JeffB

I hate hearing that. It's a training issue for the technicians. For screening purposes, there is no need to penetrate any deeper than mid-nasal and anterior nasal is good enough. A technician that is inserting a swab beyond mid-turbinate on a child who is clearly freighted by all this is just sadistic. An adult or teen who is unlikely to be traumatized, fine. A young child, no way. My advice is to politely ask which collection technique is going to be used for a child under say, 8, that is a bit frightened by all this and ask that it be collected by anterior nasal swab. If that doesn't happen, don't make a scene at the collection point. Ask to speak to one of the medical doctors on board and voice your concerns about collection techniques being utilized for young children. It may not help your situation but it will help others after you.

This may be as good a place as any to post on the subject of being optimistic with regard to the cruise lines continuing to expand operations making more cabins available to the large number of people who want to take a vacation on a cruise ship. Let's start by stating that cruise ships have become, hands down, the safest travel and leisure activity among the many that are available. Demonstrably so. OK then, what else? Like Governor Desantis, who's getting hammered by his political opponents as new cases in FL break records on a daily basis while he is accused of down-playing it, the numbers will start to decline at some point in the near future - days or weeks, not months. As well, when the press screams, 16,000 NEW CASES BREAKS RECORDS, that headline fails to provide any context. One of the most important is that, besides almost all of the new cases are among the un-vaccinated, 98% of them are under 60. The mean age of newly infected is 39 (the range is 12-47). As Desantis put it, Would you rather have 500 over 65s infected or 5000 under 60s? The point is obvious. 85% of over 65s are vaccinated in FL and the risk of serious illness among the younger cohort pales in comparison to that of the older one. Silverl ining? Vax rates in FL are up sharply. I'm not dismissing the downsides of the current increase in new case numbers and % positivity. But, I reject the media hysteria. It's counterproductive to the goal of moving us closer to learning to manage this thing without imposing unnecessary mitigation and mobility restrictions. There's a risk to cruising given the hysteria. I don't think it's great in the US mainly because of what appears to be the likelihood that FL is going to prevail in it's filing v. Bacerra and Walensky. I think both the CDC and European governments in countries where tourism is an important industry feel shutting it down doesn't offer a great deal of PH benefit and has significant costs given how stunningly effective lines operating there have managed COVID for going on close to a year now.

Stock ownership (see also @AlmondFarmer) as in public and private ownership of it, is different from a business, e.g., a cruise line, that is owned by individuals as opposed to governments, e.g., Amtrac, USPS. Fannie Mae. I don't know if you have a "right" to ride Amtrac but I know a cruise line can legally prevent you from entering. Thus @dswallowstatement: "You have no inherent right anywhere to board a privately owned cruise ship." No, as long as that class - exempted based on religious beliefs - has options. In this case, a cruise line offering a refund or re-booking at a later date. There is also the issue of "in the interest of the public's health" as @dswallowpoints out. Is denial of boarding without proof of vaccination in the greater interests of the public's health? This has already been tested in the USSC by schools. both public and private. Yes it is legal to require vaccinations to attend classes. Sure, but the powers to grant specific services a "essential" in a publiv health emergency is probably left to the states. Could such designation be challenged? Yes. I don't think that concern applies here I think I am using the correct legal term but what you're suggesting is that NCL doesn't have standing for their suit to be heard in the court they filed it in. FL has already made that clima and is acting fro dismissal becasue of it. I think it's a strong point in favor of FL. Yes, it's technical and won't answer the question of whether Desantis can ban "vaccine passports." I don't think he does but one of the basic steps in filing law suit in court is to make sure all your Ts are crossed and and Is are dotted. Doesn't look like NCL's legal team did that.

