renji

Good question, is it more than the $30 a day to upgrade when you do it onboard

That is a great idea for countries that will let you leave without lengthy quarantine if the cruise ship reports you. So would work for the UK but not Italy…

You can even avoid the flight to the US by going to Canada. The problem is if you are required to test onboard because of contact tracing, or because you do become symptomatic. It just still seems very high risk.

I am just sending a virtual hug. I can’t believe how strong you are. Just know that we are thinking of you. And so appreciate your sharing. If Celebrity and Italy don’t change the approach, we are canceling our trip from Barcelona to Rome even with a penalty.

I agree. We can’t do that if governmentsdon’t allow us to.

Hello, I’ll be on both the Oasis and Adventure this summer, and was wondering if anyone had experience in any of the ships with the Dyson Airwrap working? I don’t use a blow dryer. I am more concerned with the attempt breaking the device. I have both the US and UK versions so wondering if the US or European 220v works better. (Anecdotally, I find the European version a bit milder/ less effective, but I travel to London frequently so it’s better!).

Which is why they should just accept covid as a fact of life and cruising, and make it still a relatively pleasant (or at least not utterly miserable) experience to test positive.

The consequences are different and the spread is more prevalent with a captive audience. Many places of employment request self-testing regularly. If people were responsible and honorable, and weren’t given ridiculous consequences for testing themselves, most would do it in order to cruise without the risk of externally imposed quarantine. It’s literally nothing to give yourself an antigen test.

You post raises an interesting question—in addition to quarantine rooms, why not have a single covid segregated lounge/restaurant for those who feel well enough to have meals there, preferably with fresh air?

Omicron is just that contagious….I’ve been isolating and masking for years and picked it up somewhere! It’s not that cruising is unsafe, it’s that living is unsafe…

I agree—there are always going to be people who report no matter how unpleasant the consequences to themselves personally, and there are always going to be people who will hide it no matter what. But there are many others who would quarantine but will be disinclined to do so (or willfully ignorant about early symptoms) if it’s perceived by them to be torture….and with no real gain exactly because of your second point! “Even if I’m thrown in the brig, there are 50 other people walking around with covid, so what’s the point of me being miserable?” what really ought to happen is daily testing or every other day testing and please stay in your cabin while contagious. And we will treat you very well while self-isolating, so no fear of reporting is needed.

Now that is a brilliant, if fictional, quarantine policy! Maybe someone in cruise ship admin will copy you 😊

Exactly—this variant is so contagious that moving a percentage (and certainly we can see it isn’t going to be all) of positive passengers into a version of “hell week” probably has tHe perverse effect of increasing the spread —simply because others are going to mask their symptoms to avoid the risk of that fate. As the tax code shows us, incentives actually work.

I agree with you and am comfortable with the risks of catching covid, as most cruisers are. The reality is that it is everywhere and we are all going to be living with the risk for years to come. It’s the risk of quarantine without fresh air and being held captive without decent food service that is most distressing to people. The idea that we are going to “flatten the curve” with targeted lockdown is just not likely to be effective, and the lottery to see if you’re going to enjoy your vacation or be treated like garbage has to stop. Passengers who are symptomatic or positive should comfortably distancing in their own cabins, and the service to their comfort and care should be at the highest level the ship has, not the lowest… then we can get back to cruising with a reasonable level of risk for tolerable vacation interruption. I think this will actually help stem the spread because people will be willing to admit to covid and symptoms and remain in their cabins, rather than denying it for fear of the awful consequences we are reading about.

I am so sorry for all you have been through. I for one am extremely grateful that you braved the ridiculous criticism from the few to alert us all by generously sharing your story. Unless passengers are allowed to quarantine in their own cabin (or one with fresh air), and the quarantine/ testing rules in Italy and to return to the US change, we are canceling our trip that disembarks in Rome and not going to try Celebrity Retreat for a while. We will try to stick with shorter US based cruises where at least we can get off and go home, and with cruise companies that have clear (and comfortable, ie, fresh air inclusive) covid protocols… or (gulp) not cruising for a while.

Not a safe idea

I completely agree with you. Much of the world has had covid and is now unmasked and testing but living with some risk. Post-omicron, we all know it spreads quickly and is everywhere. Personally I am shocked that you are being held captive and were put in a room without fresh air for so long. This is not a rational expectation anyone would have and sticking it in the fine print is not sufficient disclosure “you’ll either have a luxurious vacation or be forcibly moved to a cabin without air and treated poorly” (yes, inside quarantine is that bad for many, and your husband’s food situation only improved because you found people to intervene—no guarantee anyone else will be so fortunate, if we can call your treatment that).

What do you think about the idea of flying to Canada/Mexico and driving over the boarder? We know there is no testing at the border.

I suppose we are all guessing, but am booking a Haven suite and curious if others are concerned about noise being right below the deck, Lounge or restaurant, or right near the Haven elevators? It looks on deck plans like the cabins are right near the elevators, but usually they are inside a console of some kind…