Celebrity will be restarting cruising out of St. Maarten on June 5th with Millennium

[Miaminice]

4 minutes ago, Ashland said:

It depends on when your original booking date was and the category booked I believe.

Going forward it AI.

Since the cruises now available / sailing couldn’t be booked before, they are ai

[hawkesbaynz]

13 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

My understanding is the second shot has to be administered  28 to 35 days between the first to be fully effective, if this is the case a 4 month wait does no good anyway.

In the UK, presumably like Canada, they are allowing a 3 month interval between the two vaccinations so that more people get the initial vaccination in the arm this to reduce illnesses, hospitilisations and deaths. And it is working! If it was still the 3-4 weeks we would still be doing the over 60s rather than the over 50s.

 

Great news about the restarts. May give the US something to think about with lost revenues. Imagine the Florida polititicans on the phone to the CDC & Whitehouse trying to chivvy them up.

[naturelovergirl]

All of this is very good news to me even though my next cruise is not until 2022... Fact is... any steps forward will hopefully bring us all to what we yearn for in our travel plans and dreams... 

 

And since we all love travel (why else would we be discussing on travel forums), the thought that we can see some light in this very strange tunnel is a very positive thing! 

[RedneckBob]

47 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

On the Island.  Sorry couldn't resist, it is about 10 minutes from the airport. in Philipsburg on the southeast Dutch end of the island.  It is not a very big island. It is called the Port of St. Marteen. 

Very funny. But I maybe old, let’s saw old fashion, what I meant by cruise terminal in St Maarten, is that large building where you deposit your luggage, check in and board the boat. I don’t remember such a structure at the Port of St Maarten, only a 

long walk from cab drop off to pier. Am I wrong ? 

[ipeeinthepool]

Any word if I can do a B2B n these cruises?

[ipeeinthepool]

3 minutes ago, RedneckBob said:

Very funny. But I maybe old, let’s saw old fashion, what I meant by cruise terminal in St Maarten, is that large building where you deposit your luggage, check in and board the boat. I don’t remember such a structure at the Port of St Maarten, only a 

long walk from cab drop off to pier. Am I wrong ? 

 

You'll probably see a big tent at the end of the pier.

[Fouremco]

51 minutes ago, fragilek said:

Got the Celebrity email in Scotland - we don't have any proof of Vaccination at all. We just get either a letter or a phone call to go get it.  I only had the phone call. So not sure how we can provide proof,  The doctors have made it clear they do not want to be writing individual letters for each person wrt travel re vax status.  But as yet no resolution.

The Canadian government is aware of the issue, but other than indicating that some consideration should be given to some form of vaccine passport, has done nothing to advance the idea. This article from earlier today gives a pretty good overview of the current situation:

https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/don-martin-travelling-back-to-normal-is-going-to-require-vaccine-certification-1.5353830

[cruiserchuck]

25 minutes ago, Ashland said:

It depends on when your original booking date was and the category booked I believe.

Going forward it AI.

I was checking pricing on a 2022 cruise with a big online agency.  Their online booking tool showed several group rates, the lowest of which did not mention AI.  The group rates that mentioned AI were significantly higher, including the NRD rate.

[Tipsy252]

57 minutes ago, fragilek said:

Got the Celebrity email in Scotland - we don't have any proof of Vaccination at all. We just get either a letter or a phone call to go get it.  I only had the phone call. So not sure how we can provide proof,  The doctors have made it clear they do not want to be writing individual letters for each person wrt travel re vax status.  But as yet no resolution.

Had my first vaccine yesterday and when you receive the vaccine they give you a card with the type of vaccine (AZ or Pfizer), batch number and the date administered. This is your proof of vaccine. However it is NOT a vaccine passport, as the UK government have not agreed to provide this. So for travel either this vaccination card or a more formal "passport" is likely to be required.

[Miaminice]

34 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

You might want to do a bit of research on that. The UK adopted the delayed second dose with considerable success, and more and more of the medical community see the advantage of having more people getting first doses rather than fewer people with both doses. Of course, if unlimited vaccine and personnel to administer it were available, following the 28/35 day gap makes sense, but I know of no jurisdiction with unlimited resources. This article is worth reading:

https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2021/03/17/why-one-covid-19-vaccine-dose-is-better-than-two.html?rf

yep, that’s AstraZeneca. Same in Germany... now that the temporary suspension of use of AZ was lifted again.

However, not BioNtech and Moderna.

 

Johnson & Johnson doesn’t require a second shot at all.

Edited March 19, 2021 by Miaminice

[fragilek]

48 minutes ago, Adawn47 said:

I can do the same with our surgery. There is however,  a way to request access online to our medical records, but I don't think I'd want to look at them. I'm a bit of an ostrich in that respect, and anything that is important for me to know my excellent doctor will tell me.

