What do you do to reduce onboard illness?

[lahlah57]

Understood there's never a 100% chance of contracting nothing BUT what do you do in being proactive to at least aide in your own protection while onboard?

This could be an idea board just to get us all thinking about what is in our control!  

Staying home is not an option 🤭😉

[Sea Hag]

15 minutes ago, lahlah57 said:

Understood there's never a 100% chance of contracting nothing BUT what do you do in being proactive to at least aide in your own protection while onboard?

This could be an idea board just to get us all thinking about what is in our control!  

Staying home is not an option 🤭😉

We've always washed our hands constantly while on board. I think that really helps. These days, we still do that and we avoid crowded situations as much as possible. We still wear masks when we're in crowds or on airplanes. Even doing these things we caught covid last September while on a HAL cruise. 

[victory2020]

We use our own restroom , don't do buffet, use stairs as much as possible, wash hands constantly,  sit away from people in shows and take airborne with us. Avoid anyone you see coughing or sneezing

Edited February 3 by victory2020

[CalLuvsCrusingToo]

Mask outside our cabin, and avoid crowded elevators.

Eat outside alot & room service. MDR at off times.

[Wishing on a star]

We do 'all of the above'...

But, as we have not traveled as much lately, and we have chosen to take shorter cruises.

Our next will be on the 5 night Sun Princess when it gets to FLL this October.

 

I believe that on longer cruises,  when the 'incubation period' has been passed, and once a few start getting sick, then the numbers of people who come down, and have begin to spread the bug(s), start to rise very very very quickly.   We should all be wise enough to admit that a cruise ship is very apt to spread any contagious germs!

 

Next year we are booked on a 10 day...  Yes, I do worry about that !

[memoak]

19 minutes ago, Wishing on a star said:

We do 'all of the above'...

But, as we have not traveled as much lately, and we have chosen to take shorter cruises.

Our next will be on the 5 night Sun Princess when it gets to FLL this October.

 

I believe that on longer cruises,  when the 'incubation period' has been passed, and once a few start getting sick, then the numbers of people who come down, and have begin to spread the bug(s), start to rise very very very quickly.   We should all be wise enough to admit that a cruise ship is very apt to spread any contagious germs!

 

Next year we are booked on a 10 day...  Yes, I do worry about that !

To us a 10 day cruise is very short. We generally do 14-20 day cruises. We wash hands and use sanitizer. If you try to avoid people who cough or sneeze you might never bre able to leave your stateroom. We act pretty much as we would at home where we go to theaters , eat in restaurants and shop in crowded stores

[mthomp5]

Wash hands often and especially whenever we return to our cabin. Carry miniature hand sanitizer with me to use if I’ve touched high contact surfaces and hand washing isn’t feasible. Avoid crowds, including crowded elevators as much as possible. Mask if can’t avoid those situations. Avoid the buffet. 
 

 

[eclue]

We always eat at the buffet and have never had a problem. The key is to wash your hands frequently - hand sanitizers do not always do the job. The biggest one is to stay out of crowded elevators. people just push their way in and when that happens, we just get off and wait for the next one. Avoid people sneezing and coughing and maybe most importantly, get your vaccines and stay up to date on them.

[Senga]

Being fully vaccinated, wear masks, use our knuckles to press elevator buttons, washing hands frequently; every time we return to the cabin or before we enter the buffet.  It's amazing to see the majority of passengers bypass the hand washing stations right outside the buffet even when an attendant is standing there!

[MissP22]

If you're going to catch something, you're going to get it no matter what you do. We always wash our hands in the cabin before going to eat at either the buffet or DR. Never wear a mask & always use crowded elevators since they're mostly filled anyway. 

[deja moo]

I have learned to keep my hands away from my face. That and at the buffet I wash my hands before and after I get my food. Everyone has had their hands on the serving tongs.

 

I am not sure if this is scientific, but the last several cruises I have been on where I have ate multiple deserts I have never been sick. So I am going with that.

[Lady Arwen]

We wash our hands frequently.  We never eat in the buffet.  We always use stairs when possible.  We eat in less crowded specialty restaurants instead of the MDR.  Avoid the showroom.  We do enjoy the bars and lounges in the evenings, so we just cross our fingers that by eliminating the most problematic venues we will be spared,  So far, so good.

[startedwithamouse]

Wash our hands after serving ourselves at the buffet. 

 

Never touch a MDR menu.

 

Always use the stairs.

 

Edited February 3 by startedwithamouse

[mahasamatman]

We use food-grade vinyl gloves in the buffet and sanitize after handling the menus to reduce the riskof norovirus. To reduce the risk of airbourne viruses, we stay away from the theatre and elevators, never eat in the buffet (we always take our food outside), and use this every night: https://viraleze.co/

 

 

 

Edited February 3 by mahasamatman

[CalLuvsCrusingToo]

Washing & hand san is all Good.

But Please remember Virus is spread, Airborne!

When I got bounceback Covid, my Only clue to test again was I sneezed a few times.

I felt ok, just a few sneezes, but tested just in case..... Positive! 😳

So please consider GOOD Masks on top of your handwashing.

