I've said before I'm tired of the Covid 19 back and forth but I realize I was tired of people not being respectful in their back and forth.

I'm sadder to read this than I am about canceled cruises ?

Nice Putt....love it. 91st Security Police Squadron stationed at Minot. I took every TDY I could and saw the world 2 weeks at a time...lol.

My thought is book the cruise and hope for the best. Let's say it gets cancelled, there's usually enough warning you could do a vacation home rental or something a little more local.

Yes, you would be able to cancel. However, you would need to book before August 1st as that is currently the date the program ends. Concerned about traveling? Looking for flexibility in your plans? As of May 6, 2020, our enhanced Cruise with Confidence program gives you even more flexibility. Whether you’re already booked on a cruise, or are thinking about it, we want you to Cruise with Confidence. That’s why Royal Caribbean will let you cancel any cruise that sets sail from now through April 30, 2022. Whether it’s a booking you already have or one you make right now through August 1, 2020, you’re covered. As long as you cancel at least 48 hours before your sail date, you’ll receive a Future Cruise Credit. The credit is valid through December 31, 2021 or 12 months from your original canceled sail date (whichever is longer) and can be used for any open sailings at the time of booking. As of May 6, 2020 we have also added the new "Best Price Guarantee" and "Lift and Shift" options outlined below. If you opted into our Cruise with Confidence program before May 6, please learn more about that program here.

Thanks for your post. Yes, everything about COVID-19 is regional. One size does not fit all in terms of infection rates, mortality and morbidity, mitigation and containment measures, just about everything to do with C-19. Differences are particularly applicable when it comes to appropriate mitigation efforts. Certain areas at a particular time may need none because case numbers are very low or are zero. Others need much more for the opposite reason - high case numbers and growth rates. S. FL's C-19 experience is quite representative of more densely populated metro areas such as NYC, Detroit, LA, Dallas, etc., but not entirely. There are even municipality differences in S. FL. Miami is different than Fort Lauderdale is different than Boca. When I did the analysis in my post above, I combined data from all three major hospital systems each in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade. There is a lot of homgeneity across the three counties but still a lot of differences. Maimi Dade has a much lower per capita income, older long term care facilities, more multi-generational housing than Broward or Palm Beach Counties. It is why Miami-Dade has, by far, the highest per-capita infection rate, the highest case fatality rate and its population drives state stats in the same direction as the county C-19 related stats. That's why what might be an appropriate mitigation step in the city of West Palm Beach may not be appropriate for the city of Miami. Monroe County is another example, It includes the FL Keys and has a very low number of infections and a low CFR. Mitigation and containment measures there that are based on state rates won't be applicable and have to be tailored to fit, for example, Key West's C-19 circumstance. It's hard ...... none of this changes the foolishness of the CDC's No-Sail-Order but it does highlight why rises in case numbers globally, in the US or by US state's can not properly inform CDC policy. The cruise industry is an entirely unique segment of the travel and leisure economic sector. That is partly because what it has done and will do to insure that cruise ships will not contribute to disease spread. I'll acknowledge any kind of travel has the potential to spread viral infections. That is proven in the case of SARS-CoV-2. But it makes no sense that resorts, theme parks, sporting events, aircraft, casinos, para-mutual (horse racing) facilities are all approved to operate with the CDC's blessing and the cruise lines are not. I would bet good money that these facilities will contribute more to disease spread than cruise lines will. But these operations aren't shuttered while cruise operations are. Airlines operating regionally and some internationally depending on hosting country's position won't spread the virus? Of course they will and countries opening their airports have calculated that the costs of bringing thousands of potentially infected airline passengers to their countries that will spread the virus among their citizens is worth it. But it's not worth it for cruise lines? ..... insane.

In February we had a private car (Escalade) transport us (4 adults) from FLL to Downtown Miami for $75.

Ditto, nice not feeling guilty because you stayed onboard when visiting a port again.

We usually fly into FLL from DTW because it is almost always cheaper. We love the Intercontinental Miami, especially the Bay view rooms. That is our go-to hotel when sailing from Miami. When is your August sailing on SY? @WAAAYTOOO and I are both on the 8 nighter in August 2021.

I have not done one with the same itinerary, but I would absolutely consider it! You'd have the option to explore a different area at the stop the second time, or (even better!) just stay onboard the ship when most other people are on shore.