Avril

 

3 minutes ago, Tipsy252 said:

Had my first vaccine yesterday and when you receive the vaccine they give you a card with the type of vaccine (AZ or Pfizer), batch number and the date administered. This is your proof of vaccine. However it is NOT a vaccine passport, as the UK government have not agreed to provide this. So for travel either this vaccination card or a more formal "passport" is likely to be required.

So far I don't know anyone in Scotland with a card of any sort.  14 in my direct family from all different areas in Scotland - all either got a letter or phone call to attend and on the day  no cards just a booklet re what to expect.

[Fouremco]

16 minutes ago, RedneckBob said:

Very funny. But I maybe old, let’s saw old fashion, what I meant by cruise terminal in St Maarten, is that large building where you deposit your luggage, check in and board the boat. I don’t remember such a structure at the Port of St Maarten, only a 

long walk from cab drop off to pier. Am I wrong ? 

The yellow building is the official cruise terminal, but would possibly require some restructuring to meet Celebrity's needs. IIRC, there are commercial outlets on the first level that might need to be displaced.

 

 

[RedneckBob]

3 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

The yellow building is the official cruise terminal, but would possibly require some restructuring to meet Celebrity's needs. IIRC, there are commercial outlets on the first level that might need to be displaced.

 

 

 

[RedneckBob]

Just now, RedneckBob said:

 

I believe that building is a wee small. But what a deal, check in and buy jewelry while you wait to board 🙀

[jojo1966]

23 minutes ago, fragilek said:

 

So far I don't know anyone in Scotland with a card of any sort.  14 in my direct family from all different areas in Scotland - all either got a letter or phone call to attend and on the day  no cards just a booklet re what to expect.

all my family and friends that have been vaccinated in England have received the same card as mentioned by tipsy - strange that Scotland arent doing the same..

[MarkWiltonM]

I assume most people will need to book hotels on St. Maarten / St. Martin for flights arriving prior to embarkation day. Perhaps after the cruise as well. The airport on a small island must have a limited number of flights per day. I wonder what kind of lodging options there will be? Maybe this is why Celebrity is starting with a smaller ship, so the sudden influx of cruisers can be accommodated by hotels, restaurants, taxis, etc. 

[weregoingcruising]

Are these🙄 just test cruises to prove to CDC they can do it safely?

[tlund]

I was on the webinar with the VP of sales this morning.  Hopefully this will answer some of your questions.  She said that ALL individuals, will have to provide a negative PCR test within 72 hours of arrival.  This will be a St. Maarten requirement.  Adults over 18 have to show proof of vaccination.  All crew will be vaccinated.

 

You will be able to explore ports on your own and don't have to book a shore excursion through the cruise line.  Antigen tests will be available on the ship and at ports.  If you test positive, another test will be done.  If both tests are positive, they will make arrangements to either get you off the ship or help make arrangements for a hotel stay.  It sounds like they will be getting you off the ship ASAP (she even mentioned helicoptered off).  The antigen test will be done at the cruise line's expenses before disembarkation.  Those tests should satisfy the airline requirements (and the US international flight requirements).  It was not asked and she didn't mention but I'm sure that if any of these islands have mask or other mandates for the island, any cruise passengers entering the island would have to comply with those mandates.

 

She said they won't know about masks or final protocol until sailing.  She's hoping there will be no mask mandate, however could not confirm.  She said the buffet will still be opened, however you will tell the waiter (behind plexiglass) what you want and it will be provided to you.  She mentioned that she thought they were never going back to the self-serve buffet again.

 

When asked about B2B, she wasn't sure and would provide a follow up.  She wasn't sure if a new PCR test would have to be provided on the day of turnaround, which would require a former passenger to get off the ship, arrange for a PCR test in St. Maarten in the hopes the results would be available before the ship leaves and show that to the cruise line.  The unsure question was whether the off boarding antigen test would be sufficient or not.

 

Regarding air, it is not necessary to book that air through Celebrity.  She mentioned that there are approximately 2500 seat flying into St. Maarten on any given day.  Celebrity negotiated for fares ahead of the announcement and noted that fares have already increased.  So, it may be better to book through their pre-announcement negotiated fares than the current trending fares.

 

She mentioned that they were not going to deploy Apex or Edge as they are hopeful those itineraries would be able to sail in June or July.  Not sure if that was hopeful thinking or if they are working on some protocols now with the CDC for sailing out of the US in the near future.  She didn't expand on that issue and it was little unclear.  She did say that their main goal is to have no positive cases on their sailings.  First, for the safety of the guests and second, as an example to the CDC.

 

Hope this helps.  They said they should have a FAQ flyer before the opening date for bookings.

 

On a side note, it is likely that Royal will have the same protocols for their sailings from Nassau.

 

 

[tlund]

One more thing.  The VP of sales did say that the ships will initially be sailing at 40-60% capacity and only the verandas and suites will be sold.  They will see how things go and if capacity can be increased, they will open up inside cabins for sale.

