What is your new expected return date to cruising?

[ldubs]

8 hours ago, Mary229 said:

I started this pandemic with a single FCC for a Nov 2020 cruise, then applied it to a late summer 2021 European cruise then applied it to a cancelled 2021 Alaska cruise.  Since I work in the fall I finally applied it to the spring 2022. 

 

Follow the bouncing ball!  😄 

[MBP&O2/O]

When? In the words of the old musical

 

When the moon is in the Seventh House

And Jupiter aligns with Mars

Then peace will guide the planets etc.

 

So somewhere around then 🙄

 

Maybe

 

Perhaps

 

If any companies are still solvent.

 

 

[pris993]

On 3/26/2021 at 6:57 AM, cruisemom42 said:

 

I wish people would stop posting their own opinion as though it were fact.

 

Why in the world do you think the head CDC person would lie under direct questioning? What makes you so sure that other departments do not agree with the CDC's approach?  

 

Dr Fauci has not done a consistently good job communicating, he has become a media star instead and lost all credibility.  

[pris993]

On 3/23/2021 at 4:35 AM, Honolulu Blue said:

 

The TL,DR of this post is that my next scheduled cruise is in Q1 2022 and there's an increasingly slim chance I'll schedule another cruise before then.  The rest of this post is my summary of where we are, and where I think we're going to go:

• Currently cruises out of the U.S. are canceled through May.  June is on life support.
• Cruises are starting in June from some unexpected ports (Nassau, Phillipsburg, Haifa).  I think we'll see a few more of them.  So far they don't interest me, but maybe something will come along to catch my eye.
• The chance that I'll book something between now and next month is decreasing as the days go by
• When cruising opens up from the U.S. depends on the CDC and some chick named Maxine
• If the CDC acknowledges that the risk of severe disease among vaccinated passengers is very low, then they'll tear up the current order and put in some new conditions - starting with a vaccine requirement for everyone (except maybe not kids).  This is the simplest way to get sailing again, though maybe not the quickest to start.
• With Maxine on board for passengers (but not crew), we can start sailing a few ships in Q3, with the rest of the survivors coming online in Q4 and Q1 of '22.
• If we decide we need Maxine to help out the crew, then the startup is going to take considerably longer, barring a miraculous donation of doses from some benefactor(s).  Under those conditions, I'd expect a few (more) ships in Q4 and a more or less full resumption around Q3 '22.
• World cruises and other very long cruises (my definition:  28 days or longer) for the first half of '22 still look to be in some danger.  They may go, but their choice of ports is likely to be limited.  Maxine could help limit the pain.

YOur summary gave me a few chuckles... glad you have a sense of humor, some chick named Maxine.  By the way, cruises form Haifa are only open to residents of Israel I believe.

 

[cruisemom42]

7 hours ago, pris993 said:

Dr Fauci has not done a consistently good job communicating, he has become a media star instead and lost all credibility.  

 

a)  I was not talking about Dr. Fauci.  You do know that he is not the head of the CDC, I hope?

 

b). His communications have made sense more consistently than most if you actually take the time to listen and understand what he is saying versus getting a biased third-person summary.

 

[George C]

Appears cruising will start sooner than later, I believe celebrity is cruising from St Maarten in early June we are booked for early July , currently no inside or outside cabins, also all adults must have Covid-19 shot and St Maarten requires Covid test before being allowed to fly in, celebrity crew will all be vaccinated. I believe CDC will allow cruises by early fall.

[pris993]

3 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

a)  I was not talking about Dr. Fauci.  You do know that he is not the head of the CDC, I hope?

 

b). His communications have made sense more consistently than most if you actually take the time to listen and understand what he is saying versus getting a biased third-person summary.

 

I have listened to him, from the very beginning.  At first I tried to read between the lines, giving him the benefit of the doubt.  Over the months the more he talked the less I felt he was serving the American people well.  He reminds me of the Judge the OJ trail years ago, he has bitten the media bug and has become less effective.     

[SelectSys]

Thanks to all who responded!  Well it looks like 50% of our community - at least those that answered the survey anyways - plan to get back cruising sometime in March 2022. 

 

I am contemplating booking a cruise leaving the end of March 2022 so I am pretty much "average" in terms of the people responding.

 

Below is the modelled data.

 

Edited March 29, 2021 by SelectSys

[iancal]

Our travel and cruise interests lie outside the US and outside of US ports.

 

 As a result we watch the weekly covid stats from those others areas.   Those areas we wish to travel to either have very poor covid stats (and/or trending in the wrong direction) or are not currently allowing visitors and may not be for some time.

[SelectSys]

52 minutes ago, iancal said:

Our travel and cruise interests lie outside the US and outside of US ports.

Other than Alaska and New England, not too much cruising exists in terms of US ports.  I assume you are lumping in Mexico and the Caribbean into the mix as well.

 

I actually don't mind Caribbean or Mexican cruises as I view them as an alternative to a budget beach resort vacation.  The difference is that the cruise ship moves as opposed to being on land.

 

[iancal]

33 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

Other than Alaska and New England, not too much cruising exists in terms of US ports.  I assume you are lumping in Mexico and the Caribbean into the mix as well.

 

I actually don't mind Caribbean or Mexican cruises as I view them as an alternative to a budget beach resort vacation.  The difference is that the cruise ship moves as opposed to being on land.

