Pima1988

@Pooch You do realize that wearing gloves at a grocery store is not the "be all" correct? Actually they have shown that, unless you are wearing disposable and take them off properly, it is not only fruitless, but can spread the virus. My youngest is a bio-chemist. He actually laughs at how people are thinking they are keeping them safe. He was the one to point out to me about grocery stores. Look around and you will see people are not wearing them correctly.. Many do not cover their nose, or if they have a beard it is not covered. GERMS! In essence, what good is a mask and gloves if you do not do it to the level of the medical field? Many that wear gloves re-use them everytime, or worse yet pull them off and toss them in the shopping cart. We will just have to agree to disagree. I believe that the CDC is moving the bar when it comes to the cruise lines. I believe that this is occurring because their industry lobbyist are not as aggressive as the hotel industry lobbyist. If they were smart and got the long shoremen union/lobbyist involved cruising would start in Aug FWIW I have seen those videos. Trust me. I have stayed at home since the day I was furloughed on March 16th. I go out 2x a week for groceries. Have not even done a drive thru. In the 3 months now, I have filled my gas tank 2X. That is it. Before Covid when I was working, it was every 6 days.

I mean exactly that. They will stay in the hotel by the pool thinking they are socially distancing and not go to the theme park, hence, in their mind they are being pro-active. They are not going to pack up and say let's get out of here, unless they go to the hospital. They paid $$$ for the family reunion and by dang it they will fight through this, at least for aa day. Afterall, it might be too much heat, not enough hydration, too much activity, etc. etc. Just need a "down" day and will feel better. Let's also be real. I could go to WDW for 5 nights and feel fine. The day we drive out I start to feel "funky". We drive (12 hrs) so lots of stops for food and gas. I abide by wearing a mask at these stops, but take it off to eat at Cracker Barrel, I use hand sanitizer as soon as I sit down. Finished eating, we go and buy some snacks, etc. still wearing a mask. Never using the bathroom. What you behind me didn't realize was that I picked up that bag of Munchos and placed them back for that fake cheese popcorn. You just took that bag of Munchos. I use the ATM pin pad right before you and you use it without wiping it down. My germs are on both the Munchos and the ATM pin pad. I get home the next day and I have CoVid. You, unwittingly are now at risk. I already infected a ton of people before I even felt funky just because I was at WDW sitting on that tea cup ride or holding on to the handle at Splash Mountain. Mask or no mask. Fact is those germs are on my hands when I wipe my face from sweat. WDW is not as clean as any cruise ship. Yet, WDW and Vegas are allowed to reopen. Have you even thought about how much you are exposed to at your local grocery store even if they require masks and social distancing? They are not sanitizing like a cruise ship. Great example. When you buy your eggs, do you just grab a carton, or do you take it out, open it up and touch each egg to make sure none are cracked? If so, you just placed your germs all over that container. I come behind you 1 min later and do the exact same thing. How about that eggplant or broccoli, are you taking just the 1st one there, or are you inspecting them and placing it back? How many germs do you think are there? Your last comment about barricading is impo now a fact for many cruisers. I see it from a booking issue. My SoS May 2021 sailing no longer has any JS balconies left. The spacious balcony (lower cat) is now running higher than what I got my JS at. My husband and I have always done balcony. I personally believe that every cruise line will have to do deep discounts for interior cabins because of that exact fear. I would also add that is one reason why they will roll out Oasis and Quantum class 1st. Those ships have a lot more balconies, A lot more space from a density aspect compared to Freedom class ships. I will sail as soon as I can. I believe 1 thing, the day you are born, the day you will die is set. I have to believe that due to the fact my husband flew fighters for the USAF for 21 yrs and my son is a pilot for USAF now. I cannot live in fear. I can live in checking off my bucket list items, such as zip lining, para sailing, and now riding a scooter underwater to see Sea Turtles!

@Baked Alaska We are in the same boat. We booked a clamshell at Labadee. Beach bed came up at a great price and we decided to cancel the clamshell. We are still waiting and it is coming up on 45 days. However, if you booked it with OBC it seems like it is back immediately. The only problem is you now need a spread sheet. This was OBC, cancelled re-booked, at lower price and purchased this with OBC and cc. This is your cc saying refund, and new purchase! We are now at the point OBC is for DBP only!

