Pattycruise

I’ve done a dozen cruises, no Covid, yet.  

Oops.  Duplicate post.  I’m well on my way to getting the $58 Royal Caribbean owes me from their bars. Lol. 

If you are sailing out of Italy on Royal Caribbean as of summer 2022, there are some things I'd like to make sure you know before you come. And, I'd like to share my experience. Myself and my family of 4 are currently in quarantine on Odyssey of the Seas that sails out of Civitavecchia, Italy. My son became sick on day 4 of the cruise. He tested negative for covid. But was required to isolate in our room. We do not have a multi-room suite, but a regular balcony. So, keep in mind there really is no isolation in a regular room. Plus, he is 7. So he has to be attended to and kept company. Similar to the YouTube video by the Royal Carribean blog, my daughter and I were still able to leave the room. We had to remain masked and could no longer eat in any of the restaurants. The next day he was required to test again. At that point he came up positive, and so did my husband who spent the isolation time with him. The rest of the family was required to come to medical and test immediately. My daughter and I came up negative. Both my husband and son were moved to deck 3 in the ships locked off quarantine zone, while my daughter and I were allowed to stay in our room. Same rules in place. We could leave the room, but had to continue to wear masks and not allowed to eat in restaurants. The following day, my daughter and I were required to re-test. We both tested negative again. However, we had a new physician who said b/c of our close contact we needed to be moved and join my husband and son in quarantine. So now we have two confirmed positive covid guests being put in the same room, the size of a large walk-in closet, with two covid negative guests. We requested multiplied times to guest services that we be separated into 2 rooms. We were always told they were working on it. Nothing ever happened. We were then told we could get off the boat in Civitavecchia and there is a hotel they will put us in there and we could finish our quarantine. The day before we got off the cruise, guest services called and said all the hotels in Civitavecchia were full. So we have to stay on the boat for the next sailing. This really concerned us as we were all put in the same room, and if one of the negatives comes up positive later...then we get stuck fulfilling a whole new quarantine requirement. Here is what I didn't expect...Sure enough on day 3 of quarantine. I turn up positive. Keep in mind all 4 of us have had covid more than once and are fully vaccinated with boosters and all. Even my 7 yo. So I turn up positive, and now they reset quarantine for EVERYONE in the room. Even though my husband and son tested positive and were put in quarantine 3 days prior to my positive (and I had also been in quarantine for 2 days) , they reset the quarantine period for the entire party based off the most recent positive test. Which means, if my daughter tests positive at any point before the end of the quarantine then we start ALL OVER again. Now per the ship protocol, they retest you on day 5 and day 6 (keeping in mind the first day of your positive test is day 0). But that is day 5 and day 6 of the person who has the most recent positive test. So that moved my husband and son to day 7 & 8. If you test negative and both days you can come out of quarantine, but you still have to wear a mask and cannot eat in any of the restaurants. However, if you test positive, then they extend the quarantine to 10 days. The room we are in does have a window, which we appreciate. However, it is extremely tiny. Especially for 4 people. No room to exercise, or do anything but be in bed or the sofa pull out. So just keep in mind you're really in confinement. We do get food delivered 3 times a day. The room does not get cleaned, or the towels exchanged. Perhaps packing extra underwear and comfy clothes just in case isn't a bad idea. The rules in Italy are VERY strict for quarantine. So if you test positive the port authority has to agree to let you off the ship. So, yes, quarantine will happen one way or another. In Italy it is a mandatory 7 days quarantine. You have to retest on day 7 and if you are still positive then you have to extend quarantine to 10 days (again with the day you tested positive as day 0. Both the cruise and Italy count from your first positive test, not when you started having symptoms (like the US).  The idea that quarantine is based for all parties on the most recent positive for the group is something I have never heard of before, and I am a medical professional myself, who has been providing anesthesia care for over 15 years and worked in Intensive care units with covid positive patients. It appears that the rules for quarantine are very fluid and change by the day. I have zero idea what the science is behind this protocol. In regards to what to expect from day to day, we never hear from medical. A nurse does come to take vitals once per day, but when we ask questions we get answers that defer to the doctors that never appear to be available. With Guest Services, each person we talk to tells us something completely different, and getting answers that are consistent has been extremely challenging. Please be careful!! I know no one likes to wear the n95 masks (not the same as the k95 masks). But if you're traveling to Europe right now, Covid is really spiking. To prevent your vacation turning into a nightmare, consider wearing the masks. Protect yourself!!! I am curious if anyone else has had an experience like this? Where is the Royal Caribbean quarantine protocol? Not just something fluid, but an actual written and available for public viewing protocol? If anyone can find it that would be amazing!! Has anyone else had covid neg and covid positive mixed together in the same quarantine room? I feel like they put the negative guests as risk big time. Especially my daughter, who clearly wasn't infected. She has been asymptomatic and has tested negative 4 days in a row. Can I refuse to let them test her anymore if she isn't symptomatic? Thanks!!

