CruisinForABruisin

Baby Becomes Triple Amputee After Getting Sick on Cruise

35 minutes ago, Floski said:

What I am concerned about is the "you must take any excursions through RCCL" rule.   I have never taken a ship-sponsored excursion, as they are 

always so much more overpriced that I want to spend, plus I would so much rather get out and about within the port.  Matt mentioned that it is 

possible that prices will go down, but how much?  RC needs to make it worth my while.

IMO they only have incentive to raise the price of the excursions. Between limited spots on tours, and people who board the ship not knowing they have to book through the cruiseline, they hold all the cards and can charge whatever they want.

4 minutes ago, Matt said:

You can tell them you are feeling sick and might have been exposed.  There's no polygraph test that comes with the COVID test.

Just saying.

Soooo, you think sneaking booze on a ship is unethical, but lying to get expedited test results during a pandemic is ok? Maybe cruisers shouldn't be at the top of list for expedited results. 

3 minutes ago, crisgold52 said:

In canada testing is free thanks to socialized health care.

Here in America, I get to pay $300/month, and it doesn't cover a damn thing. 

34 minutes ago, KristiZ said:

I just moved from Tokyo to Managua. Part of the protocol involved a COVID test. In the major airline hub cities (and in some cases actually in the airport) you can get a RT-PCR test with a less than 12 hour turn around. Newark had facilities for this, for sure, and we actually tested at the lab recommended by Avianca in Miami, about 20 minutes from the airport. 
Cost was $189 per person and all you have to say to get an appointment is that you’re “traveling”.  There was also a choice of lab that took 24 hours to return results but only cost about $90. 
So long as cruises are leaving from large cities like that, it shouldn’t be a problem. 
 

Fantastic, now we can decide between the beverage package, and dropping $400 on 2 covid tests

4 minutes ago, Jaymac Radio said:

Now I only see one problem with there testing guidelines. It seems like no at pier testing for guest.  

0 chance of the at home testing working, when some cities can take weeks to obtain results 

4 hours ago, gatorskin76 said:

I hope some others used logic that was more general and less specific.

The cruise leaves in less than 50 days, and they haven't announced a single health or safety protocol outside of the muster drill. Maybe give people more than a blink of an eye to decide whether or not they feel their family will be safe during the first ever cruise during a pandemic in the US? Will the boat be locked down if there is an outbreak? Will there be day of testing and masks? These questions need to be answered ASAP, but nothing but crickets from RCL. 

Just finished my reply saying wait until the new year. I want my casino royale refund in cash, not limited credits that won't even cover 1 person on a lift and shift. 

33 minutes ago, crisgold52 said:

Tipping spoils the market. We already pay prepaid gratuities.  No difference whatsoever. Of course when one TIPS they think they see a difference but it's always subjective. I've tipped twice when I first started cruising. No differences. But if people have cash to spend on Star Class and UP then sure it's good. But otherwise most of us average folks who stick with Inside Oceanview or Balcony then tipping or not is debatable. Tipping seems very Americanized however I dont see people tipping grocery clerks or cashiers. Service is service. Minimum wage there also. 

I tip with every drink, the bartender's have always blown right by the other people to serve me, even at the pool bar during peak hours. Who cares if you have prepaid gratuities that get split amongst 3,000 employees, these people are sleeping in shared closets, working 7 days a week, and sending all their money back home to families they barely see, just so we can sit on our asses a gorge for 7 days.

36 minutes ago, crisgold52 said:

Some are indicating that the US gods may be pressuring for a return to normalcy by opening the US CANADA land border. Of course this would be a risky endeavor. 

 

https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/09/opinions/us-canada-covid-19-bociurkiw/index.html 

Kind of a sweet irony that the US is complaining about being closed out of a border

7 minutes ago, teddy said:

My wife and I talked about this, but I work in a supermarket and haven't seen this.  If anything, most people are basically behaving like they did pre-pandemic.....no social distancing, taking masks off to talk or make a phone call, touching everything on the shelf/case/bin to find the one they want, etc.....and no one else is getting upset.

