strickerj

4 minutes ago, LMKakaThing2 said:

Thank you! I wonder how the testing requirements will effect cruises arriving into Canada? Sounds like cruise lines are going to have to administer COVID tests before arriving. 

Yeah, that's how I read it too. I'm feeling better about changing my Vancouver cruise to Seattle. We lose Skagway (where we wanted to take the train/bus tour to Carcross, which might not happen due to the border crossing anyway) but gain Sitka.

Sorry, I see someone else posted the link just before me.

6 minutes ago, LMKakaThing2 said:

Have you heard anything? Read that the announcement was going to come at 8:30am AST this morning. I looked but didn’t see anything. 

The linked page actually says 9:30 now, but it looks like it happened - first search result was this article on an unofficial Disney Cruise Line blog: https://disneycruiselineblog.com/2022/03/canadas-minister-of-transport-shares-new-health-requirements-for-the-2022-return-of-cruise-ships/.

In summary, it looks like vaccinations will be required (as expected) with travelers under 12 exempted (unless required by the cruise line, which some do), and molecular test within 72 hours or antigen with 24 hours of both boarding the ship and arriving in Canada.

Official release from the government is here: https://www.canada.ca/en/transport-canada/news/2022/03/preventing-or-limiting-the-spread-of-covid-19-on-cruise-ships.html

54 minutes ago, martincath said:

Personally I'd be more inclined to ask 'what else would I do if I did not go whale-watching?' in each - as both have 100% whale sightings, and regardless of who you pay what the whales do is totally up to them, not the boat captains 😉

 

Juneau has a lot more options, but maybe you're a fan of really long ziplines - which only ISP offers between the pair of them.

This is my thought too - our cruise visits both, so we booked whale watching at ISP since we also want to see Mendenhall Glacier and the museums in Juneau.

Maybe a rowdy HAL cruise would be sedate on any other line. 😉

1 hour ago, Heidi13 said:

 

The inconsistency is based on risk assessment, as Canada is no different from many other countries that require higher standards for cruise ship travel. If fact, I believe your US CDC also requires different standards for cruise ship travel.

 

Not sure where you are getting the information regarding age, but the Govt of Canada regulation I found last night clearly states everyone over 12 yrs + 4 months. Hopefully that will be reduced to 5, since we are now well into vaccinations for 5+.

 

Hardly an onerous requirement, as if a cruise line wasn't requiring 100% vaccinations, I certainly wouldn't be giving them my business.

I assume "everyone vaccinated" includes children. If that wasn't the intent, hopefully they'll clarify. I definitely disagree with the CDC's onerous restrictions on cruises, but it's a little different in the U.S. since the CDC doesn't have jurisdiction over flights (that's the FAA, part of DOT) or hotels and restaurants (that's at the state and local level). If the CDC did have that level of jurisdiction, I think we'd have seen similar restrictions there too.

As for risk assessment, I don't see any data that supports requiring vaccines for children; we've known for a year they're at very low risk of contracting and spreading the virus. Of course a sovereign nation can control its borders as it wishes, but it sounds to me as though this is just because they felt like it, not because of any science. It seems to have come as a surprise to the industry as well, considering requirements for land and air crossings are fairly similar between the U.S. and Canada.

Apologies to all for hijacking the thread.

6 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

The intent of the Canadian Regulations are clearly to endeavour to create a safer environment aboard cruise ships operating in our waters. This is consistent with the current requirement for travel by plane and train within Canada.

 

Why should we lower our standards to what we consider as the ineffective standards of the US CDC?

 

At present, the standard for fully vaccinated is everyone 12 yrs + 4 months and older, which is hardly onerous, at least for us locally. The Canadian standard, at present, is only 2 shots, no requirement for a booster.

 

I also note our preferred cruise line takes pax health & safety seriously, requiring 100% of all crew & pax be fully vaccinated (no exceptions). Their definition of fully vaccinated now includes booster shots. They also require daily testing onboard the ship.

 

Since we have vaccinated 5 yr olds since early December, I personally hope the Govt lowers the age to 5.

Thanks for the snark, but Canada's proposed requirement for cruise ship passengers isn't consistent with arrivals by air and land though if they're requiring the entire ship (including children under 5) to be vaccinated.

I don't know offhand how much they cost, but I just wanted to comment that I had a friend in high school with skin like yours (assuming that's your picture in your avatar), and by the end of our first day on our senior trip to Florida, he looked like a lobster. Shade would have been a godsend on that day. 🙂 If I planned to sit for an extended period rather than exploring, I'd probably spring for it.

At this point we're not really sure what Canada's intent was with these guidelines; it's possible the backlash will prompt them to "clarify" them down to match the CDC. Or, the limited PVSA waiver could be extended, which would result in very little impact to U.S. round-trips that stop in Victoria.

I don't agree with permanently rescinding cabotage laws; this would open up American domestic ferries, sightseeing tours, etc. and their workers to unfair competition, and just about every other country has similar laws on the books. (A similar law also applies to freight shippers.)

