Mandatory face masks now?

[cruiseej]

2 minutes ago, cruisr said:

What type of masks are required?

 

They haven't chosen to go that deeply into a mask requirement. They provide high-quality cloth masks when you board, and you can use your own. I believe that when the first Covid outbreak occurred on the Ovation, they issued KN95 masks to everyone and required them for a short period of time. But that was a more substantial outbreak; I would guess that they have different protocols based on the number of people who test positive -- tighter constraints if it's a larger number of people than just one or two. 

 

5 minutes ago, cruisr said:

I am hoping Seabourn will soon only allow guests that have had the booster onboard.

 

I haven't yet seen any countries, airlines, cruise lines, theaters, governments or businesses move to the requirement of a booster, or requiring the latest shot is no more than 'x' months old. It seems inevitable at some point, but I wouldn't expect to see Seabourn be the one to do this first. Also, keep in mind that the US just authorized boosters for everyone yesterday, so it has to take some time before boosters can filter into public gathering requirements. 

[sfvoyage]

27 minutes ago, cruisr said:

What type of masks are required?  I ask because during my travels in Europe this summer I found that cloth masks were not accepted.  I was actually asked to leave a store as I had the blue surgical mask on and these were deemed unacceptable. I bought a bunch of KN95 masks.  Cloth masks are not as protective as KN95.  So, if Seabourn wants masks, which ones do they want?

 

Good question, and from what I saw on the Ovation in the past 33 days, the answer is, any (or none) will do for the guests.  When we first boarded in Rome, we were given the Seabourn-branded cloth mask.  A couple of weeks into the cruise, corporate rules tightened, and those cloth masks disappeared.  All crew were wearing N95 (or KN95?) masks.  Guests wore whatever they wished.  We stuck to our own KN95 or either of the 2 kinds of Seabourn masks worn by their staff.  We did not use regular surgical masks and certainly not cloth masks.

 

BTW, there are 2 kinds of masks worn by their staff.  Both are white.  One is labeled "surgical N95", while the other does not show N95 or KN95 but is labeled "FFP2 NR  YX011" which may just be a part number.

Edited November 20, 2021 by sfvoyage

[sfvoyage]

2 minutes ago, sfvoyage said:

 

duplicate post, deleted

Edited November 20, 2021 by sfvoyage

[mcondition]

Austria announced (further to 3 weeks lockdown) that from February vaccination will be mandatory to all population. Greek PM confirmed will revoke green pass to those over 60 after 7 months of second shot. Most European countries set similar rules between 6-10 months from 2nd shot, but unfortunately nothing unified again, each one with its own rules, but there are quite similar. 

 

@sfvoyage thanks for the informative post. Only regarding seated customers in restaurants, most EU countries allow only vaccinated customers inside restaurants. So only vaccinated will have their masks removed and provided vaccinated and not moving around without masks they are considered risk to infect other customers apart from their own table.

[markham]

Just to be clear, I don’t have an “opinion” on face masks. But I will comply with Seabourn’s rules 100% because it’s their ship, I have bought into the product, and I seek to protect others and myself.

That’s all there is to it.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RetiredandTravel]

28 minutes ago, markham said:

But I will comply with Seabourn’s rules 100% because it’s their ship

 

 

 

Agreed.  If Seabourn has a mask mandate it should be adhered to and strictly enforced.  It does put some Seabourn employees in a tough position considering the people they have to police evaluate their performance.   

 

[sfvoyage]

1 hour ago, RetiredandTravel said:

It does put some Seabourn employees in a tough position considering the people they have to police evaluate their performance.   

 

True, but if Silversea crew can promptly and consistently enforce their mask protocol, so can Seabourn.  It's a matter of corporate management training and empowering all their staff to enforce their policy.  Otherwise, there may as well be no policy. 

Edited November 20, 2021 by sfvoyage

[Sunviking]

I am currently on the Ovation and have been since Lisbon.  As of today masks are required when walking about the ship indoors but in no outdoor venues.  Inside as stated masks are not required when eating, drinking or being seated.  Trivia has been held on all the sea days since I boarded in Lisbon  with teams of no more than six. Masks are not worn while playing by most people because they are eating and drinking.  This cruise hosted tables are being allowed. My observation is that most people are abiding by the rules, although some people don't seem to understand the proper way to wear a mask.  Seabourn provides cloth masks with a Seabourn logo, but you see all kinds of masks on the passengers.