I'm approaching my final payment date on August 4th. However, my cruise is paid in full thanks to a $2000 FCC. My cruise was originally booked with a $900 refundable deposit. After the FCC was applied, My receipt shows the following: Cruise Fare $310 Taxes and Fees $265 Gratuities $406 Total Charge $981 There is also a $200 OBC but I can't remember why I received that because there isn't any promotion listed. It might have been a next cruise OBC. I believe I could lift and shift my Allure TA to the Harmony TA next year at the same time. I'm not wild about the itinerary of the Harmony TA because of 1 port day and 13 sea days. My question is --- Can I keep the same reservation number and change to ANY cruise, ANY time and ANY ship and still retain the OBC? Would I either pay the difference or perhaps even get a refund depending on the price of the new cruise? I still would like to do the Allure TA but I just don't see it happening anymore. Even if the cruise happens, I don't think I need the hassle of going to Barcelona and I doubt the new normal will appeal to me.

Tips to go faster in a waterslide: Try to have as little of your body actually touching the slide as possible. Cross your ankles, cross your arms, lift your butt completely off the slide with all your weight on the heels of your feet and your shoulders. Try to keep your legs, butt, back and head off the slide as much as possible. The less body touching the slide the faster you go. That's how you get 3 plus spins around the toilet bowl... i mean champagne bowl... on the Supercell slide. EDIT: Since this is a topic about the Abyss. I want to add to NOT do this on the abyss.

