US cruisers stranded in Europe

[cangelmd]

38 minutes ago, emmas gran said:

And I just got the call that I am still testing positive. 
I am devastated. 

 

I am sorry you are still positive we were positive for 13 days (me) and 14 days my husband and as I have posted we are vaccinated and boostered. Thank you for posting about your horrible experience

Be sure you are getting an antigen (Ag) test, a PCR is not the way to test for cure. A person with a negative Ag test after a positive test, who is also symptom free is safe to fly and interact with others. You should mask around others for about five days after the negative test, to be double sure you are no longer contagious.

[suzyluvs2cruise]

On 5/13/2022 at 5:10 PM, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Heard over 70 have tested positive on the Apex TA 

it will interesting to hear how many will test positive after they get their test to fly to the US 

There are at least 50 of us on deck 6 in quarantine on APEX following TA cruise. 

I would really like to know how testing in cruise terminal went as DH is negative and will have to test when we debark on May 26.....even though he's considered positive since he chose to quarantine with me.  I'll get a Certificate of Recovery. 

Edited May 15, 2022 by suzyluvs2cruise

[suzyluvs2cruise]

12 hours ago, carolinagal said:

Six out of the eight people tested positive in my sister's group on the Apex, April 30 TA cruise. They are now stuck in Amsterdam hotels for 10 days before they can fly home.

Sorry to hear this. There are at least 50 of us on deck 6 in quarantine on APEX who tested positive on the TA cruise. Did your sister and her group test onboard or in the cruise terminal? I hope they all have mild cases. 

[emmas gran]

2 hours ago, cangelmd said:

Be sure you are getting an antigen (Ag) test, a PCR is not the way to test for cure. A person with a negative Ag test after a positive test, who is also symptom free is safe to fly and interact with others. You should mask around others for about five days after the negative test, to be double sure you are no longer contagious.

We were testing with LFT's which I believe is your Antigen test

[carolinagal]

1 hour ago, suzyluvs2cruise said:

Sorry to hear this. There are at least 50 of us on deck 6 in quarantine on APEX who tested positive on the TA cruise. Did your sister and her group test onboard or in the cruise terminal? I hope they all have mild cases. 

my sister was tested onboard day before they docked in Netherlands. Her travel companions were already in quarantine on the ship. They were all vaxed and tested negative before they boarded in florida.

[Bo1953]

8 hours ago, carolinagal said:

After testing positive for Covid on last day of TA Apex cruise, my sister and her friends, who also tested positive, are stuck in an Amsterdam hotel for 10 days. Did they disinfect the ship before it left Fort Lauderdale, when there were covid cases among the crew before the TA? I seriously doubt it.

While I Am sure the ship was disinfected, to some degree, before your sister and friend boarded, My question would be what precautions did they, your sister and friend, take while aboard? Mask, social distance, etc.???

 

I think this is critical information to include in your post, too.

 

If your sister and friend are not part of CC, it sounds like someone did not tell them of the number of infections and quarantines and protocols posted here. I think this is a massive fail on someones part.

 

Sorry about their quarantine and I trust their travel insurance will pick up the tab... AND they will return home quickly and safely.

 

Yes, let us blame the crew and X for the rampant spread of C-19 aboard ANY ship on ANY line... very convenient to pass blame. Whom do you think most of the crew contracted it from since, as I understand it, cannot get off the ship to interact with land based C-19 carriers? LOL

 

In health and bon voyage

[jmfdr]

On 5/12/2022 at 7:13 AM, Jim_Iain said:

 

All good advise Bo.  

 

Curious if you could either send me privately or on this thread what type of insurance you have.   There are so many options out there and so many that have covid limitations. 

 

It would also be good for others to understand the changing policies of Celebrity and how the Certificate of Recovery (COR) can help minimize the impact or extended Positive Results. 

 

Out of an abundance of caution as we do not fly home for another 5 days (pre-planned) I applied and received a COR yesterday.  

Can you provide more information about a COR?  Thanks, Jan

[carolinagal]

11 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

While I Am sure the ship was disinfected, to some degree, before your sister and friend boarded, My question would be what precautions did they, your sister and friend, take while aboard? Mask, social distance, etc.???

 

I think this is critical information to include in your post, too.

