seaoma

We have lost 4.7 million people ages 18-74 in the last 3 years. I think that's making more of an impact on workplaces than lazy people.

Yes, it's definitely creeping in on almost every deck. I can forsee a future when I will think it's just too much.

Disney has managed to put some things on their small ships, Wonder and Dream that are 83,000 tons and yes, they took away some public areas. It's really obnoxious on a small ship. People here are talking about how it's all accessible if you want to spend the money, but that is one of the things that seperates the classes..... those that have it and those that don't. I don't think we are talking about 1st class and 2nd class as experiences but maybe I misunderstood the OP.

Yes, the bottom line is that covid is all over the ship, but I disagree about whether you catch it or not being a matter of luck. That only pertains to those people who aren't trying to mitigate it for themselves.I can tell you I didn't get covid because I spent 3 weeks on my Rotterdam cruise actively trying not to get it. I'm very grateful for the vaccine too, but I'm also grateful for my N95 and my education concerning those areas of the ship and the people I should avoid. I now travel with a CO2 monitor. It lets me know when it's not safe being somewhere on the ship, since there is a likelihood that there are covid positive people in that area. I'm also concerned when I go out to my Doctor or Dentist's office where there are few to no one wearing masks and the space is not well ventilated. I guess I should quit going there too? I really don't appreciate your statement that those of us that are concerned about covid should avoid cruising. The one that makes more sense to me is if you're going on a cruise, if you can't make an effort to not get sick or make others sick, then you shouldn't cruise.

Holy cow, @rubytue I have just read through that thread over on NCL! WOW

Were they doing the spit tests? I followed a guy on the Viking board who was posting, early in the cruise re-start, and it did seem that they had a very low number of cases onboard. Plus when you test everyday, it's easy to catch a sick person and get them quarantined quickly.

Yes, I can believe it's undercounted. On land, some estimate that the case count is undercounted by 20-30 times. 👀 In my younger days, I would have enjoyed a cruise like what I imagine you were on. I'm just too old now and prefer a little bit of excitement and a whole lot of quiet, so HAL suits me just fine. I will say that cruising now is somewhat disappointing for several reasons, but a big one is having to change our behavior so much to avoid covid. We are finishing up some Covid FCC on deposit and we may quit cruising after our fall cruise(just as we get our 4 star). If things are still the same, we're taking a break and doing more land trips. Cruising will either get better or it won't. You've just made me remember that I have a friend that was going to do a Rock and Roll charter. Several of those music charters sail this time of year, so I will have to reach out to him and see if it was on NCL. His son knew a band that was performing on the ship and he could bring a plus one, so he asked his Dad. Wish I could remember things...

Well, I have to laugh. If that were me, there would have been alcohol involved, so I can understand. I'm glad you've recovered but I'm going to use your story. The percentage of sickness in just your group is horrible! What must it have been on the ship? Well, I'm convinced that I will keep my plans for my behavior in March. Another, boring, waited on hand and foot cruise in the Caribbean. It could be worse.

OH NO! What did you do differently?

You didn't say whether you wore a mask or not.😁 Yes, the cruise lines don't want you to know how many people on your ship have covid, so people will keep booking cruises. They don't see any reason to help mitigate the number of people onboard that get covid so they are fine with having people sick onboard cruises that need additional help from their already shorthanded crew.

I agree with you about the places that you find risky and we also wear masks(N95) and will continue to do so. I like a nurse that wears a mask! Thanks. I think HAL could easily add some additional ventilation to some of those risky areas that would help. On our last cruise we didn't use the elevators when we were masked. We walked the stairs. Needless to say, after 3 weeks, my pants were loose. I also felt uncomfortable in Pinnacle one evening but they were busy and there was one lady a few tables from us that coughed every 6 minutes. i thought for sure one of us would get sick. Never mind that it bothered me, but I couldn't understand how she thought she was having a nice dinner. I would not sit in any restaurant, anywhere, and cough that much. We have actually upgraded our next cruise cabin because we anticipate spending more time there than in the past. Yep, no evening shows or music clubs for us, either. And now that you put the idea of ordering from the specialty restaurants in my mind, we won't be going to the dining room much either. I hope it's just not for those in quarantine. It seems that there were several cases on the Koningsdam. Actually, I wish the captains would let passengers know when there is covid circulating onboard. Maybe more people would increase their precautions then. We cruise the Caribbean in March just because we were going to be in Florida anyway so we will see how successful we are in avoiding the virus. I hope you and your husband have a nice, healthy TA in April.

