Royal Princess Update

[frugaltravel]

48 minutes ago, debsjc said:

 

I really wish they would tell us what happened with the test on the Royal crew member... or members.

 

We were disembarking next to them, on the Emerald in San Pedro last Saturday. 

How does being at a different pier (though close) have anything to do with those on the Emerald? Am i missing something?

 

[crystalspin]

4 hours ago, Pamster said:

i was thinking that yesterday, that the incoming cruise passengers were lucky to get off and away the way things were changing. 

Well, "lucky" is one description. If the crew member is positive, everyone who has contacted those passengers -- many of whom probably streamed to LAX and got in a giant test-tube in the air --  could turn out to be very unlucky.

 

So as the first application of the new protocol, Royal Princess stands as a fail... of those calling the shots.

[cruzrbachoua]

any update on the royal crew member...perhaps I missed it...

[Pamster]

13 minutes ago, crystalspin said:

Well, "lucky" is one description. If the crew member is positive, everyone who has contacted those passengers -- many of whom probably streamed to LAX and got in a giant test-tube in the air --  could turn out to be very unlucky.

 

So as the first application of the new protocol, Royal Princess stands as a fail... of those calling the shots.

Good point. Lucky bring a relative term. 
 

Don’t think this was an application of the new protocol, though. Definitely s fail all the way around, though. 

[jp2746]

We were scheduled to go on the Royal yesterday.  It was a nightmare but honestly I met some really nice people who were also waiting. We laughed and made the best of the situation even though all we had to eat for eight hours was a small bag of chips and a candy bar. One per person Is what we were told but I may have misunderstood because it was hard to hear over my stomach growling.  My biggest complaint is that Princess was not honest with us in the first place. Not only did it cause confusion but we all had the internet and could find out what was going on with a little research. So it left us with a feeling of distrust.  I stayed on cruise critic and informed people around me of the true reason why we were not being allowed onboard. People were saying those of us who were reporting these facts were spreading conspiracy theories. Lol. Whatever.  All I wanted was the truth.  I approached a person at the counter about 3:00 when the report from VP Pence was out that stated that there was a ship they were tracking that had a crew member from the Grand. I showed the report to the lady at the counter. She was a little rude and told me no that this was NOT our ship and the ship was having technical issues that they were trying to resolve because the medallions were not working. However, every time they came by and asked us to scan our medallion it worked. Hummmmm.  Finally, we were supposed to get a decision of if we would sail or not by 5:00 but that didn’t come until later. I don’t remember what time but it was probably around 6:00.  Port police came in about a half hour before the announcement  which put everyone on high alert. They were standing by the exits and lining the customer service area.  I kept waiting for them to tell us that we had all been exposed and they were going to hand out sleeping bags and another bag of chips.  When they finally made the announcement they said the cruise was cancelled and we could pick up our luggage and a paper shoreside that would explain reimbursement. Another mistake. Luckily we were local so we didn’t fly or drive hours to get to the port but some had. I felt so bad for them. They didn’t announce that they would reimburse a night in a hotel up to $300 until angry mobs asked what they were supposed to do for the night. Some were families with hungry kids. This was all outlined in the letter along with other reimbursement offers that eased the blow.  However, they did not give the poor messenger this information so she was sent out like a sheep to the slaughter.  I felt really bad for her and upset with Princess for handling the situation the entire day the way they did.   They couldn’t have brought in some sandwiches?  Call subway or something and have some delivered.  I know that would be a lot of sandwiches but gee, they had eight hours!!  Everyone I spoke to either hadn’t eaten or had eaten very little expecting to eat when getting on the ship.  I was ready offer a lady with an orange $20 bucks for it. 
 

Since we booked this cruise during the 3rd and 4th person cruised for $1 sale, we probably will not be able to use the cruise credit anytime soon. I called today and WITH the cruise credit, to book the same cruise and the same room it would cost us more than we originally paid. That is with the credit applied! So it is over twice as much as it was when we booked.  I’m not sure our plan right now.  We will call our travel agency tomorrow when they open to see if there are any options. We still want to cruise.  We are young and healthy. We planned for three weeks bringing our laptop to work remotely. It wouldn’t have been our choice but we were willing to take the risk and planned accordingly.  
 

[bluesea321]

15 minutes ago, jp2746 said:

We were scheduled to go on the Royal yesterday.....

 

Thank you for your very good summary.   What a nightmare.  I can't imagine being in the terminal waiting all day with nothing to do and nothing to eat and being given the runaround. 

Edited March 9, 2020 by bluesea321

[frugaltravel]

Just now, bluesea321 said:

 

Thank you for your very good summary.   What a nightmare.  I can't imagine being in the FTL terminal waiting all day with nothing to eat.  

It was the San Pedro terminal but I can't imagine it either.

[bluesea321]

1 minute ago, frugaltravel said:

It was the San Pedro terminal but I can't imagine it either.

 

Ah you are right...  sorry.

[Dandylyon]

I'm going to pack some snacks for our April 4 cruise, just in case.

