ighten

If Sturgeon is now saying 19th July for level 0 and cruises only need lvl 1  - why have so many cruises been pulled from Scotland that are  post Jul 19th July..  Presumably lvl 1 will be reached sooner than July 19th for lvl 0 rules?

Darn just refunded Saga fully as it had to knock Scotland out.. Hope its sorted by the 6th or I'll have to move again

According to celebs twitter feed Eurofins have guranteed to Celeb that pax will get the results on time - doesnt say what happens if they dont though so its a bit of an empty statement

They are also saying they will have a definite answer to the boarding/departing 72hr time frame on Monday.

Makes sense to book a boots one to fall back on as insurance just in case - Im hoping by the time it gets near ours inm August they can at least sort out what they atually want instead of  giving conflicting answers on there own websites

I think the issue here is that cruise companies (not just celebrity) dont gamble too much on what "Domestic Cruise Roadmap step 4" says and try to go above 1000 pax before they actually know if step 4 will be implemented as currently written..

I can see why they would want to try to push further (they need to earn money and thats what the gov have written into the roadmap).

Whats less clear is how in contact and informed they are from the govt as to how things will change in detail  come Jul 19th : - taking the aviation industry as an example I would think they are as frustrated as everyone else with the lack of any detail..

P&O seemed to get caught out by taking a huge gamble we would be at lvl 4 on Jun the 21st - I would have thought if Celebrity has done the same then the 3rd July people would have heard about it by now. Fingers crossed

I suspect once they are told exactly what the new rules for UK cruising are after Jul19th they will make a decision and not before (and there seems to be a 2 week buffer where nothing changes)..   And even then it will be a slow drip feed upwards.. The UK gov site for cruising will be updated on the 19th but it doesn't necessarily have to follow whats happening on land as its a seperate page/roadmap  on its own and could be changed from what it currently says.

"Roadmap step 4

It is expected that England will move to Step 4 on 19 July, though the data will be reviewed after 2 weeks in case the risks have reduced.

By step 4, the government hopes to remove all legal limits on social contact. This includes lifting capacity limits for domestic cruises."

3 hours ago, upwarduk said:

What happens if you arrive by taxi?

Wouldn't really be an issue with Saga as they provide a chauffeur service inclusive -  If you dont use it you have to ring them and they will give separate instructions. 

Im guessing because your arriving in slotted groups they can handle the blocks of luggage once your cleared -- Thats fine if they are running at 1000 pax - not sure what happens if we get past Jul 19th and they follow what the gov website says for UK cruising

Oddly I just got the instruction letter from Saga for the first Discovery cruise (which I have cancelled as they cut out all of Scotland) and they are actually doing it all in your car as you arrive..

@TC38 does bring up a good point though - especially as the laterals can give false positives after having a vaccine!! Bit bizarre

I get the impression shes saying nothing major is going to be changing re getting to lvl 0 - but cruising only needs to get to lvl 1 so fingers crossed..

Then again you can pack all the trains from Scotland to Wembley and back again stand with not an inch of elbow room on the journey and no one asks if your vaccinated or asks any questions so logic is out the window

Passports have always been required for cruises even if they were uk cruises before covid even existed.. 

Im hopeful as well for Aug the 6th  TBF Scotland doesnt have to get to lvl 0 it only has to drop the remaining lvl 2s down to 1 which I think may happen mid to late July..

Has anyone had issues with some trips showing as available  (rather than ask onboard) and then it wont accept a number of pax and just crashes the system

3 hours ago, CruisingFox27 said:

 

It seems quite ridiculous to prevent the ship from docking, considering the protocols in place. On Saturday we took the ferry from Belfast to Stranraer, no tests required and proceeded to drive freely through Scotland to England. Surely that's more of a risk than confirmed negative passengers on Virtuosa, who would be on escorted trips 🤔 

Thats nothing.. soon you can catch a train after a nights partying in Bolton to Manchester direct to Glasgow and party all night arm in arm with total strangers after watching the Euros.. But you cant dock and tour a city whilst in a contained bubble..

Posturing and Politics first - common sense second.