@fellswoop Thanks for your comprehensive post. I also appreciate you following protocol by calling about your husband's positive test. It seems to me that having one person in a cabin that isn't positive makes some of the quarantine a little better, if for no other reason, than a drink runner. 😄 Hope your husband is doing well. Do you mind answering some of my questions? Where did you dine most often? Did you see the shows or spend time in the clubs? Did you spend much time in the casino or the Crows Nest? Do you have any idea where you think people are the most vulnerable on the ship?

Just so you know, it's 15 minutes of cumulative exposure. So if within all that travel and socializing you were in contact with any combination of positive people, within any 24 hour period, and inhaled 15 minutes worth of virus, you could get covid. Such as 5 people for 3 minutes each in 24 hours or 3 people for 5 minutes. Also the virus hangs around poorly ventilated areas, like a small restaurant or lounge that isn't being ventilated well. That's why the elevators are not good. We actually took a CO2 monitor with us on our last cruise. The worst place we were in during the cruise was the Pinnacle Grill. It has a low ceiling and there is only a small single door opening. It didn't help that a lady 3 tables away was coughing about every 6 minutes. The BBKings and Rolling Stones were bad when they were packed. HAL should up their air filtration in these places.

I absolutely agree.

My thinking is that CO becomes non-refundable when you have paid for CO and received the upgraded cabin. HAL would not want you to take advantage of this situation and then cancel CO. It would be a nightmare to argue with passengers that they would now have to either pay for the upgraded cabin or return to the cabin that they actually paid for.

Here are a few more pictures from the balcony.

I have a video of 4118. We spent 21 days in this cabin. We enjoyed the balcony and it has a nice perspective along the port side of the ship towards the aft. We weren’t disappointed in the view and we enjoyed watching them raise and lower #18 when it was being used in tender ports. IMG_3487.MOV

I'm sorry to hear you are still sick. I hope you see some compensation from HAL, but I have lost my faith in that process and I hope you have a travel insurance policy that will help.

It sounds like their protocols have changed for positive covid passengers, in your case. Please re-post if you do get FCC. At least it sounds like you are getting better attention from the stewards. How is the food service? What has been your experience with the medical team? The problem that covid isn't going anywhere is because people haven't cared enough to prevent covid from spreading. The problem is that people aren't informed as to the true risk of getting covid. The reality should be that people should try and prevent others getting their covid, especially when they are on a pricey vacation on a cruise ship in the middle of the sea, miles from land.

I hope you have months before final payment. Good luck! My situation is different from yours in that we booked amidst the pandemic when they were requiring vaccinations and masks. We cruised 2x with a total of 28 days between August and December 2021 and even though there were a few passengers that did not comply with all of the rules, we felt fairly safe. What disturbed us on those cruises was that there were no consequences for anyone that chose not to follow the health protocols. The only ones that suffer any adverse consequences are people that get sick. It is just so strange to me that the industry that is known in the general public as a germ factory, would choose to to reinforce this perception. @birdie16I'm assuming that you are home now and are feeling well.

This is NOT what I wanted to hear. I'm sorry. So sad, isn't it? I won't be booking any more cruises until I'm made whole. I guess we know where their operating funds are coming from.

It's their Worry Free Promise. What a joke.

I thought the reimbursement ended Dec. 31st, but after your post, I checked the website. It has been extended to March 31, 2023. My cynicism is exacerbated by the fact that I have not received any FCC for cruises I canceled in September. Here's the link to the policy, at the moment. https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/worry-free-promise/COVID-19-protection-program.html

If you have the annual policy, they will also fly you home domestically. If I'm hospitalized away from home anywhere in the US, I can be flown home to be near family, if I'm medically able to be transported. I haven't looked at this benefit in any other of their tiers, but we do a lot of domestic travel, so it's a nice benefit to us.

All of HAL's behavior makes what is happening to @birdie16 all the more ludicrous. They don't care whether you wear a mask or not. They don't test anymore. They don't care if you've been vaccinated. They don't care if anyone is sitting around the ship coughing their head off or blowing their nose and leaving dirty tissues on the table. They don't advise you when covid is spreading on the ship, yet they hold this lady and her husband hostage, on and off the ship, for which they most likely will never receive reimbursement.