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@Kata We finally got our hotel in London to refund our stay although it hasn't shown up on our CC yet. However, so far, Norwegian Air won't let us cancel and get a refund. I hate to say I hope they have to cancel our flight for lack of passengers and then we MIGHT get that back-and it is considerable.$$$$

Our daughter was in Prague and had to get back in a hurry and the airlines were gouging the tickets. Her plane was half empty but she paid a fortune.

I am waiting for an email. I guess that will have options for the refund or rebooking.

I am supposed to be on the same cruise. If you check the website, it is no longer listed. Have you checked your flight home from London?

My  April 12 Transatlantic was cancelled but I was going to cancel myself anyway. I hope I get a refund and not cruise credit. The notice doesn't specify.

Shutting down solves the issue of doctors notes, lying, secondary transmissions and quarantine. I think it’s going to happen eventually Take every ship and give them a sanitizing scrub and spruce up and the passengers will feel better getting on at a later date. IMHO

Unfortunately I think they should completely shut down for 30-60 days. I will be affected but it’s for the good of the country. Then no worries about lying. 

8 minutes ago, RWDW1204 said:

Who decides severity of a person's condition?

 

I believe the doctor does, and I doubt a doctor wants to say a patient with any chronic disease is "fit to go an a cruise" in the midst of this coronavirus and put his license on the line.

15 minutes ago, SpeedNoodles said:

 

You're right. Just like people lied at the airports as to where they had been and who they had been around.  And thus the virus spreads.

4 minutes ago, SpeedNoodles said:

They won't know.  I suspect this has been drummed up by the legal team.  Anyone could have diabetes, or any other chronic health condition, and either tell the truth, and be denied boarding (so Royal doesn't have to worry about something happening to them) or they lie, and they can say "hey, we asked and they said no.  They lied, it's on them."  In practicality it's a meaningless policy, but it makes the lawyers happy.

Yes, I am sure the lawyers have required this. But it clearly states in the policy: 

a.  Boarding will be denied to any person age 70 or older, unless the guest provides written verification from a qualified treating physician that certifies the person has no severe, chronic medical condition and is fit to travel.

If you click on written verification, it includes name and sail date and this language from a DOCTOR:I hereby certify that this patient does not suffer from any chronic illness (e.g. heart, lung, liver or kidney disease or immunodeficiency state due to HIV?AIDS or diabetes) which would make this patient susceptible to complications arising after infection with the Novel Coronavirus...

I attest this person is fit to sail on a cruise vacation.

__________________________________________________

Signature of treating physician.

It is not just a question. You must present this form.

12 minutes ago, SpeedNoodles said:

A new policy that doesn't go into effect until Monday. So this either shouldn't happen or didn't happen (and considering it's a new user who hasn't come back to reply and maybe never will, I suspect it's a made up story by someone who read the policy and decided to make waves).

I didn't catch the date, I was focused on the intent of the post.  But to answer some who say how will they know? The notice clearly states,  if you are over 70, you will go through a special screening and you will have to present a letter from your doctor that you do NOT have certain medical conditions. Anyone over 70 will have an additional form  

a.  Boarding will be denied to any person age 70 or older, unless the guest provides written verification from a qualified treating physician that certifies the person has no severe, chronic medical condition and is fit to travel.

12 hours ago, Kata said:

Same here. My excitement about going on the 12 day Transatlantic April 12, isn't the same. 

We were on that same cruise but have canceled. Have you thought about flying home now?  Hopefully you are not stuck there. 

Read the RCCL website. It is a new policy. 

There are plenty of people with those conditions who are controlled and in good health, my husband and myself being two. It would put the kabash  on jumping in the car and driving to a close port on short notice. What doctor wants to go out on a limb in case you have a  heart attack on the ship and sue him for malpractice? I agree with PAJ! How many others have diabetes or heart disease and are under 70?  Age discrimination!

The mayor of New York has declared a state of emergency. Do you think cancellations of cruises from Port Liberty are to follow?

1 hour ago, Mike Stephens said:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/some-people-70plus-should-be-barred-from-boarding-cruise-ships-industry-proposal-says/ar-BB1136Vc

I actually had this same idea and I am over 70 and my husband is too with a chronic lung condition.  I don't intend to stop cruising, in fact we have recently booked a Christmas cruise. But this virus is a horse of a different color and we are canceling our 12 night Transatlantic.

This is why I am waiting to the last minute to cancel my cruise. I would prefer a cash refund instead of cruise credit. With the WHO declaring a pandemic, I am thinking international travel should be seriously curtailed and our Transatlantic to Southampton might be cancelled. London is lagging behind taking any actions other than hand washing, etc. so both my hotel and airline refuse to cancel, refund or rebook.

