choose2cruz

Welcome @Evilmuffin  I'm also taking my first solo cruise in December, but on a different line. The10-Day Panama Sunfarer sounds great. Hope you will tell us about your experience when you're back. Is the Caribbean cruise on HA also?

@rtazz17is correct, even if you get 10 more different answers. 😁 It is 3 days, not 72 hours. Royal adapted the CDC's air travel testing requirement to their cruise ships, which is why they use 3 days instead of 72 hours for the same reason the CDC does. That way it doesn't matter what time of day you get tested or what time the ship sails. If it was 72 hours, your test result could possibly expire before boarding.

23 minutes ago, molly361 said:

Can you tell them it's travel related?

Yes, you can tell them it's travel related. I checked with my local CVS and they even recommend which test is best for travel. Obviously, not everyone's health insurance is the same, but the person I spoke with told me many insurance companies don't consider a travel test to be diagnostic and won't pay for it. I haven't checked with my provider about it yet.

1 hour ago, Jpancakes said:

Is this new change only known through an email?  When I look at the August protocols from FL, the website still says no testing is necessary for vaccinated guests.

No, it isn't only by email. They changed the information of the website. This is the part for FL sailings:

"

For Cruises For Cruises Departing from Florida on or After August 1, 2021 

Guest testing requirements for cruises departing Florida vary depending on your age and vaccine status.

ALL VACCINATED GUESTS ON SAILINGS 5 NIGHTS OR LONGER

As a requirement to board, all guests age 2 and older on sailings of 5 nights or longer -- regardless of vaccination status -- will need to take a COVID-19 test (PCR or antigen) with an accredited test provider, such as a drugstore chain or diagnostic lab, no more than 3 days before arriving at the terminal for embarkation. Guests will need to show their negative test result upon arriving at the terminal. The results can be printed out, or can be presented on your phone, such as the email result from your test provider. Costs associated with this test are the guests' responsibility.

ALL VACCINATED GUESTS ON SAILINGS 4 NIGHTS OR LESS

Vaccinated guests on sailings of 4 nights or less do not have any testing requirements."

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/will-i-have-to-take-a-test-before-i-cruise#florida-august

Looks like if your cruise is 4 days or less you're golden, except for the new mask requirement.

7 minutes ago, helen haywood said:

I’d like clarification on the three days prior to cruise lingo.  If my cruise sails on Saturday, can I have the test done on Wednesday?

Probably have to call them and ask. The testing requirements used to be 72 hours before sailing, but they have muddied the water by saying "three days prior."

46 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

Oops I should have read your previous post. Sorry I didn’t mean to sound pedantic. 

No worries. I didn't take it that way. You offered useful information. All good. 😀

Just now, Tree_skier said:

You didn't state in your post if you are vaccinated so for clarifications purposes... It's only required if you are unvaccinated.  If you are vaccinated no tests and no extra medical insurance required.

Thank you. Yes, fully vaccinated as soon as it was available to me.

Okay, thanks. I don't travel without travel insurance, anyway. But, good to know.

These kind of requirements seem to change by the minute nowadays. But, for what it is worth, I booked a cruise out of Galveston last week through my TA and she told me Royal Caribbean is requiring proof of medical insurance for all passengers. I'm on Medicare as of this year, which is only good in the US. So, I just purchased third party trip insurance that includes $250K primary medical (incl COVID), med-e vac, and repatriation. That satisfies the requirement.

21 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Nothing will be "normal" for a while. Might as well cancel now. Even the CDC is recommending mask use for fully vaccinated persons today because of the spread of COVID-19 and the Delta variant. Based on this CDC guidance, I would not be surprised to see masking rules being added to COVID protocols onboard fully vaccinated cruises in the near future. We're on the Encore next month and were hoping to avoid masks..... but we realize that attempts to be "normal" ashore have not worked to contain new variants. 

I get that, in the sense of "normal" before COVID. I meant something closer to what other cruise lines are doing, which for most seems responsible. There is a perception that someday COVID will magically disappear, but viruses don't do that. Hopefully, at some point it will mutate into something less viral and dangerous as other viruses have done. But there will never be "normal" again in the sense of how things were before. Any cruise line refusing to sail with less than 100% vaccinated people is not going to remain in business. I'm not against that concept, as a vaccinated person. But when I book a cruise, unless there is a, God forbid, virus outbreak on a ship at some point, I want to have confidence the cruise is actually going to sail.

Another weird thing is there are discounted NCL Caribbean cruises advertised on all the cruise discount sites, but according to NCL, as reported in the Miami Herald:

"All voyages embarking from Aug. 1 to Sept. 30 from Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises will be canceled. This does not include Seattle-based Alaska voyages in September. Some voyages, including Canada and New England sailings, will be canceled through October."

