If 100/0, does Carnival even need to test onboard?

[TNcruising02]

Just now, Bevv said:

The one exception to that is a 14 day Panama Canal cruise from ? Baltimore I think.

Oh yes, I forgot about that.  I did read that they are requiring covid tests for vaccinated passengers on longer cruises, on back-to-backs, and if an unvaccinated member of their party tests positive.

[Bevv]

2 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

Oh yes, I forgot about that.  I did read that they are requiring covid tests for vaccinated passengers on longer cruises, on back-to-backs, and if an unvaccinated member of their party tests positive.

Yep, lots of "but in this case you get the test"... I forgot about those also.

 

[surfergirl15]

11 hours ago, SheSailsFL said:

The MG is a cluster waiting to happen. 

Omg I hope the Breeze is not going to be like that on the 7th of August.

[Brew12]

Didn't see it pointed out earlier, but it looks like Carnival is going to have two 100% vaccinated cruises

"

NOTE: On Carnival Miracle from Seattle and the 14-day Carnival Pride sailing on 10/31/21 from Baltimore, vaccine exemptions will only be accommodated as required by law.

[TNcruising02]

4 minutes ago, surfergirl15 said:

Omg I hope the Breeze is not going to be like that on the 7th of August.

People who are concerned should wait until next year to cruise.  There will be people in close contact on the cruises.  Since they are mostly vaccinated, it's a risk many are willing to take.  

[TNcruising02]

3 minutes ago, Brew12 said:

Didn't see it pointed out earlier, but it looks like Carnival is going to have two 100% vaccinated cruises

"

NOTE: On Carnival Miracle from Seattle and the 14-day Carnival Pride sailing on 10/31/21 from Baltimore, vaccine exemptions will only be accommodated as required by law.

That isn't surprising.  Longer cruises are riskier.

Edited August 2, 2021 by TNcruising02

[Babr]

48 minutes ago, Brew12 said:

I can see two sides to this issue. There is no doubt that false positives can and do happen which can destroy a families vacation and have major financial repercussions. 

On the flip side, vaccines aren't a magic bullet that prevents Covid. Even the best vaccines at 95% effective when administered mean that 1 out of 20 could still get symptomatic Covid. The J&J shot was under 80% effective which means 1 in 5 could get it. And, all of these shots get less effective over time. Last I saw the mRNA vaccines were still around 85% effective after 6 months which is still higher than the other vaccines at their best.

Bottom line is that on a cruise ship with 3000 passengers you can expect over 300 that could experience symptomatic Covid. The number of people who could test positive without symptoms is much higher.

And please don't feel like vaccines are worthless at these levels, the WHO approves vaccines above 50% effective for a very good reason. It's about reducing spread. The math supports it. Let's say 1 sick person would infect 10 individuals every week.

Without a vaccine 1 - 10 - 100 - 1,000 - 10,000 in 5 weeks for 11,111 total cases

With a 50% effective vaccine 1 - 5 - 25 - 125 - 625 in 5 weeks for 781 total cases

With a 90% effective vaccine 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 in 5 weeks for 5 total cases

 

The issue is that we are all living in and traveling through a country that is only around 50% vaccinated. This means we all have a higher chance of being asymptomatic carriers when we board. Would pre cruise testing catch some of these cases? Absolutely. Would it catch all of them? Not a chance. Even a 100% vaccinated cruise would still expect to see symptomatic cases. This is why the CDC has openly said they expect Covid cases on every cruise. 

 

Even as a solo vaccinated traveler, I'm evaluating if I need travel insurance in case of a positive test or if I become symptomatic. 

Now we have an actual case of what happens to people who test positive on Carnival so considering travel insurance might be worthwhile.

 

If the quarantine possibility is your biggest concern, take a look at the policies offered by Trawick International. They are the only ones I know of right now that have a line-item defined benefit for quarantine. You still get the other benefits of a comprehensive policy. Looking at the coverage and cost might help you decide.

[Brew12]

1 minute ago, Babr said:

Now we have an actual case of what happens to people who test positive on Carnival so considering travel insurance might be worthwhile.

 

If the quarantine possibility is your biggest concern, take a look at the policies offered by Trawick International. They are the only ones I know of right now that have a line-item defined benefit for quarantine. You still get the other benefits of a comprehensive policy. Looking at the coverage and cost might help you decide.

Right after I posted that I remembered I purchased the travel insurance when I booked the cruise. I didn't realize it had the medical and evacuation coverage as part of what it offered. So fortunately, I'm good. Well worth $109 for the peace of mind.

I think the only change I'll make is bringing my work laptop so I can work remotely if I'm stuck in a hotel in Florida.

[Brew12]

5 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

That isn't surprising.  Longer cruises are riskier.

It could also be due to the sailings being port changes. Either way it is probably a good idea.

[Babr]

3 minutes ago, Brew12 said:

Right after I posted that I remembered I purchased the travel insurance when I booked the cruise. I didn't realize it had the medical and evacuation coverage as part of what it offered. So fortunately, I'm good. Well worth $109 for the peace of mind.

I think the only change I'll make is bringing my work laptop so I can work remotely if I'm stuck in a hotel in Florida.

The medical and evacuation will come into play if you are actually sick. The quarantine part comes under trip delay or trip interruption. The maximum benefit under interruption is usually 150% of trip cost. Assuming you got the full benefit, it may not reimburse all your expenses for quarantine, depending on the cost of the trip and the length of the quarantine, but it will go a long way. 
 

Glad you have coverage. Now you can relax and enjoy your trip.

 

[undertoes10]

But it's NOT 100% vax.  It's 95% so there are people not vaccinated that will contribute to the spread of the virus.  Virus's need a host.  If there isn't any it will die out.  Simple.

We need 100% VAX cruises for those who want to cruise safely.

