Test Cruises

[bones774]

18 hours ago, Formula280SS said:

 

Royal has announcement today and special website and facebook page now for volunteers.

 

https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/23855-royal-caribbean-opens-website-for-cruise-volunteers.html

 

Here's the link to the website and the online application "Volunteer of the Seas" (cruise with planned stop at private island).

 

https://cruisesimulationform.questionpro.com/a/TakeSurvey?tt=5XK/ENZTPo8%3D&_ct=Pn5tlS7miUngtcvwXp2un7SFp6WcpfEU

 

 

I went thru the above link and was told i had already submitted, incorrect. I went to the FB site and went thru that link, EZPZ.

[seaman11]

20 hours ago, farmersfight said:

 There ya go @seaman11. December is looking very good for cruises going. I told you it would be RCL first to their private island...

Yes that would be fine with me, i like the beach .  I submitted a volunteer app. hopefully they consider C and A members before others. 

[seaman11]

On 11/5/2020 at 2:49 PM, complawyer said:

my wife upped my life insurance policy and then signed me up as a volunteer.  mere coincidence?  just saying!

[farmersfight]

3 hours ago, seaman11 said:

Yes that would be fine with me, i like the beach .  I submitted a volunteer app. hopefully they consider C and A members before others. 

 

Wow, I was just teasing you but why doesn't it surprise me that you've actually applied. In all seriousness, I hope you get picked because of all the CC members here on these boards, there isn't anyone who's got more passion for cruising than you! Best of luck!

 

Btw - I'm guessing that "C and A" means Crown and Anchor? Again, it wouldn't surprise me if you were a senior loyalty member of all the major cruise lines. I hope you are retired because the more time you have at your disposal to cruise, the better!

Edited November 14, 2020 by farmersfight

[seaman11]

4 minutes ago, farmersfight said:

 

Wow, I was just teasing you but why doesn't it surprise me that you've actually applied. In all seriousness, I hope you get picked because of all the CC members here on these boards, there isn't anyone who's got more passion for cruising than you! Best of luck!

 

Btw - I'm guessing that "C and A" means Crown and Anchor? Again, it wouldn't surprise me if you were a senior loyalty member of all the major cruise lines. I hope you are retired because the more time you have at your disposal to cruise, the better!

thx , have the highest with royal , but i have a status on celebrity and carnival and norwegian, i am a semi retired , business owner.  i would have went on at least 3-4 this year . so its been a big bummer for me. 

[farmersfight]

9 minutes ago, seaman11 said:

thx , have the highest with royal , but i have a status on celebrity and carnival and norwegian, i am a semi retired , business owner.  i would have went on at least 3-4 this year . so its been a big bummer for me. 

 Totally understand. I am newly retired and cruising was going to be my retirement activity of choice this year, but then the "Wu Flu" hit and it was "all stop" (to coin a ship handling phrase).

 

I'm a maritime academy grad and have multiple mariners in my family so ships are "in my blood". Yeah, now that I'm retired, I'll be able to do at least 3-4 cruises per year. I've set a self-imposed minimum of at least 12 day cruises to book (again, being retired time is not a concern).

 

Well, hopefully the good news on the vaccine(s) will come to fruition and we can all get back to cruising sometime in 2021 (sooner rather than later in the year).

Edited November 14, 2020 by farmersfight

[HBCcruiser]

On 11/10/2020 at 3:16 PM, sid_9169 said:

I would volunteer in a second for anything that gets me on board!... Where do I sign up?...

 

So would I! Sign me up! 

[GA Dave]

13 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

While they are walking back that it is definite, the COVID task force is on a path to shutdown of the country for 4-6 weeks after inauguration which will stop test cruises and relaunch. This was the action promised by the President-elect, so it is likely to happen. 

 

https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/11/11/biden-covid-advisor-says-us-lockdown-of-4-to-6-weeks-could-control-pandemic-and-revive-economy.html

 

And this lovely news too.

 

Democrats-call-for-cdc-to-place-temporary-halt-on-passenger-cruises

[hamrag]

5 hours ago, GA Dave said:

And this lovely news too.

 

Democrats-call-for-cdc-to-place-temporary-halt-on-passenger-cruises

It's going to be worth even that to have such new administration. 😉

[hamrag]

13 hours ago, seaman11 said:

Yes that would be fine with me, i like the beach .  I submitted a volunteer app. hopefully they consider C and A members before others. 

 

🤞 🤞

[farmersfight]

18 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

While they are walking back that it is definite, the COVID task force is on a path to shutdown of the country for 4-6 weeks after inauguration which will stop test cruises and relaunch. This was the action promised by the President-elect, so it is likely to happen. 

