For those with mixed vax.

[jonthomas]

We have a cruise coming up in Jan.

 

Because we have a mixed vax situation, insisted upon by our govt, we are in limbo.

 

Yesterday, Viking advised us to call all the embassies of all the ports we are visiting and ask for their policy.

 

This is just crazy. Policies can change at any given moment. 

 

We have made final payment but see no way to go forward. Air is available as of today.

 

Even when the booster is taken, the mixed vax stays on record. 

 

Anyone else in this situation?

[Heidi13]

I also have mixed jabs, which was my preference.

 

When travelling, I thoroughly research the requirements for each country we visit - passport, Visa, medicaltions, vaccinations, etc. Yes, the COVID requirements can change daily, so I also thoroughly check the insurance coverage and determine a latest cancel by date.

 

If we are not comfortable at that time, we can cancel with minimal, or no loss.

 

For the Hawaii cruise (4/12/21), at 2 weeks out we will cancel, if not comfortable with the situation or potential for further changes. 

[jonthomas]

Thanks Heidi....

[Cienfuegos]

That sounds to me like Viking is kicking the can down the road. Why don't THEY call the places where they plan to visit and get a definitive, written position?

 

Get one answer for the cruise, not 935 people calling 8 separate foreign governments and getting a gazillion answers.

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, Cienfuegos said:

That sounds to me like Viking is kicking the can down the road. Why don't THEY call the places where they plan to visit and get a definitive, written position?

 

Get one answer for the cruise, not 935 people calling 8 separate foreign governments and getting a gazillion answers.

 

Definitely a great idea, but unfortunately in these COVID times, some Governments are changing requirements almost weekly. Our Provincial Health Officer updates her Health Orders in response to the daily infection rates, as required. Notice period is often 24 - 48 hrs. Rather than full Provincial mandates, she now targets specific areas, where infections are increasing.

 

Unfortunately, our Provincial Government wouldn't give any long term definitive position and I will be surprised if you can find many Governments that would. They may advise on current requirements, with the proviso they are subject to change at short notice.

[johneb2]

Forgive the ignorance please, but what is a mixed vax?  Did you receive two different types of vaccine?  Carolyn & I have actually received 3 shots due to our medical situation.  It seems that puzzled Viking when we had to submit it on their Verifly app.  We are still waiting for our health survey for our river cruise departing in 5 days, and are wondering if there is a snafu with that.   JohnEB

[JeriGail]

1 hour ago, johneb2 said:

Forgive the ignorance please, but what is a mixed vax?  Did you receive two different types of vaccine?  Carolyn & I have actually received 3 shots due to our medical situation.  It seems that puzzled Viking when we had to submit it on their Verifly app.  We are still waiting for our health survey for our river cruise departing in 5 days, and are wondering if there is a snafu with that.   JohnEB

Yes - it's not uncommon in Europe to have a first dose of Astra Zeneca and then get a 2nd dose of Pfizer or Moderna although the CDC does not recommend it.

[bookbabe]

2 hours ago, JeriGail said:

Yes - it's not uncommon in Europe to have a first dose of Astra Zeneca and then get a 2nd dose of Pfizer or Moderna although the CDC does not recommend it.

And a goodly number of Canadians have had mixed doses, which our government and Health Canada *did* recommend pretty strongly.  That’s why so many are upset with the policy.  People get that the cruise lines are just following the CDC rules when dealing with cruises out of the US, but it’s still frustrating to have done what your government told you to do and then be penalized for it.

 

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, bookbabe said:

And a goodly number of Canadians have had mixed doses, which our government and Health Canada *did* recommend pretty strongly.  That’s why so many are upset with the policy.  People get that the cruise lines are just following the CDC rules when dealing with cruises out of the US, but it’s still frustrating to have done what your government told you to do and then be penalized for it.

 

 

Viking is accepting mixed vaccine doses, even for departures from US ports, as they are accepted by WHO. I have written confirmation.

[les37b]

8 hours ago, JeriGail said:

Yes - it's not uncommon in Europe to have a first dose of Astra Zeneca and then get a 2nd dose of Pfizer or Moderna although the CDC does not recommend it.

