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How will cruising look when it returns?


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Ever since the pandemic  began and all cruises were cancelled across the board, I've been trying to speculate just how this is all going to work once cruises restart again.  I haven't a clue.  Thousands of people will be on any one ship at a time.   How are we going to social distance?  We know what the pool deck looks like on at-sea days.  How will that work?   I can't even begin to wrap my head around the logistics of making this a good experience  Any one hear any rumors as to how this is all going to work?  Are they going to limit the number of passengers on a ship when some of us book two years in advance?

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Although there is no way to tell for sure because everything is currently an unknown. Based off of some evidence there will be limitations on sailings and bookings in the beginning. Although bookings are up for 2021 and possibly 2022, there is nothing to indicate that theses sailings are booked to capacity. By limiting the sailings to 60-75% of capacity and staggering certain aspect, there would be a way to social distance....if people follow protocol. However, from a more pessimistic point of view, we might not be able to cruise until a vaccine is available. Cruising is a social vacation, they even assign tables to get the most bang for their buck, so it would be hard to socially distance.

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8 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

Although there is no way to tell for sure because everything is currently an unknown. Based off of some evidence there will be limitations on sailings and bookings in the beginning. Although bookings are up for 2021 and possibly 2022, there is nothing to indicate that theses sailings are booked to capacity. By limiting the sailings to 60-75% of capacity and staggering certain aspect, there would be a way to social distance....if people follow protocol. However, from a more pessimistic point of view, we might not be able to cruise until a vaccine is available. Cruising is a social vacation, they even assign tables to get the most bang for their buck, so it would be hard to socially distance.

I agree.  In my mind, two scenarios exist:

1.  Cruising does not resume until there is a vaccine

2.  Cruising begins before then, but with a greatly reduced number of passengers.  As mentioned, there is no way to make sure people properly social distance at anything close to normal capacity.

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Good insight, Crisgold52. .....this fits with a limited startup after 12/15/20, CDC lifting the no-sail-order before then and a more robust schedule ramping up fairly quickly .... foreign ports permitting.

Caveat ..... I'm biased. I have a 12/28/20 NY Holiday Cruise and a B2B 21d in March '21. Wishful thinking perhaps! Already moved two other cruises to August and October, '21. 

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37 minutes ago, crisgold52 said:

Apparently my other post was removed.

Posts are removed for reasons.  Please do not "repost" multiple times posts that are removed.

In addition, @Matt works hard to make sure that info here in the blog and message boards is factual, as reported by Royal.  Clearly, you don't work for Royal so please refrain from posting info "internal information" that may or may not be true or come to fruition.

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2 hours ago, MKSglitz said:

Ever since the pandemic  began and all cruises were cancelled across the board, I've been trying to speculate just how this is all going to work once cruises restart again.  I haven't a clue.  Thousands of people will be on any one ship at a time.   How are we going to social distance?  We know what the pool deck looks like on at-sea days.  How will that work?   I can't even begin to wrap my head around the logistics of making this a good experience  Any one hear any rumors as to how this is all going to work?  Are they going to limit the number of passengers on a ship when some of us book two years in advance?

As@Ampurp85 stated, cruising in large numbers may not resume until we have a vaccine.  50 years ago last month my Spanish Club in high school visited Spain (under Franco still), and we were required to affix a yellow public health certificate to our passport showing we had vaccinations (I think typhus and smallpox were the concerns then).  I envision many countries to require some sort of medical certification before they issue visas or allow cruise ships in port.  I think we need our leaders to work through the mass-scale vaccination process and how the record-keeping  will occur.  I am hoping modern technology will  replace my old yellow booklet... 

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2 hours ago, ChessE4 said:

As@Ampurp85 stated, cruising in large numbers may not resume until we have a vaccine.  50 years ago last month my Spanish Club in high school visited Spain (under Franco still), and we were required to affix a yellow public health certificate to our passport showing we had vaccinations (I think typhus and smallpox were the concerns then).  I envision many countries to require some sort of medical certification before they issue visas or allow cruise ships in port.  I think we need our leaders to work through the mass-scale vaccination process and how the record-keeping  will occur.  I am hoping modern technology will  replace my old yellow booklet... 

That's wild that you visited Francoist Spain.  Would you mind sharing what the experience was like?

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You can find protocols for other lines online. American Queen river cruises, Bahamas Paradise Cruise Lines, Virgin Voyages and what the EU is requiring. That’ll give you an idea as to what to expect. 
 

RC has already said they will start with a few ships at reduced capacity. 