I am speculating here but I'm pretty sure that VOOM uses two separate sets of channels - one for the streaming option, one for the other. So, what does that mean. "Bandwidth' is the maximum number of frequencies or channels contained within it. You may have heard of a 2.4Ghz channel and a 5Ghz channel. These designations refer to a frequency range of 2400 - 2500 mhz and 5725 and 5875 mhz. VOOM is either using those two bands or it is using one and then separating channels. There are going to be more users on VOOM than on VOOM Stream. That's going to be one factor - you might see videos and still photos easily up or down loaded on VOOM Stream but that is subject to the same sorts of limitations on VOOM - numbers of users, satellite signal strength and noise. It seems to me to be a crap shoot to get more speed with VOOM Stream that allows gaming and streaming. That is because even though VOOM Stream may have more frequencies allotted to it, it is still subject to the same things that slow down a connection - things the ship's IT team has no control over (satellite signal strength and noise) - an internet connection that has less of them assigned.

If you don't need one, don't get a PCR. Instead get the antigen test. Not all facilities offer both tests. I found that looking on the web does not always provide details on which tests are available at a specific (usually retail) testing site. If you can, call and confirm that the test you want is available and they aren't out of them. They do run out. It's not always easy to call - waiting on hold, bots and the like often don't cooperate.

Couple of random thoughts on the two Celebrity sailings we've completed since restart, one in Greece (Apex) and one from PEV (currently on Equinox): Travel to Europe to start a cruise requires some research to avoid potentially disruptive surprises. Entry requirements change. What you find on Monday, might change by Friday. Vaccination to enter for US passport holders is pretty much the norm for European countries you may travel to for a cruise start. Recommend use of Flights by Celebrity for obvious reasons. Same day arrivals can be done but are risky given the number of flight delays. Go a day early, book pre-cruise hotels with Celebrity and advantage yourself with Celebrity transport. Normally no need. Currently a good idea. Traveling to a US port to sail is less demanding but you still have to keep up with ever changing boarding requirements. If you're sailing a Caribbean itinerary, Caribbean ports are restricted, all of them in varying degrees. This too seems to change rapidly. My experience has been positive wrt being informed on current port restrictions by ship's staff. Check the printed daily. Updates are not in the app. I've already posted this....ship's tours are consistently affordable and good in the current circumstances. I recommend them. Feed back I get from fellow cruisers who go on their own to tour hasn't been positive. Just notified on B2B procedures. Completed our antigen tests just now, no cost, done by contractor staff. Other than this and turning in our traceletts, the process is unchanged from the past. We meet in a lounge at 9:30am, debark, go as a group through PEV C&I, then, after the ship is cleared, we reboard. Should be around 11am for our second leg, a 7n E Caribbean itinerary. Importantly, we don't have to get off and then check back in as a newbie. If you want to get off and tour Fort Lauderdale, you do and will be assigned a new check in time. Right now and probably through mid-october, is a great time to cruise. You must be open mined and flexible as things change. The advantages are small numer of guests that will be slowly increasing and am told Celebrity is planning to be at 100% by end of October. This assumes the CDC or foreign health authorities don't judge cruise ships to be disease vectors. So far, that hasn't happened and I don't think it will.

There are a huge number of variables that affect the quality of your onboard internet connection and its speed. In my experience if the IT staff aboard has control over a variable it gets fixed. If not, we'll, .....I've never bought stream. There are too many chances for it to disappoint. I'd say aboard the recent ships I've sailed on, I'm about 80% satisfied with internet. Yes, sometimes it's slow. There are ways to optimize your experience. Worth some web research to understand advantages and limitations of Satellite internet. Realistic expectations help.

How a available the test that's best for you seems to depend on the state you live in and the health care entity providing the testing. Finding the best fit for what you want/need requires a good deal of web research. In the end you can usually get what you need. @twangstersuggested retail pharmacies allow you to schedule up to 2w in advance. Jumping in as soon as you can then scheduling your test inside the required time window seems to be key. Waiting to schedule closer to the window will cause problems wrt appt. availability. Be proactive and persistent.

I didn't see the show but the Judge can sidestep a ruling on the merits (which Merryday didn't in FL v. Bacerra - he ruled and wrote that FL won). He can limit his ruling to an interpretation of the law and then cite applicable precedent. This is the first test case of a state's right in a PHE to ban what amounts to a business's rights under EEOC. I know the law, i.e., a business has an ethical, moral and legal right to impose rules that create a safe environment for employees and customers as long as they aren't discriminatory. What I don't know is on what legal basis FL claims it has the legal authority to ban businesses operating in the state from asking for proof of vaccination to enter or receive services. It's not clear that the state does not have that right. We'll see.

