Update on Facts Related to Celebrity's Return to Service

[Host Anne]

5 minutes ago, ATXBecky said:

What about transportation to and from the airport when you have Celeb air? Do we need arrange that or does Celeb include it?

 

I've never used Celebrity air and as things may be different for the summer cruises, I'll ask that question.  

[Host Anne]

I am hopeful that Celebrity will post a FAQ similar to what Royal Caribbean has done.  I'm watching their website daily and will definitely post something on the Celebrity board here if I see anything.  I'm sure others will do the same, too, as we have lots of dedicated members here  🙂

[CoG72crewz]

1 hour ago, Host Anne said:

I have to be honest...that hadn't even crossed my mind at this point.  I think the cruise lines  have been mainly focusing on everything that needs to get us safely back on ships again.  I will check with our Cruise Critic Community Manager and see if she can get some information for us.  Thanks for asking!

I was able to register on March 25 and yesterday I received the following email:

We are pleased to inform you that your registration for Celebrity Cruises/Cruise Critic Connections on CELEBRITY MILLENNIUM departing 03-July-2021 has been confirmed-which means you may look forward to connecting with your new friends on board during a private party, compliments of Celebrity. On the first night of your cruise, you will receive an official invitation with day, time and location details.

[Host Anne]

6 minutes ago, SWKcruise said:

I was able to register on March 25 and yesterday I received the following email:

We are pleased to inform you that your registration for Celebrity Cruises/Cruise Critic Connections on CELEBRITY MILLENNIUM departing 03-July-2021 has been confirmed-which means you may look forward to connecting with your new friends on board during a private party, compliments of Celebrity. On the first night of your cruise, you will receive an official invitation with day, time and location details.

I'd be very surprised if any thought has been given to the Cruise Critic Connections parties at this point or to adjusting the software that allows us to register.  I think the policies of what will be allowed to happen onboard remain to be seen.  It's nice that you could register but that doesn't mean that these types of gatherings will be permitted.  And these are the types of things that could evolve as the summer goes along.

[sofietucker]

So... since we must PURCHASE the separate  st Maarten covid insurance and that purchase occurs during completion of the application form, and that must be no sooner tgN q20 hours of from travel: how much will this purchase cosr?

 

 

[wrk2cruise]

To me the statement on the Celebrity site doesn't say that adults 18 and over require a negative PCR test to board.  I understand the St Maarten entry requirements do.  To me this statement clearly states PCR test for boarding is required for children under 18.   The requirements for adults is vaccination.   Is this just more poor writing skills by Celebrity?

 

Celebrity Cruises Requirements: Adult guests must have proof of full vaccination administered two weeks prior to embark. Children under the age of 18 must have a negative PCR test result within 120 hours of embarkation. Celebrity will administer an antigen test to all guests 2 and older at the terminal. A negative antigen test result is required for boarding.

[Host Anne]

11 minutes ago, sofietucker said:

So... since we must PURCHASE the separate  st Maarten covid insurance and that purchase occurs during completion of the application form, and that must be no sooner tgN q20 hours of from travel: how much will this purchase cosr?

 

 

The current cost on the St. Maarten health website says the insurance is $30 (I had to hunt to find that info, though).

[Host Anne]

8 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

To me the statement on the Celebrity site doesn't say that adults 18 and over require a negative PCR test to board.  I understand the St Maarten entry requirements do.  To me this statement clearly states PCR test for boarding is required for children under 18.   The requirements for adults is vaccination.   Is this just more poor writing skills by Celebrity?

 

Celebrity Cruises Requirements: Adult guests must have proof of full vaccination administered two weeks prior to embark. Children under the age of 18 must have a negative PCR test result within 120 hours of embarkation. Celebrity will administer an antigen test to all guests 2 and older at the terminal. A negative antigen test result is required for boarding.

If you click this link and scroll down to the St. Maarten section which was updated as of March 25 (Thursday), it now clearly states that you must have a negative rt-PCR test 120 hours prior to boarding.

 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/health-and-safety

 

I think one of the challenges is there is information in different places, constantly being updated so we just need to keep going back and looking for those updates.  

[wrk2cruise]

4 minutes ago, Host Anne said:

If you click this link and scroll down to the St. Maarten section which was updated as of March 25 (Thursday), it now clearly states that you must have a negative rt-PCR test 120 hours prior to boarding.

 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/health-and-safety

 

I think one of the challenges is there is information in different places, constantly being updated so we just need to keep going back and looking for those updates.  

 

My quoted text is from the exact same place and I quoted it within the last few minutes.  I agree what you quoted is there.   I guess it goes to poor writing (proof reading) which is so very typical.

 

My quoted text is prefaced as Celebrity requirements.   I had assumed the other was related to country entry requirements but it does say before boarding.

[loge23]

Appreciate your work on this, Anne.

We just called Celebrity - again - this AM to confirm our b2b booking for the St. Martaan sailings in July after seeing your updated info.

We were told, again, that our b2b reservations are perfectly fine. 

Where is all the misinformation regarding b2bs coming from?  

