lexmiller

LOL, I know I know, that's why I said above to please let me moan and whine one more time and yet, there I go, I just can't seem to stop! Haha, @RichYak, ok, heard! I really need to get over this! However, if one of us does test positive on our B2B tests on our upcoming multiple Eclipse cruises, I will be back, you won't have heard the last of me, LOL!!

I think what's next is that people will calm down, get a grip and realize that in this class of cruise, Celebrity remains as it always has been, the absolute best option for your cruise holiday - food, entertainment, variety of venues, entertainment options, ship categories (ie inside cabins through amazing top suites, Aqua class etc), beautiful ships with the 3 categories of ship - Millennium, Solstice and Edge. No other line offers this and no other line has. So I do think all of the uproar will pass and we will get on with enjoying ourselves as we always did in the past. That's what is next.

No B2B testing is occurring for Caribbean cruises or any other cruises though I don't know about Singapore, but I can tell you for sure that the Aussie/NZ/SoPacific itineraries are requiring monitored B2B tests - done by the crew to you. You remain on board the Eclipse if you test positive, you do not disembark. You remain in your cabin in covid jail for 5 days if Aussie ports, 7 days if NZ ports. If your partner is positive and you are negative, your covid positive partner has to remain in your cabin, but you get to still proceed as usual - move about the ship, get off in ports - but, you are tested daily to make sure you are still negative, before you are allowed your daily adventures to begin. And many of the testimonials have been that their partner never tested positive and they the actual positive person, didn't feel sick at all or just minimally. The B2B test on the Eclipse is (oddly IMHO) occurring on the turn around day - meaning, the last day of the first cruise, the first day of the second cruise. You are assigned an appointment time to be tested. All accounts that I have read on the active roll calls on the alternative social site, have said that the test occurs late in the afternoon on turnaround day, before the ship leaves port. This is very different from all of us that have experienced B2B testing on other ships in other ports earlier during the pandemic, but, whatever - this is what is happening now, on the Eclipse, down under.

B2B tests in Australia/NZ/South Pacific are most definitely MONITORED. To board, test is not monitored, home self test is a-ok. So why the dichotomy, why B2B passengers must submit to a MONITORED test performed by the crew, is beyond me. The local governments are dictating the rules. If you call Celebrity, they will tell you that no where in the fleet is B2B testing occurring - that's the party line when you call. However, that is not the case on the front line 'down under'.

Please just allow me to whine and moan one last time, that until B2B monitored testing ends, then cruising is NOT back to "normal". The passengers who are B2B on the Eclipse, since the Aussie/New Zealand/South Pacific cruise season opened this past Fall of 2022, have had to endure monitored B2B testing, and still are and will presumably continue to be until the Aussie/New Zealand/South Pacific cruise season ends this May. Cruise ships appear to be an anathema to the Aussie/New Zealand governments. To board, only a home test is needed but if you are B2B, you must submit to the crew doing a test to you for the second (third, fourth etc) cruise. Many passengers are B2B on the Eclipse due to the extreme distance you have to fly to get there, (unless you live locally, obvie) you want to make the most of the flight and make the most of what is for many folks, a once-in-a-lifetime cruise/travel experience. Countless passengers have been caught in the monitored B2B testing dragnet and have had to be in covid jail for 5-7 days. I personally care since we are heading down under next month. Until ALL monitored testing stops, cruising will not be "normal".

As @Jim_Iain has outlined, updates as of two days ago to Celebrity's "Healthy at Sea" page list very clearly the itineraries that still require testing and for passengers to prove that they are vaccinated. The tests to board only need to be self-tests, home tests and thus, not monitored. People on the Eclipse have reported across a 50-50 split, that port personnel often don't even look at the tests - you can show a photo of your test or bring the plastic test kit in a baggie showing the negative line - so it is indeed very simple. What has been said is the key - it depends upon the countries to which the cruise is going whether testing and vaccines are required. The Eclipse has been in Australia/New Zealand/South Pacific for several months now, and since that area only relatively recently opened their borders to any sort of travel at all, let alone cruise ships which was even more recent (just a few months ago), their governments are imposing strict regulations on cruising, the effects of which are most seen by the B2B passengers on the Eclipse. To board the ship in the first place you only need to produce a home test. Yet, the B2B passengers are forced to do a monitored test administered by the crew. MANY passengers have been caught in the B2B testing monitored dragnet and are forced to isolate - for 5 days if Australian ports, 7 days if NZ ports. Many holidays have been dashed, people missing the opportunity to visit once-in-a-lifetime destinations. I am following the roll calls on a very active alternative social site, as we board the Eclipse for two months, in a few weeks, so we are more than a little freaked out by the B2B testing and we waited too long to cancel - very much our bad. So to swing back to the original post, in a long winded way, covid testing is still very much alive on the Celebrity Eclipse if you are a B2B passenger. https://www.celebritycruises.com/healthy-at-sea/transatlantic-travel-requirements