46 minutes ago, Matt said:

This is a personal decision to make. I have a cruise on Sunday to similar ports, and I am going.  Of course, no one in my family is elderly, very young, or has underlying health conditions.

@Matt  Can you explain how the cruise credit works? When rebooking, do I have to put a deposit down and then wait for a certificate to arrive and use it to pay the balance or can I wait for the certificate and use it to pay the deposit? I can't get through to ask these questions and cancel my April cruise. I was on hold 1 1/2 hours yesterday and gave up.

15 minutes ago, AndrewPunch said:

They are raising the prices on future cruises so that credit might not go as far as you think.

You are right! I just priced a cruise that I priced last week and it has gone up $300.00.

Can someone tell me how the credit works? I haven't been able to get through to cancel my cruise yet so I don't know what to expect. If I have another cruise I want to book, do I have to pay the $900.00 deposit and then wait for the credit to come in the mail to pay the remainder? Or should I wait until I get the credit and will it cover the deposit?

13 minutes ago, berkeleykel said:

Italy just took a drastic step of total lockdown because its hospitals are overwhelmed with cases.  Not sure you can blame that on a fear mongering media. If anything maybe it proves the media right in being hyper focused on this.  I don’t think the issue in Italy will by any means stay confined to Italy.

But best of luck on your cruise. I have a vacation planned in a couple of weeks to France/Germany and my fingers are also crossed that it can go forward. 

My daughter is in Prague right now and she texted me that the premier cancelled all schools and there can be not gatherings over 100.  I hope you make your trip to France/Germany.

Has anyone been able to get through to Royal today?  I get an immediate busy signal. At this point I would be happy to be on hold. 

1 hour ago, AshleyDillo said:

Priceline serves as your Travel Agent so they might have different rules with respect to a deposit through them. 

With Royal the most that you would lose on your deposit would be $100 per person, and that would only be if you booked a non-refundable rate.

I wonder why you would lose the $100pp? The information on the website says: "

guests with a Non-Refundable Deposit bookings that wish to change to a different ship or sail date can do so with no fee assessed - the change fee will be waived.

1 hour ago, AshleyDillo said:

I hope it works out for you.  Just remember if you get a denial at first you can always appeal.  Because Royal is offering the future cruise credit, sometimes the insurance companies will try to use that to not not pay out the claim.  

I just re-read the policy and now I believe you are correct. The policy pays "IN CASH the otherwise non-refundable value of the unused portion of your prepaid cruise vacation." Since RCCL is now refunding 100% as a cruise credit, I am sure it will not refund the cash. Thanks for pointing that out.

10 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

Read your insurance policy documents. You would be surprised how difficult it is to get your situation to fit into one of the reasons that they DO cover.  The doctor letter would have to be written in a specific way to match the policy language to qualify for coverage.

Since my husband is 75 and has a serious progressive lung disease and his specialist and the CDC say don’t go We intend to make a claim. I am sure they will scrutinize it carefully. We have read the policy carefully and printed off the form for the doctor and I don’t see why it wouldn’t pay. It’s a legitimate claim. We were scheduled to be on a 12 night TA and now no way can we cross the Atlantic without access to a lung hospital just in case. My husband’s life is worth more than a cruise!  

BTW we are D+ members and have never canceled a cruise before so this is very disappointing for us. 
We appreciate the future cruise credit RCCL is offering but who knows if we will ever be able to use it now. 
I just wish our London Hotel and airline would follow suit. It has been a nightmare. 

Why fo you say indu

2 hours ago, AGSLC5 said:

Unless you had cancel for any reason insurance this wasn't covered by Travel insurance anyways so why does it matter what the government says? not trying to be mean.. I just don't understand why this all of a sudden makes a difference to people. 

Why do you say it isn’t covered?  If you have a doctor letter saying you cannot go why wouldn’t it be covered?  It makes a big difference to those of us who are “ of a certain age” and have underlying health issues. Your comment is very crass and insensitive. 

6 hours ago, tiny blonde said:

The "Cruise with Confidence" plan updated just a couple of days ago in response to the coronavirus emergency states (as I was given to understand) that the cruise using FCC must be booked within a year, but can be departing anytime before 12/31/2021. I have cancelled my cruise in April because I am a risk (82 with COPD) and I plan to book a new cruise for next year ASAP. Which means I need to stay alive another year.

I too have a cruise in April and plan to cancel as soon as I can get a few things figured out. My husband is in the risk group(75 with IPF) and our doctor says he cannot travel although he is not having any difficulties at this time. We have insurance through RCCL and plan on filing a claim but I wonder if you thought about that yourself? Do you have insurance? With the new CDC warning today, I am not sure we will ever be able to cruise comfortably again.

Has anyone had a similar experience using the RCCL insurance?