Certainly the St. Maartan insurance mandates requiring additional $30 payments for each reentry into the country are prohibitive enough as it is! (That's at least two purchases, three for a b2b.)

This is starting to fall apart quick!

[Ken the cruiser]

19 minutes ago, loge23 said:

Appreciate your work on this, Anne.

We just called Celebrity - again - this AM to confirm our b2b booking for the St. Martaan sailings in July after seeing your updated info.

We were told, again, that our b2b reservations are perfectly fine. 

Where is all the misinformation regarding b2bs coming from?  

Certainly the St. Maartan insurance mandates requiring additional $30 payments for each reentry into the country are prohibitive enough as it is! (That's at least two purchases, three for a b2b.)

This is starting to fall apart quick!

I believe Transit passengers are exempt from buying the insurance. If you're on a B2B (you lucky couple) and don't plan on staying overnight in San Maarten, I would think you would be considered a transit passenger.

 

MANDATORY INSURANCE

1. The government of Sint Maarten has implemented a mandatory COVID-19 insurance for all travelers with destination Sint Maarten with the exception of Sint Maarten residents, transit passengers (checkbox), flight crews (checkbox), transiting cruise ship crews (checkbox), French nationals residing in France or a French territory, BES-ZVK medical referrals (checkbox) and AUC faculty and students (special procedure).
2. The insurance purchasing process is an integrated step in the EHAS application. Travelers requiring the COVID-19 insurance must complete this process upon application.
3. For more information on and all questions related to the COVID-19 insurance please visit www.sxmprotectionplan.com or contact customer support at info@sxmprotectionplan.com

[Fouremco]

11 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

 

My quoted text is from the exact same place and I quoted it within the last few minutes.  I agree what you quoted is there.   I guess it goes to poor writing (proof reading) which is so very typical.

 

My quoted text is prefaced as Celebrity requirements.   I had assumed the other was related to country entry requirements but it does say before boarding.

Part of the problem too is that Celebrity is trying to reflect in a short paragraph what St. Maarten officials takes a webpage to state. Hopefully passengers will follow the link to the webpage and not rely on the erroneous/incomplete summary provided by Celebrity. For example, the 120 hour window only applies to travellers from the US and Canada; all others (if any) have only 72 hours. 

Travellers coming from the USA and Canada also have the option of doing an antigen test within 48 hours prior to departure to St. Maarten. Additionally, travellers from a number of countries designated low risk by St. Maarten do not even require a PCR or antigen test.

[Host Anne]

16 minutes ago, loge23 said:

Appreciate your work on this, Anne.

We just called Celebrity - again - this AM to confirm our b2b booking for the St. Martaan sailings in July after seeing your updated info.

We were told, again, that our b2b reservations are perfectly fine. 

Where is all the misinformation regarding b2bs coming from?  

Certainly the St. Maartan insurance mandates requiring additional $30 payments for each reentry into the country are prohibitive enough as it is! (That's at least two purchases, three for a b2b.)

This is starting to fall apart quick!

I'm not sure it's 'misinformation' as much as 'changing' information.  From what I remember (and there has been so much information going around the past week), I do believe the plan was to allow B2Bs.  I'm not sure why it changed but the latest info is different.  I hate to say it but I expect that there will be other things that change as we go along.  It is very challenging to keep up on all of it and understand what the latest requirements are.

 

As for the St. Maarten insurance, here is what is says on their insurance website:

 

“The insurance is required for all foreign nationals with the exception of visitors who arrive and leave the same day, crew members and transit/transfer passengers who do not need to recheck their luggage.”

 

Since you will be arriving and leaving the same day, I wouldn't think you'd need to purchase the insurance for a B2B.

[Host Anne]

I think several of us were posting at the same time.  

 

I think part of the confusion comes when trying to understand what St. Maarten is requiring and what Celebrity is requiring.  And remember, we don't yet know what the other ports of call will require at this point.  

 

I know there is a ton of information already out there (which is why I've tried to combine as much as possible) but there will be more info coming out all the time.  I think it's tough for everyone, including Celebrity, to keep it all together in a nice, neat format that we'd all like.

 

Keep in mind (this is the patient Anne talking) that most of the cruise lines are not operating at normal staffing levels and while they are anxious to get as much information out there as possible, that there is going to be some confusion.  Hopefully, between our members here and the information out there, we can try to stay on top of everything.

 

I do want to again encourage anyone sailing this summer to ensure that you read what comes from your travel agent/Celebrity (if you booked direct) and each port of call you are going to visit before you leave for the cruise.  I also want to mention that you should document and save phone calls/emails that you have with agents and/or Celebrity over the next few months.  I even like to send an email back after a conversation on the phone that reconfirms the discussion.  I print those things and take them with me on a cruise.  

[steamboats]

3 hours ago, wrk2cruise said:

 

My quoted text is from the exact same place and I quoted it within the last few minutes.  I agree what you quoted is there.   I guess it goes to poor writing (proof reading) which is so very typical.