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My crystal ball shattered while we were moving things to paint during our shelter in place order (HA!), but I have a few thoughts. I have no proof that these are under consideration, but they make sense to my teeny tiny exhausted little brain:
     ~ I see port arrival times actually enforced to reduce the number of people in the port at a time
     ~ I think it is very possible that a negative test will be required to board-at least initially
     ~ Obviously the buffet will be more cafeteria style, but I also see in the main dining room no more combining tables/travel parties that aren't together (we've all done the "dine with a stranger" thing). I think specialty restaurants may extend their dinner hours to allow more spread out reservation times.
     ~ I think there's a decent chance that room service might temporarily go back to complimentary (even if it's just during peak times) to encourage anyone who wants to eat in their room...as much as I love my servers, I know I'd be down to dine on my balcony a night or 2!
     ~ I think we could see theater shows require reservations on all ships, and more performance times offered to spread guests out. My husband works for a large church in our area, and they have gone back to face to face worship with a few simple protocols in place: each row is marked with tape either green or blue...at the 9:00 service people sit in the blue rows and at 10:45 people sit in the green rows. You must keep 3 seats between your family and another. Then, the whole sanctuary is fogged after Sunday service. Something like this would be time consuming for the staff, but simple enough to implement.
     ~ I see masks being required-at least initially like at the Florida theme parks and their resorts...they can be removed if you are eating or settled in poolside (or in the water)
     ~ I think we may see hot tubs closed initially since their capacity isn't really monitored.

I'm sure there are also a ton of things that I haven't thought of, and like I said-I could be wrong about every one of these things. Merely speculation.

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3 hours ago, krhardy said:

My crystal ball shattered while we were moving things to paint during our shelter in place order (HA!), but I have a few thoughts. I have no proof that these are under consideration, but they make sense to my teeny tiny exhausted little brain:
     ~ I see port arrival times actually enforced to reduce the number of people in the port at a time
     ~ I think it is very possible that a negative test will be required to board-at least initially
     ~ Obviously the buffet will be more cafeteria style, but I also see in the main dining room no more combining tables/travel parties that aren't together (we've all done the "dine with a stranger" thing). I think specialty restaurants may extend their dinner hours to allow more spread out reservation times.
     ~ I think there's a decent chance that room service might temporarily go back to complimentary (even if it's just during peak times) to encourage anyone who wants to eat in their room...as much as I love my servers, I know I'd be down to dine on my balcony a night or 2!
     ~ I think we could see theater shows require reservations on all ships, and more performance times offered to spread guests out. My husband works for a large church in our area, and they have gone back to face to face worship with a few simple protocols in place: each row is marked with tape either green or blue...at the 9:00 service people sit in the blue rows and at 10:45 people sit in the green rows. You must keep 3 seats between your family and another. Then, the whole sanctuary is fogged after Sunday service. Something like this would be time consuming for the staff, but simple enough to implement.
     ~ I see masks being required-at least initially like at the Florida theme parks and their resorts...they can be removed if you are eating or settled in poolside (or in the water)
     ~ I think we may see hot tubs closed initially since their capacity isn't really monitored.

I'm sure there are also a ton of things that I haven't thought of, and like I said-I could be wrong about every one of these things. Merely speculation.

Well said! I agree with all of this. The screenings will be happening throughout the day as well I imagine, or at least when you get back to the ship from a port. Bottom line is we know this, cruising will not look the same for awhile! I don't think we've ever needed a vaccine as bad as we do now. The world is falling apart, and it's embarassing to see the US be the laughing stock of the world since cases are increasing like crazy. I bet you if cases were under control here, cruising would've started by September, but nope.

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On 7/23/2020 at 9:01 PM, ted52 said:

I see 50% capacity. Every other room is booked for one sailing and then it switches for the next sailing. This would ensure that there's a full sailing time in between rooms being booked and that those rooms can be deep cleaned. 

I am looking at cruises next May and I have the full range of cabins available to me. They aren't holding any back. This was out of Barcelona May 9th on Harmony.  I had my full choice in the section so no spacing between cabins. Perhaps they may do whole sections at a time. However all it takes is a sick steward in your room twice a day and BAM ! Welcome to COVIDVILLE.

I think we will have to accept limited cabin cleaning during the cruise as well. 

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44 minutes ago, Morganno said:

I am looking at cruises next May and I have the full range of cabins available to me. They aren't holding any back. 

This was my point a few days ago. So many “rumours” going around these days. The real answer is that nobody truly will know until actual sailings resume. Royal said reduced capacities but there aren’t specifics as to what that might look like. Any posts where someone “heard it from Royal” should all be taken with a grain of salt. We’ll know if it’s actual fact if @Matt posts it in the blog. He works hard to maintain it so that it’s current and accurate. 

