TeeRick

Lots of places have legal marijuana edibles. No smoking required even if a medical need.

Many older and/or at risk people would have a number of these conditions or be taking these type of common drugs.

Yes this all makes good sense.

But you also need to have a documented positive test for the current ongoing COVID infection too. At least for the pharmacy-only program. Of course you could get tested at the same pharmacy. Actually in any scenario, if I had symptoms and tested positive, I would call my physician and discuss the situation and get a prescription if they agreed. No need to go around the system. My physician has all of my medical records and recent blood work. And knows what other drugs I am taking and what my other health conditions are.

As for Luminae costs, they can work it out between them with the other couples. Unless they want to pay which is fine too. The other couples can reimburse them or pay for something else shared on the cruise like an excursion. We have done this with non-suite people we have cruised with.

D or D+ on RCCL becomes Elite on Celebrity.

Multi-national but US-based companies really hate a strong dollar.

We have always found decent local crabs at a take out shack at Icy Strait Point.

The strong US dollar devalues pretty much all other currencies, including the Canadian dollar. Not a good situation unless you are an American traveling. Otherwise there are a lot of negatives to this situation.

I got a kick out of your comments. You are in your 80's but saying that others sailing on HAL ships are OLD. Quite a refreshing attitude! You are as old as you act and feel. Happy cruising. Come enjoy smoke free indoor areas on Celebrity.

@lovrccl you have the option of separating for dinner with the one or two other couples as others have pointed out. But here are a few choices all three couples (for dinner): - All 3 couples dining together some nights in one of the MDR's, or in the buffet. - All 3 couples dining together in a Specialty restaurant (additional dining costs for all of you). - All 3 couples dining in Luminae ( $30 pp for the non-suite couples, but much cheaper than Specialty dining, as good or better, you need to make arrangements in advance at Luminae. - All 3 couples dining in the port together (for lunch or dinner if time permits). -In addition, couples 1 & 2 can dine together in Blu (no added fees). Just need to arrange in advance.

Well good for those of us traveling to Europe soon. The UK Pound is also at a good price right now.

I say this because my brother almost missed our ship departing Naples. He was ticketed for the last ferry and it was delayed. That was pre-COVID times. So now it might be even more of a risk.

Maybe eventually when fully approved by the FDA then it could be kept on ship for well defined, emergency situations. Not for giving out like Advil or Tylenol.

Are there different rules for Paxlovid in Canada than the US? You of course must know since you got it once before. But can you get it in Canada if not infected already, as a precaution to getting infected when you travel and cruise? The recent FDA announcement about getting it from registered US pharmacies would not apply to you. I have found the following from Health Canada. Again, best of luck with all of this. https://www.quebec.ca/en/health/health-issues/a-z/2019-coronavirus/symptoms-transmission-treatment/oral-treatment-against-covid-19-paxlovidmc

Not sure if this is a character issue although many people commenting here are suggesting that. It certainly is a choice that many people are making one way or the other.

This will be very confusing to cruise passengers! It is not really an Over-The-Counter drug as we normally think about them. No even close. First off you must test positive for Covid. Second you need to provide a lot of recent laboratory blood work to the licensed pharmacist to be evaluated for kidney and liver issues. This program was set up to get Paxlovid into the hands of COVID-infected, eligible patients quickly and early in their infection. Not for a just-in-case travel prescription. https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2022-07-07/fda-allows-pharmacists-to-prescribe-covid-drug-paxlovid

Tipping in world currencies like dollars and euros is a safe bet for rewarding crew members. They will always be much appreciated. They can be used on board and exchanged on board. Other local currencies not so much- maybe with the exception of pound sterling.

@Kate-in-Canada although I understand your feelings about not pausing life, there is a very good chance that you might get infected in your travels or on board. Based on what you describe about yourself, IMO you are very brave to even consider cruising. Paxlovid or no paxlovid. Best of luck.

If on your own just remember to take a ferry back that gives you plenty of time before the cruise ship departs that day.

CDC is probably not reporting actual case numbers on ships because there are likely far too many numbers infected. And even then they would be under-represented because of the majority of passengers choosing not to report on board. Or hard to track those getting infected and getting symptoms post-cruise. We literally live in a sea of COVID. Isn't that really all we need to know? How would it matter if some under-represented numbers on ships were made public? People would still decide to cruise or not. The good news continues to be that the vast majority of infections are mild. I have seen very few reports of that not being the case on these boards from people in isolation.

I truly doubt this is their policy. And credibility is a personal evaluation by those cruising. Many people do not report their symptoms. An undisputed fact. So how can this be blamed on Celebrity when it is a personal passenger-based choice? Concerning numbers on board- Ages ago (but only months!) some captains on board reported positive cases. Not so much anymore. Too many of them. Celebrity reports what is required to the CDC if the ship sailed from a US port. They are not required to report anything concerning numbers to the public or press or even their passengers. That is not anything different from any other cruise line. Or frankly most businesses. Covid is everywhere and that is all we really need to know and plan for when we travel and cruise. Pretty good odds that we will get infected despite every precaution. It is a calculated risk we take these days,

Funny. Another thread that could have ended at post #2.😀

For all of your reasons, I do not expect to see Paxlovid used on cruise ships. If in the very rare case (these days) that somebody is really ill with COVID they will be taken to a hospital at the next port (or Medivac if necessary). Shipboard doctors will not risk just trying Paxlovid in these cases that have advanced to needing true medical care in a hospital. Also it is still in EUA stage and not fully approved. I don't see people very often (if ever) convincing their doctors to prescribe it pre-vacation "just in case".

Clearly a lot of people are doing this on cruise ships. Not presenting themselves to Medical. That is obvious.