ROFLMAO That is the straw mans' argument. 1. If that is the true demographic please explain why they have kiddie water play areas and have daycare on board? Why do they have Pullman beds in certain cabins? Can you really see a 60+ yr old climbing up into a bunk. Can you see them using the slide in the top level cabin? The Lego board or the gaming stations? 2. Disney cruises are aimed to young families, I bet their demographic is more in the 30-40 range than 60+. Disney theme parks are a go, but not the ships. 3. My Mom lives in a 55 and over community with a golf course. She is 83. She orders pizza to be delivered to her home. She does not have to wear a mask upon delivery. She is interacting with youngsters. She has had landscapers at her home and they are in contact with her. Her friends and neighbors pop by and they don't wear face masks. They too are out and about in the world. Yet, not 1 person in her 1500 home community has died of CoVid. OBTW those pizza delivery people and landscapers are young and are hitting the NJ shore. 4. I am 55. When did 60 become at "deaths door"? Have I had my hip replaced? Yep, but that was due to traumatic injury. My husband at 56 does P90X every day. I have already booked some of my excursions for May 2021. We will be ziplining and doing the BOSS. Granted I am not over 60, but I believe I am close enough to say BS! Have I seen people on scooters? Yes! Have I seen them at Wal-Mart or my local grocery store too? Yes! Have I seen them at Disney World? Yes! My point is those places have the exact same health issues that a cruise ship does. Do you think that Universal or Disney hotels will not be the same when Grandma and Grandpa pay for the family vacay? Sure, they can get to a hospital, but be real! They will suffer through it. Cruise ship or hotel, if they are feeling under the weather they will stay behind and enjoy the amenities of the property instead of leaving. 5. I would rather cruise than rent an Air B&B or beach rental. Cruise lines have to follow CDC. I don't see that occurring for rentals. My family, including cousins rent beach houses every yr for family reunions, ages range from 1 to 85. Want to talk about spreading CoVid there you go! The houses are cleaned, but impo not to the level of a ship.

THIS! I am always more concerned about pouncing on the "limited" items more than the UDP, DBP and VOOM since those items are not limited in numbers. I was fortunate that when they dropped the Coco Cay Beach pass, they did it at $79. I picked that up on day one under my husband's name. If it drops more I will buy it under my name, and than go back and cancel the one under his account. Believe it or not posters will tell you that between the time they cancelled and tried to repurchase at the lower price it was now sold out. Hence, why you buy the new one at the lower price 1st and than cancel the higher price. I am sure almost everyone here knows someone or a story about an angry passenger that lost their cabana. Heck on my last yrs cruise, I met 2 different groups complaining and discussing this at the same time in the Solarium hot tub the day prior to arriving in Coco Cay. We had a cabana so I sat there in awkward silence. The other purchase that I buy right off the bat is a couples massage. Yes, I know it is more expensive than on land, but between work and life we never find time to do one, this is our splurge. Caveat: OBC usually covers it. We always want day 2 (sea day) and usually late a.m. prior to lunch (no sunburn yet) This is their highest price time. If it drops than I will rebook under my name and cancel the original. I have never seen it drop from the earliest opportunity, only increase, yet I still hope. RCL does not set these prices, the SPA is leased to a 3rd party company, so they set their prices and sales.

Typically it will show up @1 yr out, so you have a long time before anything shows up. My May 2021 Symphony cruise planner started opening up around end of April. My drink package is still way too high for me to bite. It started at 81 and is down to 67. When it hits the 50s I will bite.

1st/2nd week of Nov is when we stop sailing...I like my ocean water to be bath temp. Even when we went mid Nov. the furthest I went in was sitting on the edge and that was after lunch. Hence, May - Nov are when we sail.

We are like you. The only excursions we booked right now are the ones that we know are very limited in number and sell out quickly. IE Coco Cay Beach club pass. We did get at a good price of 79. I will rebook if comes down lower. I think it depends on the CC. We have a couple of 0% with varying reward systems. I know my hubby will purchase on one. Than he transfers it over to the other where we get points for purchases/transfers and payment. I am pretty sure that is how he does it. I just know I say: Honey, which card am I suppose to use to buy this? Caveat, not because of balance, just because I am a debit card user daily, so when it is a big amount I know he has his system regarding the credit card rewards.