Yes. It's OK. It can get windy and/or hot. My hands down pick on Edge class ship's is Fine Cuts. Lunch at La Bistro would be my second specialty restaurant on Edge or Apex.

Last port call in Costa Maya today, day 5. Sea day tomorrow then back to PEV on Sunday. We'll continue on the next 7n E Caribbean sailing. Costa Maya is open....sortof. You can't leave the port area on your own. You can by taking ship's tours. We did. Mayan Culture Through the Ages. Small group of 20, nicely curated. This is another advantage of cruising early. Fewer guests on tours. Ship's tours I would have avoided pre COVID are inexpensive and well done. I've been impressed. Recommend you give them a serious look. Weather great again. Port stores are open but not all of them. The port facility has been improved while visitors weren't coming. I think that's a good sign that investors have confidence tourism will blossom soon.

This is coming from the CDC and the cruise lines, while they don't have to comply with the CDC's recommendations, they'd be crazy from a legal standpoint to not comply. As usual, and IMO, the numbers - facts on the ground - don't support the CDC's change in policy that was announced on July 28th. The change involved reversing their recommendations in May that the vaccinated didn't need to mask indoors and could pretty much go about living normally......IMO, one of the few smart recommendations they'd issued to date. They added that in addition to the new recommendations that the vaccinated should wear masks indoors ("in some circumstances" and that is vague and confusing itself) the recommendation to get tested in the case of an "exposure" (whatever that means???) 3-5d later regardless of symptoms or lack of them was added. Look, I can make a strong case that the current "surge" among the un-vaccinated (and that's where its happening) should be tolerated and managed with an emphasis on getting the unvaccinated vaccinated. Instead, what we're getting is constant and irrelevant reports of case numbers, without context and because of this the movement, under the pressure of the "DO SOMETHING" meme toward more "soft" mitigation measures at the local level. These are being implemented by local officials and, IMO, they are unnecessary, have no appreciable PH benefits and continue to impose what I consider to be unlawful restrictions on citizens and employers. It is undeniable that SARS2 is going to spread. Masks aren't going to stop it. Shuttering businesses wont' stop it. Social distancing won't stop it. Restricting personal mobility won't stop it. This has been the case for upwards of 17 months now ...... everywhere on the planet. Why do we keep doing this kind of stuff when vaccines are the one thing proven to stop it or at least make the pandemic manageable. Here's the obvious problem. If you've traveled, stepped out of your hermetically sealed home, gone to a restaurant and sat inside the chances are pretty high you were exposed to aerosolized SARS2 virions. TBC, that does not mean that you got or will get sick. It does not mean that you will transmit the virus to someone else - again the chances of that being the case are very low and I can produce solid data that statement is accurate. Why test then? This new CDC policy is just another example of the CDC's unreasonably over-cautiousness that because of factors they don't care about - implied and actual costs with minimum PH benefits - imposes more hardships on citizens and employers who, for multiple reasons, especially legal liability, see these not as recommendations but rather as rules to abide by. These recommendations from the CDC are not a lot unlike the CSO ...... a set of what Judge Merryday called quasi laws beyond the CDC's authority to issue. I'll allow that the cruise lines are in a unique situation. Because of the unfair treatment the lines endured in March of 2020, they can't afford an outbreak aboard a ship. Period. So, they test arriving guests to make sure they aren't asymptomatic carriers that could precipitate an outbreak so, yeah, I get it. They too have to be cautious, probably overly so, even though the risk of that happening, given the effectiveness of the already implemented health protocols, are extremely low. Ridiculous times.

Great ....... but the language on these emails regarding a requirement for pre-boarding antigen testing MUST be crystal clear. My reading is that they aren't. Anyway glad it worked out. Seems like the best place to get your pre-boarding antigen testing is at Walmart or CVS. In FL, which tests (PCR and/or Antigen) are being offered depends on the care providers- actually the health care system that hires them - in these pharmacies. It took me a while to figure out who was giving antigen tests (it was U of Miami Health Care) as by the time I was notified of the requirement I was already inside 72h of boarding. You're 10d out, right? Go on line now and schedule your tests within the 72h before boarding. I prefer antigen testing as after its completed, I'm going to walk out of the clinic with a piece of paper in hand.