IIRC, Royal Caribbean was granted permits to Glacier Bay (and even advertised itineraries that included it) but then backed out. They list Glacier Bay as a port of call on their website but no cruises to it:

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/cruise-to/glacier-bay-alaska?&country=USA

Yes, you'll pay for the excursions when you book them. You can split payments, but note that if you cancel, refunds go back to the original form of payment (so a refund to a gift card might not be much use if you don't have another HAL cruise planned).

I'm not sure about canceling once on board since I haven't done this, but I imagine it would work the same.

One other question - is this effective immediately? Are current bookings grandfathered into the old (unlimited non-alcoholic drinks) policy? Some of us paid for this package for an upcoming cruise before the change (or at least, paid a premium for the Have It All promo which includes it).

On 2/19/2022 at 9:17 PM, AFNavigator said:

It's very possible the agent was misinformed...wouldn't be the first time.  The SBP used to be 15 alcoholic plus unlimited non alcoholic but HAL changed that last fall.  Now just the Elite package has unlimited non-alcoholic drinks too.

In the attached beverage package flyer from September 2021, the first FAQ discusses the limit:

 

https://rogerjett-photography.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Beverage-Packages-2021.pdf

 

Question:  Is there a limit to the number of drinks I can have per day with the Beverage packages?

Answer:  The Quench and Signature packages have a daily limit of 15 beverages per day. The signature package counts Zero-Proof beverage towards the daily limit. The Elite Package has unlimited zero proof beverages and a daily limit of 15 alcoholic beverages.

Wow, that feels like a bit of a bait and switch since it was unlimited non-alcoholic drinks when I booked...

15 hours ago, dfish said:

The made a few more unimprovements  to the site as well.  On the itinerary page they used to list flights made through Flight Ease, hotels, and transfers.  Those are all gone.  Now you just guess if you have them.   

Now that you mention it, Flight ease used to not work at all on my booking, and now it does. So, I guess that's something...

2 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

They disappeared a few weeks ago when there was a site “upgrade”.  Not a smart move.

Oh, that's a bummer! I liked having that, but it would disappear for a few days after I made a change to my booking, so I thought it was just that until it didn't reappear after 2 weeks.

I recall in your booking itinerary, there used to be a place you could save shore excursions, drink/internet packages, and other activities and gifts to favorites. The page seems to be gone now, and I no longer see the option to save excursions/gifts/etc. Anyone know what happened to that?

I can still save favorite cruises, but in a possibly unrelated issue, these don't sync across devices even though I'm logged in.

I'd prefer cash in hand, but the insurance policy may deduct the FCC and airline vouchers from the payout, as they consider these equivalent to refunds. (I don't agree with it, but that's the policy with some insurance.)

1 minute ago, Sea42 said:

I think it will mean the Main stage shows and maybe places like BB kings where the room is packed with people. Time will tell.

Oh I see, probably not the dining venues then?

My parents did this on their Alaska trip - my dad gets a companion certificate with his Delta AmEx, but it's only valid for a domestic roundtrip. So, he booked roundtrip flights to Seattle and a one-way on Alaska Airlines from there to Anchorage. The cruise was from Whittier back to Vancouver, and they rented a car one-way to get back to Seattle for their return flight.

The only issue now is I've found one way rental cars to be limited right now. (I tried one from Portland to Vancouver for May of this year, and both Hertz and National showed no availability; I ended up booking Avis even though I don't usually.)

9 hours ago, Sea42 said:

If you follow the first link in the first post, HAL Travel Well:

IMPORTANT NOTE: Effective with sailings departing March 1, masks are recommended on board but not required. However, masks may be required in certain venues and events. Please pay close attention to onboard signage.

Wait, how is this different from the current requirements? I assume you already aren't required to keep your mask on in your stateroom? (Or if you are, who'd enforce it?)

Sorry for your loss. We'll actually be on an Alaska cruise during this time.

On 2/15/2022 at 6:01 PM, Senga said:

Canadian Government just announced PCR tests are no longer required for fully vaccinated travellers effective February 28th.  Rapid tests are currently still required.

Glad to hear it; do they consider 2 doses to be fully vaccinated or are they requiring boosters? I haven't really kept up with all the changes.

1 minute ago, blctlc said:

We sailed on Royal Caribbean to Alaska in October, 2021and they also required a PCR test 2 days prior to sailing.  

Oh really? I guess I've only checked Holland America but I thought they'd all be the same. Guess not then.

This is the first I've heard of a cruise line requiring a PCR test rather than an antigen; is this new?

I chose Spring (May 21 on Eurodam) since, despite being cooler, I've read earlier in the season is less foggy and rainy. Additionally, before Memorial Day, there should be fewer families with children due to school still being in session. The tradeoff, besides being colder, is less wildlife activity.

So I think I'll ask for the aft section on deck 5 or 6. I tried calling but didn't even get the option to hold, just "Due to call volumes, we are unable to take your call. Please try again later." I'll call back Monday; I imagine they have reduced staff on the weekends.