Kathleen

I just returned and on Day 3 I had a massage and scheduled another massage on Day 7 with the same person. When I arrived on Day 7 for my massage, I was assigned a different masseuse and only told my other girl "wasn't feeling well". I suspect she tested positive and had to leave or quarantine, although I was never notified. I don't believe there really is any contact tracing done in that aspect, unless it is within your own cabin. Upon return from our cruise, I tested myself and was negative and that would have been 6 days after contact when I tested. We enjoyed our cruise and I always felt safe despite that minor worry.

@MattG I assume there is no Playmakers or sports bar on Quantum? Thank you for your answer. It is not clear from the cruise planner especially since it mentions playmakers and portside.

Planning an upcoming (not until October but I'm a planner!) cruise on Quantum and have currently purchased the unlimited dining plan. What are all the specialty restaurants and which are a la carte. The description of the plan says $35 at ala carte restaurants except $20 at Playmakers and Portside BBQ. I'm assuming Chops and Jamies are not A la Carte. What about the rest? TIA.

We were on Oasis last week and our Genie told us that Atlantis is bringing all their own entertainment and even customer service agents. RC was adding an additional 250 staff to the ship to accommodate the additional guest counts as well as long hours the chartered cruise keeps!! The problem with charters is they pay a certain amount to charter the whole ship and the promoter must sell so much to break even or profit. Promoters, unlike RC are not in it for the long haul, instead they must profit to move on to the next big festival and profit. Hence, unfortunately, they must pack the ship as seen in the picture. I feel for the staff who must be around so many people. I know that if they get Covid, two weeks away greatly impacts the money they make when they depend on the tips. Families at home count on most of them. Here's to hoping the staff remains healthy and it doesn't impact the next few cruises on Oasis. We had such a fabulous cruise last week that I hope those that follow continue to have the same experience.

We had friends whose cruise was also cancelled about 2 weeks in advance out of Miami. They were able to call and reschedule to Allure out of Ft. Lauderdale during the same week as the cancelled cruise. There are possibilities apparently. It is definitely a difficult time for both Royal and their guests and I agree it would be heartbreaking to be planning on vacation and have it cancelled. I hope, for all of us, things slow down and we can return to more cruising and your Alaska cruise goes off without a hitch. We sailed Ovation to Alaska and it remains one of my favorite cruises.

We just returned from sailing on Oasis Jan 9-16. It was a fantastic cruise. There is much to be said about a ship, especially and Oasis class, being at less than capacity and in our case, just at 50% or a little less. The boat never felt deserted but was a nice capacity to have no waits. We were able to port at all our ports (Western Caribbean) and all of the shows were going on as scheduled except for the second half of the Aqua theatre shows. The chief safety engineer responsible for making sure all safety equipment for the shows is up properly to keep the divers safe tested positive and without him they could not go on. I always felt there was plenty of room to distance ourselves from others, even in the bars and lounges but enough people to enjoy a group type atmosphere. Having done the whole cruise experience, we felt our greatest risk of contracting Covid was probably at the Miami airport. We were in an area were there were throngs of people and that was our most uncomfortable moment for the week. Whether to sail or not is a personal choice and we stressed about the testing and boarding during these times for about 2 weeks unnecessarily as we look back. Boarding was very easy and smooth. I hope if you feel comfortable enough, you will sail, as we had a fabulous time. Understanding and flexability is key but there is much to be embraced about sailing now.

Definitely a move we can aspire to!!!! Looking forward to when my calendar allows that veteran move! Until then I will continue to practice single cruises.

^THIS. A rapid antigen tests only detects an active infection where as a PCR detects any lingering sign of an infection even though it may be no longer active.

@Michelle SkotteWe have ported at CocoCay, Cozumel, Roatan and Costa Maya and have enjoyed all of them. It’s been fabulous and I’d cruise at 50% capacity anytime. Never a line or wait for anything.

