cooncat_mom

Don’t know if you’ve sailed but https://www.visitportland.com/ has a lot of suggestions and information (check the Things to Do section). It really is a walkable town with good breweries, good food and charm.

@Rogueperson Well said! My daughter and I like fairly quiet sailings with walks through the Promenade and sitting and watching the sea. We’re not into “food experiences” and long leisurely dinners are not our thing plus we don’t really drink. (Can you say “Boring”? 😆). We sailed the Oasis last September when cruising opened up again and really liked it. However…we sailed at half capacity and I don’t think we’d enjoy it as much at full capacity. (I sailed Norwegian’s Getaway at full capacity this past April with my husband and it wasn’t really enjoyable - except for the shows.) Knowing this, my daughter and don’t hesitate to sail smaller ships. Being realistic, we know that service is not going to be what it was pre-Covid no matter what the ship. Let’s face it, everyone is short-staffed..including the hospital I work at! Our next sailing will be in a few days on Voyager. As long as the room is clean and the food edible, we’re fine. The important thing is knowing what you’re looking for in a cruise and booking to accommodate that.

We’ve done Promenade rooms too and enjoyed them. It’s fun sitting on the loveseat watching people. We booked one for this trip, but I upbid on a balcony and 24 hours later we were moved to that. Truthfully, I just like being on a ship! Just finished ArriveCAN. Wow. It spelled my name wrong and had to re-do it which was pretty funny since it lifted my information from my passport! We’ve cruised out of Boston before and it hasn’t been bad. This time we have The Key so hoping that will get us on fairly quickly, especially since we’re taking the train and will be at the pier by 11:30 (Key boarding time) otherwise we’ll have to just stand around till 12:30. (Talk about a First-world problem…😆😆😆)

We have the Key as well for our sailing this coming Sunday. I got an email this past Tuesday explaining about the Key and telling us to come for boarding at 11:30. Without the Key our boarding time was 1:30

I hope you enjoy it! We’re on it too, and Portland Maine is very walkable. There are some sites like visitportland.com that will give you ideas. Thanks for the heads-up on the show!

Interesting! I never noticed that before (I just check to see if the ship and cabin number are right). My daughter is a Platinum cruiser and I’m an Emerald and our tags say Platinum (she’s 4 points behind me. That bugs her!) I don’t know what difference it would make unless they’re faster about delivering the higher status once the bags are on the ship. Since I’m already dressed (you’re welcome 😆), I don’t care how late the bags come.

Depends on why you tested positive…if you’re having symptoms then no, it’s not fair to travel. If you’ve had Covid in the past 90 days you can be recovered and non-contagious but still test positive. I got Covid in April (vaxxed and boosted) and I work at a hospital. I tested positive after my symptoms were resolving (I had tested negative while I had symptoms - but I was pretty sure it was Covid and was isolating). I had to stay out for 5 days after the test since I was pretty well recovered and was then told they wouldn’t try to test me for 90 days (I had to do a health screen form before work and am honest, as most of us are. We don’t want to put our patients or our unit at risk). So in that instance, I would contact RCI and see if a doctor’s recovery note would be accepted. If not or if I had symptoms, no I wouldn’t sail. I am pre-testing in the next few days just to see if I'll need a note. Then I'll have to test before sailing since we're doing Canada. And I'm one of those weird ones, I do pack and wear masks! 😆

My daughter and I tend go to the theater early so one time we picked a totally empty row and sat in the two middle seats…there were some people who looked at this empty row - except for the two of us in the middle - and made us stand up so they could go past us to the empty other end! 🤪

I second the TripInsuranceStore. I've chatted online with them before trips and they are extremely helpful in making sure the insurance fits you and you're not buying more than you need (and they steered me to GeoBlue since medical is what I want!)

Hmmm...I didn't even check for a maximum age when I booked my excursions in Canada! Since I AM 70 I should be ok - and I still commute to work. Hmmm....

I just went into my check-in for my 9/18 sailing on Voyager and the Health section was letting me answer questions - 1. am I fully vaxxed, 2. am I boosted and 3. will I be 23 weeks pregnant at any time during my sailing (nope - I’m 70 - NOT happening! 😂). That, of course may change or disappear at any moment the way things are going….

@not-enough-cruising I'm sorry - you're right I was thinking the vax card upload. However, the long piece I copied is there as soon as you go into the Check-In, so it looks like they're covering the vax part still.

