JimnKathy

We sail Symphony in late September, and no doubt the results of the upcoming test cruises will largely determine the onboard experience as we all sail later this summer and into the fall season. My best guess is that fully-vaxxed folks (that's us) will experience almost zero stipulations while on the ship. If all we have to do is wear a mask while walking inside a crowded, public area, we will be totally thrilled to be sailing again. Happy sailing to all! ?

I believe Royal is attempting to mitigate their legal risks by "encouraging" vaccine eligible guests to get their shots prior to sailing. Being a profit-seeking business in an industry with a target on their backs if a COVID case outbreak were to occur on any sailings in the near term, I can't blame them for making things more challenging for unvaxxed guests. They've suffered through almost 18 months of financial hell at this point and really have to do everything in their power to keep their ships sailing safely just to survive.

Great point. It's all or nothing for us on our upcoming Sep 18 B2B, as we don't cruise again until we do an Alaskan cruise on Quantum in Aug '22. We may slip in a 7-night cruise between some family visits after the holidays if we can find some room on our schedules, but we'll just take it one day at a time as this point. Carpe Diem! ?

Sounds like a frustrating experience. We sail on a Symphony B2B (Eastern/Western Caribbean) beginning Sep 18, and I fully expect the itinerary to flex between now and the actual sailing date due to constant shuffling of the COVID/CDC/Government deck chairs. We're just grateful to be sailing and will find ways to have a fabulous 14 days (easy peasy on Symphony ? ) regardless of the ports of call we actually visit. Happy sailing to everyone! ?

What they really need to do is give every vaccinated guest a free cocktail each day of the cruise...now THAT would be some positive reinforcement. ???

You still have to wait until you get onboard to book the rest of your specialty restaurant reservations. You'll find a lot of flexibility in regards to getting reservations as long as it's no more than 4 people in your group. The crew is very accommodating in terms of figuring out ways to keep guests happy.

No matter where we travel, we've found that both Uber/Lyft to be a quick, efficient and cost-effective way to get around anywhere.

There was some Canadian dude who used to post regularly on this site with lots of cruising tips and updates about the Canadian health rules related to COVID, but I haven't seen him post anything for a good while. I hope he hasn't given up on cruising.

About dang time for that to happen.

Hopefully Matt will actually be able to do a live show next week. ?

It was fun to watch...the positive vibes Matt brings to the table to help all of us muddle through these COVID times is simply amazing.

Yep. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. The restaurant is inside but also has outside tables you can carry your plates and beverages. It's probably our favorite area on Symphony.

Our thoughts exactly. We also feel being a publicly-held business pursuing profits, Royal should have the right to require all guests to be vaccinated if they believe such a mandate would be better for ensuring a healthy cruise. The potential negative publicity created by a COVID outbreak on a sailing could devastate the business for years to come.

Remember that the Solarium offers an amazing buffet as well...you can sit down an eat or grab and go a few things if you're heading out for the port day.

Ever-changing COVID regulations on the entire cruise industry have been absolutely crazy since Day 1. Royal (like all of the other cruise companies) has been doing everything they can to interpret wacky CDC decisions which seem to change almost daily. While I get the frustration to have vacation plans altered at the last minute, the cruise industry is truly hamstrung by poorly-crafted rules enacted by various governments trying to navigate the pandemic. I don't blame anyone for wanting refunds in lieu of FCCs, but the good news is that the announcements this past week truly offer a light at the end of the tunnel. Happy sailing to everyone! ?

Excellent point for sure when it comes to cruise accommodations. We use Southwest for so many flights (other vacations, visiting grandchildren, etc.) that the flight credit plan works pretty well...definitely not a one-size-fits-all for everyone. Happy Sailing! ?

If most of the passengers are vaccinated, the risk of getting norovirus is FAR greater than getting COVID...jest sayin'. ?

We're sailing Symphony beginning Sep 18 and I booked our plane tickets via Southwest two days ago...seating availability is dwindling quickly. Southwest is great for giving you flexibility to cancel and rebook flights as needed with no fee (you get flight credit I treat as a bank savings account).

This is horrific luck for you...I am so sorry.

Agreed. These vaccine cards are as easy to fake as my first paper driver's license I had back in 1977. One would think a photo of the card on our phone would work just as well.

I'm feeling good about our B2B on Symphony in September, but I suppose it'll depend on the length of the bureaucratic CDC turnaround time...ugh.

I always thought that perspective was pretty awesome.

From the sound of the advice, it looks like WOW bands are definitely in our future for our September sailing on Symphony. Thank you everyone. ?

We're doing a B2B on Symphony beginning September 18...we definitely plan on having some laundry done on board the ship so we can pack lighter. ?

Say a prayer of extreme gratitude that we live in a world where amazing vaccines can be created and distributed so quickly to help save so many lives and help us get back to "normal". Then, it's off to the first bar we can find to have an "embarkation" cocktail and get the B2B cruise party started on Symphony. ?