I believe that most of us avid cruisers who have developed an insatiable taste for it are letting the media’s view on COVID and the chaos in America's cities create a reality that is quite different from that of the cruise industry - especially RCL and its brands. I want to change your view to coincide more closely to how I think RCL sees things. Warning: This is a long post but nevertheless something to consider. Apologies in advance. if TLTR then stop here and don't. I'm a retired USMC pilot and later an EM Physician Assistant with 22 years of practice, now retired. I'm a consumer of abundant COVID (C-19) data, medical journals and scientific research. I live in Fort Lauderdale so I am being constantly bombarded by very negative C-19 national and local news that often fails to include context. It's hard to remain positive in light of that. But the medical and scientific facts paint a more hopeful circumstance for this C-19 pandemic than the social, print, and broadcast media paint. I’m an optimist! Certainly, reopening is causing more social contact and more new C-19 cases; that was anticipated by FL's public health and other government officials including Governor Desantis. I suspect that's the case in other regions and states. Despite the hand-wringing of Governor Desantis' political opponents, such hand-wringing being augmented by a politically hostile FL press, It's pretty clear that FL officials have decided that the benefits of getting residents of this state back to work outweigh the risks (so far) of more C-19 infections. State and local officials have apparently also decided that they can deflect the "blood on your hands" harangue from the press over reopening too soon or too fast. Other states are following similar paths in reopening and suffering similar backlash and doubts. Don't get me wrong. SARS-CoV-2 and the illness it produces, C-19, is serious stuff. But here are some things we've learned about it: It's a virus with the same natural pathogenesis (the way it evolves in terms of what we see in a human host with no immunity) as past pandemics like the 1918 Spanish Flu. It has a steep growth rate, plateaus then declines (the shape and length of plateaus and slope of the decrease will vary by region and be affected by controllable factors). It’s highly transmissible and therefore hard to contain – more so than anything virologists have seen in the past. COVID-19 deaths are dropping as states protect vulnerable populations and those that are vulnerable to serious illness alter their behaviors. See chart of FL's COVID deaths below. Global death rates are declining. Death rates tend to be one of the best indicators of the severity and decline or accelerations of a pandemic. The proportion of new infections since US reopening is dominated by the under 45 age cohort. This cohort, on balance, suffers only minor symptoms. Despite alarm bells being sounded in press rooms about hospital capacity "close to or at limits,” the facts don't support that headline. See your own state’s Public Health Dashboards US testing and contact tracing have improved over time, esp. in FL. It is likely that this will have a salutary effect on the spread of the disease in states that were early adapters. While the medical community won't categorically state that masks and social distancing reduce the spread of the virus because of a lack of controlled studies to confirm that hypothesis, the anecdotal evidence that these simple mitigation measures work v. the spread of SARS-CoV-2 is overwhelming. With that as a back-drop, back to my point - RCL is a business that depends on income and profits to survive. They unemotionally assess risks to their business model all the time and the impact of C-19, while unprecedented, is just one of them. There are things that are in their control - operating expenses v. income - and things that aren't - CDC's No Sail Order, Home Port and Port of Call openings, the pathogenesis of C-19 in regions where RCL has operating interests. Nevertheless, the need to generate income is going to be a primary driver in decisions to start operating. In my view, sooner rather than later. I also believe that the various ports that RCL and CLIA have to deal with will do the same kind or risk/benefit analysis our states are doing and conclude that for the sake of their economies, esp. the tourism industries, they have to open to cruise ships and deal with the downside potentials if and when they happen. To that end, Port Everglades is open and, according to an update on their web page yesterday is, "ready to welcome the cruise industry back and are prepared to welcome back guests with enhanced sanitation and social distancing measures in our terminals." Certainly, early returning cruisers are going to find potentially inconvenient mitigation measures in place, for example, strictly enforced and widely separated boarding times, proof of recent RT-PCR (swabs) negative testing before embarking or debarking from certain ports among many others that you have heard about (masks, limited capacity in the ships and in ships venues, etc.). Early return to cruising passengers are going to have to plan for and to be flexible enough to accommodate those likely mitigation measures along with itinerary changes, the possibility of being denied entry to a port of call or even home port if a crew member or passenger comes down with C-19, ship swap outs and changes in transportation to and from embarkation/debarkation points. If you are an early cruiser, you can also expect strict control measures for preventing C-19 or dealing with single or multiple C-19 infections on board should that occur. There will most likely be protocols for cruise lines for covering the costs of disembarking/transferring and quarantining C-19 positive passengers and crew both onboard and once ashore acceptable to home ports and ports of call - a huge task but one that cruise lines will figure out. Could they require passengers to carry travel insurance? I think that is entirely possible and even likely. If you get C-19 while aboard, you'll be quarantined, and I'd expect you will be required to debark at the next port of call at your expense/covered by your travel insurance. All of this is going to affect your experience in potentially negative ways. Get your mind wrapped around these if you plan on jumping in early. Some won't want to deal with any of this and if you don't think you can, now is the time to re-think taking at risk cruises and those are probably the ones through the end of 2020 and into the 1st and second quarter of 2021 - assuming decreasing risk of having to deal with the various inconveniences over time. My take is that "normalcy" - and even then it won't be like cruising pre-C-19 - will return in the 3rd quarter of 2021 (July - a year from now) and then only if a SARS-CoV-2 preventative vaccine - or at least one that has shown to protect against the most serious complications of C-19 - is available and scalable. That's the bad news ................OTH, I believe there's good news too. I believe the CDC's release of it's color coding system that applies to the ships involved in the cruise industries repatriation efforts is a harbinger of a color-coding system for ships that will have passengers aboard. I also think the CDC is closer to green-lighting cruise ship operations out of US ports than we think, and I use the no news is good news slogan as a basis for that view. I have no doubt that CLIA and other industry lobby groups are putting polite pressure on the CDC and the Trump administration to lift the no-sail order. They must be. There are more factors and benefits weighing for restarting RCL operations, as soon as things RCL doesn't have control over start moving favorably in their direction, than the factors against or risks of a C-19 infection occurring on one of their ships. From a corporate standpoint it is a choice between insolvency or solvency; bankruptcy or operational viability. The cruise industry, in varying degrees and based on a company's cash position, is getting absolutely hammered - probably worse than any and they have a right to bitch about it and haven’t at least not publicly. Behind the scenes? Absolutely. Carnival announced today it is selling or scraping 6 of its 8 Fantasy class ships in the next 90 days - that's a big chunk of change and as the vessels are actually sold or scrapped a sizable reduction in operating costs. We'll see these kinds of measures characterizing the cruise industries attempts to remain solvent while trumpeting such actions as injurious to any US agency holding the keys to restarting the gas turbines that will listen. My view is that across the industry generating income through sailings, even on a limited basis and as soon as possible, will be at the forefront and parallel any kind of cost shedding measures like Carnival just took. What about the risk of bad PR - something that popped up very early in the pandemic and was also highly damaging to the industry's rep and continues to be damaging? Dealing with bad PR if a cruise ship is found to have even one C-19 positive passenger or crew - something you have to believe RCL is planning on even now - is small potatoes compared to dealing with insolvency and bankruptcy. Think about that for a moment. Put yourself in the shoes of RCLs' CEO, Richard Fain. Corporations, especially one with the potential to generate 10s of billions in annual revenues, tend to survive. RCL will put its survival at the top of its list of short term corporate goals. I'm an optimist, I think RCL will sail, all things out of their control assumed to trend favorably, in August and on a limited basis. I think an early, limited start in the Caribbean has potential; I think the med, again on a limited/selected basis, has potential. We already know what regions are out for an August restart. Beyond that, it's anyone's guess..... you have mine. If Fain is to be believed, when RCL starts sailing again, while the experience will be different, it's likely to be as good as RCL can make it and I have no doubt it will still be overwhelmingly good. I'll enthusiastically jump right in with my mind and travel plans adjusted appropriately - Celebrity Equinox, 8n S. Caribbean, departs Fort Lauderdale August 1st, 2020..... a west bound translant out of Barcelona in October and a Holiday Cruise at the end of December.

