Royal opts In

[PTC DAWG]

28 minutes ago, Keksie said:

All I know is that I will wait until I can be sure that the mask protocol has really gone away before we think about a cruise.  The testing will need to go away also.  

The home proctored test are very easy…a cave man could do it. 
 

agree, no test would be better..but don’t let that test stop you..

[rj59]

Well done, Royal. I was going to cancel a March sailing on Adventure because of having to wear a mask and the irritation of blocked off tables and seats, but now I think I'll be going. I don't care if kids are vaxxed or not, since I'm boosted and as protected as can be, so don't care--but I'll bring a home test along in case I have any symptoms. I just want to breathe freely, to not be hassled or stressed, to see the faces of my fellow passengers, and to not live in irrational fear. 

[BND]

14 minutes ago, molly361 said:

So I guess you will still have to wear those bracelets??  

I doubt it.  If there are no vaxxed vs unvaxxed areas besides AO, what would be the point?

 

We have only worn masks the last 2+ years when they were required and are vaxxed and boosted and we did not get sick.  I "may" have had omicron a couple of weeks ago, for all of two days of feeling off and had a cough.  I've said it before, but everyone I know that has had Covid were those that were wearing masks religiously.   

 

Also, a few need to learn there is a difference between causation and correlation.   

Edited February 19, 2022 by BND

[PTC DAWG]

19 minutes ago, MadamGorgeous said:

Covid, CDC, or not, we’ll be wearing masks on airplanes and airports, in lines, congested public areas of ships, terminals, malls - anywhere there are a lot of people.  Forever. We’ve all been sick with colds, flu, stomach viruses enough on vacations over the years that we’re ready to continue the prevention of illness for the long haul.. 

 

Two years for my family who all work with the public without as much as a minor cold indicates to me they kept us from getting sick.  Happy for those who don’t enjoy them, though. 

When everybody is happy, that’s a good thing. 

[Jimbo]

6 minutes ago, rj59 said:

Well done, Royal. I was going to cancel a March sailing on Adventure because of having to wear a mask and the irritation of blocked off tables and seats, but now I think I'll be going. I don't care if kids are vaxxed or not, since I'm boosted and as protected as can be, so don't care--but I'll bring a home test along in case I have any symptoms. I just want to breathe freely, to not be hassled or stressed, to see the faces of my fellow passengers, and to not live in irrational fear. 

If you self test in your cabin and are positive will you let the ship(Royal's Personnel) know about it? will you quarantine in your cabin for 3 to 5 days?

Edited February 19, 2022 by Jimbo

[megs193]

22 minutes ago, MadamGorgeous said:

Covid, CDC, or not, we’ll be wearing masks on airplanes and airports, in lines, congested public areas of ships, terminals, malls - anywhere there are a lot of people.  Forever. We’ve all been sick with colds, flu, stomach viruses enough on vacations over the years that we’re ready to continue the prevention of illness for the long haul.. 

 

Two years for my family who all work with the public without as much as a minor cold indicates to me they kept us from getting sick.  Happy for those who don’t enjoy them, though. 

This is exactly how I feel. I have two grade school kids which usually means multiple colds, a stomach bug and strep throat each year. None of us have been sick for almost 2 full years now.  We will be wearing them on airplanes and crowded places in the future and hopefully save a few trips that would have been ruined by illness. 

[orville99]

20 minutes ago, Cel_cruise said:

We would be okay with testing negative or a positive recovered 90 day requirement.

Currently, RCL will not accept a certificate of recovery as proof of immunity, so (at least for now) you would still have to be both fully vaccinated and test negative in order to board.

[exm]

40 minutes ago, Keksie said:

All I know is that I will wait until I can be sure that the mask protocol has really gone away before we think about a cruise.  The testing will need to go away also.  

The problem with testing is that Royal needs to follow the guidelines if other countries. The Bahamas is a large influencer here because of CocoCay. If you look at The Bahamas entry testing requirements you will see that Royal matches those 1:1. The Bahamas government indicated that they will adjust their protocols, although slowly. It’s just the reality of cruising unfortunately.

[Keksie]

18 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:

The home proctored test are very easy…a cave man could do it. 
 

agree, no test would be better..but don’t let that test stop you..

There is still the worry about something going wrong.  A positive result or a false positive.  I will just continue to vacation where the protocols are not needed.