Glad to hear that your sailing has a full range of cabin options. 

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I said this way back in April.. but if I had anything to do with it, I would have invested a hundred million or two into rapid testing. They are getting better each month.

I would streamline a process that enables massive numbers of testing for all passengers and crew before they board.
The crew to be tested every 2-3 days regardless.
Passengers to be tested mid cruise?  why not.. it's a 15-20 minute process and with 60% numbers, would be doable.
Expand the medical area to say, the place where the ice rink is, Increase number of medical staff.
Reduce port visits and concentrate mostly on the private islands.
Passengers to arrive having taken a covid test within the last 3 days so the one done before boarding can give weight to verifying the first one if negative.
Passengers must arrive at the exact time they are allocated. No one is allowed in a waiting area if not within the time frame designated.
Buses must check the arrive time and not allow people to board if their arrival time is later
Checks at the gate to the port for taxis and turn people around if they are too early

The only way to ensure that cruising is enjoyable is to significantly reduce the chance of it getting on the ship in the first place.

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I just thought of another angle to cruising resumption that I don't think I've seen addressed here yet -- the gathering and waiting around for ship-hosted excursions. Often times, that takes place in the Royal Theater on board, or a similar public space. I've also personally been put into a waiting area at the port entrance, along with several other excursion groups; while this is outside and thus better than being kept in a large group indoors for maybe 30-45 minutes, it was a lot of people kind of crammed into the shady part of the port's entry/exit building at the end of the pier.

Will Royal and other cruise lines more heavily stagger the departure times of excursions, to avoid those kinds of large gatherings? Doesn't seem feasible given that all excursions in the end are run by outside vendors who try to go twice a day if it's a half-day trip, or else need the whole day because of ship departure time and the length of the excursion.

I can see groups being split more heavily across public areas of the ship in addition to the pier entrance where possible, but you still have to deal with the choke points getting off the ship, transporting people around on buses, etc. And all of that has to be coordinated with those vendors, getting full buy-in from them, etc. Seems like yet another logistical nightmare on top of the others they're dealing with.

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Something that hasn't really been discussed that much is the fact that we have "heard" that Royal intends on beginning with short cruises.  

What does that mean for those of us who have  7+ day cruises coming up in the "near future" (let's just say this is within the next 12 months) ?

Are they going to shorten these already-booked cruises ?  Are they going to cancel them and offer some different, short cruises ?

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11 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Something that hasn't really been discussed that much is the fact that we have "heard" that Royal intends on beginning with short cruises.  

What does that mean for those of us who have  7+ day cruises coming up in the "near future" (let's just say this is within the next 12 months) ?

Are they going to shorten these already-booked cruises ?  Are they going to cancel them and offer some different, short cruises ?

7-day cruises were in the range initially reported for "short" cruises -- specific range cited was 4 to 7 day itineraries. So I would imagine that a 7-night booking will be safe. 8-night bookings may end up shortened by a day, which I think could be possible if they can eliminate a sea day or have a port stop planned that is currently not accepting visitors from the US. Longer sailings could well end up canceled or modified.

Big example I can think of here is the standard 9-night run from Bayonne to Bahamas and back in the summer months. No easy way to shorten that because of the 4 days needed to get down to Florida and back. I suppose they could have the ship only stop at Port Canaveral and then 2 nights at Coco Cay (to satisfy the Jones Act), and skip Nassau entirely (especially if they're still not accepting US passengers). That gets the trip down to 7 nights. If done on Oasis, that might even be a decently sellable itinerary since the ship has more than enough to fill four sea days. Oasis also has an advantage here over Anthem or Adventure, since so much of what she has to offer is outdoors (including a good amount of outdoor dining in specialty venues).

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18 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

This was my point a few days ago. So many “rumours” going around these days. The real answer is that nobody truly will know until actual sailings resume. Royal said reduced capacities but there aren’t specifics as to what that might look like. Any posts where someone “heard it from Royal” should all be taken with a grain of salt. We’ll know if it’s actual fact if @Matt posts it in the blog. He works hard to maintain it so that it’s current and accurate. 

Glad to hear that your sailing has a full range of cabin options. 

Yeah no problem I know it's just guesswork for us all at the moment. My thinking is perhaps there might be 100% availability at the moment in the deck and section I was looking at, could be if I booked they would automatically rope off the cabins to the right and left of me. Also many like connecting cabins so maybe that's why there was availablity as the area I looked (Deck 9 forward port side) had quite a few connecting cabins as well. Let's just wait and see.  Hope you have some calm sailings next year if you book Joe

 

John

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