[Pamster]

1 hour ago, jp2746 said:

We were scheduled to go on the Royal yesterday.  It was a nightmare but honestly I met some really nice people who were also waiting. We laughed and made the best of the situation even though all we had to eat for eight hours was a small bag of chips and a candy bar. One per person Is what we were told but I may have misunderstood because it was hard to hear over my stomach growling.  My biggest complaint is that Princess was not honest with us in the first place. Not only did it cause confusion but we all had the internet and could find out what was going on with a little research. So it left us with a feeling of distrust.  I stayed on cruise critic and informed people around me of the true reason why we were not being allowed onboard. People were saying those of us who were reporting these facts were spreading conspiracy theories. Lol. Whatever.  All I wanted was the truth.  I approached a person at the counter about 3:00 when the report from VP Pence was out that stated that there was a ship they were tracking that had a crew member from the Grand. I showed the report to the lady at the counter. She was a little rude and told me no that this was NOT our ship and the ship was having technical issues that they were trying to resolve because the medallions were not working. However, every time they came by and asked us to scan our medallion it worked. Hummmmm.  Finally, we were supposed to get a decision of if we would sail or not by 5:00 but that didn’t come until later. I don’t remember what time but it was probably around 6:00.  Port police came in about a half hour before the announcement  which put everyone on high alert. They were standing by the exits and lining the customer service area.  I kept waiting for them to tell us that we had all been exposed and they were going to hand out sleeping bags and another bag of chips.  When they finally made the announcement they said the cruise was cancelled and we could pick up our luggage and a paper shoreside that would explain reimbursement. Another mistake. Luckily we were local so we didn’t fly or drive hours to get to the port but some had. I felt so bad for them. They didn’t announce that they would reimburse a night in a hotel up to $300 until angry mobs asked what they were supposed to do for the night. Some were families with hungry kids. This was all outlined in the letter along with other reimbursement offers that eased the blow.  However, they did not give the poor messenger this information so she was sent out like a sheep to the slaughter.  I felt really bad for her and upset with Princess for handling the situation the entire day the way they did.   They couldn’t have brought in some sandwiches?  Call subway or something and have some delivered.  I know that would be a lot of sandwiches but gee, they had eight hours!!  Everyone I spoke to either hadn’t eaten or had eaten very little expecting to eat when getting on the ship.  I was ready offer a lady with an orange $20 bucks for it. 
 

Since we booked this cruise during the 3rd and 4th person cruised for $1 sale, we probably will not be able to use the cruise credit anytime soon. I called today and WITH the cruise credit, to book the same cruise and the same room it would cost us more than we originally paid. That is with the credit applied! So it is over twice as much as it was when we booked.  I’m not sure our plan right now.  We will call our travel agency tomorrow when they open to see if there are any options. We still want to cruise.  We are young and healthy. We planned for three weeks bringing our laptop to work remotely. It wouldn’t have been our choice but we were willing to take the risk and planned accordingly.  
 

Thanks for the summary. We were very close to being in that room with you. I don’t think we would have held up near as well as you did!!  How did getting your luggage and leaving the terminal go?  How were the pick ups outside the terminal?  Were there enough buses and cabs?  I was wondering how long it took to clear everyone out of the area. What a shame everyone had to have a day like that, and then have to go home. 

[Astro Flyer]

11 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

I hadn't heard about Royal being negative. That is good news!

 

9 minutes ago, Jeter02 said:

A crew member friend  of  mine currently onboard just notified me maybe 10 minutes ago.

 

1 hour ago, cruzrbachoua said:

any update on the royal crew member...perhaps I missed it...

This was just posted on another thread.

[cruzrbachoua]

That is great news...does this mean they will let the ship leave today or tomorrow for a shortened cruise or will she just sit at dock?

[npcl]

Just now, cruzrbachoua said:

That is great news...does this mean they will let the ship leave today or tomorrow for a shortened cruise or will she just sit at dock?

The cruise was canceled so no shortened cruise.  Either sit a dock or go off shore to save on port fees and/or if another ship is scheduled there before the next cruise.

[Astro Flyer]

3 minutes ago, cruzrbachoua said:

That is great news...does this mean they will let the ship leave today or tomorrow for a shortened cruise or will she just sit at dock?

Nothing posted on the other thread but based on this discussion this week’s cruise was canceled.

Edited March 9, 2020 by Astro Flyer

[cruzrbachoua]

Just now, Astro Flyer said:

Nothing posted about if but based on this discussion this week’s cruise was canceled.

Oh yes that is right...it was outright canceled.  Don't recall though did they remove the b2b passengers as I thought they were on the ship?

[snoozecrooze]

2 minutes ago, cruzrbachoua said:

Oh yes that is right...it was outright canceled.  Don't recall though did they remove the b2b passengers as I thought they were on the ship?

They debarked at approx 2130 last night before the ship moved from Berth 92 and anchored nearby. 

[cruzrbachoua]

1 minute ago, snoozecrooze said:

They debarked at approx 2130 last night before the ship moved from Berth 92 and anchored nearby. 

