Mandatory testing question~

[cpristash]

as will I ...however, I am sure it comes with a price!

[taveller]

I thought vaccinated travelers didn't need to have a test??? Is that not right?

[DCPIV]

10 minutes ago, taveller said:

I thought vaccinated travelers didn't need to have a test??? Is that not right?

 

It depends on what your departure port is.  When we sail out of St. Maartin soon, we have to have test within 72 hours of arrival.

[taveller]

Does anyone know what type of covid test is giving on Celebrity Edge prior to returning to U.S. port?  One of our group has a phobia about the very invasive far reaching PCR test that goes all the way up, but is ok with the less invasive "nostril" swab.  

[DCPIV]

28 minutes ago, taveller said:

Does anyone know what type of covid test is giving on Celebrity Edge prior to returning to U.S. port?  One of our group has a phobia about the very invasive far reaching PCR test that goes all the way up, but is ok with the less invasive "nostril" swab.  

 

Honestly, I don't know that anything is required for return to US.  If anything is, it's an "antigen" test.  Typically, that's the shallower swab, but it doesn't have to be.

 

Keep in mind that I'm only saying what I think I have seen and read and nothing more than that.

[buckeyecruisers]

On our Summit July 24th sailing a poster said that Celebrity was doing tests at the pier for boarding on their June 12th cruise. Does anyone know if they are doing that at St. Maartin? We are staying on the island for a week ahead of the cruise and can get a test at our hotel but it is $75 a piece for the test. 

[DCPIV]

11 minutes ago, buckeyecruisers said:

On our Summit July 24th sailing a poster said that Celebrity was doing tests at the pier for boarding on their June 12th cruise. Does anyone know if they are doing that at St. Maartin? We are staying on the island for a week ahead of the cruise and can get a test at our hotel but it is $75 a piece for the test. 

 

We're on the Summit out of St. Maartin in a couple of weeks, and I've seen nothing about a test at the pier.  We're supposed to have a test within 72 hours of arrival to the island to satisfy St. Maartin and a test within 72 hours of "departure" (boarding, I suppose) to satisfy Celebrity.  Since we are flying in on departure day, we can use the same test.  

 

Since you are a week apart, I expect you'll need to get that test at hotel.  Again, I've seen nothing about testing at the pier, and we've received at least one email with details on what's required to board.

 

Just as an aside, do you really want to test at the pier? It sounds like results can take a good couple of hours or so to come back, and I don't know why you still wouldn't have to pay for it (there's no offer from Celebrity to cover pre-boarding test costs; only anything required once on board for scheduled ports and return port).  My two cents says to pony up at the hotel a couple days before boarding and then relax.

[lhsail]

 

10 minutes ago, DCPIV said:

 

We're on the Summit out of St. Maartin in a couple of weeks, and I've seen nothing about a test at the pier.  We're supposed to have a test within 72 hours of arrival to the island to satisfy St. Maartin and a test within 72 hours of "departure" (boarding, I suppose) to satisfy Celebrity.  Since we are flying in on departure day, we can use the same test.  

 

Since you are a week apart, I expect you'll need to get that test at hotel.  Again, I've seen nothing about testing at the pier, and we've received at least one email with details on what's required to board.

 

Just as an aside, do you really want to test at the pier? It sounds like results can take a good couple of hours or so to come back, and I don't know why you still wouldn't have to pay for it (there's no offer from Celebrity to cover pre-boarding test costs; only anything required once on board for scheduled ports and return port).  My two cents says to pony up at the hotel a couple days before boarding and then relax.

Where did you see the Celebrity requirement was for 72 hours prior to departure (boarding)?  Their website currently says 72 hours prior to arrival in St. Maarten. 

[DCPIV]

5 minutes ago, lhsail said:

 

Where did you see the Celebrity requirement was for 72 hours prior to departure (boarding)?  Their website currently says 72 hours prior to arrival in St. Maarten. 

 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/healthy-at-sea/st-maarten-travel-requirements

 

Look at the first sentence in the third bullet after St Maarten Travel Requirements: "All visitors must present a negative naso-pharyngeal RT-PCR test results taken within 72 hours prior to departure.  US and Canadian visitors have the option of presenting an antigen test taken 48 hours prior to departure however, Celebrity Cruises recommends that guests complete an RT-PCR 72 hours prior to arrival to St. Maarten in order to meet both government and Celebrity requirements."

 

So, I suppose you -might- be able to do an antigen test within 48 hours of departure while you are on the island, but I don't know how spending a week on the island first affects that (and I don't even care to speculate).

[lhsail]

5 minutes ago, DCPIV said:

 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/healthy-at-sea/st-maarten-travel-requirements

 

Look at the first sentence in the third bullet after St Maarten Travel Requirements: "All visitors must present a negative naso-pharyngeal RT-PCR test results taken within 72 hours prior to departure.  US and Canadian visitors have the option of presenting an antigen test taken 48 hours prior to departure however, Celebrity Cruises recommends that guests complete an RT-PCR 72 hours prior to arrival to St. Maarten in order to meet both government and Celebrity requirements."