Its ok saying politics dont come into it (they shouldnt)- but sadly things that line the pockets of political partys or may upset voters get the all clear

But its ok to stand cheek too cheek on an overfull long distance direct train from anywhere in the UK 8 times a day to Glasgow(the northern belle isnt a fair comparism as its pretty luxury) with no vaccinations and no social distancing.. And its also ok to be packed into a park in Glasgow to watch the Euros because there will be social distancing (even though the firm they used for the screens say they are totally inadequate in size)... You cant make it up

On 4/10/2021 at 9:05 AM, Stu UK said:

 

Cover for cruises in UK waters for UK people. This is a minefield once you get into the policy wording. Many cover medical treatment abroad but specifically exclude treatment and repatriation in UK, you have to read the small print in the actual policy not the headlines.  They assume UK means on land and don’t necessarily cover travellers needs in UK waters. 

Cover for You have updated their information for UK only cruises. First company I have seen who have done this.

This is not a recommendation merely pointing out the detail you need to clarify with your own insurers. 

Link below, need to scan down to the Covid questions. 
 
https://www.coverforyou.com/faqs_travel.php#am-i-covered-for-a-cruise

Didn't Saga mention recently this was why they would be including a Fjords journey (ie to dept UK waters) . I just checked this with Zurich who confirmed you only need to leave once in the trips duration(as in most GB cruises pre covid which tend to include Eire or some outside UK point). But I would get this as written confirmation..

As Stu points out though this wont work for a P&O/Cunard or one of the current MSC cruises.. MSC are actually checking for this at boarding as they have already started cruising.

Nice to see the FAQs have now appeared though though they are  a bit vague in some aspects - I wonder why they just dont want to have a policy from day one..

Some great routes (I suspect they will be the best)  so Im tempted but I think I'll wait for Cunards offerings first or Sagas if they add any more.. One thing that has actually put me off a little in Freds FAQ is the dining policy - 

TBF FReds jump from outside/inside to Balconys have always been quite a significant one and demand will be high..

Im still not sure though about the lack of detail re conditons of travel - The issue is that some of the actual things have nothing to do with individual cruise companies setting there own rules but certain aspects will be locked in stone by the Govt. I can see that perhaps smaller ships may have different rules but Saga seem to be following the same as the larger and its already been quoted that most of the basis of allowing cruising to startup again locally is based on the Saga model.

It wouldnt be the first time Freds announced an exciting restart to cruising that never materialised (though they are not alone on that) - however they certainly seem to be  alone on this quite significant lack of any detail.. Its a pity because there are some great routes Im tempted by

Yep  worked for me I can even see my flu jab

JUst noticed on the P&O site someones pointed out if you log into your NHS account on my NHS you can print off your appointments and vaccine details

Well I checked today and its all appeared - just wanted to make sure it was in place for when the UK cruises start up

Their up on sale but there's no details on policy yet which is odd - We already know from P&Os/Cunard and Sagas announcement a vaccination is required but theres a lack of any detail here which is going to put people off making a booking.

your vaccines linked to your NHS number - either an agreement is reached that this can be accessed (though that would be a privacy issue) or they will have to follow Hurtigrutens example for exploration cruises  and have your GP actually sign you as fit

We were given cards linked to a batch number - The vaccination passport itself though will have to use your NHS record so perhaps they can rush through some legal method to get past the privacy part..

Just cant wait to book

Re the ? about children and perhaps tests instead as its too early - reading the P&O list of FAQ I think its quite clear its vaccinated only and no exceptions (even exempts)

Curious to see Fred Olsens also listed a whole lot of UK cruises but dont appear to have listed any policy at all re vaccine or port stops..

How long does it normally take for the 125% to appear on your account?

One cruise cancelled (again) but my first shot today (got a call yesterday afternoon asking if I could get to the GP at 8.45am this morning)..

Waiting now glued to the screen for the UK cruises to appear..

looking forward to the 5th edition later this spring 😉 - TBF though I suppose they were sent out as one pack as mine included river and UK & Eire hols..  (though half of those are technically also OOD)

Dont forget - Thats drinks  - grats - all restaurants - private transport from home to the port  - there is NO extra to pay for special restaurants (and it includes some trips)...  Its a good price for Saga at peak time that's why it sold out.. I suspect though all companys will sell out quickly with reduced capacity and high demand..

Not quite sure why an earlier post thinks there are no port calls (the full briefing text even specifically mentions the finalizing of port calls within devolved areas) - My understanding is a mix of pure blue (ooh Matron) 2-3 nights sea only and longer 5-7nt with calls as long as criteria are met both within the industry and of course the national situation.

Interesting to see Saga sold out instantly on its first  UK offering at 3500pp (which isnt a bad price for 15 nts) -they also have made it clear it will have port stops