 

If your sister and friend are not part of CC, it sounds like someone did not tell them of the number of infections and quarantines and protocols posted here. I think this is a massive fail on someones part.

 

Sorry about their quarantine and I trust their travel insurance will pick up the tab... AND they will return home quickly and safely.

 

Yes, let us blame the crew and X for the rampant spread of C-19 aboard ANY ship on ANY line... very convenient to pass blame. Whom do you think most of the crew contracted it from since, as I understand it, cannot get off the ship to interact with land based C-19 carriers? LOL

 

In health and bon voyage

I have no idea if she was wearing a mask onboard at all times. I seriously doubt it. How does one define normal interaction and social distancing on a cruise? Most people are not looking on CC, but I was curious to know what had happened on the cruise that preceded the TA cruise.

 

[Bo1953]

4 hours ago, bananavan said:

EXACTLY, but how about the cruise lines ignore those facts? 
I am becoming more and more angry. 
BUT the thing I want to say on this thread is this:
How about everyone of you who wants to hijack the thread by debating the merits of the  Covid reaction, take your opinions elsewhere. 
There are many fellow cruisers trying desperately to get home to the USA. 
How about we focus our attention back on that 
Those of us trying to return were all on Transatlantic that left the USA in the Month of April. 
And I just got the call that I am still testing positive. 
I am devastated. 

While I read the distress in your post, I can not think of any reason why a contingency plan was not in place on passengers part 'just in case I become positive?'.

 

I Am sure you are soured on cruising or X or foreign travel for a while now.

 

We set sail soon and have discussed our contingency plans aboard ship and on land were either or both of us to contract C-19... We understand that we may not leave the ship unscathed by this.

 

IMO - just because we can cruise, to some degree again, we must take stock of everything that this entails were we to become infected with C-19 and what about were we to become ill from something else like heart attack or stroke or other serious communicable disease?

 

The moral of many experiences include: be ready, if not ready, get ready because we will not be in control over the situation for a bit...

 

In health and bon voyage

[bananavan]

3 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

While I read the distress in your post, I can not think of any reason why a contingency plan was not in place on passengers part 'just in case I become positive?'.

 

I Am sure you are soured on cruising or X or foreign travel for a while now.

 

We set sail soon and have discussed our contingency plans aboard ship and on land were either or both of us to contract C-19... We understand that we may not leave the ship unscathed by this.

 

IMO - just because we can cruise, to some degree again, we must take stock of everything that this entails were we to become infected with C-19 and what about were we to become ill from something else like heart attack or stroke or other serious communicable disease?

 

The moral of many experiences include: be ready, if not ready, get ready because we will not be in control over the situation for a bit...

 

In health and bon voyage

PERhaps the contingency plan was not put in place because as we have stated, the rules changed. 
Ask anyone who took the Edge  Transatlantic on April 22. 
I have three different sets of information sent to my stateroom  regarding testing positive on the sailing. 
The rules changed three times .
Tell us how we might have anticipated any of this. 
For those who are not in Italy, the rules are different . 
The only effective contingency plan that I can think of is to cancel before you even set sail. 
On our ship today it was announced that there is one passenger positive for covid. 
That is because the count starts at the beginning of each cruise. 
There is no mention of those of us who are in the Quarantine section. 
When we embarked we were buoyed into a confidence every morning when the Captain would state that there were no cases of Covid onboard among the passengers. Of course there were not. We had all just boarded and the passengers on the prior 5 day cruise were long gone before the infection showed up in them. 
And on Day 6 the reports started. 
You can plan all you want but lets just hope that the rules do not change again. 
 

[JFontaine]

9 hours ago, carolinagal said:

 Did they disinfect the ship before it left Fort Lauderdale, when there were covid cases among the crew before the TA? I seriously doubt it.

Disinfect what? Covid doesn't spread from touching something.   And if the prior passengers in your sister's cabin had covid, a few hours in between,  with the cabin door open, as is protocol on turnover day, would've cleared the cabin air. If she had a balcony, even better.  

[Bo1953]

1 minute ago, JFontaine said:

Disinfect what? Covid doesn't spread from touching something.   And if the prior passengers in your sister's cabin had covid, a few hours in between,  with the cabin door open, as is protocol on turnover day, would've cleared the cabin air. If she had a balcony, even better.  