I’m sorry Jimbo, just in case you are counting on that, I work in a large hospital and we test a lot…My husband took me on an anniversary cruise in April and he started having cold symptoms the Friday before we disembarked. On Sunday we disembarked and I noticed that either my allergies were getting real bad or I had his “cold” ( I knew). I took my mandatory back in the country test on Tuesday. It was negative. I took my Guess What? It’s back to work test on Friday and by then I was no longer symptomatic . Positive. The test is really no guarantee. (Yes, I have to be vaxxed if I want a paycheck and my husband is too). Hoping to cruise in Sept with my daughter, and the Vax part has disappeared from my check- in too (of course I’d already done it). However, when I opened the app, this is what appreared. Looks like they’re covering all bases. (Sorry - tried to screenshot this but didn’t work) Be ready to board Review our health and safety protocols Health & safety If you experience any of the following symptoms within three days of your cruise, please stay home and give us a call: • Difficulty breathing • Diarrhea • Sore throat • Nausea/vomiting • Fatigue/muscle aches • Headaches • Cough/nasal congestion Vaccination All guests 12 and older must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 with the final dose given at least 14 days before sailing (not including your sail day). Vaccine boosters are encouraged. Kids 5-11 who are fully vaccinated may follow the protocols for vaccinated guests. Royal Caribbean accepts vaccines that are fully approved or authorized for emergency use by the U.S. FDA or the World Health Organization, with the exception of CanSino. Continue to check-in

Don’t know if this is helpful, but while I do take a charging hub, I also bring two Halo external chargers. Both are small and work for overnight watch charging as well as charging the iPhone and iPad.

Thank you! I really thought I had a little cold. In all honesty, I tested because I had cold symptoms when I returned from the cruise, so work wanted a test and my husband decided to test too. That was negative, but we isolated because of my daughter’s medical history. Then I had to test again 5 days after my return even if there weren’t any symptoms (for work again), and that’s when we tested positive. I think my husband was sorry he tested with me….I had such a mild case that it was over by the time I tested positive! 😆

As they say, “You do you!”. I’m 70, work in a hospital, and we were one of the first units to take Covid patients. I’ve had provoked PEs which infarcted in my lungs leaving a small cough and slight hoarseness, and I have allergies - including environmental ones. I am vaxxed and boosted and I have followed most of SaragassoPirate’s rules since I started traveling years ago. I used to be laughed at because I wiped down hotel rooms and ship’s cabins. I don’t worry about eating off the ship as I bring dairy free protein bars and a bottle of water with me. Nowadays I mask most of the time and, yes, often outside too! I’ve had more than one person look at me and sneeze or cough at me without covering their mouth. A lovely side benefit to this has been that my environmental allergies haven’t cause any hives since Covid! My daughter, who has had a provoked stroke does the same. She and I Amtrak’ed (masked) to Bayonne and sailed the Oasis last year. Since we’re both natural born introverts, we spent much time away from people, enjoyed our Boardwalk Balcony and had a lovely time. Did not take elevators (still try to avoid them) and stayed away from crowds. Even saw some shows (socially distanced, of course!). Returned home happy, relaxed and healthy. In April of this year, my husband - who is an avid anti-masker- and I flew to NY and sailed NCL to the Bahamas. I followed all my usual travel habits. He (also vaxxed and boosted) ripped off his mask as soon as he was off the plane and never used it again. He insisted we go to all shows (crowded) and joined large groups in the elevators. Two days before the end of the cruise I noticed he was coming down with a cold…hmm….the last day, I had noticeable cough (I always have a small one. See paragraph 1). Of course I didn’t *sleep* in a mask though….Sigh. Got home Sunday - tested negative Tuesday. Tested Friday with symptoms almost gone. Yup - positive. We had been isolating from each other (and if the fate of humankind rests on my husband having to isolate, we’re all doomed). The disease was very mild for me fortunately and DD never caught it. Which is good since she owns the house and could throw us out! 😆😆😆 I am cruising in Sept. with my daughter. We are disinfecting, masking on the train and everywhere else, taking stairs, etc, and I have a feeling we’ll be fine, she and I…! I love being on the water and I think the risk is worth it, but I’ll do my best to help lower the risk. I hope that you have a good and healthy time.