[terrydtx]

13 minutes ago, tlund said:

I was on the webinar with the VP of sales this morning.  Hopefully this will answer some of your questions.  She said that ALL individuals, will have to provide a negative PCR test within 72 hours of arrival.  This will be a St. Maarten requirement.  Adults over 18 have to show proof of vaccination.  All crew will be vaccinated.

 

You will be able to explore ports on your own and don't have to book a shore excursion through the cruise line.  Antigen tests will be available on the ship and at ports.  If you test positive, another test will be done.  If both tests are positive, they will make arrangements to either get you off the ship or help make arrangements for a hotel stay.  It sounds like they will be getting you off the ship ASAP (she even mentioned helicoptered off).  The antigen test will be done at the cruise line's expenses before disembarkation.  Those tests should satisfy the airline requirements (and the US international flight requirements).  It was not asked and she didn't mention but I'm sure that if any of these islands have mask or other mandates for the island, any cruise passengers entering the island would have to comply with those mandates.

 

She said they won't know about masks or final protocol until sailing.  She's hoping there will be no mask mandate, however could not confirm.  She said the buffet will still be opened, however you will tell the waiter (behind plexiglass) what you want and it will be provided to you.  She mentioned that she thought they were never going back to the self-serve buffet again.

 

When asked about B2B, she wasn't sure and would provide a follow up.  She wasn't sure if a new PCR test would have to be provided on the day of turnaround, which would require a former passenger to get off the ship, arrange for a PCR test in St. Maarten in the hopes the results would be available before the ship leaves and show that to the cruise line.  The unsure question was whether the off boarding antigen test would be sufficient or not.

 

Regarding air, it is not necessary to book that air through Celebrity.  She mentioned that there are approximately 2500 seat flying into St. Maarten on any given day.  Celebrity negotiated for fares ahead of the announcement and noted that fares have already increased.  So, it may be better to book through their pre-announcement negotiated fares than the current trending fares.

 

She mentioned that they were not going to deploy Apex or Edge as they are hopeful those itineraries would be able to sail in June or July.  Not sure if that was hopeful thinking or if they are working on some protocols now with the CDC for sailing out of the US in the near future.  She didn't expand on that issue and it was little unclear.  She did say that their main goal is to have no positive cases on their sailings.  First, for the safety of the guests and second, as an example to the CDC.

 

Hope this helps.  They said they should have a FAQ flyer before the opening date for bookings.

 

On a side note, it is likely that Royal will have the same protocols for their sailings from Nassau.

 

 

Thank you for sharing this answers a lot of questions.  I feel better than ever about our September  cruises today.

[Fouremco]

31 minutes ago, tlund said:

She said they won't know about masks or final protocol until sailing.  She's hoping there will be no mask mandate, however could not confirm. 

Thanks for all the information, very useful. Well, all except the two sentences I've quoted, for which I blame neither you nor the VP Sales. I simply can't fathom how Celebrity can get this far into the planning stages without knowing exactly what their health and safety protocols are going to be, including the use or non-use of masks. Are they really that far out of touch with their customer base that they don't realize that for many, the need to wear a mask and under what conditions is critical to their decision whether or not to book. To announce the final protocols just before sailing is far too late IMO. 

Edited March 19, 2021 by Fouremco

[paulh84]

1 minute ago, Fouremco said:

Thanks for all the information, very useful. Well, all except the two sentences I've quoted, for which I blame neither you nor the VP Sales. I simply can't fathom how Celebrity can get this far into the planning stages without knowing exactly what their health and safety protocols are going to be, including the use or non-use of masks. Are they really that far out of touch with their customer base that they don't realize that for many, the need to wear mask and under what conditions is critical to their decision whether or not to book. To announce the final protocols just before sailing is far too late IMO. 

 

Someone else posted on the RCL board that mask details, etc. will be announced prior to sailings being open for booking.

 

 

Edited March 19, 2021 by paulh84

[Fouremco]

Just now, paulh84 said:

 

Someone else posted on the RCL board that mask details, etc. will be announce prior to sailings being open for booking.

 

 

Ah, now that makes so much more sense. I wouldn't even consider booking until I had all the details on the health and safety protocols. Thank you!

[wrk2cruise]

I was also surprised about the use of antigen testing.   I thought all the ships were going to have rapid PCR testing capability.    I looked at the CDC requirements for entry to the US and it just says a negative test so I guess a negative antigen test would be acceptable.

[ipeeinthepool]

11 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

Thanks for all the information, very useful. Well, all except the two sentences I've quoted, for which I blame neither you nor the VP Sales. I simply can't fathom how Celebrity can get this far into the planning stages without knowing exactly what their health and safety protocols are going to be, including the use or non-use of masks. Are they really that far out of touch with their customer base that they don't realize that for many, the need to wear mask and under what conditions is critical to their decision whether or not to book. To announce the final protocols just before sailing is far too late IMO. 

 

I couldn't have said it any better.