rattanchair

19 hours ago, Daniel A said:

But, in perspective, the only things we are out are transitory pleasures. 

Dear DA,   One of the great quotes of today's times. Robert Burns, the great Scot poet once said "I pick my favorite quotations and store them in my mind as ready armour, offensive or defensive, amid the struggle of this turbulent existence." There are true 'gems' to be found, like yours, on the CC boards. Thank you.

1 hour ago, Beardface said:

  So if your goal is to try and only stick to those kinds of events, trips, and vacations where a concern over cleanliness is a major priority, there aren't many options available.  Not because of the cruise lines, resorts, parks, airlines, etc, but because of the other people who also use them.

Dear Bf,  Your points are spot-on and well taken. But four to six times a year this misanthrope and his DW, germophobe , do take trips "on the wild side" of cruising and have considered any cruise a success should we not get sick while on board or 5 days later. We book suites in the YC, keep to ourselves by not using the elevators and spend our time going from dining room, table for two ever since past tablemates coughed in my plate, to cabana, to cabin balcony back to dining room. We are very intrigued by a recent report that MSC will have sailings from S. Florida to "No-where". My recent FCC will probably go to something like this being on board with like-minded enthusiasts. Otherwise we will be spending our limited "time" (lives) vacationing in our garage letting 'another terrorist" bug scare us to death prematurely.

  Thank you. You are one of the very few "assets" of realistic thinking on the CC boards.

Many 'seasoned' cruisers, reflecting upon years of cruising, are consoled by the "facts of life".  We will be back, because there is no other more relaxing way to get away before entering a nursing home. That there are some lines more accommodating to seniors than others. That 'smart' cruisers stay away from buffets. That the CDC (Center for Disease Control) does inspections of cruise ships and those with 85 or lower should be avoided until they improve. That as tests become more abundant, passengers and crew should be tested every week; crew quarantined and passengers screened and not allowed to board.

   Perhaps some 'seasoned' cruisers would like to add to this list.  We will be back and look forward to using our FCC (future cruise credit). We are hoping the cruise lines change from an attitude of "business as usual" to "all hands on alert".

3 hours ago, scpirate said:

I cancelled my August cruise which hurricane season was going to be stressful enough.i have a 10 day on another line in January 2022. I'm not worried about cruising for a while until everything gets straightened up.i have a motorhome and a 25 ft pontoon boat.ive been wanting to take up gold panning / metal detecting for a while.everything I need is in my home state.our other favorite the Smokey mountains are only 5 hours away.gas is cheap so are campground fees.no problems life is good.

Dear sc,  It appears you have "La dulce vida".  Godspeed. All I have  is a garage.

I do not know. My grandfather smoked a pipe, Union Leader. He stopped me from smoking as a teenager by recommending I start with 'corn silk'. It did the trick,. I stopped. My buddies would chew, it was so good I swallowed. That stopped me from chewing. Lucky guy that I am it never took hold.  To this day when an aromatic tobacco wafts my way I have nostalgic past memories, though I have to hold my breath walking through most casinos.

5 hours ago, Beardface said:

we didn't want to be a-holes by using it.

Dear Bf,  We do not use the elevators because we do not want to gain weight nor 'catch' something. But we would love to be considered "a-holes," having paid 10 x the price, if the need arises. Just look at who considers you an "a-hole". "Water off a duck".

 Dear BS, I recommend gin and tonic.

A good 'game' plan may be to just "kick the can down the road", and see what happens. The monies we already put down on the table are in 'play' and the ball has not landed on the roulette wheel. For some it has already landed and not in our favor, but the croupier is giving us a second chance. Insurance companies might be forced to comply with 'new rules' that may 'come down the pike' for those who purchased before a certain date. Anything is possible. I notice this administration likes to "talk softly, but carries a big stick" which it just used on the cruise industry. Much more is yet to come as attention is drawn to our plights.

1 hour ago, gotcha3 said:

They're treating their customers badly and personally, I don't want further dealings with them.

Dear g3,

 Your reply is the most valid. Understandable.

3 hours ago, niko40 said:

You will need a doctors note to claim off insurance not sure you will get one for a high temperature 

Dear nik,   We all need more than a doctors note to claim reimbursement.  Your insurance company has to send you a form (I suppose they could e-mail a copy) then take it to your physician to fill out and sign. Then wait to see  if it is denied. Been there and done that.

P.S. The physician has to sign off that you are in no condition to take a cruise.

3 hours ago, sidari said:

Saw this on a page that cannot be named re UK customers, meanwhile 300 or so Italian passengers and crew who were refused boarding in Miami, passengers will have their cruise fare refunded along with a 20% future cruise discount !

Dear sid, Thank you... You really do provide the best info on the CC boards. 

Asked my TA to contact our travel insurance in event we are denied boarding and if we are covered for trip interruption, refund, etc.  Answer, only with a doctors letter will they pay out. Where at the port will one get a doctor's letter that we are not fit to travel?

 P.S. CFAR insurance is only good up to 48 hours from date of departure, not day of departure.

We were talked into booking a two week cruise aboard the new Regent Splendor this Christmas in a PH C 450/194 sq ft by our travel agent and the Regent CC board saying that the service is above and beyond all expectations. But recent events caused someone to cancel their Royal Suite on the Seaside for this Christmas and we "jumped " on it. Though it is twice the price it normally goes for, we felt the level of service in the YC is a Known to a yet unknown, which we postponed til Christmas 2021. We attribute the level of service we received on board the Seaside to our American way of tipping rather than some forms of subtle intimidation that 'others' use while on board.

