Noro on Marina

[Mrs f.]

Boarding marina today. Do we just tell cabbie Cruise Port?

[LHT28]

7 hours ago, Mrs f. said:

Boarding marina today. Do we just tell cabbie Cruise Port?

In your FINAL CRUISE SUMMARY  email it usually tells you what pier  to go to

But I am sure if you tell the taxi  what ship you are on they will find it

[StanandJim]

1 hour ago, LHT28 said:

In your FINAL CRUISE SUMMARY  email it usually tells you what pier  to go to

But I am sure if you tell the taxi  what ship you are on they will find it

+1, on  page 4

[LHT28]

51 minutes ago, StanandJim said:

+1, on  page 4

On the email  it was on  page 1 

Either way  the port address is there  & the pier #

 

It could change on the day of the cruise  but most taxis will find it

[StanandJim]

Just now, LHT28 said:

On the email  it was on  page 1 

Either way  the port address is there  & the pier #

 

It could change on the day of the cruise  but most taxis will find it

Sorry I meant the Bluebook.  I never receive those email summaries, anyway.

[LHT28]

4 minutes ago, StanandJim said:

Sorry I meant the Bluebook.  I never receive those email summaries, anyway.

you should

 

[Mrs f.]

We are on board.  Message on loudspeaker said they feel they have it contained.  They are still continuously wiping things down. Plastic over the elevator  buttons.but real dishes.  Bread, butter, sweeteners are handed to you. Paper menus. The wooden hangers taken out of room for cleaning.  They are really trying.  

[Rob the Cruiser]

@Mrs f.Thank-you for the update. Have a great trip.

[chelseabelsea]

Just got home from the Marina cruise Marseille-Barcelona, the one in which we had Noro outbreak. We were also on the cruise in January 2018 that had noro, as another person posting to this thread had experienced. In neither case did we get paper plates, and we always had a nice dining experience, even with being handed salt, pepper, sweeteners, etc., instead of having them on the table. I agree, O’s crew works this stuff really hard, yet I also agree that some processes- the exchange of tour tickets for bus tickets- doesn’t seem to make sense. Having said that, we did learn that at the bars, our room card and the pen offered us to sign our bill had both been sanitized each time they were used by bar staff. This was not publicly announced, we discovered this in speaking with a couple of the staff. I suspect O does more than they tell us when they are in noro-combat mode,

i did remark in my end of cruise survey that passengers should be informed as soon as they suspect they might have noro onboard, instead of when CDC requires us to be notified.

I also recommended they permanently seal off the buffet lines from passengers- I have seen so many people who get impatient with waiting their turn and reach under and grab food their own.

Throughout both of the “Sick” cruises we were on, after we passengers had been advised we had noro onboard, I STILL saw passengers leave the restrooms without washing their hands- disgusting. I don’t know how you fix this situation- how do you remedy carelessness???
 

 

 

[LHT28]

31 minutes ago, chelseabelsea said:

I also recommended they permanently seal off the buffet lines from passengers- I have seen so many people who get impatient with waiting their turn and reach under and grab food their own.

 

I have been saying for years on my comment cards  that they should lower the glass  to the counter so people cannot get their hands  on the food

Last cruise they had plastic wrap across the  hot food sections so people could not reach under to get food

 

"carelessness"  is not a word I would use for people not washing their hands after  using the loo  but cannot post the words I would use 😎

[Paulchili]

1 hour ago, LHT28 said:

carelessness"  is not a word I would use for people not washing their hands after  using the loo  but cannot post the words I would use 😎

My thoughts exactly.

I can’t imagine people ever leaving the bathroom without washing their hands - Noro or no Noro.

[Mrs f.]

We are currently  on board Marina.  Crew working so hard cleaning. Plastic all around buffet. You point or tell them what you want and they plate it for you. As soon as you leave the table in Terrace, a worker comes to  spray table and chairs. They put a little sign on table asking people not to sit there till the stuff dries. Self serve laundry  still closed.   Going back to room after our meet and greet to wash out some stuff.

[pinotlover]

On our single cruise where Noro was an issue we took our own precautions by not going to the Terrace, Waves, Lounge, and finally Horizons anymore. 

