terrydtx

We were on one of the first Equinox cruises last August and with 1400 passengers, there were only 6 positive reported cases, 4 passengers and 2 crew members all tracklet traced to the Martini bar and the two bar tenders.

That is so unfortunate, but I hope your DH realizes this pandemic will never be in the books, it is here for many many years to come like the seasonal flu. The only way to get back to the new normal is to learn to live with Covid. My DW and I figure we have maybe 10 more prime years of travel, we are both 72, and we already lost 2 of them since I retired in 2020, can't afford to lose any more, so we will just have to accept the risks.

Actually the US is one of the last of many countries in North American and Europe that already had dropped negative testing to enter their borders by air. We could fly to most of Europe without testing but coming home was not allowed without a test but that ends tomorrow at midnight.

We did the same for our Reflection cruise in a Sky Suite this August but compared it to Oceania, our second favorite cruise line. Oceania had a 10 day Italy cruise and a Concierge level Veranda A1 cabin (not a suite) for the 10 days was $1500pp higher than our all included Sky Suite for 12 days on the Reflection. The Reflection SS included a $400pp OBC, Premium drinks and all gratuities plus premium Wi-Fi. and of source s Butler. The O cruise had WiFi included but the PDP was extra. So with all we got with our SS for 12 days, we were about $2000pp less than the 10 day Oceania cruise. When we booked the Reflection we got a GREAT deal as the cost in January was $1400pp less than the same cabin today. We also are flying RT business class with the savings we got. We love Oceania as I will say their food is far superior to Celebrity even compared to Luminae, which we also love. But for every future cruise booked with Celebrity in the Retreat we compared to A1 cabins on Oceania, Celebrity was considerably lower in price and usually 2 or more longer. Since we started sailing exclusively in the Retreat, I am afraid we will not be on Oceania again. I have said many times that the Celebrity Retreat product is what keeps us a loyal customer and not needing to go to more premium lines like Oceania and Viking Ocean.

Our last HAL cruise was on the Noordam in Alaska in 2019, we were with our 10 year old grandson who as he said had a bottomless stomach. I do no remember not having the Lido open later in the afternoon after we returned from shore excursions as I know our GS would have wanted something to eat at those times. That was 4 years ago and maybe my memory is not too good.

I as many know am not a HAL fan and only mention room service as an alternative to the Dive in if all other venues are closed. We are big fans now of Celebrity and on our last cruise in August on port days there was one section of the buffet open with cold cuts and pre-made delicious sandwiches from 2pm to 5pm. The Sushi on 5 specialty restaurant is also open from 3pm on port days. The Mast grill with hamburgers and pizza was also open. On sea days every dining venue was open normal hours even with our ship at 40% capacity.

Only if the "Birthing person" is of birthing age, LOL

We are cruising now with my sisters and BIL's who do not like the testing but like us, if we have to, we will, because we are all tired of wasting our few remaining prime travels years at home. My position on pre-board testing is 50/50 pro and con, we will do what is required.

We are doing a 22 day B2B in New Zealand and Great Barrier Reef in 2024, a 7 day river cruise followed by a 12 day Amsterdam to Athens cruise next year and a 10 day Italy cruise followed by 14 day Greek cruise this August. So we also like long cruises or B2B ones when we travel overseas because of the cost of airfare. We also like to add a good mix of land days as well, we have 9 total land days in August before and in-between our two cruises.

As did we, we now have 7 future cruises booked through January 2024, all booked earlier this year or last year and currently everyone of them is well less than current pricing in some cases significantly lower.

I think it inexcusable that no food venues were open other than Dive-in which is usually slow service when not slammed. Was the option of room service available?

So do you really believe that anyone who takes the home test unmonitored will be 100% honest about the results when they board? Why even have a test if this was the case.? Taking the test in your home or hotel monitored online the night before your cruise is a 15 minute ordeal and several monitoring online companies charge under $20 per test. I have 12 tests here at home that our US government sent to us for free, so all the online test will cost us $20pp.

I would venture the opposite, there are just as many or more who will not cruise while the testing is a requirement. CC is never a good indication of overall cruising attitudes. I have a large circle of friends who are very experienced cruisers and more of them are not booking cruises because of the stress of showing up to board with a negative test. BTW none of our friends are members of CC. Some very close friends and past cruise mates with us will not cruise while the testing is required. They have 15 Oceania cruises mostly in expensive suites in the past and they are no longer going to cruise.

