Carnival Sunshine Delayed Boarding March 5th

[tbdurdles2]

When we sailed on the NCL Dawn back in 2007 they had hand sanitizer stations at every food place and bars on the boat. They had people stationed at the buffet making sure you did the sanitizer before picking up a tray or any food. I just assumed they did that on every boat to help prevent any sickness. Guessing now maybe not?

[jimbo5544]

When we sailed on the NCL Dawn back in 2007 they had hand sanitizer stations at every food place and bars on the boat. They had people stationed at the buffet making sure you did the sanitizer before picking up a tray or any food. I just assumed they did that on every boat to help prevent any sickness. Guessing now maybe not?

 

If hand sanitizers were the answer to the problem, then Royal would be the leader in this area as opposed to near bottom. Point is there are many factors.

[tbdurdles2]

Sorry I didn't mean to make it sound like Carnival was not being just as cautious as NCL. I know the sanitizer can only prevent certain things. I just haven't been on any other cruise till our upcoming one so I just thought all boats did that. I was actually thinking that out of 3000 passengers it looked like less then 200 people were sick and on an enclosed boat I thought that meant they really had done a good job containing it. You are very correct jimbo5544 there are many factors and it's a risk that is more then worth taking because cruising is one of the best ways to vacation! Very excited for our first Carnival one! And as a side note I am loving your reviews and input on the cruises! Very helpful to us Sunshine first timers!

[pe4all]

When we sailed on the NCL Dawn back in 2007 they had hand sanitizer stations at every food place and bars on the boat. They had people stationed at the buffet making sure you did the sanitizer before picking up a tray or any food. I just assumed they did that on every boat to help prevent any sickness. Guessing now maybe not?

Every NCL cruise (4 in last 2 years) we have been on has not only had hand sanitizer throughout the ship - especially in the buffet area - but "washy washy" people with spray bottles at buffet entrance, and as you get on the ship in each port. We have never gotten ill on any cruise (20 w CCL, 6 with assorted others besides NCL) we have taken, but are careful to not touch railings, elevator buttons with fingers (we use our knuckles or elbows - yes, it may look silly...) open bathroom doors with hands (we use paper towels or the little papers they have on the doors). You can get sick anywhere, anytime, no matter how many precautions you take, but a little extra care helps you stay healthy. Can't tell you how many people still sneeze or cough into their hand, then touch something. Grosses me out!

[jimbo5544]

Sorry I didn't mean to make it sound like Carnival was not being just as cautious as NCL. I know the sanitizer can only prevent certain things. I just haven't been on any other cruise till our upcoming one so I just thought all boats did that. I was actually thinking that out of 3000 passengers it looked like less then 200 people were sick and on an enclosed boat I thought that meant they really had done a good job containing it. You are very correct jimbo5544 there are many factors and it's a risk that is more then worth taking because cruising is one of the best ways to vacation! Very excited for our first Carnival one! And as a side note I am loving your reviews and input on the cruises! Very helpful to us Sunshine first timers!

 

Thanks for the kind words on the reviews, they are a labor of love. I was not accusing on my post. There certainly are some that do a lot more sanitizers than others. When we sailed on Oasis, the staff was very aggressive with hand sanitizers (walking up to you and almost making it mandatory and not letting you ion the room without doing it). BTW, I don't have a problem with that, but my point was that doing that is only one factor (the easiest to manage, true enough) but Noro is something everyone who sails should be concerned with, and Lido is one of those areas where it can be easily spread.

[smarks]

From what friends have posted thought the number was much higher

I was on this cruise with 21 others in our group and nobody in the group got noro but some of us did get a nasty sinus infection on the last 2 sea days. Other than that, it was a great cruise. We never saw anyone sick. We wouldn't have known anybody was if they hadn't sent out fliers and made announcements over the intercom. They did start serving everybody on the Lido and we had to wash our hands before entering and after. So lots of precautions were taken to stop the spread. Enjoy your cruise.

[jimbo5544]

I was on this cruise with 21 others in our group and nobody in the group got noro but some of us did get a nasty sinus infection on the last 2 sea days. Other than that, it was a great cruise. We never saw anyone sick. We wouldn't have known anybody was if they hadn't sent out fliers and made announcements over the intercom. They did start serving everybody on the Lido and we had to wash our hands before entering and after. So lots of precautions were taken to stop the spread. Enjoy your cruise.

We were on the sailing before yours. Having staff serve on lido is a good tool to fight Noro.