[cruiselvr04]

I dread the testing which we have to do again this week.  Not the procedure but the anxiety it causes.

 

We will wear our masks on our Feb 26 th cruise but it will be great to have the option not too.  DH has had it recently so he’s good but I never turned positive and the last thing I want on the ship is quarantine.  Plus I have to return to work.  But I won’t give you any looks when you crowd on the elevators with us with no masks. 

[ONECRUISER]

12 minutes ago, Keksie said:

There is still the worry about something going wrong.  A positive result or a false positive.  I will just continue to vacation where the protocols are not needed.

Agree, do scheduled local and 2 backup plans

[Jimbo]

3 minutes ago, cruiselvr04 said:

I dread the testing which we have to do again this week.  Not the procedure but the anxiety it causes.

 

We will wear our masks on our Feb 26 th cruise but it will be great to have the option not too.  DH has had it recently so he’s good but I never turned positive and the last thing I want on the ship is quarantine.  Plus I have to return to work.  But I won’t give you any looks when you crowd on the elevators with us with no masks. 

Why bother with a cruise then, why not look for a great land vacation? Looks like alot of things are stressing you out?

[cruiselvr04]

Jimbo.  Cruising is a still a great vacation and it’s worth it all when you get on board. 

[ONECRUISER]

12 minutes ago, cruiselvr04 said:

I dread the testing which we have to do again this week.  Not the procedure but the anxiety it causes.

 

We will wear our masks on our Feb 26 th cruise but it will be great to have the option not too.  DH has had it recently so he’s good but I never turned positive and the last thing I want on the ship is quarantine.  Plus I have to return to work.  But I won’t give you any looks when you crowd on the elevators with us with no masks. 

Yeah my thing is on Port days I walk whole Ship top to bottom and wouldnt want wear Mask. Then Elevators, haven't been on Royal one in 20yrs. Fortunate be able to physically, after 4weeks on Ship feel like in better shape then when Boarded and even though eat Ton actually lost weight. Looking forward no Mask onboard this April-May

Edited February 19, 2022 by ONECRUISER

[PTC DAWG]

43 minutes ago, BND said:

That's all well and good, but your immune system needs a boost every once in a while to keep you healthy.  If people have no immunity to things circulating around, eventually they will get something they can't fight off.   It's like how kids who play in the dirt have stronger immune systems than kids who don't.  Their immune system gets a little workout which keeps it in shape.  It's actually not good for you to never ever get sick or be exposed.

^^^^^^gets it..the play in the dirt comment is spot on.  I have been hearing that my entire life. 

[Jasukkie]

So this takes us back to the way things were in the beginning, I think. If I'm remembering correctly, we didn't have to mask at all on Adventure last June. I felt comfortable on that cruise but it was so low capacity. 

 

Does anyone know if this means ships can expand to full capacity? I'm not ready for that.

[bridedoll1026]

15 hours ago, BND said:

 Ninety-five percent of guests must be fully vaccinated as well -- this excludes children under five years who are not eligible for the vaccine. The updated protocols will include face masks being optional for all fully vaccinated guests and expected for unvaccinated children.

 

 

It seems like the question was answered regarding "eligible" to receive the vaccine. 5-11 year olds are "eligible" to receive the vaccine

[Jzx1103]

So regarding kids having to wear masks in Adventure Ocean, my kids actually don't mind having to wear a mask. But was extremely disappointed on our last cruise that they only let them spent 8 hours in AO for the entire cruise. I'm hoping they took away that limitation or is that still in place? Does anyone know?

[Ashland]

3 hours ago, orville99 said:

Just received this from RCL for our 2/27 cruise:

 

Updated protocols for sailings departing the U.S. and Puerto Rico on or after February 25, 2022

 

Royal Caribbean International will participate in the U.S. CDC's voluntary COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships Operating in U.S. waters, beginning with sailings departing on or after February 25th, 2022 from the U.S. (including Puerto Rico). We will be operating under the Highly Vaccinated category defined by the CDC.

 

To be considered Highly Vaccinated, requirements include sailing with 95% of crew members fully vaccinated, which we already meet with 100% of our crew. And, 95% of guests eligible for the vaccine must be fully vaccinated as well.

 

The updated protocols will include face masks being optional for all fully vaccinated guests and expected for unvaccinated children. All kids will be required to wear face masks during Adventure Ocean youth program activities.