Seems a bit dishonest to promote cruises that are obviously not going to sail.

I've never sailed with Norwegian, but I have two cruises booked with them. If they don't return to something approaching normalcy soon, I'm cancelling both. And I won't consider booking with them again. Sure, I'd feel more comfortable sailing on a ship that was 100% or even 95% vaccinated only. But, not sailing, despite the reasoning, is not sustainable. A company generates revenues or it goes out of business. If, in the worst case, there is a virus outbreak on a cruise ship, the CDC will shut everyone down again. Then what? I think you will see a lot of cruise lines go under, and I expect Norwegian would be one of the first.

My December and January cruises both sail from a port I can easily drive to. Until the airlines stop cancelling so many flights due to staff shortages the related maintenance issues, I'm avoiding cruises where I'd have to fly. I'm not comfortable depending on the airlines to get me to a port at the moment.

2 minutes ago, islandwoman said:

Do you all feel comfortable sailing on a ship where not everyone has had the COVID vaccination?

Yes, I do. According to the CDC,  for "people aged 18 years and older, the Moderna vaccine is 94.1% effective at preventing laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection in people who receive two doses and have no evidence of being previously infected." I'm healthy and fully vaccinated. While I believe people who decline to take the vaccine have every right to do so, I've done my part to protect myself, the people I love, and others by taking it. Now I'm getting on with my life. I can live with the 5.9% risk.

Welp, couldn't wait until my January cruise so I booked a 5-night Western Caribbean on Royal Caribbean that sails from Galveston on December 1. Sure, it's just eight weeks sooner, but I'm getting a 2019 cruise in the books. 134 days until I'm finally cruising again. 😁 

Update on the story from Fox26 Houston from the same date, May 12, 2021 confirms the article mentioned in the OP and gives further details.

https://www.fox26houston.com/news/carnival-norwegian-cruise-lines-announce-plans-to-sail-from-galveston#:~:text=The Port of Galveston confirms Norwegian Cruise Lines,ship%2C" said Port of Galveston CEO Rodger Rees.

"Rees says the 3200-passenger Prima will set sail on a 3-day cruise from Galveston on October 27th, and a 4-day cruise from the port on October 31. And Galveston may see more of Norwegian after that."

That's great news for me. I'm within easy driving distance of Galveston and would certainly cruise NCL more often if they make this permanent.

@Ramona_Flowers Yep, they look amazing and you're welcome. Thanks for the tip on the bonus loyalty points.

@Ramona_Flowers Hey! No, I booked a regular cabin for the January cruise. But the other two I have booked, one on Norwegian and the other on Celebrity, I booked solos. Really looking forward to trying the Celebrity Edge single stateroom with infinite veranda. Didn't know that about the double loyalty points for solos on Royal Caribbean. This will be my first cruise with them but might look at another one with those bonus loyalty points. If my passport comes through in time, I'd love doing an October or November cruise. Hope you enjoy enjoy yours!

Adventure of the Seas, Royal Caribbean January 31, 2022

This will be my first solo cruise. My best friend and I (platonic) used to cruise together, but she is in a relationship these days and unavailable. So, I'm trying the solo route. I have always enjoyed dining with and meeting new people on cruises, but I have no problem at all dining alone. I enjoy the cruise dining experience too much to even consider staying in my cabin and settling for room service. Hopefully, I will enjoy solo cruising since I've already booked two additional cruises after this one. 😁

1 hour ago, ILgirl said:

I thought I read on CC that MSC requires masks on board?  In spite of the low fare that would be a deal breaker for me

Yep, this is still the current policy from the MSC website:

Vaccinated Guests: "You will be required to wear a mask throughout the cruise while indoors and in public areas. Mask use is not required outdoors. Where social distancing is not possible outdoors, mask use is recommended for all guests."

Unvaccinated Guests: You will be required to wear a mask throughout the cruise while indoors and in public areas. Mask use is not required outdoors but is recommended for unvaccinated guests. Where social distancing is not possible outdoors, mask use is recommended for all guests."

Just came across this thread. Nice review! I'm considering a cruise on Armonia and you answered heaps of questions for me. Thanks!

This is one of the best reviews ever. Thanks @WxNerd

Outstanding review, packed with info @Cruise Critic Chris Thanks so much.

@dappledumpling That's encouraging 😀

Not so much 😁 at Biker19. Since posting, the "Get more details on ships we support" link started working. It does cover Adventure of the Seas, which I'm sailing on. But the farthest out the cruise dates for the ship go is Oct 5 - Oct 14, 2021. So, as someone else in this thread mentioned, maybe for a January 2022 cruise it is too early to start "working on the fun."