Seabourn and the current issues surrounding the Corona Virus

[pomponnette]

23 minutes ago, tinkky said:

I am a travel agent I suggest you call yours as I presume everyone got this from Seabourn 

We are booked on Ovation 5th April Dubai to Barcelona, do you think this new policy apply to us? sorry to ask you but we worry so much to cruise in those stressing conditions,  cruising is for fun, for the joy to discover new people and places and feeling obliged to go on the cruise is not fair and taking all these risks is worrisome

[rols]

17 minutes ago, pomponnette said:

We are booked on Ovation 5th April Dubai to Barcelona, do you think this new policy apply to us? sorry to ask you but we worry so much to cruise in those stressing conditions,  cruising is for fun, for the joy to discover new people and places and feeling obliged to go on the cruise is not fair and taking all these risks is worrisome

No. Read the mail. It says for sailings departing between April 30th and October 15th. 5th April is before 30th April so it does not apply to you. 

[jenidallas]

Still planning to cruise on April 20 on the Quest transatlantic.  Still traveling to visit my hospital clients as normal.  Still getting on planes (and going to Seattle next week).  Still practicing the same common sense good practices around hand washing and the hygiene of touching strange things.  
 

I did restock on individual sanitizing wipes and bought a box of medical gloves (great for touching things in public in an outbreak).  We also restocked our freezer just to have food on hand when (not should there be) a community outbreak hits our area or I find out I’ve been on a flight with someone who has been exposed.  
 

I talk to medical professionals every weekday and they are not having the same panic that the media is.  As one said to me yesterday “Jen, we’ve got at three cases of coronavirus in our hospital right now... it’s just not THE coronavirus strain that everyone else is taking about, just the same one we’ve been treating for years.  If you want to be scared, be scared of the flu or of staph infections.  The reality is that you are probably going to catch this eventually... so you just have to practice common sense as usual, eat healthy, and do all the wellness things”.

[Mauzac]

So agree with your post Jenidallas.  I think the scare mongering in certain areas has got totally out of hand which means some people, who perhaps suffer with their mental health, are absolutely terrified.  

 

We are on your cruise and very much looking forward to it.  I would like to get hold of some anti bac gel and anti bac wipes though... nothing to be seen where I live.    We are also off up to London soon with no worries about that.  

[skybarshrek]

Apparently this Seabourn Policy only applies to Holland America Line. Your thoughts please.

[oceanviewer21]

3 minutes ago, skybarshrek said:

Apparently this Seabourn Policy only applies to Holland America Line. Your thoughts please.

 What Policy?

[skybarshrek]

14 hours ago, tinkky said:

I was thinking of a cruise next month just got this 

hope this helps someone

ANNOUNCING SEABOURN'S BOOK WITH CONFIDENCE POLICY The current climate of public concern regarding the global health situation makes us appreciate even more the professional skill, knowledge and judgment you bring to our partnership. We understand that many of your clients with future Seabourn bookings are quite naturally feeling pressure to make immediate decisions about maintaining or canceling their travel plans. Meanwhile, others are hesitant to make future bookings during the present uncertainty. To coincide with our Global Partner Appreciation Event, and in order to minimize these concerns for you and your clients, Seabourn is introducing Book with Confidence, a temporary exception to our cancellation policy. We want to assure them that they have time to continue watching the situation but do not need to cancel right now. And they can book a future voyage with confidence that their non–refundable cancellation fees are not at risk. Seabourn's Book with Confidence policy is valid now through April 30, 2020. Coverage: All existing bookings and new bookings made now through April 30, 2020 for sailings departing between April 30th and October 15th, 2020. Policy: Guests may cancel up to 30 days prior to departure and receive a 100% Future Cruise Credit of any monies paid to Seabourn that are currently within the cancellation period. The Future Cruise Credit is valid for bookings made within 90 days* for any published sailing departing prior to December 31, 2021. We hope that this temporary change in our policy will help you maintain existing Seabourn bookings and possibly help you secure new ones to help your business thrive. You can find the latest Health Travel Advisory information and helpful guidance on the News page of our website.

