KansasK

12 hours ago, Pratique said:

There have been many incremental improvements throughout the ship that add up. One of the crew told me that more efficient lighting makes a big difference. That may also depend on the assumption that the lights will automatically turn off when the cabins are unoccupied. Which they won't if you leave a card in the light switch.

I remember on the Harmony, the lights and I think that the air conditioning also went off when you left. I imagine the air conditioning going off would really save money.

Richard Fain did not look like I expected him to, but still he made it to be the CEO of Royal Caribbean. His view of the future was interesting to hear and who knows how cruising will be when finally ships sail again. No doubt we will be asked to wash our hands, as we were asked to do this before.

It is interesting that Symphony is 25% more efficient that Oasis - that is an improvement. 

I will wait for the extra points and the cruise to be removed. I think it would be a goodwill gift from Royal, but I know It would have to be removed to keep the peace. 

I had an aunt and uncle who cruised during the late 60's and 70's and the pictures showed them always dressed up. I think society in general tended to dress up more then.  Dancing was more popular then, too. It is interesting that the dining rooms are still more formal than many restaurants on land, just like they were back in the day. 

My parents never went on a cruise and my aunt and uncle were the only people I knew of who did take cruises. 

I logged into RCI and went to Past Cruises to check something and our May 17, 2020 cruise on the Liberty that Royal cancelled was shown at the top of the list. It also shows seven additional points on the main screen, like we took this cruise. 

Do they give you credit for a cruise if they cancel it, or is this just a mistake? 

The first balcony I had was on the Navigator of the Seas out of Miami.  We had returned from the Muster Drill and I stepped out on the balcony. The Explorer was coming down the channel and was almost going past us. Seeing that ship so close to us and so big and pretty filled with happy people waving at us was a magical moment. 

I worked for a school district on a computer help desk for 18 years. Each year when school started, we were swamped with calls. I would be on a call and see the phone light blinking non stop and tried to help each caller the best I could and then go to the next one. I feel for these people calling RCCL when the phones are backed up and for the agent that gets the next caller. I'm not sorry to be retired. 🙂

On 4/25/2020 at 8:10 PM, Marie51 said:

US Army 1967-1969

45th Surgical Hospital, Tay Ninh 1968

My brother was at Tay Ninh in 1968. He said to tell you he was at the Headquarters Company and that the hospital building was right behind them. He also said they would line up there to give blood.

On the Allure last June, my last cruise due to one being cancelled, my husband and son-in-law wore suits and my daughter and I both wore long dresses. My 5 year old granddaughter had on a long dress and looked beautiful and my 3 year old grandson had on a tux and was so handsome - the kids were made over by many people, not just older people.  We did not seem at all in the minority, so maybe 50% dressed up. Nicely dressed were 35% and maybe 15% in quite casual dress. I was surprised after reading these boards that so many did dress formally. My daughter enjoys dressing up, and I enjoyed a rare night in a long dress, so we were dressing formally anyway, even if we were in the minority. 

5 hours ago, Jimbo said:

Those 70 and older will need to provide a doctor’s certificate of fitness for travel. Stringent checks for all embarking individuals will include crew travel documents.  

I wonder if this means we are back to the doctor's letter that Royal had and then took off their web site. Fitness for travel could mean a lot of things. 

I was 70 in February and while having my cholesterol lowered to normal by medication would not stop me from traveling, the doctor's letter might stop me in Coronavirus times. I plan to wait to cruise until there is a vaccine. If the doctor's letter is still there, we will have to see. Cruising was my favorite vacation, but I might have to find a new one. 

I requested our refund on April 17 and received it on May 15. Much soon than I expected. They had said 40 days. I was just happy to receive it! It is not itemized, but it looks like we got the non refundable deposits back, which I was not sure we would get. 

We would be on the Liberty of the Seas right now if this had not happened. 

4 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

The Wipeout Cafe is gone? And it is replaced with a pay venue? This is not good news to me. I like grabbing lunch there, and sometimes a snack, on Oasis.🤨

Maybe I got that wrong - sorry!  The barbeque place is on the is on the port side and the Wipeout Café was on the starboard side. On the Allure and Oasis, El Loco Fresh is where the Wipeout was. It sounds Mexican. I don't know if that is for pay or not. On the Harmony, Mini Bites is where the Wipeout was, but was the same as the Wipeout when I was on the Harmony. 

I actually like the Windjammer for lunch.  I had been going to the Wipeout Café for breakfast on the bigger ships, but they are being removed for Portside Barbeque, that we will pay for, I think. I could easily get what I wanted and was sitting outside easily apart 6' from others when it did not matter. 

While I can see the problems with people touching serving utensils and with the crowds in the Windjammer, I cannot think of a place where we are closer to other people than an elevator. Think of going to dinner times, or after dinner, or after a show and there is no way to avoid this unless you walk the stairs at all times, which not everyone can. 

Maybe a vaccine will make all this worry go away.

Mine said 45 days from the day of cancellation, which was for me, April 17. So I am not holding my breath yet for the money to come in. The cruise planner items came within 10 days. 