15 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

If Cruise lines were more transparent about how the DSC is divided, these threads simply wouldn't exist. 

Dear BB,  Does it really matter how the DSC is divided or not divided? What matters is the one on one relationship with your butlers, steward, waiters, maitre d  assistants etc., for which we bring extra cash to reward extra special treatment. One gentleman in the Royal Suite on Seaside this past summer carried a stylish bag filled with $$ as he went about the ship tipping each and every crew member for ANY act they preformed for his benefit. Each of us has our own ways of getting and receiving service we desire. He tipped our butler for just pressing the elevator key when we were escorted to our show. If he was not getting the kind of service he desired I do not think he would be doing it.

Funny thing, we have returned to these same cabins in following years and have encountered the same service providers and so far have been very pleased that they remembered our names and provided us with a level of service which we find hard not to compensate them for at the same level if not more.

2 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

but hustle they do.

Dear BB,   We do not expect nor anticipate any of our service providers to "have to" approach us regarding any gratuity. We know that these third world service providers covet the American Market. We understand the DSC is universal to all crew and we leave it unscathed. The ONLY fault we find with this particular thread is the steward suggested the OP would compensate HIs tip by canceling DSC . The steward was obviously not accustomed to American values of "fair play". We would never sacrifice the service of the many unseen service providers, to compensate the direct, over and above service he provided us during our cruise. We would thank him kindly for having respected and fulfilling each of our requests with a "Franklin" or two for the week and tell him that because of his service we will be returning and we will expect the same level of service should we be fortunate to have him or her again.

On 2/24/2020 at 7:13 AM, April42749 said:

The steward is more like the guy panhandling.

I feel the same way.  Not what I would want to expect to encounter on board. We are inundated with this behavior at every port of call (except OC)

On 2/23/2020 at 6:25 PM, April42749 said:

I'd take it this way.

The steward was wrong, however, that he did this means "he really needs the money".\

I wouldn't report him; I'd give him a couple of extra dollars.

I'm happy I'm in the position to do this and I wouldn't judge or want to get him in trouble.

I know...you all think I'm wrong.

Dear April,  You are correct.  Same thing I would do. Unless he was less than exceptional to begin with, then I would just laugh in his face. No need for bad Karma all around.

On 2/22/2020 at 11:26 AM, mlbdude said:

Our assistant waiter did the same thing on the Mera in November.   If he was not a fantastic waiter I would have reported him.

 

Dear mlb,   If he was not a fantastic waiter I would have laughed in his face.

Dear All.\, We are booked on another cruise line in a RS in March. Perhaps this might help in the near future.

AKIKO IWASAKI: Yeah, probably. I don’t know about blocking air to the nose, whether that’s effective. But warming the nasal temperature inside is probably beneficial. Studies from our laboratories have shown that higher temperature promotes resistance to cold virus. So if you can keep your nose warm, it’s probably a good thing.

IRA FLATOW: Is it because the virus can’t multiply under that kind of condition?

AKIKO IWASAKI: That’s correct. So even increasing the temperature from a nasal temperature that’s normally there, which is about 33 degrees Celsius, to 37 degrees Celsius, which is what you find in the rest of the body. The virus can’t replicate at that temperature. So it’s probably a good idea to keep your nasal passage warm.

IRA FLATOW: What about keeping your room warm, then? I mean, I’m serious. If you raise the temperature and humidity of the rooms, and even though the virus is there and it’s not going to replicate, especially in a doctor’s office where everybody’s sitting together, touching things, and breathing on each other.

AKIKO IWASAKI: Yeah, that’s probably a good idea. Humidity’s very well-known to block transmission of virus from one person to another. And of course, the higher the temperature, the higher the humidity. So it’s probably a good idea to keep your room warm and humid.

IRA FLATOW: Well, there’s something positive we can do

On 2/21/2020 at 9:11 AM, Cindy said:

If you can’t afford to self-insure (lose the cost of the trip) because of a cancellation then you can’t afford the cruise. 

Dear Cind,

 And the others that 'like' replied: everyone that books a vacation can afford the loss, they would not have spent the money to begin with if they did not have it.  What everyone should insure is the unexpected catastrophic accident or medical occurrence that might occur any where outside the US, not covered by health insurance or medicare.

1 hour ago, George C said:

We sail in 8 days on celebrity have gotten a couple of emails on this problem, I am sure they will be checking passengers more carefully until this crisis is over. 

Dear GC,

   Please apprise us. Your astute observations would be most enlightening considering the current state of affairs.

This really makes one think about everything we normally take for granted while on a cruise. Should we bring our own bar soap, laundry detergent, cording to hang laundry to dry, toilet paper? The ships normal supplies could be a different port and food and water are sure to be available at any port, but toiletries might be overlooked in an emergency situation and considered an unnecessary luxury.  This is a very interesting and serious situation. 

Very uplifting, ongoing, daily video reports from Diamond Princess passenger with all my answers coming from him in real time. He feels fortunate to have booked a cabin with a balcony, he says worth the added expense in this situation, confined to cabins. Only two hot drinks at present (Feb 6) one in morning one in afternoon. No room service outside of meals being brought to cabin. No alcohol being served at any price. . ( personally I do not drink, but in this case I would make an exception and plan on packing at least 2 weeks worth if I were to ration it .  Could always bring it home for the next cruise). Water available. No laundry service, no change of towels, linens, no making up by room stewards no cleaning, all left up to passenger.

  Spirits are high, though not being given announcements (perhaps the less said the less panic).10 more passengers removed from ship, total 20 so far. Questions he asked will this extend the 14 day quarantine as more passengers are infected?

  I question when 'the powers that be' cut off his internet.?