 

So, I suppose you -might- be able to do an antigen test within 48 hours of departure while you are on the island, but I don't know how spending a week on the island first affects that (and I don't even care to speculate).

I believe the “departure” reference is the requirement for St. Maarten that your test be taken no more than 72 hours before you depart for St. Maarten. Celebrity did initially have a requirement for a test no more than 72 hours before boarding, but that was recently dropped. Anyone feel free to let me know if I’ve misinterpreted this. 

[buckeyecruisers]

47 minutes ago, DCPIV said:

 

We're on the Summit out of St. Maartin in a couple of weeks, and I've seen nothing about a test at the pier.  We're supposed to have a test within 72 hours of arrival to the island to satisfy St. Maartin and a test within 72 hours of "departure" (boarding, I suppose) to satisfy Celebrity.  Since we are flying in on departure day, we can use the same test.  

 

Since you are a week apart, I expect you'll need to get that test at hotel.  Again, I've seen nothing about testing at the pier, and we've received at least one email with details on what's required to board.

 

Just as an aside, do you really want to test at the pier? It sounds like results can take a good couple of hours or so to come back, and I don't know why you still wouldn't have to pay for it (there's no offer from Celebrity to cover pre-boarding test costs; only anything required once on board for scheduled ports and return port).  My two cents says to pony up at the hotel a couple days before boarding and then relax.

Just relaying what a poster said on our July 24th board, on his experience from his June 12th cruise. Given that Celebrity has not been very  up to date on information, ( tracelets or no tracelets) I was inquiring if any other cruisers had found the same on the June 12th or another cruise.  

 

[Fouremco]

3 minutes ago, lhsail said:

I believe the “departure” reference is the requirement for St. Maarten that your test be taken no more than 72 hours before you depart for St. Maarten. Celebrity did initially have a requirement for a test no more than 72 hours before boarding, but that was recently dropped. Anyone feel free to let me know if I’ve misinterpreted this. 

No, you have it right.

 

For those who haven't been following from the outset, bear in mind that Celebrity's website has constantly confused the issue of Sint Maarten's requirements and its own. When they edit a lengthy webpage down to a sentence or two, they also miss important information. The question of "departure" on the Sint Maarten website has always meant departure of the final flight that will take you to the island:

 

AS OF JULY 1 THE rt-PCR TEST MUST BE PERFORMED ON A NASO-PHARYGEAL SWAB WITHIN 72 HOURS BEFORE DEPARTURE BY TRAVELERS ORIGINATING FROM THE USA AND CANADA. ALTERNATIVELY THESE TRAVELERS CAN ALSO PERFOM AN ANTIGEN TEST WITHIN 48 HOURS PRIOR TO DEPARTURE TO SINT MAARTEN.

 

In order to reduce the number of tests a passenger might require, Celebrity recommends that you take the PCR test, not the antigen test. While either will meet Sint Maarten's requirements, only the PCR test meets Celebrity's as well. Fair enough, a good recommendation. But, on the Celebrity website, under the heading Celebrity Boarding requirements, they make the mistake of changing the suggestion to a requirement:

• All guests must present a negative RT-PCR test taken 72 hours prior to arrival to St. Maarten. 

While this might work for passengers who fly in the day before the cruise, and depending on test turnaround times and flight schedules, possible even the day before that, this would not be possible for someone coming to enjoy several days before the cruise. 

 

What the webpage should say is:

• All guests must present a negative RT-PCR test taken 72 hours prior to arrival at the terminal for boarding. 

Celebrity has changed the requirements text multiple times, but errors seem to creep in each and every  time. Proof reading does not seem to be a strong suit.

 

 

 

 

[amcb]

So have they actually streamlined the testing to just be one test? Or is it still unclear?

 

🙂 amcb

[Fouremco]

12 hours ago, amcb said:

So have they actually streamlined the testing to just be one test? Or is it still unclear?

 

🙂 amcb

If you are referring to the pre-boarding testing, you only need one test if it is within 72 hours of both your final flight to the island and your check in at the terminal.

 

On the other hand, if you arrive a week early on the island, you will need a second test taken on the island within 72 hours of checking in at the terminal.

[lhsail]

10 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

If you are referring to the pre-boarding testing, you only need one test if it is within 72 hours of both your final flight to the island and your check in at the terminal.

 

On the other hand, if you arrive a week early on the island, you will need a second test taken on the island within 72 hours of checking in at the terminal.

I know you have been following this issue closely. Can you please tell me your source for the Celebrity requirement for a PCR no more than 72 hours prior to check in?  That is not what the website says. Not trying to argue, just wondering how you are certain the website is wrong?

[Fouremco]

34 minutes ago, lhsail said:

I know you have been following this issue closely. Can you please tell me your source for the Celebrity requirement for a PCR no more than 72 hours prior to check in?  That is not what the website says. Not trying to argue, just wondering how you are certain the website is wrong?