In 2008 my daughter convinced me to board an airplane (😳 - still don’t like them) to Miami and do a 5 night Key West/ Cozumel cruise on the little Carnival Imagination. (Sad that she’s gone) We got in the night before, had a very nice car driver from NJ who (when he found out I grew up in NYC) was great about telling us what areas to avoid. Our hotel right near the pier upgraded us to the 6th floor, and when we woke up, we opened the curtains and saw 6 cruise ships at the Miami pier waiting for their new passengers. We were thrilled with the Imagination and actually had assigned seating at a great table - all mothers and daughters traveling together. It was the start of some great vacations. We moved on to NCL and RCI but have been cruising twice a year since. Our best NCL was several years ago when I won an upbid to a Garden Villa on the Dawn and my son, daughter-in-law and granddaughters (2 & 4 at the time and very well travelled) came with us to Bermuda. Wonderful! And our first post-Covid cruise was this past Sept. in a Boardwalk Balcony on a half-empty Oasis. Beautiful ship, great cruise! DD and I have Voyager OTS lined up for Canada/NE in a couple of months. Looking forward to our Promenade room and being on a cruise again!

Actually, we’ve run into this more than once on cruises. As we’ve been leaving to go ashore we chatted a few moments and then asked if there was anything we could bring back for them since they weren’t able to get off. In one instance it was a few travel things from the drugstore and in another it a was couple of muffins from a specific cafe. On one cruise, my DD and I had been chatting with a room steward and she was having to put inserts into the daily cruise paper (forget what ship) so we helped. Had a lovely talk! (And of course we still left a tip! ☺️)

We were in 10329 and wouldn’t hesitate to book it again. We watched the AquaTheatre shows and rehearsals from it. Here’s a link to a little overview with some more photos. I originally put the wrong cabin number on it, but fortunately they fixed it for me! https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2803684-oasis-boardwalk-balcony-cabin-10239/#comment-61884639

My husband and I sailed the Norwegian Getaway in April this year - SO different! It was at capacity complete with jammed elevators, full theaters and crowded walkways... needless to say, we returned with Covid (and I had masked everywhere except my cabin. My husband didn't at all). I will miss the lower capacity...

I truly hope Voyager has a Promenade since we have a Promenade room booked on it for a NE cruise this Sept! 😆 We sailed the Oasis this past Sept when cruising opened up. Loved the Boardwalk balcony (last balcony room before the Aqua Suite) - great views. The ship was a little over half capacity and it was wonderful. I’m not sure if I’d like it as much at capacity. I’ve found that I’ve pretty much enjoyed most ships I’ve been on, but I do like the Voyager and up class…more places to walk around.

Interesting thread. My husband and I were on the 4/3 sailing of the Getaway - not very impressed with the port or the sailing! Entertainment was good though. This was my second post - pandemic cruise. First was RCI Oasis in September. Wonderful cruise! Half capacity, everyone vaxxed and masked (except for a few kids), ship was totally cleaned, elevators were usually empty…dining room tables were too close together, but…DD and I had a great time and returned, after a 6 hour train ride, Covid free. In April I cruised on the Getaway with DH. As soon as he got off the plane to NYC, the mask came off. At no time did he mask and I rarely saw a mask on any other guest. The transport bus was full, the ship was close to or at capacity, port was jammed and we were there for hours, elevators were jammed, venues were jammed, distancing didn’t happen. He started getting a cold the Friday before we docked. Saturday I was sniffling with a cough (I have a large set of allergies so frequently present like I have a cold anyway). Home Sunday and since I work in a hospital, had been out of the country and was mildly symptomatic I had to test Tuesday. DH decided to also. We were both negative. I had to retest with a PCR test 5 days after returning, and for some reason DH decided to also. Yup. Both of us were positive. (May I say, if the fate of humanity depends on my husband isolating we are doomed! 😆). I’ve heard that there were quite a few cases on the Getaway with that sailing. Will I cruise again? I will - DD and I are booked for a Sept. NE/Canada cruise. We will mask, social distance, take the stairs and pretty much keep to ourselves. It’ll be a great cruise! Covid isn’t going away and It’s not worth hiding.

DD and I don’t drink so always decline the alcohol package. We did try the soda package once, but just don’t drink enough soda to make it worth the money. (We used to get Royal’s soda package because they had the do it yourself soda machines with flavored water. Loved that!) We do, however, get the water package. ..We’re used to well-water and the ship water is kind of meh. The water package we finish!

@njhorseman Thank you - nicely put! For some of us vegan choices make life much, much less painful. And those Ben and Gerry’s non-dairy ice creams are positively evil!