Here's my rant. How are theme parks and casinos different than a cruise ship? Visitors are coming in from across the country via cars or airlines. Same as cruise ships. They have hotel accommodations, just like cruise ships. Wynn Resorts have announced that their buffets will re open in the next week or so at their casinos. IMPO, I would not go to a Theme park, regardless of a mask or not. We always stay on site at Disney, and in their higher end hotels (Yacht and Beach, Plantation, lowest end was the military Shades of Green) No way, shape or form would I say that their hotel accommodations are kept to the level of an RCL ship. Night time they are vacuuming and wiping down like a ship, but on a ship it is 24/7 that you always see them even prior to Covid, on the staircases wiping the hand rails through out the day. They are in your room cleaning it at least 2x a day. Hotel maids come in, clean your room in the a.m. and call it a day. I have stayed at hotels like the Williard in DC, and there is no turn down service for just the "avg" customer. RCL could go back out and do just a private island cruise to Coco Cay or Labadee. They could have full control. Compare that to Vegas. I book a room at the Venetian, but they are not going to lock me into the hotel. That means, if I decide to go to the M & M store they won't stop me. How is it that there is less likelihood of me getting the virus than getting off the ship in OSJ ? Where is the CDC stopping these hospitality industries? Don't even get me started on beaches being opened in NJ. Last I checked social distancing is not occurring. Anyone from NJ knows on any given day you will see a ton of NY and PA license plates. I truly feel that they have it in for the cruising industry. They industry shows they are in compliance, and their response is: OH Wait, we forgot to tell you that you must also do this too. It is as if they keep moving the goal post, or at least throw a technical flag on the field. Part of me wonders is if this is the one travel/hospitality industry they can control since they are not US companies like the others. They are not about to fight the governors for places like Vegas, NYC New Orleans or Miami that are demanding and needing those tax dollars from the hospitality industry. I think cruise lines need to stomp real hard on the governors of their ports and force them to fight their cause of re-starting sailing from a tax revenue aspect. OBTW I have no bone in this fight bc the only cruise now on my books is May 21. Just ranting bc I feel the pain on both sides. Passengers with sailings are ticked. RCL is trying to get back to sea, but the CDC is stopping them, yet, passengers don't see how the CDC are messing with their ability to do so. RCL than doesn't cancel because they need to see if they cleared the newest jump set by the CDC. Cruisers are ticked since the 90 day marker is there and they feel that RCL should have known.

We typically always have a 0% credit card with some type of rewards/cash back, with that fact we use to always pay in full right off the bat. We would just pay the card off monthly so it was back to zero 90 days out. The fact that we get cash back is another reason we also paid it off, because than we used those rewards to pay for excursions, saving us money. This time around they will wait until 90 days prior. Our cruise is May next yr. If we go through this again, by mid Feb we might be looking at L & S or CWC prior to that 90 day marker. Don't want to go through the hassle if we paid in full. I have booked some things, such as Coco Beach Club pass and 2 excursions because I know they are limited in number. However, for dining and beverage I will wait. They are riding too high for me to bite off on. This makes me ask from a finance aspect for RCL, how many of us that use to pay in full early on, now has said I will wait? That means they have less money in their reserve account. In turn it hurts their credit rating. Lower credit rating higher interest rate loans. If they now raise prices on sailings to get more in the reserve account, than it can bite them....lower bookings. Same with things like any of their products, such as, UDP, DBP, Labadee cabanas, zipline, and Coca Cay. They have to find that magic number to meet their financial needs.

@fgarvin The rules have changed regarding reserving the actual cabana once on board. They no longer allow you to select the cabana. The night prior they will drop off the map and give you the instructions on how to get there. Once you get there at the concierge stand, you tell them the names and cabin numbers of the people on your list. This is where you get your wristlet. The attendant will walk you to the cabana. Cabanas are assigned by the purchase date and you won't know what number you are until the very end. The reason why is many people will cancel and rebook at a lower price. IE you could have been the 1st to book, so if you keep it at your original price you will be cabana number 1. Assume I am number 2. Once you rebook I become number 1 and you move to the next available cabana number. You do not keep that original number since it is seen as a true cancellation and a new booking.

Before I respond give me an age range. Are you saying 18-25, or 25-30?