 

My quoted text is prefaced as Celebrity requirements.   I had assumed the other was related to country entry requirements but it does say before boarding.

 

The prefaced part is the requirement to enter St. Maarten.

 

So for entering St. Maarten everyone regardless of the age needs a PCR test.

 

For boarding adults need to be vaccinated and children need a PCR test.

 

So adding all up: as an adult you need a PCR test for entering St. Maarten and be fully vaccinated to board the ship.

 

For boarding Celebrity additionally does an antigen test for all over the age of 2.

 

So actually you have a PCR test at home, are vaccinated and an Antigen test by the time of boarding.

 

steamboats

[CynthiaP]

The CDC does not have vaccination records. That is stated on the CDC website. The U.S. does not have a national health system and cannot collect specific health information on individual citizens. I can just imagine the revolt if people thought the CDC (a government health agency) was keeping records of citizens.

 

The CDC card given to some, but not all, people when vaccinated is for your personal records, to remind folks of the date for jab #2, and to show that you have been fully vaccinated if someone asks. We did not received the CDC cards when we received the Covid vaccine jabs because our health provider's system has that information. I can access my health records on my phone and it has the dates and type of vaccine I received. If I need to prove I am fully vaccinated, I show this record.

 

States have specific information on the number of people vaccinated at each site, the dates vaccinations were given, the type of vaccine given on any particular date, etc. They provide summary information to the CDC for the CDC to keep track of how many people have been vaccinated, with which vaccine, their ages, etc. The CDC advises that if you lose the CDC card you must contact your state agency to see if they can provide you with your vaccine information. Some states keep track of the names of people who have received vaccinations, but not all.

 

Some states, but not all, have developed programs for phones to keep track of your vaccinations. Some travel vendors, such as airlines, have developed a phone program for you to enter your vaccination information. Since you enter the information, they have no way to check whether you are telling the truth or not.

 

The CDC cards are being forged and sold to people who don't want to be vaccinated but want to travel.

 

This is why cruise ships and countries will continue to require frequent virus testing. How else could  cruise ships protect passengers when you have other passengers with fake CDC cards and fake information on the cell phone programs. Which is why we're waiting to travel until the CDC indicates there is enough herd immunity and the virus has stopped the high rate of spread. 

[wrk2cruise]

That's what I thought originally but then there is the text that if you arrive in St Maarten early you may need another test prior to boarding.   This seems to have changed since the original roll out.  I'm not considering these sailings so I have no skin in the game I just find it a bit fly by night.   I thought the RCL Bahamas FAQ's were much more well thought out, of course things can change but it offered a well documented starting point.  You would never think the 2 lines belonged to the same organization.

[Fouremco]

31 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

You would never think the 2 lines belonged to the same organization.

Very different CEOs.

[davekathy]

5 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

Very different CEOs.

Also different demographics, different business models. 

[Seany527]

To enter St. Maartin, are there any other options besides the really long swab up your nose? It’s really confusing on the exact type of test they want including the rt-PCR and the type of collection. 
 

There are nasopharyngeal tests that do not require the the deep insertion. 
 

 

1. A rt-PCR test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed in the country of origin and within 72 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten (last leg in case of connecting flights) is required for all travelers originating from a country that is categorized as high risk. Antibody tests and tests performed outside of the 72 hours period will not be accepted. Results from home covid-19 collection test kits will also not be accepted. Airlines might require you to show a negative lab test result. For travelers from the USA, US territories and Canada the time frame remains 120 hrs. prior to departure. This will remain in effect as long as the national health authorities of the USA and Canada do not require differently for their traveling citizens.
2. Alternatively, travelers originating from the USA and Canada can do an antigen test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed within 48 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten. All FDA approved antigen tests including those with Emergency Use Authorization only (EUA) are accepted. Tests performed outside of the 48 hours period and home tests will not be accepted

 

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, davekathy said:

Also different demographics, different business models. 

Very much so.

[Covepointcruiser]

Surprised that St. Martin will accept the antigen test.  Hawaii only accepts the PCR test and even those must be done by approved labs(few and far between).   I am not surprised that they would take any PCR test, but the antigen test is less accurate.

[jagoffee]

9 hours ago, Covepointcruiser said:

Surprised that St. Martin will accept the antigen test.  Hawaii only accepts the PCR test and even those must be done by approved labs(few and far between).   I am not surprised that they would take any PCR test, but the antigen test is less accurate.

I thought the  US was accepting the Antigen test for incoming international flights?  

[Miaminice]

12 hours ago, Seany527 said:

 

There are nasopharyngeal tests that do not require the the deep insertion. 

 

 
The correct nasopharyngeal swab is the “deep” insertion!

Inserting the swab along the nasal septum, just above the floor of the nasal passage, to the nasopharynx, until resistance is felt. 
 

Other methods are nasal septum or throat only.

Those are not accepted. However, I wonder how they would check how the test was done 🤔.

The certificates we received for our numerous tests didn’t mention specifics...

Edited March 28, 2021 by Miaminice

[H2OH!]

Thanks for the great info Host Anne!