I am on Oasis currently. Everything has been great! All shows, bars and restaurants are open and going, except after day 4 the Aqua Shows were cancelled due to the chief safety/technical expert for the show tested positive and was no longer available. The staff is top notch and all the guests seem very happy with the cruise. I’ve loved every minute. We are very fortunate and have had great weather and not missed a port.

^ditto all of this (except for ports) on our Oasis cruise currently. Everyone seems to be wanting to wear their masks as VK much as possible to stay well themselves. As you are, we too are impressed and pleased.

Day 2 has been great thus far. Today was our day at Coco Cay and our first visit here since it was completed. What was supposed to be a cloudy day with possible rain has been absolutely beautiful. We had reserved a beach bed at breezy bay and it has been well worth the cost. We love the island and it has brought us much needed relaxation to begin the cruise. We had a small delay getting into port as we were waiting for Harmony to leave. It was not a big deal and cruiser’s disembarked at 930. Until tomorrow…….

@Lovetocruise2002he mentioned he was on Ovation for the Alaska season until October. He’s been fabulous. There is also a great bartender in the suite lounge named Edgar. He can mix up a very fine espresso martini, which I find I need after a big meal and before I go into a dark theatre. Gives me the jolt I need to keep me from nodding off! Anyway I feel such gratitude to this community, because without I wouldn’t have known all to do and experience.

Nityam is our Genie and we are very pleased thus far. Our cabin as we entered:

I will miss meeting you. You are a big reason we are here in Star Class!

We just boarded Oasis as our first Star Class cruise and it was much less stress free than anticipated. First I stressed about the Covid results and as everyone reassured me: they just look at your name, date of test and result! So I’ll take the time to reassure everyone else like me that it was easier than anticipated. Lastly, because we had uploaded our vaccine card, we only needed to show it once. We are on board and finally feeling the relief and excitement of cruising once again. Because of the recent cancellations we are more thankful than ever to be on a ship. Thanks to all who have cruised before me that held my hand and calmed my anxieties as the time drew near. This community is so valuable but even more during these times! Cheers to sailing once again.

Good luck. We had snow yesterday but lucked into just being in the 3” band of snow as opposed to some areas south of us received 9-10 inches.

Thank you. I have stressed about this all week!

Thank you @twangsterI feel better knowing that.

I took an at home COVID test this morning. Received my email right away with my results. For some reason it is not showing up on my app or my Navica account when I log in. Is my copy of the pdf of my negative test results sent in the email enough for boarding. My husband took his test directly following me and his results are in his app. Just want to settle my anxiousness and confirm the printed pdf of results I received in the email is enough for boarding from those who have previously boarded. I have called the number listed in customer support of app and have been waiting over an hour for my call to be answered!!

I can't say for the ship, but the new CDC guidelines are isolate for 10 days from symptom onset or may be shortened to the first day without symptoms after day 5 if a well fitting mask can be worn for the remainder of the 10 days..

Although not the most gourmet, one of my favorite foods came from a food truck at Dunn River Falls park in Ocho Rios. Best Jamaican meat pie I have ever had. Nice and spicy!!

We loved the Ovation of the Seas and enjoyed its itinerary when we sailed in 2019. We stayed at the Grand Hyatt which was downtown in a very convenient location. The port is located about a 15 minute drive from the downtown area and there are no hotels nearby. Due to where the port is located, just walking from the street to the terminal would be quite a distance and not preferable. Count on a shuttle/taxi/Uber type of transportation. The uber/lyft drop off is about a 1/4 mile from the terminal but a very easy walk. https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/hotel/washington/grand-hyatt-seattle/seagh

You might reach out to Royal Caribbean on Twitter and send them your questions. I find them to be very responsive.

@BrianAltwe are doing the reverse 10 day cruise in October from Vancouver back to Hawaii on Quantum!! Sounds like a great time. Can't wait to hear about your experience in May 2023.