[MCFTJCH2V]

We were on the sailing before yours. Having staff serve on lido is a good tool to fight Noro.

 

Unless they are the ones spreading it.

 

Any clue how the current sailing is going?

[Micahs Grandad]

The problem is so many people have no clue as to hygiene. Watch people behavior leaving bathrooms and no wonder so often noro pops up.

 

Do wonder how many strains there are and if you get it are you immune in the future?

[Sweet Dutch Girl]

Every NCL cruise (4 in last 2 years) we have been on has not only had hand sanitizer throughout the ship - especially in the buffet area - but "washy washy" people with spray bottles at buffet entrance, and as you get on the ship in each port. We have never gotten ill on any cruise (20 w CCL, 6 with assorted others besides NCL) we have taken, but are careful to not touch railings, elevator buttons with fingers (we use our knuckles or elbows - yes, it may look silly...) open bathroom doors with hands (we use paper towels or the little papers they have on the doors). You can get sick anywhere, anytime, no matter how many precautions you take, but a little extra care helps you stay healthy. Can't tell you how many people still sneeze or cough into their hand, then touch something. Grosses me out!

 

You may want to check-out the effectiveness of hand sanitizers...I believe they are a "nice" way of giving everyone a false sense of security. Also, I believe that people who are germaphobes contribute to outbreaks of all kinds because they don't allow mother nature to take its course and don't develop their own immune system so are much more susceptible to things like norovirus.

[Steven89]

Good morning from the Carnival Sunshine. 2nd day at sea, enroute to Aruba. Sun is out, seas are fairly calm but waves are building as we cruise south.

 

This morning I noticed Carnival staff on Lido directing passengers to the automated hand washing stations that are at each enterance to Lido Marketplace and the Havana Bar towards the back of deck 9. The hand washing stations are unique and only on Sunshine, as far as I know? Most people are ignoring the requests to wash hands... This upsets me.

 

My wife and I have decided to do the following to reduce our chances of getting Noro. We wash hands just as we enter lido, and we always get food from the buffet & Guys Burgers just as they open to reduce likelihood of contamination from fellow passengers. We also wash our hands after finding a table to eat at. Following the meal we wash again as we likely came into contact with a dirty table.

 

Our strategy may seem excessive but my wife caught an illness similar to Noro on a different cruise line last year and it was alarmingly serious how sick you can get.

 

The CD is making announcements about washing hands during meal hours. To be honest, it will be very surprising if an outbreak doesn't return to this cruise.

 

On the plus side, the hallways and our stateroom smells like chemical cleaner everyday as extra cleaning continues.

 

I will create a new thread if Noro returns.

[ATL_Miami_Cruiser]

WTH, doors kicked in? That escalated quickly.

 

If you have a violent person with a no-knock type warrant severe enough to call in a tactical/swat team at a normal house. You can count on a forceful entry into the cabin if the police feel their safety is at risk.

 

Does that answer your question?

[smarks]

On the Sunshine cruise that returned March 5, Carnival was putting out fliers stating that the hand sanitizers would not kill the noro virus and told everyone to wash hands throughly and often and to use the sanitizer when nothing else was available. The wash stations are a plus. Carnival did seem to get it under control pretty quick. I am all for them serving me when eating at the Lido after seeing how some folks act at a buffet.

[pe4all]

You may want to check-out the effectiveness of hand sanitizers...I believe they are a "nice" way of giving everyone a false sense of security. Also, I believe that people who are germaphobes contribute to outbreaks of all kinds because they don't allow mother nature to take its course and don't develop their own immune system so are much more susceptible to things like norovirus.

Believe me as a teacher for 35 years I know hand sanitizers are a not an end-all to not getting sick- though they do help in "washing away" some of the germs! Can't tell you how many times I see people walking out of the ladies room without washing hands - then touching everything in site - including the door handles! Or coughing into their hands and then touching the serving ladles at the buffet! While on Splendor a few weeks back a mom sitting next to me at the adult pool was telling me how her 16 year old daughter had vomiting/diahrea, and spread it to the other 3 her cabin - including the mom - and how the mom was so sick with it "last night" and still felt terrible this a.m.- and here they were galavanting around the ship. They would have been quarentined to their cabins had any staff known. Probably infected 1/2 the ship!

[Bobby_Mac]

We were on the Sunshine Feb 21 - Mar 5 cruise. That was our best cruise so far. Loved it!