 

We are thoughtfully working through the details and other changes to our health and safety measures to share with our guests and travel advisors before February 25, 2022. 

As a reminder, our health and safety protocols are subject to change.

RCI please update the testing time frame for sailing out of San Juan !!!!

[Ourusualbeach]

15 minutes ago, Ashland said:

RCI please update the testing time frame for sailing out of San Juan !!!!

Testing is dictated by the CDC.  Not something that Royal can arbitrarily change

[BND]

17 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Testing is dictated by the CDC.  Not something that Royal can arbitrarily change

Except according to another post, Carnival is changing theirs to three days.

[Ourusualbeach]

4 minutes ago, BND said:

Except according to another post, Carnival is changing theirs to three days.

Perhaps the CDC has changed the testing requirements.  All I stated was that it is dictated by the CDC

 

This is what the CDC states

 

Testing

• If you are fully vaccinated ^[3] for COVID-19 or up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines, you must get tested with a viral test no more than 2 days before boarding a cruise ship ^[4].
• If you are not fully vaccinated for COVID-19, you must get tested with a viral test no more than 3 days before boarding a cruise ship. You will be tested again by the cruise ship personnel on embarkation day before boarding. One of your two tests must be a nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) such as RT-PCR.

 

 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/cruise-travel-during-covid19.html

Edited February 19, 2022 by Ourusualbeach

[not-enough-cruising]

1 hour ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Testing is dictated by the CDC.  Not something that Royal can arbitrarily change

Carnival has announced a change their testing protocol to 3 days for vaccinated and boosted 

[Biker19]

Updated protocols for sailings departing the U.S. and Puerto Rico on or after February 25, 2022

Royal Caribbean International will participate in the U.S. CDC's voluntary COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships Operating in U.S. waters, beginning with sailings departing on or after February 25th, 2022 from the U.S. (including Puerto Rico). We will be operating under the Highly Vaccinated category defined by the CDC.

 

To be considered Highly Vaccinated, requirements include sailing with 95% of crew members fully vaccinated, which we already meet with 100% of our crew. And, 95% of guests eligible for the vaccine must be fully vaccinated as well - this excludes children under five years who are not eligible for the vaccine.

 

This update does not change our current vaccination requirements. We continue to require all guests 12 years of age and older to be fully vaccinated in order to sail. If eligible, we recommend getting a booster when possible. For children ages 2 – 11, vaccines are not required, but we do recommend vaccination for children 5 – 11 years of age since this age group is now eligible. Unvaccinated children between 2 – 11 years of age must bring a negative PCR test result and test negative on boarding day. Guests under 2 years of age have no test or mask requirements.

 

The updated protocols will include face masks being optional for all fully vaccinated guests and expected for unvaccinated children. All kids will be required to wear face masks during Adventure Ocean youth program activities. 
 

We are thoughtfully working through the details and other changes to our health and safety measures to share with our guests and travel advisors before February 25, 2022. 

Edited February 19, 2022 by Biker19

[travelhound]

On 2/18/2022 at 7:07 PM, BND said:

Michael Bayley just posted on his FB page about this.  Masks are optional for fully vaccinated.

 

Here's what he posted:

 

As many may know the CDC conditional sail order expired mid January and we continued to operate voluntarily under the program. Recently the CDC issued the next phase of guidelines consisting of three categories each built on the same foundation of protecting health and each with specific guidelines based on vaccination and booster status. All cruise lines had until today to opt in or out of the program.

Today Royal Caribbean confirmed we will participate in the CDC’s voluntary Program. Specifically, we will operate under the program’s Highly Vaccinated category beginning with sailings departing from the U.S. as of Friday, Feb. 25.

Requirements include sailing with 95% of crew members fully vaccinated, which Royal Caribbean already exceeds with 100% of its crew fully vaccinated and boosted when eligible. Ninety-five percent of guests must be fully vaccinated as well -- this excludes children under five years who are not eligible for the vaccine. The updated protocols will include face masks being optional for all fully vaccinated guests and expected for unvaccinated children. All kids will be required to wear face masks during Adventure Ocean youth program activities.

We are thoughtfully working through the details regarding other changes to our health and safety protocols which we will share with our guests and travel advisors before Feb. 25.

👍