twangster

Odyssey will use terminal 18. There will be signs once you get through past the security checkpoint. In the Uber app you are best to enter a destination like "Port Everglades Terminal 18", otherwise drivers get suspicious of cancelled rides and chargebacks for not dropping off at the right location. However I'd follow the instructions in the email for testing purposes.

It's always interesting to look back and see what they said versus what actually occurred. That's from 2020. It's almost like their timing is unfortunate. If they do reopen the factory by the time they are spitting out tests delta could be over.

Based on the URLs to the revised expiration dates we are getting close to the end of the products that were made. I wonder how many more are in the warehouse? Once they are gone, they are gone. They aren't making these anymore. Royal may find themselves promoting a solution that evaporates before our eyes right when we need it most. Glad I bought mine when I did.

Seems like no one was buying these tests before the summer so they stopped making them and shuttered the facilities where they were made. https://www.businessinsider.com/covid-19-rapid-test-manufacturer-trashed-millions-of-products-report-2021-8 There will be no new ones made. The ones being shipped now are the most current we will ever get.

Completely irrelevant. The onus is on Navica to provide the service. Once Royal offers testing at the port they are responsible for it. The CDC will hold them accountable.

It seems Optum is equally sleazy. Frequent flyers have been trying to use the same tests for international travel. https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/33468753-post110.html This user eventually received a full refund from Optum after they received tests with just 2 1/2 months of expiration with an apology acknowledging the uncertainty in expiry dates. It seems like Abbott manufactured a bunch of these earlier this year but didn't sell a lot of them so the stockpile in the warehouse grew. Along comes the delta variant and suddenly their tests are in demand so Abbott is shipping old product to their partners.

Not expecting any action over the weekend.

Because eMed is stating the expiration date of the test they are selling has been extended 12 months. They have not been. The expiration dates for current tests being sold by eMed currently have been extended by 3 months according to Abbott. The tests being sold now by eMed originally had an 8 month expiration from date of manufacturer. For these tests, the FDA has authorized a 3 month extension taking the expiration to 11 months from the date of manufacture. Abbott had received an FDA authorization to extend the expiration of select test kits that originally had a 6 month expiration date. The FDA approved these "select" tests with a 6 month expiration to be extended to 12 months. This 6 month extension is being improperly offered by eMed as a 12 month extension but it does not apply to all Abbott Binax tests. It only applied to the ones that originally had a 6 month expiration date and eMed is not selling those right now. eMed is to blame for the misleading marketing and incorrectly stating there is a 12 month extension. For tests being currently sold by eMed there is a 3 month extension. It's not clear what Optum is doing or what expiration dates their tests are shipping with currently.

Like I said, kind of sleazy on eMed's part. Contact them to complain. I did.

They are good for those Nov. and Dec. cruises. Who knows what January will mean. Might not even need tests then. I too was surprised by the shorter than expected expiration date but I'll have no problem using mine up before January 5. Kind of sleazy on eMed's part but they are not the first american company to capitalize on the virus and make bank from it.

To assemble or contract a team of health care qualified individuals to mass test a thousand or several thousand plus guests in a 3 or 4 hour window at a cruise terminal is a very different model than a $25 home test over video. It doesn't scale in cruise terminals that were never built with this in mind. You can't just hand out 1,000 or more self tests and tell every guest to use their cell phone to do a proctored test with Navica. Then there is the matter of setting up several sets of lab testing equipment stations remotely in the terminal, in a lab environment with isolation and all that goes along with this type of setup. That can't be cheap. Cruise lines are not making money right now. They are simply losing less. Add the costs to contract a healthcare workforce which are already in short supply and pay them more to work on weekends then setup laboratory testing in the terminals for mass testing in each and every terminal and the cruise lines just might as well shutdown again.

You have to cough up and almost choke on some phlegm when you say Brook...

I did a PCR test yesterday morning at CVS and I just got the result. Basically next day. That's in Florida where cases have been skyrocketing. Looks like cases are starting to come down so testing is becoming faster. I have the home tests for a backup but if CVS can keep this up I've got a solid plan A with them even under a 2 day testing requirement.