Thank you, the poster cannot get their mind around what the mode of transmission really is, as opposed to it is someone else's fault that their sister and friends contracted C-19.

 

Understandable, yet were they to reach home safely and without infection, then a bullet dodged.

 

We have to understand the risks 'accepted' when cruising in these times and not go blindly and think that 'recommended' behaviour/policy does not apply to us... LOL Good luck with that, as we are reading.

 

This is NOT to insinuate that it is the total fault of those who are C-19+ during or after their sailing as opposed to saying 'I know this virus is highly transmissible and we are in very closed spaces how do I best protect myself and enjoy the cruise despite it all?

 

In health and bon voyage

[Empehi]

After reading many of the posts on this thread, I am now beginning to realize it is an extremely risky  undertaking to cruise in Europe.  It appears to be an impossibility to know how to avoid COVID ...  and if you do ..... the quarantine, uncertainty about returning to the US, dealing with the travel insurance companies and the general disruption of your life would make traveling to Europe at this time very problematic.  You can drive into the US without testing, get off a cruise ship in the US without a test, walk into the US without a test (yes 1000s do it daily in Southern California) but for a US citizen to fly into the US you need a test ( I thought flying had air that circulated constantly with fresh air making catching COVID almost impossible) ... apparently this isn't the case.

 

So .... as long as we can not come back to our country (by plane) when we want from Europe (or any other place) ..... I don't think it makes sense to leave. Cruise from US ports and return to US ports and have a more relaxing vacation. Remember, you can drive into the US from Canada without a test but you need a test to fly into the US from Canada. Go figure.

 

e

 

[TeeRick]

5 minutes ago, Empehi said:

After reading many of the posts on this thread, I am now beginning to realize it is an extremely risky  undertaking to cruise in Europe.  It appears to be an impossibility to know how to avoid COVID ...  and if you do ..... the quarantine, uncertainty about returning to the US, dealing with the travel insurance companies and the general disruption of your life would make traveling to Europe at this time very problematic.  You can drive into the US without testing, get off a cruise ship in the US without a test, walk into the US without a test (yes 1000s do it daily in Southern California) but for a US citizen to fly into the US you need a test ( I thought flying had air that circulated constantly with fresh air making catching COVID almost impossible) ... apparently this isn't the case.

 

So .... as long as we can not come back to our country (by plane) when we want from Europe (or any other place) ..... I don't think it makes sense to leave. Cruise from US ports and return to US ports and have a more relaxing vacation. Remember, you can drive into the US from Canada without a test but you need a test to fly into the US from Canada. Go figure.

 

e

 

This pretty much sums it up!

[Ex-Airbalancer]

9 minutes ago, Empehi said:

 I thought flying had air that circulated constantly with fresh air making catching COVID almost impossible

That is very funny comment , the math may work but in reality that not true 

[TeeRick]

1 hour ago, Bo1953 said:

While I read the distress in your post, I can not think of any reason why a contingency plan was not in place on passengers part 'just in case I become positive?'.

 

I Am sure you are soured on cruising or X or foreign travel for a while now.

 

We set sail soon and have discussed our contingency plans aboard ship and on land were either or both of us to contract C-19... We understand that we may not leave the ship unscathed by this.

 

IMO - just because we can cruise, to some degree again, we must take stock of everything that this entails were we to become infected with C-19 and what about were we to become ill from something else like heart attack or stroke or other serious communicable disease?

 

The moral of many experiences include: be ready, if not ready, get ready because we will not be in control over the situation for a bit...

 

In health and bon voyage

Bo- there is very little protection on an enclosed cruise ship these days from being exposed and infected with the highly contagious Omicron and all of its subvariants.  Although milder for most people, it is still treated the same on ship as Delta and other earlier versions operationally.  You test positive on ship, you isolate in a lesser accommodation.  And the ship struggles to help you because they are overwhelmed.  Being fully vaccinated (and boosted) keeps you from serious illness but that's it.  The current vaccines were derived from the original virus and they are no match at all for Omicron (for protection from infection). Period. That's why cases on board "fully vaccinated" ships are dramatically increasing as masks and distancing were eliminated.  This will continue to be the case (or worse) until newer vaccines (for boosters) are better matched to Omicron.  Maybe late this year.