Re my last post this is the Seabourn  Policy Message that only applies to Holland America Line and not Seabourn. Very strange.

[Paulchili]

1 hour ago, Mauzac said:

I would like to get hold of some anti bac gel and anti bac wipes though... nothing to be seen where I live. 

They are useful but if you count on these to keep you safe from corona, you would be disappointed.

[Mauzac]

1 minute ago, Paulchili said:

They are useful but if you count on these to keep you safe from corona, you would be disappointed.

 

I don't.  But on a long haul flight when you want to clean the seatbelt clip, for instance, there is no other way but an antiseptic wipe or similar.  

[Paulchili]

5 minutes ago, Mauzac said:

 

I don't.  But on a long haul flight when you want to clean the seatbelt clip, for instance, there is no other way but an antiseptic wipe or similar.  

That makes sense.

[tinkky]

8 hours ago, pomponnette said:

We are booked on Ovation 5th April Dubai to Barcelona, do you think this new policy apply to us? sorry to ask you but we worry so much to cruise in those stressing conditions,  cruising is for fun, for the joy to discover new people and places and feeling obliged to go on the cruise is not fair and taking all these risks is worrisome

They have changed the dates on the email to read from 1 april Iwill repost this morn Id call your TA today if you are feeling uncomfortable 

[FROM THE HIGH SEAS]

While I appreciate and empathize will many of the comments and opinions, since we were on the Ovation in December and January, there were many people who were coughing and were sick from the Flu and some quarantined to their cabins.  Which we learned the hard way as we both contracted intestinal  and Flu symptoms, from other guests and the unsanitary conditions on the ship.  The ship management was in complete denial that anything was wrong and the Medical Staff wasn't a bit helpful, more like complete arrogance and disavowal that anything was wrong at all.  Recently we came across the following from Steve Wozniak, who along with his wife Janet who we personally met and was on our cruise, and had symptoms as well.

Was it coronavirus? Steve Wozniak says he doesn't know if he and his wife were infected

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2020/03/02/not-coronavirus-steve-wozniaks-wife-has-sinus-infection/4933649002/?utm_source=native&utm_medium=capi_retrofit&utm_content=inapp&build=native-web_a_u

 

I would be concerned since no one wants to be put into harms way and suffer as we did, with no assistance from the ship.

 

[DWF]

I just spoke to a Seabourn representative and they sent me this link to a new policy for canceling currently booked trips:

 

https://www.seabourn.com/en_US/book-with-confidence.html

[Astride]

Thank you for this post. It is the most useful one I have read up to now as far as it relates to my personal situation.

[frantic36]

3 hours ago, FROM THE HIGH SEAS said:

from other guests and the unsanitary conditions on the ship. 

 

I was on Ovation in December and I don't think it was the ship that was unsanitary. The number of people I saw sitting in Seabourn square coughing and obviously very unwell. Not everyone who has a cough has a contagious disease but I overheard people discussing their visits to the doctor and the treatment they were on. I started to avoid going there to try hopefully not get sick. Maybe those who were sick should have been the ones to not go there and sit for a long time spreading their bugs.

 

Julie

[tinkky]

3 hours ago, FROM THE HIGH SEAS said:

.Recently we came across the following from Steve Wozniak, who along with his wife Janet who we personally met and was on our cruise, and had symptoms as well.

 

 

I would be concerned since no one wants to be put into harms way and suffer as we did, with no assistance from the ship.

 

He does not mention being on a ship at all just that he came back from China, so one cannot assume he got the flu on the ship

[DWF]

18 minutes ago, Astride said:

Thank you for this post. It is the most useful one I have read up to now as far as it relates to my personal situation.

They also told me depending on where a particular individual is within the Cancelation Fee Schedule money would be refunded to the customer including everything booked through Seabourn (airfare, shore excursions, etc).  For example in my case I'm currently at the 50% forfeit if I canceled today under the old rules.  With the new rules Seabourn would refund 50% of money back to me and give me a 50% credit on a future cruise within the new policy timeframe.

[naata]

I think the cancellation policy of Seabourn misses the mark for us Australians & New Zealand  cruisers who are on average 25% of the passenger mix.  The very nature of our more distant geographical location often involves long flights and in our case we often take a Seabourn cruise, and several associated holiday stops around Europe as part of the overall holiday.