 

As a purely personal point, I don’t understand the pointing thing often followed by some guttural grunt!! I politely explained to a lady one day that the waitstaff understands English. Therefore, “ May I have some bacon please “ is far more effective than pointing and grunting! The waiter smiled.

 

I double down on this for those that insist upon sticking their entire arms under neath the glass to point and grunt! I believe the glass should come completely down to the counter. It was explained to me, by a restaurant manager, that many of the passengers, for varying reasons, can’t reach up and receive their plates from over the top of the glass counter and feel it discriminatory to be required to go to the end of the counter to get their plates. 

Edited November 25, 2019 by pinotlover

[LHT28]

48 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

I double down on this for those that insist upon sticking their entire arms under neath the glass to point and grunt! I believe the glass should come completely down to the counter. It was explained to me, by a restaurant manager, that many of the passengers, for varying reasons, can’t reach up and receive their plates from over the top of the glass counter and feel it discriminatory to be required to go to the end of the counter to get their plates. 

If they lowered the glass they could lower the height of the top of the glass counter  by several inches so people can reach  except for those height impaired 😎

Other lines have counters pax can reach up & take your plate & still not compromise the food

[pinotlover]

Lyn;

 

May I add glass pecking to the pointing? Those that have to point and grunt while pecking on the glass! I often wondered if those glass smears came from the same fingers used to wipe but weren’t washed thereafter!

Edited November 25, 2019 by pinotlover

[LHT28]

9 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Lyn;

 

May I add glass pecking to the pointing? Those that have to point and grunt while pecking on the glass! I often wondered if those glass smears came from the same fingers used to wipe but weren’t washed thereafter!

Do not touch the glass  among other things the dirty hands can touch

But I wash/gel  do what I can to protect myself  as best I can

the one time  I slipped up somewhere  & paid the price ...2 days I will never get back

 

One stewardess told me   she has a rule ..she does not touch her face  unless she has just washed her hands

in spite of NORO going around she has not been sick following her  own rules

[Rob the Cruiser]

1 hour ago, pinotlover said:

On our single cruise where Noro was an issue we took our own precautions by not going to the Terrace, Waves, Lounge, and finally Horizons anymore. 

 

As a purely personal point, I don’t understand the pointing thing often followed by some guttural grunt!! I politely explained to a lady one day that the waitstaff understands English. Therefore, “ May I have some bacon please “ is far more effective than pointing and grunting! The waiter smiled.

 

I double down on this for those that insist upon sticking their entire arms under neath the glass to point and grunt! I believe the glass should come completely down to the counter. It was explained to me, by a restaurant manager, that many of the passengers, for varying reasons, can’t reach up and receive their plates from over the top of the glass counter and feel it discriminatory to be required to go to the end of the counter to get their plates. 

 

I wouldn't bother trying to teach people basic manners that they should have learned as a child but I would love to follow you around when you do. I would be laughing like crazy while watching the reaction of the offenders!

Edited November 25, 2019 by Rob the Cruiser
typo

[chelseabelsea]

Well, I must admit I had to re-write my choice of words a few times...finally, I hit upon “careless”...it sure sounds like the ship is still fighting it, given that the laundry is still closed and they are still sanitizing tables between guests. I do know there were a few folks from our cruise are continuing on to the transatlantic currently underway, so I understand why O would continue with these procedures.

As for people who feel that the height of the buffet is somehow discriminatory, well that’s too bad- but don’t they value their health more than feeling inconvenienced? I certainly do!

[LHT28]

Usually they are in some sort of Code Red for the first  couple of days  but if they had an outbreak  on the previous cruise  they may leave the cleaning in place a bit longer

 

[edgee]

23 hours ago, LHT28 said:

I have been saying for years on my comment cards  that they should lower the glass  to the counter so people cannot get their hands  on the food

Last cruise they had plastic wrap across the  hot food sections so people could not reach under to get food

 

"carelessness"  is not a word I would use for people not washing their hands after  using the loo  but cannot post the words I would use 😎

