shutterbug63

Good for them. I hope other cruise lines join this.

I have absolutely no issue with wearing my mask even though I'm vaccinated when there are unvaccinated people allowed on the ship.  If it gets me back out to sea, so be it.  I am in Missouri where the Delta variant is spreading because of certain areas of our state that have low vaccination rates, so I really never stopped wearing mine. Not yet, anyway.

4 hours ago, SireDoime said:

😟 When I read this article about RC's decision to semi-segregate vaxxed passengers from unvaxxed passengers (https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/6245/),  I was reminded of the discrimination of HIV+ vs HIV- people. While, it is a far reach, this seems like it will cause tension on the ship between the  passengers; with the unvaxxed having to wear wristbands identifying them as unvaxxed passengers.

 

While I have never been a fan of RC and have only sailed their Celebrity, I am genuinely concerned how this will effect the overall morale on the ship. Some are already saying that unvaxxed passengers are ruining the enjoyment of vaxxed passengers and vice versa.

 

Sigh, I hope this is very temporary, as it does not seem like a smart move. They should just do what other lines are doing: sail with only vaccinated passengers, and be done with it.

 

We'll see how it goes, as the article says...the story will change.

 

Peace.

Not getting a vaccine is a choice, so anyone that makes that choice when they are eligible to get the vaccine is indicating they're willing to suffer the consequences.  That's not discrimination, so yes, the comparison is  a far reach. 

5 hours ago, broadwaybaby123 said:

What I'm wondering is if these restrictions will apply to families of young kids who can't be vaccinated but all the adults in the family are?  I'm travelling with my 9 year old niece, along with both my parents.  All adults in the party have been vaccinated since March (me and my mom have been vaccinated since January due to us both being healthcare workers), but my niece (for obvious reasons) hasn't.  She understands the rules and is fabulous with her masking and social distancing, so she'll be fine with this on the trip.  

 

What I would like to know is which set of rules we're supposed to follow as a family.  None of us have issues showing our vaccine cards and carry copies of them with us everywhere we go, so the proof of vaccination is a non-issue.

I believe if you are all together your group is considered unvaccinated while on board.

I have no issue with wearing a mask even though I'm vaccinated. Small price to pay for my peace of mind.  I also don't have any issue with additional requirements/restrictions on unvaccinated people.  I'm glad to see these changes - it makes me feel a bit better about our upcoming cruise.  We're still trying to decide what to to do though and will wait and see what happens before making a decision to cancel - that is not off the table.

In my state, we are seeing the results of low vaccination rates in rural counties.  There are several outlying counties that are seeing a huge spike in the Delta variant.  That's not being seen in counties with a higher vaccination rate. That's a bit frightening to me.

1 hour ago, Casino Comp Chick said:

I feel bad for the people that can be killed by others without the vaccine. 

And this is why people that can get the vaccine should. It's not all about them.

On 6/6/2021 at 12:15 AM, IRMO12HD said:

Wow, how scary!  Thanks for the feedback, @shutterbug63.  I assume this was with Lucky Stables?

I believe so. It was a while back, but I think that's the outfit we did it with.

It was very frightening.   My son (he was pretty young at the time) was less disturbed than I was, though. I think that's because I'd ridden horses for so long that I really realized how seriously hurt that person could have been.

On 6/10/2021 at 1:54 PM, gdwest said:

 A "few' weeks came and was long gone. The new certificate never

arrived, and I wished to use the FCC on another reservation.  I called and through the conversation

was told that the certificate had been reduced because of credit card being credited too much

This has happened to me twice.  We are going to use our FCC's on a cruise in January, 2022, as we can't get a refund now, but we will most likely not sail Royal again. All of this left a very bad taste in my mouth, especially the second time when I was basically called a liar when I read the rep I was speaking to my notes from my previous conversations.  I was in the same boat as you the  first time -  difficult to track the ins and outs - but the second time I knew to the penny what I was due and they still messed it up.

13 hours ago, LoriLoriLori said:

In states like Florida and Texas I wonder how they are going to know who is not vaccinated.  

 

Can they legally ask if you are vaccinated?  

 

My family of four is vaccinated and I will volunteer my vaccination status, yet wondering how they will know or single people out who aren't. 

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I looked up the portion of the Florida law that talks about vaccines. It says that companies can't refuse to provide services because of vaccination status, but I do not believe it says they can't ask you to voluntarily show proof.

36 minutes ago, coffeebean said:

The honor system does not work and everyone, including the cruise lines, know that.

Exactly my point. 

1 minute ago, dswallow said:

 

Simple. Worst case, once they sail, they require showing proof of vaccination to obtain something that provides those privileges.

 

More likely there's nothing prohibiting them for make an offer up front for voluntary compliance to provide something.

 

That makes sense. Once they're out of Florida, Florida's restrictions about vaccines don't apply. I didn't think of that.