Yes, you can move it to any other cruise on any date precisely because it is a refundable rate. I checked this exact point with our TA before lifting and switching. If you want to protect the price, and all applicable stars align (date one year ahead plus or minus four weeks, same itinerary type, same length, same cabin category) then L&S is the way to go. If you do L&S you still keep the refundable status. Outside of L&S you pay the going rate for the new cruise and again will retain the refundable status. In this case, any promotions tied to the original booking will normally be lost but you would be entitled to promotions tied to the new cruise. I believe that Next Cruise OBC obtained from booking on board an earlier cruise is the exception to this rule and should move across to the new cruise.

Seems to me CLIA and the rest of the industry needs to have some better lobbyists and PACs.

Hoping to lift & shift our Sept cruise now. This is just getting so frustrating!!!

LMAO. We are AF. What is PT to the AF? Lifting a beer after a round of golf! What is the other joke for the AF? They build the runway 1st and the golf course next! Hubby did a tour with the 82nd (JUMP ALO) and attended CGSC at Leavenworth. Talk about being teased! When we got to Bragg I thought after being married for 4 yrs I knew all of the acronyms for the military. He was a young O3. 4V4 double turn as a flier, got it. Difference between a missile and a bomb, got it. PCS, with a TDY enroute and 10 days in the TLF using TLA, and TMO will pick up our HHG on this date, got it! Get to Bragg. 1st a.m. at 5:30 in the TLF he kisses me goodbye and says I have to go to PT, I will be back by 7 a.m. ME: OK. BYE! 30 seconds later, eyes pop open and start going through the acronym list. PT. PT. What on earth is PT? Could not fall back to sleep. He comes home and I ask him what is PT? He laughs and says Physical Training! I was like ...really they make you do that? Back on topic. Military discounts are there, but to me it is a hit or miss. More of a miss than a hit, but that might be due to the fact we book so far out in advance.

No way....my Air Force had a real battle cry:

According to the VA Affairs site, he can do this through the mail. Here in Northern CT, there isn't a military base in the neighborhood, maybe down state in New London at the Sub Base. I have also called the Town Clerk. In CT we get a Veteran's exemption on municipal taxes and have to file the DD214 in the Clerk's office. I also work for the Town so I made a quick call & they are looking for me. your help is very much appreciated!

So I THINK hubby is eligible? Danette sent me an email with the attached verbiage: Veterans with an Honorable Discharge serving a minimum of 2 years, or 6-months in an active war zone, in any of the United States service divisions listed above. Proper identification in the form of a DD 214, plus a current photo must be presented at time of check-in. He served 4 years at the tail end of Vietnam BUT was never in a war zone (Siragusa, Sicily). Yes? No? And he has a General Discharge under Honorable Conditions.

Army, now hiring. ? Get that discount.

I like your optimist view, though I think it is close to being maybe 60% spot on. I would like to slightly counter with a realist, not pessimist or negative view..... Late August with a miracle, September 1st at 50% chance but middle September at 85% probability. So far based off of information, no plans have been approved. So as a business, they want to avoid any extra debts and focus on profitability. Do we really believe any of the cruise lines have spent money on protocols that haven't been approved? Do you think those protocols can be made in 40 days or less? How about 30 or 6? Also ships need to be reposition.....would RCCI just waste resources on a prayer? August 1st is 43 days away with nothing from the CDC indicating a lift in the ban or approval of plans. A nearby casino got word they could open in May but took almost 30 days to get their protocol in place; they open on the 20th. Theme parks have been announcing weeks or even a month before opening, including their protocols in the announcement. I cannot see RCCI not including the protocols in their "welcome back" announcement, nor can I see the "welcome back" announcement happening in less than 30 days before sailing. While it is true that the media and the government have turn COVID into something ....using fear tactics, down/up playing the risk, falsifying numbers. Just one case on a ship can turn into a fustercluck. So far cruise lines seem to be the only thing left by which people can sue for COVID, I doubt this is a small thing to a business that is currently in the midst of bad publicity. Public opinion is not on the cruises side: do you err on the side of caution and put as much in place to avoid that, or do you risk future income by rolling the dice? I am starting to think that until countries allow international travel, with little to no quarantine, there will not be any cruises. In the beginning many of the lines secured capital to last them awhile, I don't see RCCI rushing into things for the sake of.....or just because one port is waiting. Also many countries have to carefully consider whether they want to risk everything for their tourist economy. Sick people can put a burden on a weak infrastructure. So allowing tourist to fly in and stay at resorts is different than hosting multiple ships, full of 1000s of people, a day.

EVERYTHING ISN'T A CONSPIRACY, PEOPLE

@Big Dawg Ron ? Really ? I thought about coming along but I don't have the energy to keep up with this wild man. Good luck !!! Besides, it looks like a guys-only deal. I never really wanted to go anyway... BTW, I am certain that @mpoole3 will have his feelings hurt by not being invited. ?