Biff215

I understand that and they did mention that in the video, it’s just concerning with a ship who just tested and sets sail in a matter of days. Hopefully it’s something minor!

Maybe they’ll keep us the same. Not surprised they changed this week’s sailing since the CDC was on board, but wondering why other Adventure sailings later in the summer got adjusted. Maybe there were three ships scheduled for CocoCay? I’m fine with it either way, it’s just the possibility of a last minute change that concerns me when it comes to private excursions we’ve booked.

Just saw this but can’t find anything else about it. Confirmed myself that Edge is red on the CDC site and they were testing the crew recently. Hope it’s temporary or a mistake!

Happy for Royal and the successful Freedom test, but now begins the waiting game for those of us on Adventure July 3. Speculation is that it will be our itinerary that gets changed to avoid two ships at CocoCay on July 4th when Michael Bayley has promised fireworks. Just lousy when we’re ten days out and booked since March, let alone any private excursions that can’t be altered. Royal seems to have quickly forgotten about Adventure. I get it, all the real money is in US sailings, it’s just disappointing after we chose to support them by flying out to Nassau.

I’m wondering about dropping our bags with Royal at the airport. Is it really worth it? We have a taxi set up that will take us straight to check-in where they’ll take the bags immediately from what I’ve heard, so it seems like the advantage is minimal and I fear something going awry. I also wonder if your bags might get to you sooner on the ship from the hotel. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Thanks!

Thanks for sharing your experience!

It was briefly offered back in late March right after we booked Adventure. They must have pulled it shortly thereafter, possibly once they set capacity. I can’t imagine it being worth it at 50% capacity or less. I’d expect capacity to increase rather quickly if things go well and the demand is there. Royal may not publicize this though so you’ll have to base it off of firsthand reports.

“Before arriving in the Bahamas” For June 19 sailings forward. Agree that more clarification is still needed however. It seems like Royal is implying that the negative test needs to be submitted for the Bahamas Health Visa. Unless something has changed, that’s not required for vaccinated guests and those under 10. I understand things are changing by the hour but Royal needs to communicate better. They’re getting slammed pretty hard on social media as they don’t even seem to be contacting guests directly about it. I know I haven’t received anything from them.

Vaccinated guests now need to get a PCR test at their cost before leaving for the Bahamas. I don’t mind it as it gives some peace of mind before traveling to Nassau, it’s just the constant changes that can be frustrating. Just trying to stay patient as Royal figures out what works best as they get slammed in the media for a couple of positives onboard.

We like GMA but they are always overly dramatic, particularly at the top of the show. Gotta convince people to keep watching I guess.

Didn’t have time to stay and watch the story, but Good Morning America ran it at the top of the show and referred to it as “chaos”.

Exactly, we’ll likely see more testing as a result of this. Can’t be a coincidence that this happened today along with the decision to test everyone before boarding Adventure. Testing before someone travels doesn’t account for the airport, plane, and any pre-cruise stays. Rapid tests aren’t perfect either but it’s the best they can do at check-in. Either way, the protocols are working even if the media coverage will focus on the negative. Go test every guest at Disney today and see how many positive tests you get!

They have to test for the return to the U.S. That’s when this was discovered. https://apple.news/ATJM9PipxTSCJFsxjnj0WiA

Any word on July 3? Freedom is currently scheduled to be at Nassau and Coco Cay with us, but I also heard a rumor that they told travel agents today that there will be fireworks for both ships on July 4th so who knows!

We thought the same thing and also booked a taxi tour. Seems they run around $50-70/hour for four people so it’s not too bad when Royal is charging $20/person for transfers alone. Depending on what time we actually get off the ship, we’re just going to do some sightseeing for 2-3 hours and then straight to the airport.

We had a snorkeling trip canceled in St. Thomas two years ago due to problems with the boat so we found out at the dock. We were offered an alternative at a lower price so we received refundable onboard credit. While better than before the pier and seemingly more successful than Disney going into Castaway Cay, there are definitely days when it’s too rough to dock at Coco Cay, particularly in the winter months when high winds and rough seas are more common.

W just had our July excursion for Freeport through Royal cancelled yesterday. Disappointing as the “VIP Sailing and Snorkeling” sounded good even though it was on the pricey side. There weren’t many great options to begin with and now even fewer left available. We started looking into some private offerings but haven’t found too much other than some expensive day passes at resorts. Anyone have any suggestions for Freeport excursions? Thanks in advance!

Cruise Mapper has been wrong for a while, they probably haven’t been able to catch up with all of the cancellations and changes.

Points taken and I don’t want to turn this into a debate over vaccines and safety, I’m just sharing my initial thoughts upon finding this out. My kids have both been back to school full time for months, so although my primary concern as a parent is protecting them, I’m also well aware of the actual risk. We’re comfortable vacationing right now but have made choices knowing that our 8 year old will be unvaccinated. To be perfectly honest, I was also (selfishly) hoping that we’d have the island all to ourselves! As I said above, I’m more surprised than anything that Royal made this choice even though there appears to be other options. There’s a lot riding on that first U.S. cruise and you would think they’d want to work out any kinks first. Not my call though so we’ll just enjoy ourselves, can’t really beat two straight days at Coco Cay!

I agree and I’m not worried about myself. I have an 8 year old, however, who doesn’t yet have the option. We chose Adventure for this reason and wouldn’t cruise out of the US under the current policies until he could be vaccinated. It’s why we’ll also play it safe in Cozumel and Freeport even though we could go off on our own Either way, I think I’m just more surprised than anything that Royal would want to try it this early when they don’t have to. If this sticks, Nassau will be especially interesting as Royal checks in and boards one ship (without a terminal) while another visits for the day. Again it’s not impossible to do, just curious planning on their part.

Just hearing that Freedom and Adventure could be at Coco Cay on the same day (July 4 in this case). Obviously this was common pre-COVID, but I thought they’d avoid it at least in the short term, particularly because they’ll be mixing a vaccine-required cruise with a vaccine-optional one. There’s also an easy fix if they were to switch Nassau and Coco Cay as Freedom will be following Adventure otherwise. I’m sure it will all be fine, just surprised Royal wants to try it this early and that it would pass with the CDC. Anyone know more?

The water park is up to $140.99 per person for our July 3 Adventure cruise. That’s with one limited capacity ship visiting two days in a row. So either available tickets are extremely limited or Royal is trying to make up for a year’s worth of losses in one summer. For what it’s worth, we scored a deal back in March for $50/person. I truly feel bad for anyone who spends almost triple what I did for the same exact experience.

The discount they’re showing you is off of “onboard prices”. This is basically useless for comparison purposes as the onboard prices aren’t publicly available, you can just count on it being higher. Don’t make yourself crazy constantly checking. Internet packages are almost always included in cruise planner sales. The last one just ended this past week, but you’ll see another soon enough (maybe July 4th weekend, Matt always announces them). If you can hold off until then, you’ll likely find a lower price. As others have said, book it when you’re comfortable with the price and ignore everything else.

Yep, talk about misleading, look at this current price on a water park cabana and its banner for Adventure in July!

If they do an antigen test at check-in you’re only looking at about 5 minutes. That’s what Celebrity is doing in the Caribbean and what many UK cruises are doing. It’s an extra step but it seems fairly efficient from what I’ve heard so far. One of our kids will be tested before we board Adventure in July so we’re hoping for the same.