Attention Regatta cruisers March/April. New Tahiti health requirements arriving passengers.

[Petoonya]

In light of COVID-19 the French Polynesian health department has issued a new requirement. (I fly into Papeete 4/12 for Regatta 4/14.) It is evolving.

As of March 2, 2020, every person (including flight personnel) must present on board a flight to French Polynesia, a medical certificate certifying the state of health free of any sign of infection at coronaviruses.

 

 

Edited March 3, 2020 by Petoonya

[Flatbush Flyer]

8 minutes ago, Petoonya said:

In light of COVID-19 the French Polynesian health department has issued a new requirement. (I fly into Papeete 4/12 for Regatta 4/14.)

As of March 2, 2020, every person (including flight personnel) must present on board a flight to French Polynesia, a medical certificate certifying the state of health free of any sign of infection at coronaviruses.

 

 

If you're going to post something like this, it is really important that you provide a link to (or PDF of) whatever communication/reference/document alerted you. 

One interpretation (the strictest) of your statement would mean passengers would need to be lab tested for Covid-19 (VERY expensive and not available as an elective test). At the other end of the spectrum would be the ship's MD certifying that all passengers and crew having boarded the ship (probably for at least 30 days prior to that cruise) have been "screened" and have met whatever governmental and industry travel restrictions are being adhered to by Oceania.

 

Needless to say, that's a wide range of actions.

So, please be specific. 

[Petoonya]

20 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

If you're going to post something like this, it is really important that you provide a link to (or PDF of) whatever communication/reference/document alerted you. 

One interpretation (the strictest) of your statement would mean passengers would need to be lab tested for Covid-19 (VERY expensive and not available as an elective test). At the other end of the spectrum would be the ship's MD certifying that all passengers and crew having boarded the ship (probably for at least 30 days prior to that cruise) have been "screened" and have met whatever governmental and industry travel restrictions are being adhered to by Oceania.

 

Needless to say, that's a wide range of actions.

So, please be specific. 

Thanks Flatbush. So true. The document is very non specific and apparently evolving. No specifics  available other than notice of medical certification required. English translation of second document at the bottom of the page.

https://www.presidence.pf/evolution-des-mesures-prises-par-le-gouvernement-pour-eviter-lintroduction-du-covid-19-coronavirus-en-polynesie-francaise/
 

https://www.service-public.pf/dsp/covid-19/voyageurs-covid-19/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 3, 2020 by Petoonya

[amitje]

I think it will be a wait and see for us, we are on the March 25th sailing. Things are changing so rapidly..

 

If they just need a written letter from a doctor, we need to get that on the 20th as we are flying to LA on the Monday.. I hope that will be sufficient, very little details in the link. I'm assuming that will need to be in French or English as well..

 

Cross our fingers that we get to go at all..

 

[Petoonya]

21 minutes ago, amitje said:

I think it will be a wait and see for us, we are on the March 25th sailing. Things are changing so rapidly..

 

If they just need a written letter from a doctor, we need to get that on the 20th as we are flying to LA on the Monday.. I hope that will be sufficient, very little details in the link. I'm assuming that will need to be in French or English as well..

 

Cross our fingers that we get to go at all..

 

I'm not going to mess around. We REALLY want to do this cruise. It's difficult to get in with our health provider so we've taken our best guesses, made an appt  2 days prior to departure from LAX. We hope that we interpret the FP's initial advisory successfully.

Ya just do your best in the moment and go with it.

Edited March 3, 2020 by Petoonya

[Petoonya]

11 minutes ago, amitje said:

Cross our fingers that we get to go at all..

It's just a wait and see as you say. Respecting Fr. Polynesia's needs, still would so LOVE to go if it's safe for them with medical backup so limited. The situation is evolving daily. My gut says we get to go- for whatever that's worth!

[Verokaren]

Again, thank you, Petoonya, for this heads up. We are sailing on the March 15 departure, hopefully!! It is hard to know what is required, specifically. Would a visit to an urgent care facility suffice? And again, Oceania needs to weigh in on this.

 

I have friends sailing on Viking, and they are thrilled with their new policy regarding the 24 hour cancellation.

[Petoonya]

35 minutes ago, Verokaren said:

Again, thank you, Petoonya, for this heads up. We are sailing on the March 15 departure, hopefully!! It is hard to know what is required, specifically. Would a visit to an urgent care facility suffice? And again, Oceania needs to weigh in on this.