Today everyone had to get a rapid test.  Those of us left from the transatlantic cruise had one the day before we arrived in Miami.

We received a paper today showing the current shore excursion options for our port calls on this cruise. They are as follows:

                      San Juan       Seabourn shore excursions              Independent tours & exploration

                      Marigot          Seabourn shore excursions              Independent tours & exploration

                      Cabrits, Dominica       Seabourn shore excursions

                       St.Johns, Antigua    Seabourn shore excursions   Independent tours & exploration

                       Carambola Beach      Seabourn shore excursions    Port authorized excursions

                       Great Harbor              Seabourn shore excursions       Independent tours  excursions

 

[ernieb]

 

This discussion is very concerning to me. My DW and I are booked on a 21 day Panama Canal cruise leaving Miami on 4/28/22. We reserved the cruise almost a year ago and have paid in full for the discount. We will however cancel if we are required to wear masks. That is not the atmosphere we were expecting when we booked. Very disappointed.

[SLSD]

11 hours ago, ernieb said:

 

This discussion is very concerning to me. My DW and I are booked on a 21 day Panama Canal cruise leaving Miami on 4/28/22. We reserved the cruise almost a year ago and have paid in full for the discount. We will however cancel if we are required to wear masks. That is not the atmosphere we were expecting when we booked. Very disappointed.

Unfortunately, we are all subject to the whims of the virus.  Your disappointment should be aimed squarely at the virus and the apparent inability of the world at large to contain it.  Seabourn is doing what it can to keep their own ships free of the virus as widespread infections would be a disaster.  It is unclear from your post if you did not understand that protocols were subject to change based on current conditions.  Masks have been required on SB ships since early October.  Evidently, you are just now learning this?

[RetiredandTravel]

12 hours ago, ernieb said:

 

This discussion is very concerning to me. My DW and I are booked on a 21 day Panama Canal cruise leaving Miami on 4/28/22. We reserved the cruise almost a year ago and have paid in full for the discount. We will however cancel if we are required to wear masks. That is not the atmosphere we were expecting when we booked. Very disappointed.

 

 

Several other contributors to this thread share your sentiments.  In the current environment I would think masks will be a part of many vacations for a while.  When I read the comments (like the one right above yours) of actual cruisers it doesn't seem to me that the mask requirements are that restrictive.   It appears that masks are necessary getting from the room to a common area (dinner), excursions are probably when one would wear the mask the most.  Its my impression mask aren't necessary outdoors at the pool or pool grill which is important on your cruise.   No one has a crystal ball but given the recent uptick in Delta cases in the North/Midwest USA and Europe its reasonable to think masks could still be part of the equation next Spring.   If you are adamantly opposed to masks in any form you may have to cancel.

 

 

[cruiseej]

You'd spend much more time wearing a mask getting to and from a cruise than you would on a cruise. Masks are required in most airports and on all plane flights and most public transportation. (If you're driving to and from Miami, that cuts out most of that public transportation.)

 

On the ship, you'd wear a mask for a few minutes which traveling between your room and a bar, the pool deck, or a restaurant, but not once you're in those locations.

 

But if you feel that's too much mask wearing for you, then you're probably right to cancel the cruise before your penalty deadline. There is simply no way to predict the course of the virus five months from now; things might be better or they might be worse, in the US and in other countries.

 

If you feel you can roll with the ongoing changes in rules and requirements in various countries, you'll have a fabulous time; if you feel wearing a mask at limited times on the ship, or being required to take a ship excursion in some ports, would ruin the cruise experience for you, then this just isn't the right time for you to take a cruise.

[markham]

I figure that if you wear a mask at your local supermarket, drugstore and/or bank you will be all set for Seabourn. If you don’t and if masking feels like a burden to you, consider the 2023 itineraries.

 

Happy and healthy cruising!

[ernieb]

I understand that what is required is not extremely excessive. However, it diminishes what would otherwise be an enjoyable experience.