[Radiioman46]

Do the numbers. 5% of 3000 ppl is 150 ppl, with most of them being children. 

 

How afraid should you be on a ship with 3000 ppl, and only 150 not vaccinated? 

 

Do you think you're safer in a Walmart? You don't know anything about the person bumping into your shopping cart, the workers, and all the other shoppers.

 

If you want to be in a place where it is guaranteed you won't be around ppl  not sick, move to Mars.

 

 

[sailingships]

People who are vaccinated but still dont feel safe might feel more comfortable waiting until 2022 to cruise.

[surfergirl15]

44 minutes ago, TNcruising02 said:

People who are concerned should wait until next year to cruise.  There will be people in close contact on the cruises.  Since they are mostly vaccinated, it's a risk many are willing to take.  

I am vaccinated and I hope to cruise August 7th, however I was surprised seeing the crowd on the Mardi Gras.

[ontheweb]

3 hours ago, Fivehole said:

it's almost as though you're hoping for that to happen 😄 

No, just being realistic after seeing that picture.

[BrotherCraig]

28 minutes ago, undertoes10 said:

But it's NOT 100% vax.  It's 95% so there are people not vaccinated that will contribute to the spread of the virus.  Virus's need a host.  If there isn't any it will die out.  Simple.

We need 100% VAX cruises for those who want to cruise safely.

 

Not going to happen.  Why?  Because of children.  We should just focus on getting every able ADULT to get vaccinated.  That will be sufficient.  Vaccine testing for kids are not going well so it probably won't happen for a while so we have to keep that in mind.

[bstel]

21 hours ago, deweytrader said:

When we traveled on the adventure in June the virus was much more under control and we felt much more comfortable. now with the Delta variant and the new CDC guidance I would not travel right now with my unvaxxed children and am in the process of canceling our next cruise.  

this exactly.  my wife and I sailed on Adventure in June.  Both vaccinated and no kids, as we have young kids that cant be vaccinated and no way would we bring them.  We were just talking the other day and agreed that June seemed to be the sweet spot with COVID numbers going down and Delta variant not having taken over the US yet.  We both agreed that we would probably not cruise again now and are re-evaluating our upcoming January 2022 cruise.

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, surfergirl15 said:

Omg I hope the Breeze is not going to be like that on the 7th of August.

Looks like I am not the only one who found that picture alarming.

[bstel]

13 hours ago, SheSailsFL said:

I had hoped so and I booked Carnival for that reason but now I am starting to disagree.  Both have had multiple ships with infections.  In my opinion RC has handled it with transparency and has followed their established protocols based upon which people booked their cruises.  
 

I was on RCL Adventure Jun19 which had a few cases.  RCL was very open.  Captain came over loud speaker and informed everyone on board what was/had happened.

[BlerkOne]

21 minutes ago, BrotherCraig said:

 

Not going to happen.  Why?  Because of children.  We should just focus on getting every able ADULT to get vaccinated.  That will be sufficient.  Vaccine testing for kids are not going well so it probably won't happen for a while so we have to keep that in mind.

Kids will be able to be vaccinated before the end of the year, some in October, and the 95% bar should be raised higher. Kids are being tested on Carnival cruises.

 

Both kids and fully vaccinated adults are capable of spreading the virus. It is long overdue to stop with the half bleep efforts to stop it and go all in. All half bleep does is prolong the pandemic and kill more people.

[ScottsSweetie]

13 hours ago, SheSailsFL said:

The MG is a cluster waiting to happen. 

 

1 hour ago, surfergirl15 said:

Omg I hope the Breeze is not going to be like that on the 7th of August.

So, I'm genuinely curious - what, in your mind, does sail away look like?

[BrotherCraig]

38 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

Kids will be able to be vaccinated before the end of the year, some in October, and the 95% bar should be raised higher. Kids are being tested on Carnival cruises.

 

Both kids and fully vaccinated adults are capable of spreading the virus. It is long overdue to stop with the half bleep efforts to stop it and go all in. All half bleep does is prolong the pandemic and kill more people.

 

I disagree - respectfully disagree.    Most parents won't allow their kids get vaccinated with the current vaccines available - if they get emergency approval.  I am one of those parents.    I don't believe they will have approval this year since the tests from Pfizer are not going so well.  As long as the adults are vaccinated, it will be okay.  In a few weeks, Delta will be on the downslide in the South and things will be looking okay again.  My prediction.

[BrotherCraig]

I wish my wife and I were on the MG right now.  Love to be there.  We are vaccinated and healthy.  Ready to cruise.

[Brew12]

1 hour ago, undertoes10 said:

But it's NOT 100% vax.  It's 95% so there are people not vaccinated that will contribute to the spread of the virus.  Virus's need a host.  If there isn't any it will die out.  Simple.

We need 100% VAX cruises for those who want to cruise safely.

Even on a 100% vaccinated cruise you could expect around 20% of individuals to be able to get sick from Covid and a larger percentage to asymptomatic and able to spread it. 

 

If you are going to cruise, understanding this is part of the risk. 

[ScottsSweetie]

1 hour ago, undertoes10 said:

But it's NOT 100% vax.  It's 95% so there are people not vaccinated that will contribute to the spread of the virus.  Virus's need a host.  If there isn't any it will die out.  Simple.

We need 100% VAX cruises for those who want to cruise safely.

And as I've asked before, where will you cruise to? The islands that the ships visit have extremely poor vaccination rates (with a few exceptions). Once everyone steps off the ship, there goes your bubble. And the bubble really doesn't exist anyway, because many of those people flew to get on the ship and sat next to unvaccinated people and could be asymptomatic (or become symptomatic 48 hours after getting on the ship). Everyone should anticipate that there WILL be covid positives on EVERY ship.