No way would I cruise wearing a mask. In No VA they just opened the hair salons, you must wear a mask. Any woman will understand me when I say that after 3 months without a cut, color and highlight is that your appointment will be 3 hrs+. I know this and bc I can't stand wearing the mask, I broke my appointment down to 2 sep. apptmts on different days. 1 for cut and another for color. If 3 hrs is too much for me, I can't fathom putting it on everytime I walked out of my balcony into public areas like the Promenade, or at a show, heck how do you sing at the piano bar in Schooners or play trivia? Think about it...Trivia at Schooner at 3. You walk the promenade from 2 (mask on), than go to Schooners @ 2:30-2:45 to get a good seat. Trivia would be over at 3:30-:45. By the time I walk out and navigate back to my room it would be 2 hrs. No Bueno for me! Honestly even if they told me it was just at the shows, I would not attend the shows. I get it many people enjoy their Broadway style shows, but that really isn't why we cruise.

This is almost the exact verbiage we got about 1 month ago. We had booked the new "SPA" category cabin on Symphony for May 2021. I purposely selected the 2nd sailing in fear that they could have been hit with typical delays (booked prior Covid). Luckily we did have a refundable, so I canceled and upgraded to a JS. I was upset with RCL because the "SPA" category basically came with more things than the traditional balcony and we were being charged more than the traditional balcony, but now we were going to pay for a product at a higher price that they were not delivering. Hence, cancel and upgrade.

LMAO Like I said we camped a lot in AK. May is horrible, come late June/early July it will be fine. As summer goes along each new cycle of mosquitoes become smaller, thus, May they are the size of a quarter! May is also what we call the SPIT month. It doesn't rain, it spits, which creates a great breeding environment for the mosquitoes. I still remember waking up in the a.m. and seeing blood splatter with dead mosquitos all around our bed (pop up camper). First thing that went through my mind, was DANG, that's my blood, I killed them after they bit me! The other memory is we camped with a group of friends (basically 5-6 families), my close friend bought a pith helmet style hat with netting and wore it 24 hrs, including sleeping in it! I am vain, but I preferred having bites on my face over wearing that! Back on topic now!

We did KW almost 4 yrs ago on Enchantment (Nov 2016) Here are my takes. 1. Be prepared to wait a long time for that photo at the buoy. We walked from Hemingway's house to it and there were about 100 people in line waiting to take a pic. My husband and I looked at it, looked at the line, looked back at each other and said....nope! I do actually have a picture of us in front of it from across the street with the 100 tourists waiting in line! 2. Best restaurant to this day that we ate at in any port was in KW. https://blueheavenkw.com/ It is such a cool place. Order their Key Lime pie. It is insane. Basically as tall as your wrist to the top of your index finger. The building has history. Through the years the property has hosted cock fighting, gambling and Friday night boxing matches refereed by Ernest Hemingway. The outdoor courtyard is paved with the slate pool table tops from the days the downstairs operated as a billiard hall and ice cream parlour. A dance hall, a bordello and a playhouse have occupied the second floor. Today inside the Bordello Gallery above the restaurant, one can still peek through the sliding peep holes into the tiny rooms 3. Beware it is an expensive place for buying any gifts. It is an artisanal town, but expensive. 4. The roosters make that town so much fun! They roam freely up and down the non-busy streets. Our niece was our tour guide so she took us off the main streets for shortcuts. 5. KW is an open container city. If you enjoy imbibing go to Fat Tuesday on Duval street. You can get a drink in their re-fillable cup, walk the streets and it will make you feel more willing to spend that money on your souvenirs.

OH just so you all know, my knee was replaced when I was 20 and my hip was when I was 53.

@HeWhoWaits I have it down to a science now. I walk up and say to the TSA person before I enter, my right knee has a metal patella and my hip has been , be prepared I will glow. They still pull me a side after the 360 scan, but it is only for a 30 secs wand. My husband laughs because he always goes before me and he sees the big grey blocks on my knee and hip and smiles because he knows what will happen next....here we go, they are going to wand her...great because that gives me enough time to collect my tablet, put on my belt and shoes! FYI, doesn't matter where we are flying to I wear slip on shoes, no belt/necklaces and my bin is just my purse and phone, heck I am probably the only person that now carries paperback books bc I know what is about to happen....Mam can you step aside please?