 

It's certainly uncommon in the UK to have a mixed vaccine with the exception of people in trials. Canada seems to be the country this is prevalent and was the governments decision to use that strategy at an early stage. Here in the UK jabs were co-ordinated so the second was the same as the first. I certainly know of no one who has mixed and the manager at my local centre in charge of vaccines knows of no one either and their instruction is to strictly ensure no mixtures take place.

 

I am aware that in a few EU countries some have chosen that route despite WHO warnings against it. Merkel is one person who had AZ and then Moderna. However this is a relatively late development rather than one taking place since the rollout began.

 

.

Edited September 15, 2021 by les37b

[bookbabe]

7 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Viking is accepting mixed vaccine doses, even for departures from US ports, as they are accepted by WHO. I have written confirmation.

That’s good news for Canadians.  Maybe I’ll mention that in one of the panicked threads over in the NCL forum.  NCL won’t accept mixed AZ/mNRA combinations for US sailings, and that’s messing up a lot of people’s travel plans.
 

DH and I have non-mixed, but that’s only because we snuck down to FL for dose two…DH insisted, since he was worried about the mix and how it would be treated.  (For travel and stuff, not for health)  I hate it when I have to tell him he was right…

[jonthomas]

Yesterdays call with Viking gave us the information that they cant give us anything in writing because it is up to the individual countries we are visiting not up to them. Maybe they can accept it if you are staying on the ship but not if you are getting off in any ports.

 

Then there is our insurance. It will not cover if any country refuses to accept. A fine kettle of fish. 

[Heidi13]

6 hours ago, les37b said:

 

I am aware that in a few EU countries some have chosen that route despite WHO warnings against it. Merkel is one person who had AZ and then Moderna. However this is a relatively late development rather than one taking place since the rollout began.

 

.

 

About mid July, the WHO Chief Scientist warned against mixed doses, but within hours, she had to backtrack her statement.

 

On 15th June, the WHO's panel of experts issued a document stating they only recommend 2 doses of the same vaccine within the OEM prescribed time timits. Other than the US, few countries have managed to maintain the time between shots. Therefore, even with 2 jabs of the same vaccine you have not met WHO recommendations, if the interval was extended.

 

However, they also discuss mixed vaccines, specifically when AZ is given first before an mRNA vaccine. With this combination, they do not recommend that an additional dose is required. They also recognise the ongoing trials and the similar and even improved protection from mixed doses in the early results. They state mixed doses are acceptable, where the same product is not available.

 

WHO may not yet recommend mixed doses, but they do accept them and since Viking follows WHO guidelines, they are accepting mixed AZ/mRNA vaccinations onboard.

[Heidi13]

3 minutes ago, jonthomas said:

Yesterdays call with Viking gave us the information that they cant give us anything in writing because it is up to the individual countries we are visiting not up to them. Maybe they can accept it if you are staying on the ship but not if you are getting off in any ports.

 

Then there is our insurance. It will not cover if any country refuses to accept. A fine kettle of fish. 

 

When the ship arrives in port, you are already in the country's territorial waters. When the local authorities come aboard, the ship requests "Free Pratique", which essentially means the ship is healthy and everyone meets the local health requirements.

 

In many ports, if one crew member or pax doesn't meet local requirements, the ship can be quarantined and not cleared. Therefore, nobody gets ashore.

 

However, I note that some ports will permit the ship to ensure that pax/crew in non-compliance are prohibited from going ashore. In these constantly changing times I would not like to hazard a guess how ports will respond on any given day.

[jonthomas]

this is what is posted on the https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/cruise

 

as long as this advisory exists, our insurance will NOT cover us...

 

COVID-19 Cruise ship travel

Avoid all travel on cruise ships until further notice

If an outbreak of COVID-19 were to occur on a cruise ship while you are outside of Canada:

• you could be subject to quarantine procedures onboard ship or in a foreign country
• the range of consular services available to those on cruise ships may be significantly restricted by local authorities, especially in situations of quarantine
• it is unlikely that there would be a government-organized repatriation flight to return to Canada

 

 

 

 

ReplyForward

[Wendy The Wanderer]

11 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Viking is accepting mixed vaccine doses, even for departures from US ports, as they are accepted by WHO. I have written confirmation.

Andy, do you have a link to this information?  It's great news, although there are still big rocks to push up hills.  Considering that our current Prime Minister, our Premier and Health Minister here in Ontario all have mixed vaxes, you'd think they'd help to sort this out for travellers.  And good for Viking, btw.