47,000 people tested positive in the US this past Saturday, June 25.  
Just saying, being on a ship or on land makes no difference.
I choose to just live my life

I’ve done a dozen cruises, no Covid, yet.  

Crew had been testing weekly. (At least since January  when I started inquiring) Apparently  now it is every 2 weeks.  
 
 

I spoke with a staff member on Oasis, apparently booster shots are now required to renew contracts.  The member is not happy since wanting to start a family and the unknowns with long term effects. 
when staffing numbers has been difficult to get back to normal, as well as other factors, it’s a-shame this is a mandate.

I’ve done a dozen cruises, no Covid, yet.  

Crew had been testing weekly. (At least since January  when I started inquiring) Apparently  now it is every 2 weeks.  
 
 

If you booked with Royal  direct I would call and inquire. If you used a travel agent I would ask them.
 
 

I find it "laughable" (not sure that's the word I want to use) that the industry is accepting vaccines that were administered over a year ago.....as a standard to say "ok you can cruise" while we all know it does not prevent the spread.  Now I understand people saying it prevents you from getting seriously ill and it won't overwhelm the ship medical facilities, but the science seems to indicate that the farther out you are from vaccine the less protection you are offered from getting more seriously ill.  Also, the new variants are not as deadly for the majority of people.    So at what point is requiring the vaccine moot?......I was too young for the 60/s 70's travel-but do know that the smallpox vaccine eradicated smallpox, so if that was the case with the Covid vaccine I might be more inclined to say "mandate it"  (and I am not a "mandate type of person")

My daughters massages have not shown in the app.

If you get the WiFi for the ship you can make calls on either facebook messenger or download the WhatsApp, it uses your cell number, but you can call or video chat over WiFi.  The person you are trying to contact has to download it as well.

CDC published a couple minor changes today.
 
-Cruise lines can use their own discretion on how to handle weather delays for boarding that would push the pre-boarding test window past two days (which I believe Symphony did for that tropical storm recently)
-Removed a clause that said if you're in quarantine for covid and one of your day 5 get out of jail tests is still positive that you had to remain in isolation for a full 10 days

I think a year ago those cruising only because of the vaccine requirement would be pretty high.  In 2022, I can't see it being the same.

In the US terminal workers and ship crew have no means to scan a QR code.  While the official CDC vaccination card is a sure thing for boarding a cruise, it isn't the only document that satisfies the requirement.  A QR code by itself won't work.  If the QR code is accompanied by your printed name, birthdate, manufacturer of vaccines, dates administered and their associated codes unique to your dose that may suffice.  If that information requires scanning the QR code for it be revealed that won't work.   
The CDC vaccination card is like a passport - it reigns supreme over all other methods of proving you are vaccinated just like a passport is the best way to prove citizenship. 
If you have the CDC card, why make it harder on yourself to board?

I thought if we canceled our third guest, RC would reprice the cruise & there would be very little difference AND they might move us to a J2 cabin.  BUT my TA called & they told her no reprice, just a refund of my daughter’s portion of the total and no cabin move.  We have til final payment to decide.  What a nice surprise!

You can ask my kids, who are now adults, I’m sure they still remember!

They are treated separately, otherwise you could bid high on one, low on the other and they’d lose $$.another factor is the availability of the exact same cabin for the 2 weeks.  Even if you did a max bid for the same category for each sailing it doesn’t mean the exact cabin is available both weeks. 

Pretty sure it's still $100 per person, that didn't change. What changed was they no longer give you any FCC if you cancel, they keep the entire deposit.

Not for all ports of call - for example, Bermuda doesn't accept a letter of recovery.

Ask the hotel you are staying at if they have a recommendation.  My plan was to bring the Emed.com test kits.  I’ve since changed my flights to be able to test at home before I fly.  

You can ask my kids, who are now adults, I’m sure they still remember!

I wonder if RC will ever release how much money they've spent on reimbursements for positive tests pre-cruise (refunds) and mid-cruise (pro-rated refunds and quarantine-related costs and reimbursements).

Every protocol that has been implemented chips away at the ability to enjoy a vacation.  Every protocol impacts the travel industry.  Some more than others and some in ways that aren't as easy to quantify.  The removal of the testing requirement for inbound international flights has created significant impact on the travel industry.  Just because planes were full before they removed testing doesn't mean there was no impact from the testing requirement for international flights.
Other protocols like pre-cruise testing impact the travel industry.  Vaccination requirements impact the travel industry.  There are people now that are not cruising because of these protocols. 
At the moment there are many new to cruise booking travel that is largely rebound or pent up demand from having minimal travel for two years.  There will soon come a time when that pent up demand has been satisfied.  The state of the economy and inflation may soon put the brakes on travel demand.  When that occurs the industry will need the folks who are currently avoiding travel due to protocols. 
Just because ships are full doesn't mean that there is no impact from the current protocols.