p18750

As I said the decision to test passengers before boarding is voluntary (except a few destinations) and I believe will be subject to Celebrity view on whether more people will cruise with the testing or without the testing. Celebrity is a business and continuing to sail with half empty ships does not bode well for their survival. I am not sure what Celebrity is taking into consideration in making this decision, but I am pretty sure it is a business decision as much as a health decision. 

5 hours ago, terrydtx said:

I would venture the opposite, there are just as many or more who will not cruise while the testing is a requirement. CC is never a good indication of overall cruising attitudes. I have a large circle of friends who are very experienced cruisers and more of them are not booking cruises because of the stress of showing up to board with a negative test. BTW none of our friends are members of CC.  Some very close friends and past cruise mates with us will not cruise while the testing is required. They have 15 Oceania cruises mostly in expensive suites in the past and they are no longer going to cruise.

So that may be a good sign. While the US still had a testing requirement it was not hard for Celebrity to rationalize having a testing requirement. Now that the US has dropped the requirement perhaps Celebrity will decide they can do so also. Of course there may still be testing requirements from countries the cruise visits but if you can take cruises that do not have a testing requirement ....

9 minutes ago, C4HCG said:

This is actually a big deal for us flying to the US from the UK, we know we no longer need to test to fly thank goodness but still have the stress of arranging a test on arrival at Fort Lauderdale then it being negative to get on the ship. We are back in late August and know the requirement will still be in place then, but are hoping summer next year it will be lifted.

My wife and I talked about this many times and the requirement to test before returning was a much bigger deal than the Celebrity pre-board test. Our rationale was that if we get to Italy and test positive we will just get a VRBO and see a new part of Italy. The cost of the VRBO would be partly offset by the credit for the cruise. Also we can isolate ourselves at home for a few days before we take our Covid pre-board test (now that the requirement is two days instead of one) and increase the likelihood of a negative test. The return test was much more invasive since there is little change to isolate yourself (what is the purpose of a cruise if you self quarantine in your cabin the last 5 days so you can hopefully test negative for your flight). So while we would prefer both tests went away it is easier for us to live with the pre-board test. 

I try to look at this from Celebrity operational perspective and I think vaccinations and testing are viewed differently. Vaccinations drastically reduce the chance of a serious medical conditions on the ship. Since this is very expensive and disruptive to Celebrity operations there is little reason for Celebrity to remove the vaccination requirement as long a Covid is circulating. In addition the vast majority of cruisers are fully vaccinated so there is not a large push back on this requirement. Testing on the other hand is largely a customer perception issue since (as others have pointed out) testing reduces but does not eliminate people with Covid from boarding and spreading Covid amongst their fellow passengers and crew. So I think as soon as Celebrity deems they can remove this requirement and gain more cruisers than they lose the testing requirement will be gone. From the posts it appears there are still a significant number of people who would not cruise without the testing this may still take a while. 

6 hours ago, B x said:

An update that I am sure will helps lots of us embarking in Rome:

 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/healthy-at-sea/italy-travel-requirements

Let's see how long it stays 2 days this time. 

I would call Celebrity Air to make sure you have the correct reference locator. There is nothing special about a reference locator from Celebrity Air so there is no reason for Easy Jet not to find it. 

I know there used to be a chartered train from Seward to Anchorage but I  thought that was discontinued. I could be wrong but you should check with the cruise line. 

I believe there is only one train that travels between Seward and Anchorage although it has a variety of cars that may be associated with your cruise reservation. You can find schedule information for that train at: Alaska Railroad Schedule and Train Information | AlaskaTrain.com

You should look at the entry for ARR Coastal Classic Train Schedule

Note this train departs Seward at 6 pm and arrives in Anchorage at 10:15 pm. When we took this train many years ago there was a luggage car that held your luggage and you retrieved it at the train terminal in Anchorage. 

26 minutes ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

I don't get it...  You would deliberately put others in harms way if you tested positive?  Just WOW!

Well, you could have TB, pneumonia, bronchitis, diphtheria, whooping cough and a hundred other infectious respiratory diseases and no test is required to fly to the US. Are you going to get tested for all of them before you deliberately put others in harms way?

Certainly if I felt sick or was coughing up a lung I would not get on a plane whether or not I tested positive. Doesn't that sound like a better philosophy?

7 minutes ago, p18750 said:

OK, I went to costcotravel.com and I could book an intermediate sedan from toronto airport to buffalo airport for $300. Seems expensive but if the alternative is a week in a hotel in spain it looks pretty good. 

I guess my point is that you are not stuck in Europe because you either test positive or can't find a test. Practically the only place you cannot fly is the US, just about everywhere else lets you fly in and then if you can cross into the US then you are home free. 