I hope by a year after the vaccine is available it will be safe to cruise again. I hope the cruise lines require that passengers submit proof they have been vaccinated for Covid19 so the ship won't be quarantined. This won't be popular with a lot of people, but I still hope they require it. 

10 hours ago, Tom47 said:

Royal no longer requires this letter.

Thanks, I am happy to know that.

Last time I looked, it was there. You are right, though, it is not there now. It says the restrictions were lifted in early April, but I know it was there much longer than that. Maybe they just didn't get it off their website in early April. I am relieved that it is gone. 🙂

I have gotten some e-mail for Princess that I liked. One was a tour of one of their ships, the Royal Princess,  and one had one of their chefs explain how to make Brookies, which are brownies with a chocolate chip cookie in the middle. They provided the recipe to make at home. I expect to get offers to book, but I enjoyed something other than that. Also, I enjoyed our cruise with them through the Panama Canal in January 2018. They also don't have a coronavirus letter for a doctor to sign on their site yet. I doubt I will cruise with anyone until there is a vaccine, but since the coronavirus letter for a doctor to sign from Royal, I am willing to look elsewhere. 

The odds of a doctor signing the "over 70" waiver is not good since it is linked to the Corona Virus. Being over 70 along makes us more vulnerable to the virus, not even taking into account any preexisting condition. The fact that the doctor has to "attest" to it makes it more unlikely he/she would sign it. "Attest" is a legal term, isn't it? 

I hope this form will go away if there is ever a vaccine. I wanted to take the FCC instead of asking for a refund for our May 17 cruise,  but with that "over 70" form, I could not take the chance of it being in effect in Dec. 2021 with no vaccine available yet. 

I watched the interview with the Carnival CEO. I was glad he calmly did not let the interviewers bully him. I thought he did a good interview for the cruise industry. 

I had a May 17 cruise scheduled on the Liberty of the Seas that was cancelled. I asked for the refund and will get it in 45 days, less the non-refundable deposit.  I plan to cruise again, but am not sure the cruise industry can survive this. I want them to. 

The doctor's statement for people over 70 indicates this is about the Corona Virus affecting a list of chronic conditions. It used to say it would be in effect for 30 days.  I would never cruise before there is a vaccine, since the statistics for people over 70 ending up dead when they get this virus are not good. I cannot imagine my doctor would sign this right now.  

I am hoping this will go away after the vaccine is available. I would be taking the same medication I took when I was under 70 for the chronic condition I have. 

This coupled with the CDC's ruling about not being able to get on public transportation after the cruise and then stay at home for two weeks even if you are healthy and then the doctor's statement for people over 70  will make it almost impossible for us to cruise until maybe there is a vaccine and all these restrictions might go away. 

I am still in touch with a couple we met on our second cruise. Our 18 year old daughter and a girlfriend were with us and we were seated with a couple who had teenage girls the same age, but were not with them. We hit it off very well and had a great time at dinner. We met for some shows and ran into each other on the ship as well. I am friends with them on Facebook and we still joke about meeting for a drink on the pool deck. ☺️

5 hours ago, The Admiral said:

Looks like CDC updated some of the guidelines on getting off the ship:

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/cruise-ship/what-cdc-is-doing.html

double post - sorry.

5 hours ago, The Admiral said:

Looks like CDC updated some of the guidelines on getting off the ship:

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/cruise-ship/what-cdc-is-doing.html

If you read this, cruise passengers who are well cannot fly home or go home by any public transportation. It says: 

      Well Travelers

• Before leaving your cabin to begin ship disembarkation, put on a face mask or cloth face covering issued to you by the cruise line. Keep the face covering on from the time you leave your cabin, during disembarkation and during all air and land travel. To the extent possible, do not remove the face covering until you get to your final destination.
• You should only travel with other well travelers by chartered or private transportation. Do not board a commercial flight or other public transportation.
• While traveling, you should spread out if space allows (6 feet apart from non-travel companions, if possible). Sit next to your cruise ship travel companion(s) if you’re traveling with someone.
• If you develop symptoms during travel, notify the medical staff of your symptoms and continue to wear your cloth face covering. If you are on a chartered flight without medical staff, tell the CDC Quarantine Station staff as soon as you disembark the plane.
• When you arrive at your final destination, you should stay home for 14 days and monitor your health.

If you have a car at the pier waiting for you, you can get home. Otherwise, it will be very hard to get home since we cannot fly after a cruise. 

I turned 70 in February, so I would need the doctor's letter. Without a vaccine, I don't see how my doctor could sign it since I am in the risky group and people already sick and without symptoms could spread the virus on the ship to anyone and myself, also. I have pretty well resigned myself to waiting for the vaccine. I have a cruise scheduled for May 17 and I am waiting to see if Royal cancels another month, otherwise I will have to cancel this cruise that I booked last June. I will be unhappy doing it, but this is what seems safest right now.  I don't think the number of new cases each day will drop to zero until at least June. Since docking at the end of the cruise is an issue, I can't see how Royal can come back any sooner. I also don't know how long they can do this without going broke.