I have compared Seabourn’s mandate against Regent’s and Seabourn’s is much more onerous. Seabourn’s is general, for all voyages fleetwide. Regent’s is dependent upon the authority governing the territory in which they are sailing. That appears more reasonable.

[cruiseej]

@ernieb Well, Seabourn tried that... and then had an outbreak on one of its two ships that was sailing, so they decided to tighten measures to try to prevent similar occurrences. No mitigation strategy will be 100% successful 100% of the time, but they weigh a measure to increase safety of their guests and crew versus how much of an inconvenience people find wearing a mask periodically. (Regent, by the way, states that "face coverings are highly recommended" onboard.)

 

As with various other policies, inclusions and exclusions which vary between the luxury cruise lines, you choose to cruise on the cruise line switch best meets your expectations and needs. You feel a Seabourn cruise with masks required in indoor public spaces would make a cruise which would "otherwise be enjoyable" into one which is not, so it's just not the right time for you to travel on Seabourn. Either choose a Regent cruise, or wait a bit to see how things evolve with Covid over the next year.

[ernieb]

Cruiseej please don’t misquote me. I did not say the policy would make a cruise that was otherwise enjoyable become one that was not enjoyable. What I said was that it would diminish the enjoyability of the cruise. I fully expect the cruise to still be enjoyable. That is one reason after much consideration we have decided to not cancel this cruise. I do however think that Seabourn should take the concerns of all their passengers into account when making these decisions. Hopefully they will by the time for our departure arrives.

[markham]

"concerns of all their passengers..." ?

 

Safety for all  >  "concerns"

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

[cruisr]

Try Crystal as masks are not mandatory.  It was womderful.

[Sunprince]

We cancelled a 24 day Regent Explorer cruise because we were not confident in the cruise lines’ protocols (among other concerns such as the risk of being offloaded in a “level 4” port after testing positive or close contact of one).  By not being comfortable, I mean that Regent has chosen to use the minimum regulatory standard. For example, on the recent Explorer transatlantic cruise, as soon as the ship left European waters (which required onboard masking and other safety measures), masking suddenly became “optional”.  Why, because the ship was now in international waters.  The Covid risk did not suddenly diminish, after all guests had just been on group excursions or exploring ports on their own which could have resulted in a positive case.  Also, they did no proactive onboard testing during the cruise duration, other than the embarkation test or disembarkation test .  
 

Some were very happy with these relaxed protocols, others probably passed on this cruise.  Seabourn has chosen to operate at a higher standard.  One that many might say is more prudent…but of course there are so many people that want to get back to normal and want a relaxed experience. The choice is yours. 
 

[cruiseej]

@ernieb I didn't intend to put words in your mouth. You said masks would "diminish what would otherwise be an enjoyable experience." I don't know how else to interpret "what would otherwise be enjoyable" than meaning that under these conditions it is not enjoyable. If your intention was to say the enjoyability would be somewhat reduced, say from 100% to 85%, I understand. 🙂

[mcondition]

For optimum protection mask should be worn properly from all, i.e. covering chin, mouth and nose. If a big number of passengers wear masks repeatedly under the nose, the protection would be less than optimum and could also be unfair to the those wearing masks properly. 

So my opinion is that mandatory face mask rule also needs and proper mask wearing gentle enforcement, in order to be effective.

[travel4b]

We were on Ovation’s transatlantic crossing and can second the comments of others above who experienced the cruise first hand.  While I totally support the use of masks for prevention and Seabourn’s policy, I have to admit that strictly from a scientific standpoint, wearing a mask while walking about indoors but then not wearing it while sitting at a bar for an extended period did feel a bit like “mask theatre”.  On the other hand, I felt the vaccination policy, regular testing and other behind the scenes changes such as ventilation more than did the job in providing peace of mind and a good level of safety.  Do I wish we didn’t have to wear a mask?  Of course.  Will it stop me from sailing again?  Absolutely not; we can’t wait to be back on board in a few months - masked or not.  Finally, I will admit that I feel that masks did diminish the amount of social interaction among guests and crew.  It is simply harder to turn strangers (whether fellow passengers or crew) into friends on a cruise when masked.  Again, it’s not nearly enough to cause me to cancel a cruise, but it did feel harder to meet people on this cruise.  