Sorry, but I think the entire Oceania policy of not allowing people to serve themselves in buffets presents the façade of cleanliness without making a  bit of difference. First of all, there are many areas of the Oceania ships where guests serve themselves including Baristas, the Concierge and Executive Lounges, the coffee machines in the Terrace...there are some others. In the over 50 cruises we have taken, all cruise lines except Oceania allow pretty much self service in buffets. Yet, in those 50 cruises, the ONLY occasion where we have encountered a noro virus problem has been on an Oceania ship---the Marina. I do not believe there is any evidence of any kind showing that Oceania ships are any safer health wise than ships which allow self service in the buffets. So, if Oceania regulars feel that the Terrace is a healthier place to eat than other ship buffets, that is fine, but I just don't buy it.

[Paulchili]

29 minutes ago, edgee said:

So, if Oceania regulars feel that the Terrace is a healthier place to eat than other ship buffets, that is fine, but I just don't buy it.

Yes, I do believe it is a healthier and nicer place to eat than some other ship buffets.

Self service is not the CAUSE of Noro but it may help in stopping the faster spread of Noro.

We all know and have witnessed that some people do not wash their hands after using bathrooms and just on principle, I do not wish to use the same serving utensils (after just having washed my own hands) that they may have used - whether there is a Noro situation or not..

In addition to this hygienic consideration, there is also an aesthetic consideration as well.

Self service buffets can become messy and picked over. An example may be a dish like stir fried beef or shrimp with vegetables where all the beef/shrimp had been pick off by some selfish people leaving nothing but some leftovers; I have seen it.

Oceania buffets obviously do not prevent outbreaks of Noro but I still feel better about the way they work.

As always, YMMV.

Edited November 26, 2019 by Paulchili

[edgee]

19 minutes ago, Paulchili said:

Yes, I do believe it is a healthier and nicer place to eat than some other ship buffets.

Self service is not the CAUSE of Noro but it may help in stopping the faster spread of Noro.

We all know and have witnessed that some people do not wash their hands after using bathrooms and just on principle, I do not wish to use the same serving utensils (after just having washed my own hands) that they may have used - whether there is a Noro situation or not..

In addition to this hygienic consideration, there is also an aesthetic consideration as well.

Self service buffets can become messy and picked over. An example may be a dish like stir fried beef or shrimp with vegetables where all the beef/shrimp had been pick off by some selfish people leaving nothing but some leftovers; I have seen it.

Oceania buffets obviously do not prevent outbreaks of Noro but I still feel better about the way they work.

As always, YMMV.

In my case, Oceania is the only cruise line where I have encountered noro. I agree that Oceania's system can make for an aesthetically more pleasing buffet. However, a well managed well staffed self service arrangement can be aesthetically as pleasing. Example I would point to is Crystal, AND their arrangement avoids the crowding of guests waiting for one or two servers to fill their plates in high demand areas of the buffet such as the desert counter on Riviera and Marina.

[Paulchili]

12 minutes ago, edgee said:

However, a well managed well staffed self service arrangement can be aesthetically as pleasing. Example I would point to is Crystal,

I agree that a self service buffet can be managed and be aesthetically pleasing  if it is well looked after.

Funny that you mentioned Crystal - one of my niggles with their buffet was that many items are arranged 3 deep and my relatively short arms had a lot of trouble reaching that far back, often unintentionally brushing against items in the first 2 rows. Would have benefited from some help but none was available at the time.

Edited November 26, 2019 by Paulchili

[edgee]

1 minute ago, Paulchili said:

I agree that a self service buffet can be managed and be aesthetically pleasing  if it is well looked after.

Funny that you mentioned Crystal - one of my niggles with their buffet was that many items are arranged 3 deep and my relatively short arms had a lot of trouble reaching that far back, often unintentionally brushing against items in the first 2 rows.

I think I concurred with you about the reaching problem on Crystal in a thread several months ago. I sometimes had to ask a staff member to reach "third row" items on Crystal. Seemed that strawberries for my breakfast cereal were always in the the third row🙄

[Mrs f.]

7 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Usually they are in some sort of Code Red for the first  couple of days  but if they had an outbreak  on the previous cruise  they may leave the cleaning in place a bit longer

 

We are still in code red. They said  they might end code today but nobody knows.