 

https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/11/11/biden-covid-advisor-says-us-lockdown-of-4-to-6-weeks-could-control-pandemic-and-revive-economy.html

 

 

Europe has clearly shown that the hard lock down of their countries did/do not work. Their Wu Flu cases are spiking again. This Biden covid advisor, Dr. Osterholm, says another national lock down would revive the economy? How does that work? Oh, he says the U.S. Govt will borrow money during the lock down and just pay everybody. Not that we, the U.S. tax payers, will ever have to pay that borrowed money back or anything. Besides Dr. Osterholm being the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, he must also be an economic genius. Yeah, good times ahead under this incoming Administration.

[farmersfight]

6 hours ago, GA Dave said:

And this lovely news too.

 

Democrats-call-for-cdc-to-place-temporary-halt-on-passenger-cruises

 

The current lame duck Administration will not allow the CDC to do this so the earliest this could happen would be Jan 20, 2021. Hopefully, the new vaccine roll out will be well underway by then and these Democrats will change their position (probably wishful thinking...).

[HuliHuli]

23 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

This was the action promised by the President-elect, so it is likely to happen. 

Except that, Dr. Michael Osterholm, an adviser to … Joe Biden, said … [on] Thursday that "he has not discussed … his earlier proposal to lock down the country [with the incoming administration]...”  He also said he doesn’t think there’s a national consensus for it anyway.  “It’s not going to be supported out of the administration.  It’s not going to be supported in Congress," Osterholm said.

Add to that Biden’s “guarantee” to stop fracking that he walked back.  And his broken promise ‘not to declare victory until the election is independently certified.’  And then Biden said he would remove tariffs on imports from China, to which his staff later corrected to he “would reevaluate the tariffs upon taking office.”  I think one has to be quite gullible to put any trust in what the former VP says.

[ColeThornton]

20 minutes ago, HuliHuli said:

Except that, Dr. Michael Osterholm, an adviser to … Joe Biden, said … [on] Thursday that "he has not discussed … his earlier proposal to lock down the country [with the incoming administration]...”  He also said he doesn’t think there’s a national consensus for it anyway.  “It’s not going to be supported out of the administration.  It’s not going to be supported in Congress," Osterholm said.

 

Add to that Biden’s “guarantee” to stop fracking that he walked back.  And his broken promise ‘not to declare victory until the election is independently certified.’  And then Biden said he would remove tariffs on imports from China, to which his staff later corrected to he “would reevaluate the tariffs upon taking office.”  I think one has to be quite gullible to put any trust in what the former VP says.

 

 

Keep the politics off the forum please.   Thx.

[KirkNC]

11 hours ago, GA Dave said:

And this lovely news too.

 

Democrats-call-for-cdc-to-place-temporary-halt-on-passenger-cruises

Given the recent restart failure, it’s hardly surprising.

[hallux]

I get that everyone wants to get back to cruising, I certainly want to also.  Is it REALLY in our best interest to restart cruising hastily though?

 

Something I heard elsewhere, regarding the NSO.  TECHNICALLY it's still in place.  The CSO restricts cruising/sailing until the conditions laid out are met to the satisfaction of the CDC.  That is, effectively, a NSO but with an escape clause for the cruise lines.  It's going to take time for the cruise lines to get things in order, and it seems as though Pfizer could have a vaccine in the pipeline for distribution before that even happens.  It may not be wide distribution (shoot - NY won't even be getting it from the current administration because of some feud between our Governor and Trump) but it's light at the end of the tunnel, we hope.

[HuliHuli]

8 hours ago, ColeThornton said:

Keep the politics off the forum please.   Thx.

Not sure Cole why you chose to respond to my post when multiple posts, prior to mine, invoked the name of Dr. Osterholm and brought into the dialog the obvious political overtones to the CDC decision process.  I merely cited a number of FACTS that suggest the conclusions drawn by others might not be accurate.  I see nothing wrong with a fact-driven debate on any cruise related topic, regardless of which side a poster may choose to take.

[d9704011]

1 minute ago, HuliHuli said:

Not sure Cole why you chose to respond to my post when multiple posts, prior to mine, invoked the name of Dr. Osterholm and brought into the dialog the obvious political overtones to the CDC decision process.  I merely cited a number of FACTS that suggest the conclusions drawn by others might not be accurate.  I see nothing wrong with a fact-driven debate on any cruise related topic, regardless of which side a poster may choose to take.

I’m thinking it was more related to your second paragraph.

[HuliHuli]

1 minute ago, d9704011 said:

I’m thinking it was more related to your second paragraph.

Fair enough, but I was also not the first to introduce Biden into the dialog.  I merely pointed out where prior pronouncements by both Dr. Osterholm and Biden have proven to waver over time.  Regrettably, science and politics are inextricably tied together when it comes to the CDC, NSO and CSO.  That ship has sailed!