Agree and I am happy to see this thread. I have become fearful of posting due to a few writers - I've already had to block one of them - they just jump down your throat immediately. In particular, there was a thread that has since been closed - thank you, admin, a bit late to close it off but it finally was - the thread about the you tubers who made a film of the reduced evening buffet offerings. Oh man, the posters I'm referring to were on patrol on that thread, reaming anyone that disagreed with them or were trying to post a balanced comment, constantly adding their self-righteous snarky "laugh" emojis to whatever people wrote and then posting angrily and insultingly, against you. Yes, thank you, OP for staring this thread.

Well as we've seen, passengers ARE being tested, itinerary specific. Testing is alive and well (sadly, imho) on the Eclipse currently on her Aus/NZ/SoPacific season - B2B passengers must undergo mandatory MONITORED testing and to board the ship in the first place, they must present a home test, thus not monitored. Also, the TA and TP itineraries are requiring a test be presented, though I believe that all of those (have to check that) are also home tests.

Can you also include the procedure for testing the B2B passengers you went through on the Eclipse? It has been well documented on the roll calls for the Eclipse that B2B passengers are currently, and have been for the past few months, being tested for covid - mandatory, monitored testing by the crew - even though to board the ship, only a home self test is needed. B2B testing from what I understand is occurring during this period between the first cruise ending and the next one starting - not the day before disembarkation. Thank you!

We had the great pleasure of enjoying the 10B land tour this past June, 2022. You're getting lots of great info here, but let me speak up for the Seven Glaciers at the Alyeska Resort for dinner - OH MY GOSH YES, book far in advance! Spectacular in absolutely every way!! SO glad we did it, worth every penny, a tremendous experience. OK, maybe just a few more tips from our experience - when you take the Wilderness Express glass domed railcar to Talkeetna - DEFINITELY eat the breakfast on the train, delicious! We highly recommend the blueberry pancakes and the Denali scramble with reindeer sausage. We shared each dish so we could taste both - possibly the best pancakes we've ever had. And once at the Denali Park Village, there is an opportunity to go with your whole group (or you can book separately) to the super fun and yes, super kitschy, Alaska Cabin Nite Dinner Theatre - loved it!

We are on the Apex in Norway summer 2024 and are watching the excursions very closely. I watched a youtube video by Gary Bembridge which I found helpful. He has also written an article, here is that link: https://www.tipsfortravellers.com/these-7-things-throw-norwegian-fjords-cruisers-every-time/ .....anywho, what I'm getting at here, is there really are not that many excursion operators so it is very important to book early. The season there is VERY short so demand for excursions is extremely high. We already have several booked for 2024 but other of the ports don't have any listed yet......we are B2B in Norway, one of the cruises is the Arctic Circle cruise.

Same overall experience for us - for the B2Bs which we've done since the restart, the B2B meetings have been eliminated - we get paper notices with the information, but no more group meetings. This very well could be ship specific however, but I'm just saying that we haven't had a B2B meeting since pre-covid. Also, in all of our 30 cruises with Celebrity, many B2Bs, we've never received an invitation to the luncheon - however, from all that I've read, it seems that you have to be in the know that B2Bers are included in the Concierge lunch - that if you don't already know, they're not going to tell you about it. That said, it's been mentioned that it is in the B2B paperwork - and if it was, we missed it.

Ohhhhh, man......I'm sorry for all of that! And the woman who splashed you, how mature! It is truly mind boggling how many people have no consideration for others.......I have 3 kids, very close in age, and when we would go to a restaurant, I spent half the time under the table picking up the food they dropped (accidentally, they were young) so as not to cause undue work for the staff. And then here's a family allowing their child to run around, even worse with an open can of coke causing a mess such that overnight the carpet had to be cleaned......😧

Yes, exactly what I said, we agree completely. I would not have gone to speak with the table myself, oh no no no, but for sure, the maitre'd absolutely. Completely unacceptable and appalling behavior, selfish selfish selfish people. And about the child with the can of coke - I assume you did go to the maitre'd, correct? And yet, the same behavior occurred the next night......? Wow.

Vegetarian option definitely available in LPChef. As said above, the experience won't be quite as fun or impressive, as one of the exciting points of the experience is that the precise dish, looking nearly exactly the same as what LPChef makes in the animation, is placed before you and you're like, OH WOW, how cool is that! Have a great time, we have gone to LPChef five times now on various of the ships in the fleet, experienced four different animations (and thus, different stories and menus).