Following Nassau and after 2 consecutive sea days, we're in Cozumel. The weather in the Western Caribbean has been spectacular. After some clouds and rain in Nassau it's been perfect. Same for today......sunny and hot. Nice breeze though to cool things off. Guests cannot debark at Coz unless on a ship's tour. It is sad to see the port area shuttered. Celebrity remains pretty organized with respect to keeping guests aboard informed. 2d ago we learned by letter that we'd be allowed to disembark independently in our next port of call - Costa Maya. That's a change. It's just down the road and also in Quintana Roo state. Mexican Public Health officials have labeled Quintana Roo as "Red" or a high transmission area. So, it's a bit curious that Coz is closed and Costa Maya is open??? May be a local government call. There are two Carnival ships here and I believe we are the only ship in port at Costa Maya tomorrow. That may be a factor for local governments as well. No hint that Celebrity will be adopting Carnival's mask policy. Finally, we're B2B and not sure how that will work as pre-boarding antigen testing is on. I've been getting emails that they are. Yesterday, I got a debarkation questionnaire in my cabin asking me about travel plans after debarkation on Sunday. ???? I did go to guest services to confirm they knew I was B2B. They did and told me to ignore debarkation forms and that I'll get a letter detailing B2B protocols - first time I've sensed a bit of confusion on the part of Celebrity. I'll let it come to me. It will work out. Finally, if others are sailing this weekend out of PEV, there's a disturbance that has moved off the West coast of Africa that will become a tropical depression and move into the lesser Antilles mid week. Right now, conditions are not favorable for hurricane development at all but rain and gusty winds will appear in the forecast for the Southern Caribbean islands and probably as far N. as St Maartin by late in the week - it's that time of year. Oh, and you can ignore the COVID fear monkey narrative in the national or local press regarding FL. Be aware that transmission rates are high right now. 99% of hospitalizations are unvaxed. Somewhere around 95% of new cases are unvaxed. Your chances of being involved in a serious MVA are way higher than getting a serious COVID illness if your vaxed and, of course, you have to be if you're over 12 and sailing on Edge or Equinox. Would you not get in a car here inf FL because of that risk? Perspective. Right now a cruise ship is the safest travel and leisure venue there is with respect to infectious disease including SARS.

Did you link all 4 reservations? If so, that's probably why their names are on your letter. I would think that the sentence starting "If your vaccinated ......" applies to them as well. IOW, vaxed guests don't need to be tested in the case of your particular cruise and it's itinerary. The implementation of the pre-boarding testing policy hasn't been the cleanest. Its created a lot of confusion among booked guests. If you can't get through to RCL before you need to start travel and the boarding process, show up boarding docs and vax card in hand and check-in.

@Renate, I've got no problem with your decision to not get vaccinated. It is neither a good or a bad decision. It is your decision and in most settings you should have the right to decide. What I'm going to say here isn't about you or your choices. It is about the facts and only the facts. Those facts on the ground indicate that masking isn't going to stop SARS2 from spreading, social distancing isn't going to stop it, shuttering businesses or implementing mobility restrictions isn't going to stop it. Pandemic fatigue is rampant. Couple that with the reality that the CDC keeps inserting foot in mouth, they aren't credible and the information and recommendations they provide, some of it good, isn't going to stop it. Vaccines are going to limit the spread of COVID but not eradicate it. What vaccines will do is make the pandemic manageable and reduce it's impact on our lives and right now, vaccines are probably the only thing that will allow us to do that. The point is that while you have the absolute right to decline vaccination, it is vaccines that are going to slow down the spread of this thing. I don't think that factual reality is at all in doubt.