[Travelexpert35]

43 minutes ago, Empehi said:

After reading many of the posts on this thread, I am now beginning to realize it is an extremely risky  undertaking to cruise in Europe.  It appears to be an impossibility to know how to avoid COVID ...  and if you do ..... the quarantine, uncertainty about returning to the US, dealing with the travel insurance companies and the general disruption of your life would make traveling to Europe at this time very problematic.  You can drive into the US without testing, get off a cruise ship in the US without a test, walk into the US without a test (yes 1000s do it daily in Southern California) but for a US citizen to fly into the US you need a test ( I thought flying had air that circulated constantly with fresh air making catching COVID almost impossible) ... apparently this isn't the case.

 

So .... as long as we can not come back to our country (by plane) when we want from Europe (or any other place) ..... I don't think it makes sense to leave. Cruise from US ports and return to US ports and have a more relaxing vacation. Remember, you can drive into the US from Canada without a test but you need a test to fly into the US from Canada. Go figure.

 

e

 

I’ve been following a lot of these threads as well. If anyone is cruising right now worldwide, they should have a Plan B for quarantining in a foreign country. Check out Air BNB’s, hotels at your final destination well before you start the cruise. I realize mandates change but that is our world right now with the pandemic. 
 

i remember months ago when Canadians and UK travellers flew to the US ports to cruise. We had to jump through hoops with testing and then we too had to quarantine in the US at hotels or Air BNB’s for 10 days. Not a good feeling to be out of your country in quarantine. 

[Mike07]

11 hours ago, carolinagal said:

After testing positive for Covid on last day of TA Apex cruise, my sister and her friends, who also tested positive, are stuck in an Amsterdam hotel for 10 days. Did they disinfect the ship before it left Fort Lauderdale, when there were covid cases among the crew before the TA? I seriously doubt it.

 

 

I was on the Apex the last cruise before that TA, and there was COVID all over that ship.  Facemask usage actually increased through the trip, because you would have to be completely aloof to let the dry coughs and hacking go unnoticed.

 

Yeah, I'm sure it was "allergies" in the middle of the (something) ocean.

 

We had no production shows b/c the crew was "sick". Drink service and buffet cleanup was sparse.. I'd watch tables with empty plates on it for 20+ minutes.  The Hotel Director and Gestapo were real cute about dancing around the fact that COVID was ravaging the crew.

Edited May 15, 2022 by Mike07

[Bo1953]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

Bo- there is very little protection on an enclosed cruise ship these days from being exposed and infected with the highly contagious Omicron and all of its subvariants.  Although milder for most people, it is still treated the same on ship as Delta and other earlier versions operationally.  You test positive on ship, you isolate in a lesser accommodation.  And the ship struggles to help you because they are overwhelmed.  Being fully vaccinated (and boosted) keeps you from serious illness but that's it.  The current vaccines were derived from the original virus and they are no match at all for Omicron (for protection from infection). Period. That's why cases on board "fully vaccinated" ships are dramatically increasing as masks and distancing were eliminated.  This will continue to be the case (or worse) until newer vaccines (for boosters) are better matched to Omicron.  Maybe late this year.

tr - IMO just because the cited precautions were, eliminated or even reduced, does not mean that 'we' as passengers do not need to continue to observe some modicum of safety and precaution against C-19 or does it?

 

I can only liken it, somewhat, to were a highway's speed limit raised from 65 mph to 90 mph, does that mean we need to attain the higher speed just because the auto can and without any casualties along the way?

 

Some of us want our freedom of choice, yet do not want to accept the personal responsibility and added costs associated with the decision to cruise/travel at this time, were one to become infected or severely ill. Not to think about infecting others (fellow passengers, crew and staff) along the way.

 

I happen to be that person who one might see flying down the freeway with my mask still on (so I do not forget it for the most part) and wear in most places where the 'policy' dictates masks are optional... I say go for it, especially if you do not plan on leaving your home area or state, for the most part or can get home easily.