Sure, there is the occasional person who comes to an employee to report someone going the wrong way in an aisle or not wearing their mask correctly, but that person is extremely rare.

 

 

and this is why we are where we are

3 minutes ago, jaredhamburg said:

Oh, I agree.  People with health issues should stay home if they feel at risk.  The world should not shut down for a small subset.

Yupp, those anti maskers can go pound sand, and find their own cruise line 

18 minutes ago, jaredhamburg said:

Actually, anyone with a breathing issue / trouble breathing is told not to wear masks (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/cloth-face-cover-guidance.html#:~:text=CDC recommends all people 2,know that they are infected.).  Why would that be if they do not inhibit breathing?  I know where you are coming from with much of MSM telling us masks are good and all, but they must inhibit breathing to a large enough degree to tell people like that not to wear them.

Stay home if you have health issues then ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

or a more comedic example 

2 minutes ago, jaredhamburg said:

I hope this is clarified by Royal Caribbean if they require masks.  Costa's site seems to be vague about the Lido deck and being in a gym in relations to mask usage (places where masks would inhibit oxygen consumption when needed by your body).  I really hope it is not that inclusive.

This is a deal breaker for many people (both ways) for many vacationers, so I hope there is good clarity no matter which way it falls (fingers crossed for the least masking possible).

Masks don't inhibit oxygen consumption, that has been debunked. Bring on the masks!

26 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

We never carry our phones around on the ship but carrying a phone around would be a small price to pay if that's what it takes.

I also agree that having brave souls go before us is very helpful...and from what I can see/hear, it seems to be going well.

I was very VERY happy to read that they were only requiring masks on land. That is a HUGE deal, if you ask me !

They said, "just as on land", when in public areas while on board, protective masks must be worn.  Luckily, masks will be required at all times except for dining and in your room.

2 minutes ago, twangster said:

All steps in the right direction and nothing surprising.  With more and more European lines leading the way hopefully everyone will get on board with the changes required to allow cruising to restart.   

I always have my phone with me on board so QR codes work.  I can see some eye rolls and complaints from those that dislike having to carry a phone on vacation.  

I love the QR menus that have been implemented. I dont usually have my phone on me during cruises, but i won't mind having it for just the meal. More likely than not, ill just know what I want before I go to the restaurant 

I can't wait to see the average cruiser age to drop like 40 years with mask mandates and menus only accessible by smart phones.  Bring it on!

10 hours ago, KWong said:

In the current environment I think folks would be more comfortable with less people around. So if we only go by this criteria, the choice is clear. 
 

but, if people are still looking for more amenities, then you'll likely need to look at Sanchos. 

To that point, these may be off limits, as they are not RCL offered excursions 

Also, you can book both the 3 and 4 night mariner for a 800k gold 7 night and back to back. Similar 7 nighters would usually run 2.5 mil 

1 hour ago, Andrew72681 said:

Knew I should’ve checked the message boards last night. All gone now.

They refreshed them again today, no reason to think they won't they won't tomorrow 

Myvegas just dropped a ton of 3 nighters for January 

13 hours ago, AGSLC5 said:

This was posted also in a Facebook group and they said this has not been confirmed.. I would wait for confirmation like Matt always does before assuming anything.. 

Nahh, ill choose to believe this

I wonder if RCL will follow suit, especially considering the delay from the health board

We We used our sapphire card rewards to pay for our entire honeymoon which was on Allure. Booking was super simple through them as well. The link below will you 60k points once you hit the low milestone. Their travel protection is top notch as well!

chase referral code

1 hour ago, LizzyBee23 said:

"The proposed budget projects 50% sailing for the entirety of the fiscal year, but anticipates allowing more ships per line being added in each quarter."

Doesn't seem like they're expecting it to be linear, and they'll adjust quarterly.

Yupp, but that's 3 months of only 4 ships. I'm curious which ones they select