Day 3, 7n E. Caribbean, Celebrity Equinox out of PEV: Great cruise so far. Highlights are: Equinox, built in 2009, was fully refurbished in June 2019. It shows. Normally clean and well maintained are Celebrity ship's this one looks almost new (we were on Apex 2 w ago so know what new looks like). Carpets and furniture show no normal wear and tear. Outdoor/pools side furniture is new. We like production shows, not everyone does but the one last night, Topper, that's been in production for probably 3-4y running. We've seen it multiple times. This cast is hands down the best. Food quality, preparation and presentation comports with Celebrity's high standards. We like Murano and Murano lobster, flambe'd at table side is as good as ever. Service level and friendliness of staff is very high. Of course, that's because of the passenger load - about 40% of capacity or about 1200 guests. Last week they had 1600. Some are wearing masks, not many though. They are not required. 95% vaxed, probably higher. No mixed vaccines for the back end leg of our B2B and that was just announced within the hour. We had Pfizer x2. There are some older kids, not may little ones. I'm assuming the older ones, over 12, are vaxed as that is required. Since leaving PEV (clear, hot and sunny) weather has been cloudy, some rain, nothing disruptive. Hot and humid. That's the prevailing weather this time of year. There's some brewing low pressure concerns off the coast of Africa right now. 2 of them could be a problem next week and beyond that affecting the Lesser Antilles (S. Caribbean itineraries), possibly on up the Caribbean island chain to the north and west, possibly S. FL. Itineraries for both legs of this B2B, W. then E. Caribbean, has changed 3 times since we booked the E. Caribbean sailing for August 2020 (L&S'ed to August 2021). Then an 8n itinerary, changed to 7. We booked the W. Caribbean sailing on the front end of the B2B about 3w ago. Itinerary on that sailing has changed twice and again just yesterday, I'll get to that. I reported earlier that the requirement for antigen testing regardless of vax status was implemented last Friday - 2d before the cruise departure. That policy changed twice with the last change cancelling the antigen testing entirely. Reportedly because of the cluster at the PEV terminal for the Edge sailing on the day before and fuming guests. It's back on for the next leg of our B2B sailing and we were informed of that today by email. Not sure how that will be handled for B2B guests. I'll let you now. The word of the day? Remain flexible and don't get pissy about changes. THEY ARE GOING TO HAPPEN. Port circumstances are changing daily. We had planned on Tortola and at the time, to get off the ship, you needed a ship's tour. We lost that port and the tour we booked (fully refunded) on one of the itinerary changes just last week (berthing or local concerns, favor the later - BVI have had strict travel restrictions including a vax requirement to enter. The other original ports were Nassau, Coz and Costa Maya. You could get off on your own in Nassau but on our port day, Monday, it was a national Holiday. Everything was closed! We took a small tour of Nassau. 20 others and a very good tour guide and just fine with everything closed. Lots of port construction going on. It's going to e really nice when it's done. Originally, we were not going to be able to do your own thing in Coz or Costa Maya. Last evening, we learned we can do a self guided tour in Costa Maya. Still not Coz. I think this is a local government thing that Celebrity is having to deal with. Transmission rates in Quintana Roo state are high and have been that way since mid-May. We booked a tour and will keep it. So far, just happy to be back in the cruise groove. I can deal with everything else.

The best advice is to determine what restrictions are in place as your cruise date approaches and keep checking for updates from the cruise line. We are on Celebrity Equinox on a 7n W. Caribbean cruise now (day 3) and are B2B on the E. Caribbean itinerary next week. Itinerary and port call changes, including debarkation and tour restrictions, are on going. We experienced them in the time leading up to the cruise and while on board. Just found out today that in Costa Maya next week, we no longer have to book a ship's tour to debark. You still do in Cozumel???. That might change. Iv'e found the Celebrity has been very good in keeping us informed as far in advance as possible. If you book a tour in advance, not out of the question given current circumstances, you can cancel or if the ship cancle's you'll get a refund.