No one source, just an analysis of the situation over the past few months. The wording that Celebrity has chosen to use has changed repeatedly, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse.

 

The website has the following listed under CELEBRITY BOARDING REQUIREMENTS, quite separate from the section on ST MAARTEN TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS:

 

All guests must present a negative RT-PCR test taken 72 hours prior to arrival to St. Maarten. 

So, as long as you are tested before arriving in Sint Maarten, all is ok. A passenger could fly into Sint Maarten several weeks before the cruise, having had the required PCR test, and wouldn't need to take any additional test before boarding. That clearly isn't what is intended, but that is exactly what it states.

 

As you noted in post #35,  the earlier wording for the requirement was for a test within 72 hours of boarding. With all their wordsmithing and cutting and pasting, and apparent lack of editing or proof reading, they have now replaced a well stated requirement with one that doesn't make any logical sense.

 

If I was planning on a pre-cruise stay, I would most definitely arrange to be re-tested on the island within 72 hours of boarding. Showing up with test results over 72 hours old is a sure way of running into problems at check in.

 

 

 

[DCPIV]

1 hour ago, lhsail said:

That is not what the website says. Not trying to argue, just wondering how you are certain the website is wrong?

 

I'm not trying to argue, either, but I think the best we can say is that the website is vague.  The mere fact that we're discussing it is good evidence of that.  X has a problem that they need to straighten out fairly quickly and clearly.  At least, I can read it either way.

 

@buckeyecruisers I know it's a pain in the neck and is a long shot to get a good answer, but you might want to get on the horn with Celebrity about this.  All we can do around here is give our free advice (worth every penny, of course).

[lhsail]

2 minutes ago, DCPIV said:

 

I'm not trying to argue, either, but I think the best we can say is that the website is vague.  The mere fact that we're discussing it is good evidence of that.  X has a problem that they need to straighten out fairly quickly and clearly.  At least, I can read it either way.

 

@buckeyecruisers I know it's a pain in the neck and is a long shot to get a good answer, but you might want to get on the horn with Celebrity about this.  All we can do around here is give our free advice (worth every penny, of course).

I’ve written to their Executive office about it. So far nothing. 

[taveller]

My question is about the Celebrity on-board covid testing prior to the ship returning to US waters... does anyone know what type of antigen test they are using.. is the it more invasive one that goes all the way up, or is it the less invasive nasal swab?

[kipnik]

my wife and i were on the Summit out of St Maarten July 3rd-10th. We had to have a negative PCR test no more than 72 hours prior to entering St. Maarten and no more than 72 hours prior to boarding the ship. We flew in the morning of the cruise so we were able to get our PCR test on Thursday July 1st and that satisfied both requirements. We found a testing site that provided same day results (it was pricey but worth it) and we had our results and our approval to enter St. Maarten all before 5:00 P.M. on Thursday (a day and 1/2 before our flight) which was a good piece of mind. We had no issues entering St. Maarten or boarding the ship very smooth processes.

As far as the test on the ship, on Friday 7/9 (last day of cruise) we were given an less invasive nasal suave antigen test and written results were provided (all guest and crew tested negative) which were needed to re-enter the U.S.

[lhsail]

Received verification from the Executive Office this afternoon indicating that at the pier in St. Maarten they are looking for a PCR that was conducted on Wednesday. I asked if they would please update the website. 

[citruscruiser]

Ihsail, thanks for checking.  The PCR test timing is the most stressful part of the entire trip!

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, lhsail said:

Received verification from the Executive Office this afternoon indicating that at the pier in St. Maarten they are looking for a PCR that was conducted on Wednesday. I asked if they would please update the website. 

Thanks for reporting back. It amazes me that it takes an email to the executive office to straighten out this ongoing issue. I don't know what the managers and supervisors are doing that allows the situation to go on unchecked.

 

Enjoy your cruise! 

[dazey]

We are sailing out of FLL in late November.  Should I wait to try to understand what tests, etc. are needed for flying and access to Apex?  I am so confused on what I need but hoping it gets clearer as time moves forward.  Where would you suggest I look for help in the future?  Remember when a passport was all one needed?Thank you.

[DCPIV]

1 hour ago, dazey said:

We are sailing out of FLL in late November.  Should I wait to try to understand what tests, etc. are needed for flying and access to Apex?  I am so confused on what I need but hoping it gets clearer as time moves forward.  Where would you suggest I look for help in the future?  Remember when a passport was all one needed?Thank you.

 

I do believe that your best strategy at this time is to sit tight and relax for a few months. Things are changing all the time, and they tend to be relaxing more than tightening (with a few exceptions, like St. Maartin).  There's so good sense in getting worried about it at this point. 

 

Just FYI, there currently are no testing requirements (prior to sailing) for vaccinated US residents sailing out of Florida. A port might require something, but Celebrity should advise you on that. You can keep up with boarding requirements HERE, but there's little use in keeping up with it until a good month before sailing. 

 

Cheers!