27th Lady

We went on Harmony a few weeks ago and are from Canada. We used tests from Canada that did not list this number and had no problem. 

We just got home to Canada and found that Walgreens rapid pcr was the best. Free and results within an hour. Lots of availability in Orlando area 

Hi Everyone! I just got off a 7 night cruise on Harmony of the Seas. Being an avid cruiser and watching extensive Royal Caribbean Blog YouTube videos, I thought I was a professional but there were a few interesting things I learned on my cruise this past week. First thing, since we weren't able to book entertainment prior to the cruise I was nervous that shows would be sold out before I even had the chance to get on board. I learned that as long as you are connected to the cruise WIFI you can book the entertainment. With that being said, while we waited for our group to be called to board, we booked all of our entertainment BEFORE we even got on the ship. Second thing, if you are planning to drink beer but not purchase the alcohol package, I recommend purchasing the bucket of beer, compared to the price of regular beers, you are getting 1 beer for free! A crew member told us you could use your Crown and Anchor 50% off a beer coupon for the buckets and he let us redeem it but when we tried again later, with a different crew member, they said that was not a valid option. I forget the gentleman's' name but hey, it doesn't hurt to try. Third thing, if you are planning to do the stand up flowrider, don't wait until the end of your cruise. On my sailing, they gave newbies 2 tries per day to try and stand up longer than 1 minute. They made this rule so people #1 wouldn't be getting hurt and #2 not be wasting everyone else's time by constantly getting back in line to be struggling all day. They also told me that they do flowrider lessons to learn how to stand up. Once you achieve the longer than 1 minute ride, they give you a bracelet that lets you ride the rest of the cruise with no problem or quotas to hit. 
Not a tip, but a cool thing we were able to witness, in order to reduce the COVID positive percentage on the ship, they would transport our COVID positive crew off of the ships when we got to port. For example, we were initially told we wouldn't be going to St. Thomas because of our COVID numbers, then a bunch of crew were taken in tenders to Rhapsody when we were docked in St. Marteen and new crew came on, leaving us under the 1%, allowing us to go to St. Thomas, woohoo!
I hope this helps anyone going on a cruise in the coming days/months/years. I would be happy to answer any questions y'all may have in regards to cruising last week.

Thanks so much! We bought the Switch health tests, I like the idea of being able to do it virtually from our hotel. Thanks everyone for your suggestions!! 

Canada accepts the RT-LAMP and the NAAT test for entry back to Canada.
https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/flying-canada-checklist/covid-19-testing-travellers-coming-into-canada
Switch Health offers a RT-LAMP test kit that you can purchase before your cruise and bring with you. It requires connection to the internet in order to take the test.  https://switchhealth.ca/en/partners/aeroplan/#collectionKits
Walgreens offers the Abbott ID-NOW test which is NAAT and it would be accepted for re-entry.  You have to schedule in advance at Walgreens for an appointment. The results every time I've taken this test have come back within an hour.
 

Just starting this thread since the post cruise test are moving pier side (and will soon* be at your own expense).  Luckily RC is cover the cost for another month or so.   

Hoping people will post their info/experiences here to shed some light on how this process rolls out.  We sail Jan 15-23 on Odyssey.  
We are Canadians requiring a PCR test to head to the airport and fly home.  This has been described as a test go but specifically I'd love any info on how long results take.
Is it still Bio-reference?  A different company?  Anyone have any tests completed or info to share that would be helpful.   

We were traveling from Canada and in a similar situation to yours. We used CVS. It was free and they didn’t even ask if we were international travelers. Results were back in less than an hour.   Only catch is you may have to drive a bit or take a long Uber to the different test sites, as they didn’t seem to be in tourist type spots. 

We were traveling from Canada and in a similar situation to yours. We used CVS. It was free and they didn’t even ask if we were international travelers. Results were back in less than an hour.   Only catch is you may have to drive a bit or take a long Uber to the different test sites, as they didn’t seem to be in tourist type spots. 

We were traveling from Canada and in a similar situation to yours. We used CVS. It was free and they didn’t even ask if we were international travelers. Results were back in less than an hour.   Only catch is you may have to drive a bit or take a long Uber to the different test sites, as they didn’t seem to be in tourist type spots. 

Recently when sailing from the US you would have been sailing from a country that the US would classify as level 4 if it rated itself.  

If you want a stellar hotel experience (miles and miles better than the Pan or Waterfront) try the Fairmont Pacific Rim.   It’s a block away from the pier and is head and shoulders better than any other Fairmont property in town. 
 
The Pan is nice but dated and in need of an upgrade - and same with the waterfront.   Pacific Rim is relatively new and the facilities and rooms are spectacular.