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Quantum from Singapore - get your cruise fix


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So, I guess nobody from the boards here is fortunate enough to be on board or we'd have heard about it by now, but there is a poster over on CC who is posting live as I write this, with lots of photos for those of you are gasping for a cruise fix. Just look for the thread entitled "Quantum of the Seas 2 Night Opening Cruise".

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2 hours ago, FionaMG said:

So, I guess nobody from the boards here is fortunate enough to be on board or we'd have heard about it by now, but there is a poster over on CC who is posting live as I write this, with lots of photos for those of you are gasping for a cruise fix. Just look for the thread entitled "Quantum of the Seas 2 Night Opening Cruise".

thanks for sharing...

just checking it out. now we're even more excited to get on in jan ! everything just looks much classier than the genting cruise liner, food looks good too. can't wait for our turn.. ??

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3 hours ago, FionaMG said:

So, I guess nobody from the boards here is fortunate enough to be on board or we'd have heard about it by now, but there is a poster over on CC who is posting live as I write this, with lots of photos for those of you are gasping for a cruise fix. Just look for the thread entitled "Quantum of the Seas 2 Night Opening Cruise".

Actually, @Matt is covering it along with the Singapore Cruise Society as well. ?

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2020/12/01/first-look-royal-caribbean-cruise-ship-begins-sailing-again-singapore?fbclid=IwAR1DUbw-BOlXTAuSEY7H0_kktQdhHFWvR4OKPWBl7_NmDSSQoHUbDqu7NCE

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32 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Haha, yes, thanks, I just found that a few minutes ago and have been enjoying the SCS's FB pics too. ?

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If nobody is allowed on the ship with Covid(and the tests that they use actually work like they say they do) then why all the masks and distancing.....

I guess till vaccines are widely rolled out that will be the case...but you cant catch something that isn't there....

 

That being said, its nice to see a cruise happening..but still a LONG way to go before we get to that point in North America yet I feel(5-6 mths at least)

 

 

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59 minutes ago, monctonguy said:

If nobody is allowed on the ship with Covid(and the tests that they use actually work like they say they do) then why all the masks and distancing.....

I guess till vaccines are widely rolled out that will be the case...but you cant catch something that isn't there....

That being said, its nice to see a cruise happening..but still a LONG way to go before we get to that point in North America yet I feel(5-6 mths at least)

If they are doing rapid tests while boarding they can easily say a positive person is negative. My understanding is they are only reliable if you have symptoms even then not that great. The PCR test is most reliable but only says you weren't positive the day it was done, even that isn't always true as @ericfromripppoints out it could take 14 days. I believe it takes 3-5 days incubation time in your system to show up as positive. So, if I had an exposure to a positive person, I'd be told to quarantine from the contact tracers and advised to get a test on day X, if that came back negative I could stop quarantining. 

I'd like to be positive and say we could be close to paying passengers, but I think your 6 month estimate is probably more realistic. Guess we will have to see how these test cruises go & how many are required for the CDC to give the clearance.

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2 hours ago, sk8erguy1978 said:

I'd like to be positive and say we could be close to paying passengers, but I think your 6 month estimate is probably more realistic. Guess we will have to see how these test cruises go & how many are required for the CDC to give the clearance.

Interesting choice of words ?

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4 hours ago, monctonguy said:

If nobody is allowed on the ship with Covid(and the tests that they use actually work like they say they do) then why all the masks and distancing.....

I guess till vaccines are widely rolled out that will be the case...but you cant catch something that isn't there....

 

That being said, its nice to see a cruise happening..but still a LONG way to go before we get to that point in North America yet I feel(5-6 mths at least)

 

 

Masks, social distancing, and following the rules is probably why they are able to cruise now and everyone else is not. It's just an extension of what they are already doing on land even though they have just 1 known case of COVID in the country. 

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1 hour ago, mattymay said:

Masks, social distancing, and following the rules is probably why they are able to cruise now and everyone else is not. It's just an extension of what they are already doing on land even though they have just 1 known case of COVID in the country. 

that's right, matty - safety first, i say. it's no joke if you're elderly and get it - good to be extra cautious. Yes, it does take some fun out of the holiday, but better than none at all.

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I think it’s already mention but yes, it’s due to the possibility of false negatives from the test. 

Mask are already mandated in every public space in Singapore even on land, and the population has basically adjusted to that fact already, so it isn’t that big a deal to most singaporeans anymore. 

Also, take into consideration that Singapore as a country is similar/smaller in size than an average City. With no real options for travel right now besides cruising, I think most people wouldn’t mind wearing a mask as long as they can leave Singapore for a few days. Can’t exactly take a weekend drive to the countryside ?

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I was surprised (and concerned) to see that there is a rule that guests that have tested positive in the last 180 days will not be permitted to sail - 180 days is a decent amount of time, and certainly enough time to recover and (hopefully) fit as a fiddle. 

I'm due to sail from Orlando in 291 days and I couldn't help but worry about "what if I test positive within the 180 period" but recover long before the cruise day?!

Also, I'll be flying from Cape Town, South Africa, all the way to Orlando USA, so lots of potential exposure.

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29 minutes ago, KirstenCapeTown said:

I was surprised (and concerned) to see that there is a rule that guests that have tested positive in the last 180 days will not be permitted to sail - 180 days is a decent amount of time, and certainly enough time to recover and (hopefully) fit as a fiddle. 