The CDC recently changed their policy. Up 'til 3 weeks ago, the CDC recommended that vaxed didn't need to mask in most settings. There was too much hedging on that policy, IMO, with a list of caveats that left it up to individuals to decide when to mask in what might constitute a higher transmission risk environment. If you were up on the current literature on that, that task wasn't hard. If not, you were left to wonder. Then they reversed that policy and stated due to increased transmission risk of the delta variant, recommended vaxed should mask in "most" indoor settings. Then they left mask mandates up to state and local PH officials ...... the result is a patchwork of masking rules. Add to that patchwork of rules in US ports, the patchwork of masking and vaccination rules in foreign ports. The cruise lines have a lot to deal with. What I'm seeing in the cruise industry and in different venues globally is a trend toward requiring vaccination to board or enter. The pregnant question is not about mask protocols aboard ship but rather how long will lines that have opted to allow unvaxed guests to board and sail at a below 95% vax rate? That question becomes more complex when countries adopt policies that travelers have to be vaxed, including cruise ship passengers, to enter. That masking reduces transmission risk is an accepted truth is pretty wide spread even though the evidence that it does is murky at best. I can make a case based on the available studies that it does and that it doesn't. Not arguing that here. There is no doubt that getting vaccinated reduces transmission risk. None. So, it's probably more straight forward for the cruise lines to simply get as many guests as possible to be vaccinated. My personal view, based on my take on the evidence, is that in most settings that we're going to encounter during a cruise, both on board and in ports of call, and with most guests vaccinated, adding a masking requirement serves more of a messaging purpose than they actually decrease transmission risk. Too many variable in play. JMO, YMMV.

To bring Celebrity cruisers up to date, Equinox lastminutecancelled antigen testing. That was the second change after announcing the requirement on Friday.

Update. We are aboard Equinox. Walked in 40m early, No line, painless, no testing. 20m from curbside luggage drop off to in cabin. Learned from one of the greeters who was probably a supervisor that Edge boarding yesterday was an absolute cluster with testing requirement. Guests were fuming. 6p ship departure was delayed. That's why I suspect the testing was dropped for today, last minute. Didn't have time to do pix during check in it went so fast. These are pix of silhouette class ship hump balconies. About 2x bigger.

18h after RCL announced pre boarding COVID testing requirements, on Friday, Celebrity followed. I dutifully went out and got an antigen test at a local Walgreens to board Equinox out of PEV today. Late Saturday, got an email stated testing would be available in the terminal .....but boarding will be quicker if you already tested and have proof. At 11am today.... sail date got another email saying testing for vaxed not required. Like I've said flexibility is the key to sanity for cruising in COVID times. We board in an hour?

This language ...... Emergency Medical Transportation ...... seems like it gives the insurance company some wiggle room on determining if your medical transportation cost is due to an "emergency." Back to another posters observation of this detail. Is the potential for infection with SARS2 of an entire ship's crew and passengers an "emergency" condition? I could make a case for that and I suspect you've inquired of your insurance company about this and they've told you that's covered. But, man, if I'm buying insurance this is one thing you absolutely want to nail down before embarking on your cruise and get it in writing if you can. Meeting Royal's requirements to sail is one thing, finding out your $100K evac isn't covered because you're an asymptomatic + is another. COVID symptoms in combination with other risk factors and documented clinical evidence that there might be problems for you (CXR identifying early or in progress pneumonia, low O2 sats, certain labs, i.e., Arterial Blood gases), no worries. You'll get medivac'ed and I can't see how that wouldn't be covered. JMO. This is tricky stuff.

No further information, only a suggestion. I'd consider the cruise in question still on with the changed itinerary. That is all. I feel confident RCL is working very hard to keep it's operational plans as stable as possible. The one known for us cruisers is that change is a fact of life for COVID cruising probably well into 2022. Go with the flow; be uber flexible.

Define the "healthy" guest that you won't test. This has been a problem with COVID since day one. Asymptomatic transmission. It's well documented it's happening - we can argue viral load and all that but in the end, the lines have to deal with this. An outbreak is an outbreak and they don't want any of that or have a COVID + disembarked guest be patient zero in a community he passes through that then results in an outbreak. It seems that for now, they have protocols and plans in place with shore based agencies to take care of business. It's working. I agree there is probably a cost threshold for doing this that a line may not wish to cross. At that point, they'll probably be able to do a risk assessment and determine which ships and itineraries are the most risky and those will be cancelled. That is absolutely the worst outcome. I just don't see that happening but I'm a glass half full kind of guy and I'm constantly looking for data that backs up my optimism that cruising has successfully restarted and will continue to expand. There are plenty of pessimists. I'm not one of them.