LOL. I am allowed to carry a letter for TSA bc I have had both a knee and hip replacement (my right leg lights up), now I am going to carry a letter stating my body temp is 99.6

@WAAAYTOOO That is my point. Look at it. This forum has maybe 1% of 1% of all cruisers. Yet, here you go. 2 of us are not the "norm/avg" when it comes to body temps. You could have a 99.6 and they will say you are good to go. However, for me that would really be a 102 degree temp since my body is 3 degrees higher than yours. It is just down right ridiculous. I am not lying nor exaggerating, I really feel like I am going to take not only a notarized letter from my doc, but an ear thermometer too. Caveat, I believe that is all BS! I keep thinking Covid is like the chicken pox. You can be contagious without showing symptons for days. I get on the ship with perfect temp...sea day day 2. Port day day 3. Still good. Sea day day 4 (they don't check), port day 5, come back and my temp is high. UHHHH...I just spent 5 days where I went to the Balloon drop, ate in the MDR for lunch, used my Thermal pass, played trivia in Schooners...etc, etc, etc. So what good is doing these checks if .we know that there is a lag time from exposure to symptomatic, and on top of that some people are a-symptomatic. I might actually cancel my cruise, because of the thought of port days. I can't even fathom how long it will take standing outside waiting to board at a port like OSJ in May when they have to fore head scan every single passenger on Symphony. Seriously, think about how long that line will be.

I have to chime in now. @Baked Alaska is correct. If you aren't aware, my husband was military. We lived not only in AK for 3 + yrs, but also in KS too. We would take our camper to the Lake of the Ozarks campground. I am a Jersey born/raised girl. Lake of the Ozarks is not like the Jersey shore. It is a very condensed area like Lake Mead in NV. I do disagree with @Baked Alaska in the fact, that ticks were never an issue for us in AK, in NC/VA and NJ heck yeah! The big thing in AK is mosquitos. NOW on to why I am LMAO this whole idea is insane. Most cruisers are not flying into AK, they usually do the sailing from Seattle or Vancouver. Many Alaskans fly to Hawaii for their winter vacation. Are they now saying to AK citizens you need to get tested before you leave to come back home? Anchorage and Fairbanks have HUGE military bases. The article states "travelers" flying in. Well, my family drove from NJ to Seattle, than flew in to Anchorage. My husband was on military orders. Are they going to give the military an exception? Are they now going to say to the Dept of Defense that they MUST pay for this test for the entire family or else be quarantined? FWIW, anyone that has flown in the military understands the acronym MQ (Mission Qual). The AF cannot afford to pay service members to sit in quarters for 14 days. They can't say...we will only pay for you the service member to be tested, and you have to pay for your family to be tested using your insurance. Or how does this really work? Military pays for him, we, his family are now quarantined for 14 days in the same lodging! The fishing industry in AK is big bucks! The ships typically sail up from Seattle with minimum crew for the crab season starting in Oct. However, the deck crew will usually fly in. Watch Deadliest Catch and you will get what I am saying. This idea is so insanely stupid and shows how the govt is doing knee jerk reactions.

I have a fear of this also, not because of hot flashes, but because of anxiety/fear. I am not someone with "anxiety" issues, but I know myself, as I drive to the port, my mind will start saying OMG what if my temp is too high. It just will create a downward spiral, with me over thinking it, thus my bp will go up, my body will react. My husband and I have talked about this, because believe it or not my avg body temp is not 98.6, but 99.6. It was the same for my Dad. I have no wiggle room. Add in a hot day, and fear, I am pretty sure I will be pulled out of the line. I am actually thinking of when we finally sail to go to my doc and get a letter stating medically my temp is 99.6 if you do a forehead scan. Trust me, I had my hip replaced @ 18 months ago. They did the fore head scan and said to my doc/surgeon "she has a fever". He turned and said do a temp in her left ear. They did and my temp was 98.6. I was good to go. It was only because he knew as my doc from my medical history that my body temperature is not "common" or avg. Hence, why I am thinking I will have to take a certified medical doc stating my typical body temp is actually 99.6, not 98.6.

Actually when we 1st booked, we did it with a refundable. We just cancelled, keeping our deposit, and placed it towards the JS. That is when our TA said bc now they offer the CWC for that cruise, and we always have travel insurance, there was no reason in his mind that we should pay the higher price with the refundable, but instead go non-refundable.

When we originally booked our spa cabin on Symphony (pre covid) we did a refundable. Once RCL came out during Covid announcing they would not roll out that new category, we contacted our TA. He immediately said go with a non-refundable because of CWC.