danv3

Asking for public comment is just one part of the administrative process...just a box CDC has to check. They know how to log and then ignore comments from people who don't know what they're talking about. They'll only really consider and address comments from people who might provide meaningful input.

Responses due by September 21, 2020. Draw your own conclusions as to what that means for cruises restarting October 1.

JMO, but I think November 1 would be pretty optimistic. September 16? No chance.

Gains? LOL I wish.

This is what I do every time (excluding only private islands and US territories). Sometimes I hear people say that if you leave your passports in the safe and you’re about to miss the ship, RCI will search your stateroom, find the passports, and then deliver them to the shore agent to hold. Personally, I’d never expect or rely on that.

Wish they'd expand the Freestyle machines, not get rid of them or make them less convenient to use. Love the options and the soft drinks from the bars have always tasted "off" to me on cruises.

If it's the latter, it's hard to see how cruising survives in any form even remotely similar to what we're used to. That's why it's so important for the cruise lines not to rush back into service. One misstep could mean the end for a line or even the industry.

CDC response to Carnival: "August 1, huh? That's news to us." https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/may/04/carnival-cruise-line-coronavirus-resume-operations

We'll see...lots of hurdles to overcome. Will CDC allow it? What ports will they be allowed to visit? Will passengers be required to quarantine when they return home? Is sufficient crew available? If I were Royal and I saw CCL starting August 1, I'd target September 1.

I had a short sailing on Independence scheduled for July 3. This sailing has not (yet) been canceled by RCI. Just before our final payment deadline, I chose to cancel under the "Cruise with Confidence" program, understanding that since I had a non-refundable fare, our deposit would convert into a future cruise credit to be used by December 2021. Our TA confirmed as much when I asked her to cancel. This morning I was checking my credit card and saw that RCI had refunded me $200...just about two weeks since I cancelled. Anyone else have similar experience?

Hope for the best, but we shouldn't get overconfident. September would be amazingly fast and even if it were approved by then, it would be months until it could be rolled out on any large scale. Sometime next year is probably a lot more likely. I heard Dr. Fauci say January 2021 this morning. By then, it's likely that more than half of us will have had the virus.

Does this apply to people who voluntarily canceled their cruises under the cruise with confidence program? We canceled a July cruise earlier this month.

Interesting idea but looks pretty long-term. I don't see these things being up and running this year.

I agree. No one wants to be first. The absolute worst case scenario here is having another outbreak on an early sailing after re-starting. The press coverage would be apocalyptic. Honestly, I doubt the affected cruiseline would survive. I truly believe it would be that bad.

Now we're back to traditional cruise topics! Someone will be along shortly to post that they had no problem at all making a flight at 8:00. ?

I doubt they could make a profit on half-filled cruises at typical price points. That suggests either large price increases or running cruises at a loss. While the latter seems unlikely in the long term, consider that right now their revenue is $0. They might be willing to run cruises at a loss for a while to start generating some revenue and to show that the improved safety protocols (whatever they are) work. The absolute worst thing that could happen is for a cruiseline to start sailing again and then have a COVID-19 outbreak on a cruise. I don't think the industry could survive the press in that scenario--it would be the end of the industry IMO.

No problem with the idea of watching a safety video in the room. But this name... ?

Maybe the next episode of the podcast will be an interview with a Liberian bankruptcy lawyer. @Matt what do you think? ?

Highly likely IMO. But what do you do about the mass of humanity getting off the ship all at (approximately) the same time? My last cruise trying to get transport out of port Miami was a nightmare...the exact opposite of anything approaching social distancing. Cruiselines have many, many issues to address.

Given the extremely bad press directed at cruises right now, you could imagine people who take cruises being subjected to heightened restrictions when they return even if that doesn't really make rational sense. Sure, all of those other things you named could also expose one to the virus, but none of them are getting hammered in the press like the "floating petri dishes" of the cruise industry. Society at large is very anti-cruise right now. Some people I've spoken with are basically horrified to hear that I'd even consider taking another cruise. And while in general I don't care about their opinions, I would have to care to some extent if it was my boss.

But they can fire you for not answering.

They're going to need a lot less crew for the reduced passenger loads (and some ships likely won't be sailing anyway) so I think there will be enough experienced crew to go around.

Unless you work for a government agency, then the US constitution has nothing to do with how your employer treats you. It simply doesn't apply to the private employer-employee relationship. Your employer might not be able to tell you where you can or can't go on vacation, but they absolutely can impose limits on your return to the office. So your 7-night cruise might cost you 21 days of vacation. If you're lucky, your employer will let you work the 14 days of quarantine from home...but they don't have to.

Hoping it would be longer actually, as I have a cruise July 3 with final payment due this Sunday. Planning to cancel now rather than make final payment and gamble on a later cancellation by RCI. ?

I got lucky on airfare. Jet Blue rescheduled my flights by 8+ hours, allowing me to cancel without penalty. ?