Thank you.  I have been tracking the grand and the royal and with all the bickering back and forth about woulda coulda shoulda I have been thinking and praying for the crew and the poor passengers on grand and those who sat at San Pedro all day.  Glad to have some info on the ships and people. 

[dsj22]

Hmmm. We are on the Royal this Saturday (14th). What would y'all do ? Any word if this sailing is a go?

[snoozecrooze]

4 minutes ago, dsj22 said:

Hmmm. We are on the Royal this Saturday (14th). What would y'all do ? Any word if this sailing is a go?

Test results should be (or already is) finalized by then, so I would assume the company won't cancel, unless further circumstances arise that causes that to happen. (Another thread indicated that results did come in saying "negative," but I don't know if it will be publicized) Essentially, I don't think Princess is going to cancel as they're bleeding too much already.

 

I'm not sure where you will be travelling from, but there are also many ways for the virus to travel beyond just cruise ships, so it depends on how comfortable you feel with the trip altogether. By then, the outbreak could expand in exponential proportions, but it's not entirely predictable. Wishing you the best and that you can still have a good vaca wherever you go!

 

[dsj22]

1 minute ago, snoozecrooze said:

Test results should be (or already is) finalized by then, so I would assume the company won't cancel, unless further circumstances arise that causes that to happen. (Another thread indicated that results did come in saying "negative," but I don't know if it will be publicized) Essentially, I don't think Princess is going to cancel as they're bleeding too much already.

 

I'm not sure where you will be travelling from, but there are also many ways for the virus to travel beyond just cruise ships, so it depends on how comfortable you feel with the trip altogether. By then, the outbreak could expand in exponential proportions, but it's not entirely predictable. Wishing you the best and that you can still have a good vaca wherever you go!

 

We're coming from the Pacific Northwest and not particularly concerned about the virus itself, more the potential for delays, quarantine, port closures (as has happened in some Caribbean stops). As I am composing this, Princess just released the canceled cruise list and The Royal is not on it for next week. I guess I'll flip a coin. Thanks for your advice. 

[jp2746]

46 minutes ago, Pamster said:

Thanks for the summary. We were very close to being in that room with you. I don’t think we would have held up near as well as you did!!  How did getting your luggage and leaving the terminal go?  How were the pick ups outside the terminal?  Were there enough buses and cabs?  I was wondering how long it took to clear everyone out of the area. What a shame everyone had to have a day like that, and then have to go home. 
 

It wasn’t fun and I have been useless today because I am still exhausted .  We had an hour and a half drive and by the time we got home it was after 10.  So it was really a looonnnngggg day.  
 

 They  basically did a disembarkation.   Everyone was called by their deck and their bags were lined up just like we were getting off the ship.  It went pretty smoothly from what I could see.  There were two busses out front that people were getting on but I’m not sure where they were going   They had Uber and  vans set up to go to hotels   I didn’t pay too much attention because I just wanted to get to some food so my focus was on the car!  We were the 4th deck called and everything seemed to move pretty quickly   I didn’t see many people waiting by the curb when we were walking out.    We were all wondering if we would have to pay for parking but we didn’t.  
 

After all that we may try again next weekend.  This was our son’s birthday gift and he was horribly disappointed going home.  The ONLY way I would do this again would be for him.  So if we can make it work we will.  This time we will eat breakfast and bring snacks!

 

[ceilidh1]

1 hour ago, Astro Flyer said:

 

 

This was just posted on another thread.

I've still not seen anything official about this! I would have thought they would be shouting it from the rooftops!

[ceilidh1]

53 minutes ago, jp2746 said:

 

Totally get the disappointment for your son. I am meant to be on Royal on Saturday with 3 kids and I've been going back and forth about cancelling. I told them today we will likely not be going. They were devastated. They have looked forward to this for so long - to make matters worse, we were doing a B2B with Panorama so now they will miss out on 2 cruises.....

[Kartgv]

The one thing I haven't seen mentioned is where did all those passengers who weren't local residents find hotel rooms for the night given the late hour?   There aren't that many hotels in San Pedro.   Was there any offer of help with either hotels or travel arrangements?    I can't imagine being in that position, tired/frustrated/hungry, especially those with children or older adults who might tire more easily and not easily navigate last minute reservations.    

[snoozecrooze]

6 minutes ago, Kartgv said:

The one thing I haven't seen mentioned is where did all those passengers who weren't local residents find hotel rooms for the night given the late hour?   There aren't that many hotels in San Pedro.   Was there any offer of help with either hotels or travel arrangements?    I can't imagine being in that position, tired/frustrated/hungry, especially those with children or older adults who might tire more easily and not easily navigate last minute reservations.    

According to a statement posted on the Princess Cruises' Facebook page last night, "Our guest services and ground operations teams are activated and are working to assist guests who purchased air independently by providing lists of local hotels with availability. We will reimburse our guests up to $300 per booking for one-night’s hotel costs in Los Angeles and have booked our EZair guests in a LAX airport hotel."

 

I have not yet read about anybody's personal experience with that offer.