If Royal needed to integrate a store front from an external partner with their cruise reservation backend that could be in place any time by 2029.

Good thing they weren't drinking Bunnahabhain or Bruichladdich.

It kind of does... Purchase Your At-Home Test Kit I just bought some of the same tests that Royal will soon be selling. It will be interesting to see if they subsidize the cost or negotiate a bulk rate.

Q. Is there a telemedicine or telehealth test option that is recommended for my pre-cruise COVID-19 test? A. For fully vaccinated guests only, we accept self-administered, FDA-authorized COVID-19 tests taken under live video supervision by a telehealth representative. Coming Soon: Purchase Your At-Home Test Kit Starting September 8th, fully vaccinated guests can order at-home test kits, shipped right to your door (anywhere in the U.S.) in two business days or less. Complete your pre-cruise test at home, with live video supervised by a Certified Guide. Get your results in 15 minutes. More About the Test Kit The Abbott BinaxNOW™ COVID-19 Ag Card Home Test is an FDA-authorized rapid antigen home test that, when combined with eMed Telehealth Service, can be used by fully vaccinated guests to fulfill their pre-cruise test requirement. Your test kit includes a personal virtual visit with an eMed Certified Guide who will help you properly administer the test and verify the result. Your eMed Labs result report is provided via email and can be printed or displayed on your mobile device on boarding day. How It Works ORDER YOUR TEST KIT ONLINE: Visit Royal Caribbean’s online storefront, powered by Optum, to order your kit. The test kit ships within the U.S. and arrives in two days or less. TEST FROM HOME: Scan the QR code on your test kit box to start your video visit with a Certified Guide. GET YOUR RESULT: In 15 minutes, you’ll have a verified test result that you can use to board the ship.

Since I've been testing for cruising I've accidentally on purpose fallen within a 2 day window. I've been doing PCR at T-3 days and rapid at T-2 days. Guess I can drop the PCR test now. Seriously though this really has zero impact for me. It's what I have been doing for a number of cruises.

For the purpose of tracelets? In fact tracelts must have been successful in Singapore given they even tried using them in the US.

They've been using them for months and months in Singapore. You would think if they learned lessons that suggested any of that they never would have implemented them here.

Perhaps with the requirement to be vaccinated if over 12 they determined they weren't required.

When I was a younger man, getting a six pack had a whole different meaning. However I am happy to report my eMed six pack has arrived. Probably the only six pack I'll get at my age.

What? I'm booking more every week. It's a great time to cruise. No lines, no elevator wait. My test results from this morning just came in... I'm cruising this weekend! Bring. It. On.

I was there at the end of July. The beach club is very nice. Lunch is great. It does sell out but at the prices I see across all my cruises people aren't buying it so it isn't selling out. For me the current price point doesn't have enough value to justify the cost. Some of my cruises have it over $190 per person. The problem with the current price model is that there is so much to do on CocoCay and areas to explore that are included I can't justify the cost of the beach club. CocoCay is that great without the beach club so the price of the beach club doesn't work for me. In the future when two Oasis class at full capacity are visiting CocoCay at the same time I think the value proposition of the beach club changes. Right now at reduced capacity with so few guests competing for included resources I just don't see value in the beach club for a lunch. I also think anyone who hasn't been to CocoCay should not buy the beach club. If they do they are less likely to explore the rest of CocoCay and I believe newcomers should explore all that is CocoCay on their first visit.

Just got back from a Walgreens rapid test 2 days before my Sunday cruise. My standard approach has been PCR test at 3 days (because CVS here only has PCR tests but offers them 2 weeks in advance) followed by a Walgreens rapid test (because Walgreens only offers tests within the next 48 hours but they are rapid). Each is a backup to the other in case the facility closes or lab screws up. And just in case both CVS and Walgreens let me down I have the Binax proctored test 6 pack as my final back up which I can do the day before the cruise if it really comes down to it. As someone who has been getting tested within 2 days for a number of cruises the switch to 2 day testing will have no impact on my ability to cruise.