Remember, you have the same exact rights as that horrible rude boorish group - you are paying for your cruise, you are entitled to enjoy it. What they did was impinge on your enjoyment by caring nothing for anyone else but themselves - in essence, they were "disturbing the peace". I guarantee you that for not one moment did they ever think of anyone else. I am disturbed that no servers said anything to them but I personally would have blown a gasket, I'd have been up at the maitre'd's desk in a hot minute. Never ever sell yourself short, you are just as entitled to enjoy your cruise as they are and what they were doing was demonstrating atrocious behavior by "disturbing the peace".

And even this is itinerary dependent - meaning, for instance on the Eclipse currently, if you're not vaccinated, you can go on the cruise yes, but you are not allowed off in Fiji and I think from the reports, any of the South Pacific islands! So it's all still a bit of a tricky business.

The other thing that needs to be considered, is that currently, all of the Australian/NZ/South Pacific itineraries - all on the Eclipse - require monitored B2B testing - so if you are a consecutive cruiser, the crew swab your nose. Only a self home test is needed to board, but if you are B2B, you must endure a monitored test. But, if you call Celebrity, they will tell you that no back to back testing is occurring throughout the fleet - however, this is not true - it is itinerary dependent as per the restrictions the countries the ship is calling at impose. Covid testing is not over.

There is a lot of anger on this thread, so much that it makes me a bit uncomfortable and question motives/goals, of some of the posters. I don’t quite understand the vitriolic attacks on posters that have different opinions. Costs for all of us across every single aspect of our lives, are up, way up. A fee now for room service? 4 and 5 star hotels charge for room service. I for one found the original video illustrating the Ocean View Cafe dinner reduction to be good news, a bit of fresh air, the look of reason and common sense - not awful or that we as passengers are somehow being ripped off or betrayed, ha, quite the opposite in fact. There were ample choices in several category for those VERY FEW who eat dinner in the OVC. I have often walked through the OVC at dinner time and it’s basically dead up there, so to cut back on the offerings and focus on a few dishes makes sense. Cruise lines, as part of their absolute need to save money in order to pay their crippling debt, are analyzing where the people are at different times of day - lunch buffet still is huge as most people on sea days eat lunch in the buffet with small percentages eating in the Aqua Spa Cafe and the Eden Cafe (on Edge Class ships). MDR at lunch - deadsville. OVC at dinner - deadsville. Resources are being shifted. All cruise lines are working hard to stay in business without spoiling their brand - and a fee for room service and a reduced dinner buffet does not spoil “X”’s brand. Cruising on any line, still remains an incredible overall value. At the end of the day, Celebrity still provides the best all around product in it’s category - food, entertainment, casino, staff, ambiance - deciding to cruise on a different line lower in this category will surely make one come running back to Celebrity as cuts are pervasive everywhere, and far deeper and more evident on lesser lines. Move up to Oceania (though I’d choose Regent) - very different product and price point. And though I don’t know, I’d wager that people who regularly cruise Oceania and Regent are also complaining! That’s my .02 cents.

Stunning!!

And that was indeed where the confusion did lie - Fijian gov't site seemed very clear that we as cruise passengers would not need to prove insurance whereas it was Celebrity that caused the confusion, it was Celebrity that notified the passengers on your cruise that proof of insurance was required. We are not in Fiji until a few months on Eclipse, and we thought it was interesting/revealing/telling, that we never received an email from Celebrity at the same time as you received your stateroom notice, notifying us that we better get cracking and make sure we have insurance for our upcoming cruise......your cruise here seemed to be the guinea pig. I understand how policies shift and change but I feel that Celebrity made a significant error here with telling you all that 'covid insurance is needed basically immediately or you won't be able to get off in Fiji but oh that's ok as we have so many lovely trivias planned', causing I'm sure many passengers to scramble - unnecessarily.

Self-testing is definitely for the optics, shows that the cruise line is "proactive", not much different from an attestation.

Honestly, if they're anything like the old home pregnancy tests (they sure do look like them! in fact I often joke when people post photos of their covid home tests, asking if it's a boy or a girl), then the lines stay for years - is it TMI to divulge that I have saved my home pregnancy tests for my 3 kids, ok, yes, maybe it is! 😂😅

Thanks for that, and of course the covid insurance need for someone on land makes sense, there is logic there. No logic at all for a cruise passenger there for a day, in with the ship and out with the ship in a matter of a few hours - good to see that sound judgment had prevailed.

Thank you so much for this! Did you hear any chatter amongst the guests, ie from those that might have had to purchase a covid policy last minute, but ultimately for no need? And the other islands that you're heading to, also no need for a separate covid policy (as of yet anyway, since last minute notification seems to be all the rage?) Again, thank you for the information, so helpful. Continue to have a marvelous cruise!