There's one thing I'm not understanding about this.  It was my understanding that the Florida law prohibits Royal from requiring proof of vaccination to board the ship.  But the way I read it, it doesn't prohibit them from asking if someone has had the vaccine. If that's the case but no proof has to be shown, then nothing's stopping someone from lying.  It's basically the honor system. So how then would they differentiate between vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers?  Maybe I'm making a mountain of  a molehill here, but it does bring a question to my mind.

In answer to the original question of  this thread - yes, I'd cancel if I could.  But I have FCC's that will expire in September, 2022, and most likely will not be able to sail in the summer of 2022.  We picked the January, 2022, date, because of the pricing and the fact that the date worked.

We are sitting tight right now and waiting to see what happens since we can't get a refund at this point. It may be a moot point, though. If RCCL sailings go out with no vaccine requirements and there's Covid outbreaks on board which I think is more likely under those conditions, who knows what will happen with cruises after that.

 I am not sure we'll sail if they don't require vaccines. I understand from the press release that passengers who aren't vaccinated will probably be required to test and there will be other as yet unspecified "protocols".  The thought of being on a ship in the middle of the ocean with a Covid outbreak definitely gives me pause and makes me want to consider something else for our vacation. 

I don't mind wearing a mask, but why should I have to when I've done my part to make everyone safe just because someone else didn't?  For right now, I'm going to wait and see as we don't sail for a while.  And if there's outbreaks on cruises, it may all be a moot point, so sitting tight for now.

I'm sorry to see them cave to DeSantis.

We have done this and will never do it again if it includes swimming the horses in the ocean.  We did an independent excursion.  Long story short, the person guiding our tour led a group of 8 people with varying experience levels  as far as riding a horse into the ocean for a swim without asking if everyone was comfortable with it. One person in our party who was behind us was riding a horse that got buffeted by the waves.  That horse panicked, fell, and ran out of the ocean to the beach. The person riding that horse had fallen off but had a foot still stuck in the stirrup and was dragged 75 feet along the beach upside down. Thankfully, they had us wear helmets.  Looked like they suffered serious injuries to their arm and possibly their leg.

Long story short, I am an experienced rider  and I've never seen a ride conducted in such unsafe conditions.  I should have realized this from the get go when the person leading the ride was wearing Crocs and shorts.

17 hours ago, kearney said:

I don't understand... if you are vaccinated...why do you have to vaccinate for those under 12. Once fully vaccinated you can go without masks or socially distancing... the ones at risk are the unvaccinated...and the more vaccinated people around them ..the less chance they will get it.. Here is a nice writeup from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.https://www.jhsph.edu/covid-19/articles/new-data-on-covid-19-transmission-by-vaccinated-individuals.html.. they were several weeks ahead of CDC... I assume CDC got even more data to make them feel comfortable making the changes

Because (from what I've read) vaccinated people can still carry the virus (i.e,, they are either asymptomatic or just don't get very sick) although much less of it. The problem is that if they around people that are unvaccinated and/or immunocompromised, it's possible they could spread the virus to them. If our goal is stop this virus from spreading, that would seem to be a problem.

On 5/27/2021 at 6:56 AM, BecciBoo said:

That card is issued by the CDC, you don't think all of the partners administrating the vaccines report what they did to the CDC?  Seriously!   Did you not fill out the registration form before you got them?  They know who you are, where you live, what kind of vaccine it was, your SS#, when you got them, who gave them, the date and the batch #s, etc. etc. etc.

I honestly don't know.  I know my registration is my state's public health database and I'm sure the federal government knows how the vaccines were allocated to the states. I just haven't read anything that says there's a national database.  Perhaps there is. I don't know  and I have read that reporting is kind of a patchwork depending on what state you're in.  That was my only point. I'm not saying one way or the other - I'm saying I don't know and I'm reserving my judgment.

Personally, I would like it if there was a database for authorized entities to verify someone's vaccine status, but given how politicized this has all become, I doubt that will happen.  I also think there might legal issues surround that. I don't know,  I'm just speculating.

34 minutes ago, coffeebean said:

Seriously? Is that what will be required of all passengers if there are un-vaxxed people on board? Masking outdoors too, even at the pool? Why in the world would anyone want THAT experience? Just to let kids cruise? Let them go to Disney World where at least they don't have to wear masks OUTDOORS anymore.

This  is what the CDC order says - if they meet the 95% threshhold - It's at the cruise line's discretion as to whether or not they require masks if passengers are 95% vaccinated.  I would think any given cruise Royal or otherwise could meet the 95% threshhold.  Pure speculation on my part, but maybe Royal is hedging their bets by doing test cruises so they're covered either way.

I just am curious to see how this all works out if you're required to show proof of vaccination to board a ship in Florida. 