As of today, Celebrity and most cruise lines have not dropped the pre boarding testing and doubtful it will happen any time soon this year.

Pre Covid, we had about 30% success in using the book aisle and window seats to keep the middle seat empty scenario. We have not had any luck flying domestically on anything less than 100% sold out flights post Covid, which is why we started flying First and Business class only. Last Sunday, American for our Miami to DFW flight was offering $400 in flight credits for main cabin passengers willing to give up their seats on a very overbooked flight.

I would get the Omicron booster when released. I see a booster being available every year just like the seasonal flu as new variants show up. Fortunately, the current variants are less deadly and result in far fewer hospitalizations than 2020 and 2021 but are more transmittable. From everything I have seen this is the trend that will continue in coming years.

At the prices they charge they look and price like a more premium luxury cruise line.

On our Equinox cruise last August, one of the retreat concierges told me about 5% of the booked passengers didn't show up for the cruise on departure day. No telling why because back then you could cancel up to 24 hours and get a FCC refund, best guess it was more Covid related than not. The testing requirement for that cruise was within 3 days of departure. We had about 1400 passengers on that cruise so 5% would have been around 70 passengers. Our Retreat Host told me that 2 of the sold out Suites on the cruise were no shows.

I agree and that is why I posted the whole expert from the article and said it is only speculation on a timetable.

I see the testing requirements going away much much sooner than the vaccination requirements, if ever.

So sorry to hear you all have Covid and glad you are doing well. Just proves pre board testing and masking doesn't provide much protection from the Virus. My sister and brother in law got off a NCL Hawaii cruise last Sunday and after getting home Monday after flying for 10 hours, both tested positive for Covid. They had no symptoms until about half way into the flight home. They also had gone 2 and 1/2 years not getting the virus.

This a quote from the linked article I read this morning about the CDC and the cruise industry. Ending the testing requirement has both pros and cons and this article doesn't do any more than speculate when it could possibly happen. Here is the link to whole article: CDC Has Big News for Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Cruise Industry (msn.com) When Will the CDC Drop Testing Requirement for Cruises? Cruise lines lack the leverage that airlines, hotels, and even theme parks have because they're not U.S.-based businesses. They also have a geography problem. While people can catch covid in hotels, on planes, and in theme parks, they don't generally stay in those places very long. But if they get sick on or shortly after a cruise, it's fairly clear where they got infected. For cruise lines, where seven-day (or even longer) experiences are common, a week gives someone enough time to catch covid and show symptoms while onboard, which creates a risk of spread. Basically, much of the travel industry has plausible deniability and cruise lines don't. So Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian have not lobbied for testing requirement changes publicly while their hotel and airline colleagues have. Changing the covid testing rules for cruises is not something former Food and Drug Administration chief Scott Gottlieb, a physician who serves as chairman of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings’ SailSafe Council, expects to happen right away. Gottlieb does, however, have a timetable for the rules to go away. “The short answer to the question is: I think this is kind of a springtime [2023] thing from a CDC policy standpoint," he said

This a quote from the linked article I read this morning about the CDC and the cruise industry dropping the pre board testing.. Here is the link to whole article: CDC Has Big News for Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Cruise Industry (msn.com) When Will the CDC Drop Testing Requirement for Cruises? Cruise lines lack the leverage that airlines, hotels, and even theme parks have because they're not U.S.-based businesses. They also have a geography problem. While people can catch covid in hotels, on planes, and in theme parks, they don't generally stay in those places very long. But if they get sick on or shortly after a cruise, it's fairly clear where they got infected. For cruise lines, where seven-day (or even longer) experiences are common, a week gives someone enough time to catch covid and show symptoms while onboard, which creates a risk of spread. Basically, much of the travel industry has plausible deniability and cruise lines don't. So Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Norwegian have not lobbied for testing requirement changes publicly while their hotel and airline colleagues have. Changing the covid testing rules for cruises is not something former Food and Drug Administration chief Scott Gottlieb, a physician who serves as chairman of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings’ SailSafe Council, expects to happen right away. Gottlieb does, however, have a timetable for the rules to go away. “The short answer to the question is: I think this is kind of a springtime [2023] thing from a CDC policy standpoint," he said

The CDC has made the official announcement, but it doesn't go into effect until 12:01 am June 12th, so until then the airlines will probably keep the current requirements on their websites. CDC Rescinds Order Requiring Negative Pre-Departure COVID-19 Test Prior to Flight to the US | CDC Online Newsroom | CDC

That is pretty official in my book, thanks.