If I were booking my flights now I would likely choose to fly from BCN to PHX via YYZ so I could get most of the way home with no risk of being denied boarding. Once I was in CA I could figure out how to get across the border. Rent a car, take a train, take a taxi to the border and walk across. I think all of these are preferrable to being stuck across the Atlantic Ocean but that is just me. Others can make their own decisions. 

19 minutes ago, canderson said:

Did you read what followed?  Go online and try to book a one way rental from CA to the US.

OK, I went to costcotravel.com and I could book an intermediate sedan from toronto airport to buffalo airport for $300. Seems expensive but if the alternative is a week in a hotel in spain it looks pretty good. 

I read another solution to getting home from Europe that I had not considered. If you are not allowed to board your flight back to the US consider changing your ticket to fly back to Canada and rent a car and drive to the US and then take a flight back home. You can easily drive from Toronto ON to Bufalo NY in about three hours or from Vancouver BC to Seattle WA in about three hours. There is no testing requirement for flying into Canada from Europe nor for driving into the US from Canada or Mexico or for entering on a cruise for that matter. 

My experience is I did not receive a confirmation email of my reservation and had to call Celebrity Air to get one. I think it might be because I was not signed up for notifications from Celebrity. 

In any case you can verify your reservations by logging onto the Celebrity site and selecting Manage Reservation and then selecting Flights and More.

Note that my experience is that Celebrity makes changes to your reservation and the latest changes may not appear in Flights and More for a few days. 

Also, Flights and More does not show your record locator number but most airlines allow you to look up your reservation and find your record locator number. Once you get your record locator number the airline will show you the latest flight information. 

7 hours ago, sunlover33 said:

The day before means the previous day according to Celebrity’s website. See FAQ 

When calculating which days you can take your test, be aware that the day you set sail is not counted as one of the days, unless the country of embarkation stipulates that the test be taken within 24 hours of arrival.

For example, if you are setting sail on a Saturday, and you are required to test 3 days before your sailing, you can take your test on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday; and for 2 days in advance, you can take the test Thursday or Friday.

https://www.celebritycruises.com/gb/healthy-at-sea/faqs

This would have been definitive had the Italy requirements read "1 day before" as in the example in the FAQs. Unfortunately the  wording for Italy is "within 1 day prior". I really dislike it when official notifications do not use consistent language. 

I will reiterate that I believe what Celebrity means is you must have a test the day before but as Bx pointed out in response I could be wrong. 

I believe there are Celebrity cruises departing from Italy in the coming weeks and I would be interested in how it was interpreted by those actually in control of the boarding process. 

5 minutes ago, Lastdance said:

As it stands now, the day before...not 24 hours.

I would tend to agree as that is how I interpreted it but as Bx indicates: 

"Celebrity state "Must present a negative Antigen test taken within 1 day prior to sailing". Both the Cambridge and Oxford dictionary provide this explanation of "within" "If a time is X, within 24 hours means no later than 24 later""

31 minutes ago, cruisingaussies said:

It appears you haven't read the rest of this thread.

I did read the rest of the thread and I don't believe there was a definitive answer to whether it was a day or 24 hours. 

There was a post from the EU health agency indicating "the day before" but that was clearly a recommendation and not a requirement and in either case does not answer the question since the question is what does a "day" mean.

There was a post from another cruise line which indicated "one day/no more than 24 hours" but that is for Silversea and not Celebrity.

I had posted earlier that Oceania indicates 72 hours but that has no bearing on what Celebrity means. 

The common usage of "day before" would mean the previous day, i.e. Sunday is the previous day to Monday. If it is Thursday then "the day before yesterday" refers to Tuesday. But as has been pointed out the dictionary definition indicates 24 hours. 

If I have missed something please let me know. 

15 hours ago, B x said:

 

It is not "inconsequential". I raised the terminology of "within"  on another post and was shot down and told it means any time the previous day just as you also suggest. I was not being pedantic I was being factual.

 

Celebrity state "Must present a negative Antigen test taken within 1 day prior to sailing". Both the Cambridge and Oxford dictionary provide this explanation of "within" "If a time is X, within 24 hours means no later than 24 later"

I don't know which is correct but perhaps someone who has boarded a Celebrity cruise could weigh in. 

If you are correct then you can take a test within 24 hours of your cruise sailing. So if your cruise departs Civi at 5 pm on Monday you could get tested anytime between 5 pm Sunday and 5 pm Monday.

Since I live in AZ this would mean I needed to get tested anytime between 8 am Sunday and 8 am Monday AZ time. 