I'm due to sail from Orlando in 291 days and I couldn't help but worry about "what if I test positive within the 180 period" but recover long before the cruise day?!

Also, I'll be flying from Cape Town, South Africa, all the way to Orlando USA, so lots of potential exposure.

The 180 day period is a Singapore Government rule so I don’t think the same would apply to the rest of the world should cruises resume. Of course, RCL may keep it to ensure safety on board. Who knows?

Depending on what they decide, many things may change as Singapore has pretty strict laws in regards to the handling of COVID. Probably why the cases are Low enough to count on your fingers in recent weeks

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16 hours ago, sk8erguy1978 said:

If they are doing rapid tests while boarding they can easily say a positive person is negative. My understanding is they are only reliable if you have symptoms even then not that great. The PCR test is most reliable but only says you weren't positive the day it was done, even that isn't always true as @ericfromripppoints out it could take 14 days. I believe it takes 3-5 days incubation time in your system to show up as positive. So, if I had an exposure to a positive person, I'd be told to quarantine from the contact tracers and advised to get a test on day X, if that came back negative I could stop quarantining. 

I'd like to be positive and say we could be close to paying passengers, but I think your 6 month estimate is probably more realistic. Guess we will have to see how these test cruises go & how many are required for the CDC to give the clearance.

SO if tests don't work, then why let people on the  ship...because masks and social distancing works? If so, then why bother with the cost and time of tests that apparently don't work.....and if masks/social distancing work, then anybody should be allowed on the ship sick or not based on that logic.

If this is the case moving forward, then vaccines wont mean a damn thing...masks and social distancing and faulty tests will be the norm...good luck cruising with that kinda system in place.

 

They had to do all this for a country that has ONE case?.....how in any world would anyone think that this going to work somewhere with millions of cases.

 

I hope everyone here is wrong, but if you are all so sure and confident of this, I fear for the long term viability of the cruise industry.

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28 minutes ago, monctonguy said:

SO if tests don't work, then why let people on the  ship...because masks and social distancing works? If so, then why bother with the cost and time of tests that apparently don't work.....and if masks/social distancing work, then anybody should be allowed on the ship sick or not based on that logic.

If this is the case moving forward, then vaccines wont mean a damn thing...masks and social distancing and faulty tests will be the norm...good luck cruising with that kinda system in place.

 

They had to do all this for a country that has ONE case?.....how in any world would anyone think that this going to work somewhere with millions of cases.

 

I hope everyone here is wrong, but if you are all so sure and confident of this, I fear for the long term viability of the cruise industry.

I get where you're coming from, but allow me to pose a question. Assuming that there is a test that is 99.9% accurate, and RCL is confident of the testing and do away with social distancing and mask wearing, would you still be comfortable aboard the ship when another unknown party is huddled together in a large group very close to your table at the buffet and not wearing masks? I would think it's a good thing to enforce some social distance given the current climate, don't you? Strictly IMHO, mind you. 

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27 minutes ago, monctonguy said:

SO if tests don't work, then why let people on the  ship...because masks and social distancing works? If so, then why bother with the cost and time of tests that apparently don't work.....and if masks/social distancing work, then anybody should be allowed on the ship sick or not based on that logic.

No single precaution (that allows for cruising) is completely effective.  Tests will catch some people, masks and social distancing will reduce the chances of spread for those that it misses, isolation reduces further when caught.  The goal is to have enough precautions that work together to catch / reduce spread and can put cruising into an acceptable risk category. 

There's no silver bullet, even vaccines are going to take awhile, so we do as many other things as we can to lower the risk.  With Singapore, they're doing all this for a country that has one case because they have one case.  They have a system they follow and it works.  Will it always be like this? I doubt it, but I fully expect it for the next year or two at least.

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Think of it this way, you have a home (Cruise ship) with all your valuables inside it (passengers). To protect your valuables, you put in a fence (Testing) around your house to prevent a burglar (COVID) from getting into your house. 
 

Some burglars see the fence and decide to choose somewhere else (positive test result and denied boarding), other see it and decide to jump the fence anyway (false negative result and boards ship with virus).

 

But before the burglar can get to your valuables, they have to get past your door lock (mask) and security system (social distancing) both of which may stop the burglar eventually or slow it until the police (quarantining suspected cases on board) arrive. 
 

None of those measure are 100% effective, but you use them anyway as a means to deter and act as firewalls. Hope this helps

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3 hours ago, monctonguy said:

SO if tests don't work, then why let people on the  ship...because masks and social distancing works? If so, then why bother with the cost and time of tests that apparently don't work.....and if masks/social distancing work, then anybody should be allowed on the ship sick or not based on that logic.

I wouldn't go as far to say they don't work but unfortunately they are definitely not the "silver bullet." I'd assume they need to proceed with caution and suspect everyone is a carrier. Sadly, rapids aren't all that reliable from my understanding and it needs to build up in your system for a few days before you test positive on the reliable PCR test.

My wife's an RN & EMT had a few exposures and always needed to wait a few days. Some she knew would test negative from PCR only to test positive on a second test (whether another PCR or rapid) because they felt ill a few days later.

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18 hours ago, KWofPerth said:

Think of each separate preventative measure as a slice of Swiss cheese It has holes in it. But when you stack each separate slice together, the holes get covered. The more slices, the less holes and more protection.

Great analogy! On a separate note, I am running out to purchase Swiss cheese as I suddenly have a craving. 

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