[Sunviking]

As I mentioned somewhere earlier in this thread, I have been on the Ovation since Lisbon.  To give some context, at home I wear a mask only when I absolutely must (which is not often). I have not found the current requirements onboard onerous at all. While walking inside we wear masks, but as soon as one enters a venue (bar, restaurant etc.) and sits, the masks come off.  I have seen the staff wipe down tables and chairs with a disinfectant when someone leaves a table (as in the Observation Bar). Perhaps because I will talk to anyone I have  made lots of new friends in the last 20 days despite the masks.  It would be nice if the staff didn't have to wear them but I can't honestly say that the masking hasn't detracted from my cruise.  In fact, I have booked two more while onboard.

[cece50]

We hate masks, as most people do.  We understand why Seabourn & Silversea have the protocol.  It must be done, given the level of concern of most people.  That being said, the mask debate is sometimes so interesting as people bring up very salient points.  We too marvel at the virus’ ability to not infect a person sitting at a bar or a table for hours while onboard a cruise ship; but just that quick second a person passes another on the way to the table or in a hallway is deemed dangerous.  If we felt it made sense or was worth the inconvenience, we would comply & we would scratch our heads.  

However, Masks are not a part of our everyday life, but for limited mandates….airlines, doctors offices & of course, the nail salon.  We have attended numerous major US college football games for 3 months with well over 100,000 screaming people. All our college grandkids have had the shots as have all  our family and friends, with just a few few outliers.  

We are enjoying our land life with trips coast to coast since the beginning of Covid.  We go to restaurants where our servers sport big visible smiles.  We are active outdoor people. We see everyone and go everywhere, no masks, no mandates.  

We chose not to cruise, not out of fear, but because it is way too inconvenient for the amount of money spent.  We hope our plans for 2022  land trips to Europe come to fruition, as it depends on mandates of shots (as they are not vaccines )for some of our grandkids who are very young.  

Maybe a return to cruising in 2023.  The cruise industry does owe a debt of gratitude to all those who choose to put up with the inconveniences and spent big money and, by most accounts still enjoy the  cruise experience.  Hat off to you all!

[SLSD]

6 hours ago, cece50 said:

We hate masks, as most people do.  We understand why Seabourn & Silversea have the protocol.  It must be done, given the level of concern of most people.  That being said, the mask debate is sometimes so interesting as people bring up very salient points.  We too marvel at the virus’ ability to not infect a person sitting at a bar or a table for hours while onboard a cruise ship; but just that quick second a person passes another on the way to the table or in a hallway is deemed dangerous.  If we felt it made sense or was worth the inconvenience, we would comply & we would scratch our heads.  

However, Masks are not a part of our everyday life, but for limited mandates….airlines, doctors offices & of course, the nail salon.  We have attended numerous major US college football games for 3 months with well over 100,000 screaming people. All our college grandkids have had the shots as have all  our family and friends, with just a few few outliers.  

We are enjoying our land life with trips coast to coast since the beginning of Covid.  We go to restaurants where our servers sport big visible smiles.  We are active outdoor people. We see everyone and go everywhere, no masks, no mandates.  

We chose not to cruise, not out of fear, but because it is way too inconvenient for the amount of money spent.  We hope our plans for 2022  land trips to Europe come to fruition, as it depends on mandates of shots (as they are not vaccines )for some of our grandkids who are very young.  

Maybe a return to cruising in 2023.  The cruise industry does owe a debt of gratitude to all those who choose to put up with the inconveniences and spent big money and, by most accounts still enjoy the  cruise experience.  Hat off to you all!

Masks ARE part of our daily lives.  We wear them in all public places such as the grocery store and other shops along with the places you mention.  It's a choice we make along with many others.  No judgement here--just following the advice of my own physician.   And yes, it does seem futile to wear a mask down a hallway, then take it off sitting at a bar.  But--of course--you cannot drink or eat with a mask on.  We hope to cruise in 2023.  Right now, we are watching with some frustration and sadness the news of the latest variant.  Also the news that EU countries plan to require vaccinations no older than 9 months for entry into their countries.  

Edited November 27, 2021 by SLSD