Good luck all.

[mahasamatman]

28 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

Never wear a mask

 

You completely misunderstand the purpose of a mask. Masks are not for protecting yourself, they serve to protect the people around you.

[Wishing on a star]

Masks,  good ones worn properly, work both ways.

They are not highly effective...  but they have to help! Along with all the other common sense measures.

Edited February 3 by Wishing on a star

[mtnesterz]

2 hours ago, lahlah57 said:

Understood there's never a 100% chance of contracting nothing BUT what do you do in being proactive to at least aide in your own protection while onboard?

This could be an idea board just to get us all thinking about what is in our control!  

Staying home is not an option 🤭😉

Interesting reading because of your wording, which didn't specify any one disease or manifestation.

So what we're reading is people's present level of concern for disease which is on their mind at the moment.

Posters all chose vector caused disease with contact transmission mostly. Norovirus would be an example. Some mention of airborne, Covid, flu, colds.

You ask what is in our control. So responding to that question, not vector caused, controllable, are those physical and psychological diseases resulting from overconsumption of alcohol, overconsumption of foods, salt and sugar, gambling beyond gaming just for fun. 

[antmaril]

I got off the Sky Princess two weeks ago today.  I have avoided getting Covid so far, and I was hoping to cruise for a week and not get it.  I got the most recent Covid vaccine in November.  I wore a mask on the plane to Fort Lauderdale.   I ALWAYS wore a mask while on an elevator.  The ship’s elevators were usually very crowded.  We were on Deck 15, so usually one of the last to get off.  We always washed our hands before entering the buffet and tried to use our cabin bathroom, when it made sense.  
 

I am happy to report that my friend and I stayed healthy.  

[Steelers36]

Nothing out of the ordinary (other than the buffet washing stations) than at home.  So, nothing special at all.  Nothing happened.  Not anymore concerned on a ship than elsewhere.  I'd be more concerned on an airplane, but nothing special done there either.

[PacnGoNow]

4 hours ago, lahlah57 said:

Understood there's never a 100% chance of contracting nothing BUT what do you do in being proactive to at least aide in your own protection while onboard?

This could be an idea board just to get us all thinking about what is in our control!  

Staying home is not an option 🤭😉

We finished a 47 night in Dec.  We remained healthy, and also the 20 night before that one.

 

We do what a lot of the others do.

Wash hands frequently, mask in crowded areas, like the elevators, tour buses and the theater.

Leave the area when a lot of coughing and people blowing their noses.  

We occasionally go to the buffet and make sure to wash hands before we get our food.

 

We do longer cruises.  We’re not worried, just cautious, because don’t want to ruin our cruises if we get sick.

 

Go and enjoy your cruise and take whatever precautions you want to.

Everyone seems to do their own thing.

 

 

 

[Bgwest]

3 hours ago, CalLuvsCrusingToo said:

Washing & hand san is all Good.

But Please remember Virus is spread, Airborne!

Be careful with generalizations. Noro, for example, is definitely NOT airborne. 

For that 👇🏻

[lahlah57]

Good to have seen so many using the wash stations but also someone who wears a glove when serving themselves up at the buffet. I do the same. 

The 2 things I see as an orgy of  bacteria is stair banisters and menus. 🤢. I typically carry paper towels for grabbing nasty banisters and a tissue for handling menus.

Does anyone wipe down their cabin hand managed items once they've checked in with clorox wipes?

Have you wrapped the remote control in a plastic bag(now this item wreaks in nastiness). 

Just some things to think about! 🤔 

[lahlah57]

1 minute ago, Bgwest said:

Be careful with generalizations. Noro, for example, is definitely NOT airborne. 

For that 👇🏻

Thank you!!! Noro running rampant amongst cruielines according to the media outlets! 

Just got me thinking!

[GeezerCouple]

35 minutes ago, lahlah57 said:

Good to have seen so many using the wash stations but also someone who wears a glove when serving themselves up at the buffet. I do the same. 

The 2 things I see as an orgy of  bacteria is stair banisters and menus. 🤢. I typically carry paper towels for grabbing nasty banisters and a tissue for handling menus.

Does anyone wipe down their cabin hand managed items once they've checked in with clorox wipes?

Have you wrapped the remote control in a plastic bag(now this item wreaks in nastiness). 

Just some things to think about! 🤔 

 

Yes, that remote device in the cabin.... with the buttons and crevices, etc., there is NO thorough way to clean it.

We use not the thick ziplocks (which is what we use for most things) but the thinner "baggies", given that "touch" is important on the remotes.

 

And yes, we disinfect everything possible.  We travel with a regular supply of our meds (regular and "just in case"), and now... we make that assortment much larger, with masks and gloves, and anti-viral wipes.

 

We should consider the clear "food handler" gloves.

Those are probably less, er, "noticeable", than our sometimes colorful Nitrile gloves.

 

We also carry our own little bottles of hand disinfectant.  Many of the "general use" dispensers have additives that DH may be allergic to.

 

It's all so much more complicated now...

 

GC