If I am correct then I could get tested anytime between 12:01 am Sunday and 11:59 pm Sunday. Which would correspond to 3:01 pm SATURDAY and 2:59 pm Sunday AZ time. 

My flight departs Sunday at 7:43 am under your interpretation I could not test prior to departure but could test on arrival in Rome since I arrive Monday at 9:30 am. Under my interpretation I could test anytime after 3 pm Saturday and before 3 pm Sunday (both AZ time) well before my flight departs. 

Unless someone can get clarity it seems the approach for those flying in the day of the cruise  would be to test at home before you depart and then again at the airport in Rome and hope they are both negative. 

11 hours ago, minster123 said:

Can someone confirm:  we are travelling from UK - Manchester in July.

 

I understand things might change before then but currently if we get an antigen test at a pharmacy in the UK on Thursday afternoon say 4.00pm (we fly 7am Friday morning) that will be OK for embarking at 1.00pm on Friday as it will be less than 24 hours since the test??

 

I know this sounds simple but the more I read the more confused I'm getting !!!

 

 

It may seem inconsequential but the requirement is not 24 hours but 1 day. So if your cruise embarks on Friday you must have a test on Thursday, anytime Thursday. 

4 hours ago, 5waldos said:

Do you have popups blocked on your computer? When I do what you have done (and sorry, yes it is Manage Trip), there is a popup saying you are not 21 days out, etc.and moveup is not yet available.  I am assuming that once it is available, the website will then link me over to the Moveup bidding page. 

Thank you that was very helpful. I enabled popups and I got the message about making sure your cruise is within 21 days. 

Website seems a little different for me. 

I do not see a "Manage My Reservation" but I do see "Manage Trip". When I select this the drop down menu shows "Upgrade with MoveUp" as the last item in the drop down. When I select this I get the page to enter my last name and reservation id. When I enter this and select "Submit" I just get returned to the page to enter my last name and Reservation ID. I assume this means I am not eligible for a MoveUp offer. 

If I click on my login name there is an entry for "Manage Reservation" but this does not take me to a page with a moveup option. 

17 cruises on Celebrity and was considering switching to Oceania and I think this fiasco clinches it. If a cruise line wanted a way to alienate customers and incentive them to switch to another cruise line this has got to be it. We are booked on the Edge from Rome to Barcelona in July so this will likely change dozens of times before that but treating customers like this is just unforgiveable. 

Note: We are also booked on an Oceania cruise and their requirement for European departures has been a consistent test 72 hours before departure. This would seem to indicate the issue is with Celebrity and not Italy. 

28 minutes ago, maxamize said:

 
We always loved the bath tubs. It’s a luxury we love to enjoy on vacation.

I have to say we specifically booked Riviera for a TA next year because of the bathtub. It was not that I thought we would use if very much it was rather the size of the bathroom to accommodate a bath. I guess we will see how we like the larger shower and I am sure my wife will like the bench seat in the shower. 

38 minutes ago, shellst said:

  We are going at the  end of April on Xpedition. Checked luggage must wbe under 44 pounds.   It is hard to find much information on post Covid Celebrity Galapsgos cruises. There is an active FB page with recent Celebrity Galapagos cruisers who offer answers and advice. 

I would highly recommend you post on the Galapagos thread at: 

CLICK on the picture above and it will take you to the blog.

'

We have been on Celebrity Xpedition twice and never had an issue with the weight of our luggage even though the notice has been there for years. The blog linked above has several recommended packing lists from people who have been on the Xpedition. 

Note that the night before your flight to the Galapagos you must leave your luggage in the lobby where it is inspected by the Ecuadorian government and taken separately to the airport. You will need to have an overnight bag for anything you need in the morning before your flight to the Galapagos. 

2 hours ago, Purplsmurf said:

Last vaccination shot means second shot. If boostered there is no “expiration “

I don't see how your comment could be correct. The Germany site clearly said you need a vaccination shot more than 14 days and fewer than 270 days before entry to Germany. The site does not mention boosters, just the last vaccination shot.  If boosters do not count then virtually no one would qualify since my guess is that almost no one got their second shot less than 270 days ago. By the way, none of the vaccinations "expires", the reason to get a booster is to increase your immune response not because your initial vaccination expires. 

We are travelling to Oberamergau after our Med cruise in July and so I had checked the requirements for Germany and I seem to remember the "more than 14 days and less than 270 days" for the last vaccination shot. I remember looking at our CDC record and seeing our booster was in November so we made it under the 270 day limit. Since Germany adopted this rule the rest of the EU may have a similar one. I will try to find the reference I found for Germany and post it.