 

I have friends sailing on Viking, and they are thrilled with their new policy regarding the 24 hour cancellation.

Karen....with so little info it is really hard to know. I know you and others are under the gun time wise. I'm only an RN. My best guess at this point is, short of an actual COVID-19 test (would be a hard press to find a health professional willing to administer without symptoms) about the best that can be offered to FP is proof that lungs are clear and person afebrile. Hopefully an urgent care provider's say so would suffice. Not that that is any proof one is not carrying the virus. More to be revealed hopefully.

[PaulMCO]

3 hours ago, Petoonya said:

In light of COVID-19 the French Polynesian health department has issued a new requirement. (I fly into Papeete 4/12 for Regatta 4/14.) It is evolving.

As of March 2, 2020, every person (including flight personnel) must present on board a flight to French Polynesia, a medical certificate certifying the state of health free of any sign of infection at coronaviruses.

 

 

Not exactly true.  Missing some important points.  (source is the United Corona virus restrictions).  There are more if you go to Micronesia.

 

French Polynesia travel restrictions

French Polynesia (PPT) visitors who have been in Cambodia, the People’s Republic of China, Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Japan, South Korea, Macau, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand or Vietnam since January 1, 2020, must present a medical certificate to enter the country. The medical certificate must be dated from maximum 5 days prior to their arrival and indicate that they’re not showing any signs of viral infection

Edited March 3, 2020 by PaulMCO

[Flatbush Flyer]

46 minutes ago, PaulMCO said:

Not exactly true.  Missing some important points.  (source is the United Corona virus restrictions).  There are more if you go to Micronesia.

 

French Polynesia travel restrictions

French Polynesia (PPT) visitors who have been in Cambodia, the People’s Republic of China, Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Japan, South Korea, Macau, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand or Vietnam since January 1, 2020, must present a medical certificate to enter the country. The medical certificate must be dated from maximum 5 days prior to their arrival and indicate that they’re not showing any signs of viral infection

That was the the 2/26/20 notice. The new March 2 update from their Dept. of Health is as was posted above: "anyone flying in."

[susiesan]

There is a thread on TA about this. people who just arrived a few days ago are reporting it is no big deal. 

It's just a piece of paper that the authorities have no way of knowing if it is real or not.

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g311415-i869-k13205054-Coronavirus_related_restrictions-Bora_Bora_Society_Islands.html

[YoHoHo]

15 minutes ago, susiesan said:

There is a thread on TA about this. people who just arrived a few days ago are reporting it is no big deal. 

It's just a piece of paper that the authorities have no way of knowing if it is real or not.

 

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g311415-i869-k13205054-Coronavirus_related_restrictions-Bora_Bora_Society_Islands.html

Ah - gets even better. A possibility of fake documentation in order to enjoy the delights of FP.

 

[susiesan]

Just showed up on Air Tahiti Nui web site:

Before boarding a flight into French Polynesia, all passengers regardless of their nationality must necessarily present a medical certificate not older than 5 days certifying the traveller’s health condition, regardless of their port of embarkation.

 

https://www.airtahitinui.com/us-en/reinforcement-precautionary-measures-taken-french-polynesian-government

[Earl Rosebery]

What I find so interesting is that the authorities in FP. seem to be ahead of those here.

 

There are clear instructions to local residents what they should do if unwell.   Essentially, stay home and someone from the health service will come to you. How civilized!

[njhorseman]

24 minutes ago, Earl Rosebery said:

What I find so interesting is that the authorities in FP. seem to be ahead of those here.

 

There are clear instructions to local residents what they should do if unwell.   Essentially, stay home and someone from the health service will come to you. How civilized!

It's very easy for authorities to be "ahead of those here" if you're a tiny country that has almost no manufacturing, exports little, and what it does export....pearls, coconut products, vanilla and shark meat, are not really needed by the consumers and economies of the rest of the world to keep functioning. About 85% of French Polynesia's GDP is from the service sector...and tourism is the engine driving that. If tourists stop coming to their country because of a real virus outbreak or fear of an outbreak. their country's economy is going to wither and die.

 

 Telling people to stay home in an industrialized country like the US, Canada , the UK, Germany, etc. is going to have an immediate substantial impact on the global economy. Look at what's happened already in China where it became necessary to impose restrictions in some areas of the country. Yesterday's brief rally aside, have you seen what happened to stock prices in the past 10 days or so because of both the real and potential impact of COVID-19 on the global economy?