 

In health and bon voyage

[Guppy99]

2 hours ago, Empehi said:

After reading many of the posts on this thread, I am now beginning to realize it is an extremely risky  undertaking to cruise in Europe.  It appears to be an impossibility to know how to avoid COVID ...  and if you do ..... the quarantine, uncertainty about returning to the US, dealing with the travel insurance companies and the general disruption of your life would make traveling to Europe at this time very problematic.  You can drive into the US without testing, get off a cruise ship in the US without a test, walk into the US without a test (yes 1000s do it daily in Southern California) but for a US citizen to fly into the US you need a test ( I thought flying had air that circulated constantly with fresh air making catching COVID almost impossible) ... apparently this isn't the case.

 

So .... as long as we can not come back to our country (by plane) when we want from Europe (or any other place) ..... I don't think it makes sense to leave. Cruise from US ports and return to US ports and have a more relaxing vacation. Remember, you can drive into the US from Canada without a test but you need a test to fly into the US from Canada. Go figure.

 

e

 

testing differences between flying and driving makes perfect sense to me. Flying means very close seating with strangers for long periods and no fresh air, and waiting around luggage carousals,  airport gates without fresh air etc.  Whereas driving generally means you are with people you associate with usually and have been exposed to, plenty of fresh air, minimal exposure to strangers.

[gold1953]

3 hours ago, carolinagal said:

my sister was tested onboard day before they docked in Netherlands. Her travel companions were already in quarantine on the ship. They were all vaxed and tested negative before they boarded in florida.

The negative antigen only means that you do not have enough virus at that moment to show. Any one of them could have caught it up to 7 days prior as with all of the other cruisers. Some may have picked it up on route to the cruise and the spread starts from that moment. My daughter coughed for 3 days before her test was positive!

[Bo1953]

2 hours ago, Empehi said:

After reading many of the posts on this thread, I am now beginning to realize it is an extremely risky  undertaking to cruise in Europe.  It appears to be an impossibility to know how to avoid COVID ...  and if you do ..... the quarantine, uncertainty about returning to the US, dealing with the travel insurance companies and the general disruption of your life would make traveling to Europe at this time very problematic.  You can drive into the US without testing, get off a cruise ship in the US without a test, walk into the US without a test (yes 1000s do it daily in Southern California) but for a US citizen to fly into the US you need a test ( I thought flying had air that circulated constantly with fresh air making catching COVID almost impossible) ... apparently this isn't the case.

 

So .... as long as we can not come back to our country (by plane) when we want from Europe (or any other place) ..... I don't think it makes sense to leave. Cruise from US ports and return to US ports and have a more relaxing vacation. Remember, you can drive into the US from Canada without a test but you need a test to fly into the US from Canada. Go figure.

 

e

I figure you may have a short memory to know that the travel policies in your post are recently enacted as opposed to always being able to cross the US/Canadian border at will, without the aforementioned testing, if at all over the last few years.

 

In health and bon voyage

[hrhdhd]

11 minutes ago, Guppy99 said:

testing differences between flying and driving makes perfect sense to me. Flying means very close seating with strangers for long periods and no fresh air, and waiting around luggage carousals,  airport gates without fresh air etc.  Whereas driving generally means you are with people you associate with usually and have been exposed to, plenty of fresh air, minimal exposure to strangers.

People keep repeating this canard about no fresh air on planes. It's not true.

 

From a National Geographic article (Becker works for Lufthansa): "About 40 percent of a cabin's air gets filtered through this HEPA system; the remaining 60 percent is fresh and piped in from outside the plane."

 

 “Cabin air is completely changed every three minutes, on average, while the aircraft is cruising,” says Becker.

[TeeRick]

40 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

tr - IMO just because the cited precautions were, eliminated or even reduced, does not mean that 'we' as passengers do not need to continue to observe some modicum of safety and precaution against C-19 or does it?

Yes Bo I agree and that is exactly the point.  It is all up to us being responsible as passengers to ourselves and others.

[Ex-Airbalancer]

10 minutes ago, hrhdhd said:

People keep repeating this canard about no fresh air on planes. It's not true.

 

From a National Geographic article (Becker works for Lufthansa): "About 40 percent of a cabin's air gets filtered through this HEPA system; the remaining 60 percent is fresh and piped in from outside the plane."

 

 “Cabin air is completely changed every three minutes, on average, while the aircraft is cruising,” says Becker.

Have you watch airflow currents ?