 

All this involves other costly reservations and flights to make a trip to Europe worthwhile and enjoyable.

 

However the published current cancellation policy will not in the current turmoil induce us to book with Seabourn for a 9th voyage!.    So Seabourn, as tough as it is you need to improve your cancellation provisions, before we will book again in the current situation ..... your call!!.

[3418ahl]

18 minutes ago, naata said:

I think the cancellation policy of Seabourn misses the mark for us Australians & New Zealand  cruisers who are on average 25% of the passenger mix.  The very nature of our more distant geographical location often involves long flights and in our case we often take a Seabourn cruise, and several associated holiday stops around Europe as part of the overall holiday.

 

All this involves other costly reservations and flights to make a trip to Europe worthwhile and enjoyable.

 

However the published current cancellation policy will not in the current turmoil induce us to book with Seabourn for a 9th voyage!.    So Seabourn, as tough as it is you need to improve your cancellation provisions, before we will book again in the current situation ..... your call!!.

Perhaps you feel they should reimburse your INDEPENDENT flights...or your outside holiday stops around Europe....or perhaps you are being unrealistic?  In what way exactly would you suggest they change their policy?

[naata]

Refund of flights would be good, but we know that will not happen!.    My concern is, none of us knows where this world outbreak of the corona virus will take us or indeed the duration or general severity.

 

My general concern is IF Seabourn expects us in the current situation to keep booking, they need to strongly consider the implications for passengers when they are cancelled or have major changes in the itinerary .

 

In such instances, a full refund is the ideal outcome, not a future credit with short duration validity.

We would still have to deal with the other aspects of terminated bookings!.

[ab21au]

51 minutes ago, naata said:

All this involves other costly reservations and flights to make a trip to Europe worthwhile and enjoyable.

We are the same. When traveling from AUS to anywhere other than Asia or NZ is a big trip and we do other stuff as well. But I do not see a solution. I don’t see how SB (or any other line) is responsible for that. 
 

We used the FCC to book a med cruise and in conjunction with it we are going to Cyprus to visit our son. We have planned this for that very reason, there is nothing else much booked as we will be staying with them. Anything we do book, we make sure we can cancel which we did not do before. Airfare is booked through SB so if we end up canceling (things get worse) that will be cancelled also. (the airfare though SB was very competitive). 

[jenidallas]

Soooo.. hypothetically Woz was patient zero and may or may not have infected the Ovation.

 

This just gives further backing to what many doctors are saying that the death rate for this virus will continue to drop because of all of the infected persons who didn't end up getting tested or developing the any of the worse effects.

 

Now if you tell me that Woz visited that nursing home in Kirkland....

 

 

[rols]

1 hour ago, jenidallas said:

Soooo.. hypothetically Woz was patient zero and may or may not have infected the Ovation.

 

This just gives further backing to what many doctors are saying that the death rate for this virus will continue to drop because of all of the infected persons who didn't end up getting tested or developing the any of the worse effects.

 

Now if you tell me that Woz visited that nursing home in Kirkland....

 

 

https://9to5mac.com/2020/03/02/steve-wozniak-coronavirus-false/

wasn't anything to do with Woz at all. 

[jenidallas]

21 minutes ago, rols said:

https://9to5mac.com/2020/03/02/steve-wozniak-coronavirus-false/

wasn't anything to do with Woz at all. 

Yes, I know... my post was tongue in cheek commentary about the earlier post about Woz and sickness on Ovation.

[3418ahl]

I was indeed booked for the March 10 Singapore to Athens cruise, for which we accepted a FCC.  My airline flights were cancelled by the airlines under the circumstances with no penalty.  We accepted the hotel loss of a few nights.  Also, I believe it states the FCC must depart before 12/31/2021, which is quite a distance out. I am sorry those in Australia cannot book air through Seabourn, but I can also understand that they must have some type of sustainable business model.  No one is forcing anyone to book, if the terms are not favorable to your particular situation.

Edited March 5, 2020 by 3418ahl