"Fully Vaccinated Travelers

• Cruise ship operators, at their discretion, may advise passengers and crew that—if they are fully vaccinated—they may gather or conduct activities outdoors, including engaging in extended meal service or beverage consumption, without wearing a mask.
• Cruise ship operators, at their discretion, may advise crew who are fully vaccinated that they do not have to wear a mask or maintain physical distance in areas of the ship that are inaccessible to passengers.
• Cruise ship operators, at their discretion, may designate areas as only accessible to fully vaccinated passengers and crew where masks and physical distancing are not required (e.g., casinos; bars; spas; entertainment venues; and dining areas, including self-serve buff"ets).
• For ships with at least 95% of crew and 95% of passengers fully vaccinated, cruise ship operators, at their discretion, may advise passengers and crew that they do not have to wear a mask or maintain physical distance in any areas."

9 hours ago, taglovestocruise said:

Fake cards are becoming a booming business. Two weeks ago.. May not be perfect but good enough to hit 95%+

A California bar owner has been arrested for allegedly selling fake COVID-19 vaccination cards in what's believed to be the first thwarted scheme of its kind.

Undercover agents with the state's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control bought the bogus cards for $20 each during multiple visits to the Old Corner Saloon in Clements, a small town in San Joaquin County.

The agents were told to write their names and birth dates on sticky notes and watched as employees cut the cards, added phony vaccination dates and laminated them, the Associated Press reported.

"On the back where they put the two dates when you were vaccinated, they used two different color pens to make it look like it was two different times," supervising agent Luke Blehm told the AP. "So they went to some effort to make it look authentic."

I know my vaccination record is in a state database, but from what I've read, nationwide it's a patchwork of stuff like that. I haven't read anything about any record keeping on that as far as federal level.  Authenticating the cards is going to be interesting.

3 minutes ago, BOOKBOOKBOOK said:

 

https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/cruise/covid19-operations-manual-cso.html

 

I think policing will be a minor issue because cruise operators have tons of flexibility on ships with 95% of passengers/crew vaccinated. Hence the "For ships with at least 95% of crew and 95% of passengers fully vaccinated, the following requirements are recommendations only." clause. In other words, it won't matter who the 5% unvaccinated consist of.

Thank you for  the link. I just read it and it seems like they're saying that cruise ship operators have discretion even when it comes to unvaccinated passengers (even as small as that percentage may be) as to whether or not they have to wear a mask.  To be honest, even though my household is protected, that makes me feel a little less safe.  I don't know - maybe I'm reading it wrong.

Good news!  I wonder how are they going to police this and make sure anyone who's not vaccinated is wearing their mask when they're supposed to be.  Now I realize this is probably only going to be kids under 12 (based on their current vaccination policy) or people who have a legitimate medical reason to not be able to get the vaccine, but I wonder what their plans are as far as that.

Also, anyone got a link to the actual announcement? I find the CDC site difficult to navigate.

On 5/21/2021 at 8:20 AM, PhillyFan33579 said:

It seems simple to me. The CDC should immediately allow cruises to resume for ships with crew members and passengers who are 100% vaccinated. If vaccinated people no longer need to wear a mask per the CDC, there is no reason not to allow 100% vaccinated ships to resume operations. 

I agree. I think the only issue is how do you verify that?   All I have showing I am is a paper card with both of my doses on it.  I assume that would have to be shown, but how would they verify it's legit? That's the only thing that gives me pause.  There's enough resistance to this vaccine out there that it doesn't seem beyond the realm of possibility to me that someone would fake a card to sail. 

It's going to be interesting to see how they verify whether or not someone is truly fully vaccinated.  The CDC cards we have are honestly kind of flimsy and don't look like they'd be hard to duplicate. 

19 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Deleted.

 

sorry, didn’t see that this wasn’t a lift and shift. 
 

it is still kind of related and has to do with the fact that they are removing all FCC’s from bookings and then reapplying them in a different way so that they show as a payment (the 100% part) or a credit (bonus 25% part) and not just a reduction of the cruise fare. 

Thank you! I just did the math and I'm guessing that's what happened.  The difference works out to about what the additional 25% I was given on the FCC's I used.

I paid my May, 2021, cruise on Symphony in full in October, 2020.  It was paid with two FCC's from a RCCL cancelled cruise and an amount in caseh. I have a receipt showing it's paid in full.  I noticed in the Cruise Planner that I had the option to make a payment, so I requested a new invoice to verify the balance due. 

Lo and behold, the balance now shows almost $900 and my FCC's have been applied for a total of nearly $900 less than they were for.  On the phone with RCCL now trying to straighten it out.

Anyone else had this issue?  I know there is a know issue with lift and shifts and FCC's, but this is not a lift and shift.

I don't want any part of this. Not for the  money I'm paying.  We're supposed to be sailing in May (not that I think that sailing is actually going to go).  Just debating if we want to cancel ourselves and move the money to the cruise we have booked on Oasis in January, 2022, or wait for Royal to cancel so we get the 125% on the cash we put on the May cruise.