 

No.  We do not have any interest in Mexico cruises.  We have done two in the past-Caribbean and Pacific.   We much prefer land trips to Mexico.    We have done a number of Caribbean cruises in the past.  Not interested in them as much any more since we spend our winters in other warm areas.  

 

Besides, so many of the Caribbean cruise stops have become complete zoos when multiple ships are in port.  If we never see St. Thomas again we will too soon.  Same for a few other port stops.  Don't care about duty free or jewelry stores.

 

Much more interested in Europe, SE Asia, or Aus/NZ cruises that complement our land travels.  Since retiring we no longer have the time or travel restraints we had when we worked or when our children were younger.

Edited March 30, 2021 by iancal

[SelectSys]

17 minutes ago, iancal said:

No.  We do not have any interest in Mexico cruises.  We have done two in the past-Caribbean and Pacific.   We much prefer land trips to Mexico.    We have done a number of Caribbean cruises in the past.  Not interested in them as much any more since we spend our winters in other warm areas.  

 

Besides, so many of the Caribbean cruise stops have become complete zoos when multiple ships are in port.  If we never see St. Thomas again we will be very happy.  Same for a few others.

 

Much more interested in Europe, SE Asia, or Aus/NZ cruises that complement our land travels.  Since retiring we no longer have the time or travel restraints we had when we worked or when our children were younger.

That is what I thought.  I am also interested in getting back to Australia and NZ as well.  I am also planning a land vacation to Argentina and Chile, but that will probably need to wait a while longer.

 

I signed up for one more work deliverable that is due next Spring and after that I am calling it quits.  I will enjoy the flexibility.

 

BTW - my first international trip will be to Mexico.  My plan is to go back by the end of May to attend a family "quinceanera" assuming I can get a vaccine in California by then.  

Edited March 30, 2021 by SelectSys

[iancal]

We spent our very first full winter in Mexico just before covid hit.  Flew one way to Cancun and spent time in Merida, Puerto Morales, Playa, etc.  Then flew to Huatulco and worked our way up the coast over a period of five weeks.  Bus and plane.  Puerto Escondido, Acapulco, Zihuatanejo,  PV and Nouveau Vallarta.  We had intended to keep going north but covid hit and we were advised by our Gov't. to be home by late March.

 

I have to say that it was wonderful.   Just  moved about to our own schedule.  People were incredibly friendly.  We never felt unsafe or threatened.  If we ever buy a winter home it will be on the Pacific coast of Mexico.

[capriccio]

Our June 2020 family (6 adults, 2 kids) cruise was cancelled and we rebooked for July 2022 with the agreement between all family members that all of us (and the ship's crew) had to be vaccinated before traveling.

 

That won't be a problem with the adults (4 out of 6 already vaccinated; the other 2 by this summer) but I've been worrying about the kids who will be 7 1/2 and almost 3 at the time of the cruise.  Great news from Pfizer gives me hope that by then they will have been vaccinated for quite a some time.

 

According to a Washington Post article (https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/03/31/coronavirus-covid-live-updates-us/) a Pfizer-BioNTech news release yesterday announced

 

• That the vaccine was safe and effective in adolescents as young as 12
• That it was100 percent effective at preventing symptomatic illness 
• That it triggered immune responses that were even more robust than those seen in young adults
• That trial data will go to the FDA in the 'next few weeks.'
• That vaccinations could begin before the next school year.

 

Step down testing has already started on kids 6 months to 11 years old:

• establishing a safe dose first in children 5 to 11
• then in 2- to 5-year-olds
• then in children from 6 months to 2 years

[SelectSys]

4 hours ago, capriccio said:

Our June 2020 family (6 adults, 2 kids) cruise was cancelled and we rebooked for July 2022 with the agreement between all family members that all of us (and the ship's crew) had to be vaccinated before traveling.

I appreciate hearing about your thoughtful planning and decision making.  I would be leery of making a cruise as well before everyone is vaccinated.

[Honolulu Blue]

8 hours ago, capriccio said:

Our June 2020 family (6 adults, 2 kids) cruise was cancelled and we rebooked for July 2022 with the agreement between all family members that all of us (and the ship's crew) had to be vaccinated before traveling.

 

That won't be a problem with the adults (4 out of 6 already vaccinated; the other 2 by this summer) but I've been worrying about the kids who will be 7 1/2 and almost 3 at the time of the cruise.  Great news from Pfizer gives me hope that by then they will have been vaccinated for quite a some time.

 

I also respect you and your family for having a vaccination and cruise plan, and thank you for sharing it with us.  The one wrinkle I can see is boosters being required in 6 months or a year.  I assume if you've gotten two jabs already then the third one is an easy call if it's recommended or required.

 

I think most, if not all, cruise ship crew will be vaccinated by July '22, and likely some ships will still require it for their passengers.  I wish you well in your future plans.  Such good planning deserves to be rewarded.

[phoneman69]

See that the DW and i have a Carnival booking in Sept of 2021 out of Miami i sure hope cruising returns by then. I know that we will not be happy if masking is required at all but it wont stop us from sailing.

[SelectSys]

1 hour ago, phoneman69 said:

See that the DW and i have a Carnival booking in Sept of 2021 out of Miami i sure hope cruising returns by then. I know that we will not be happy if masking is required at all but it wont stop us from sailing.

If the CDC relents on cruising, it seems masks may not be required if the ship is fully vaccinated.  Might be tougher for Carnival as they have a younger demographic than some other lines.

 

The CDC now says vaccinated people can get together unmasked:

https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/02/health/cdc-easter-vaccinated-tweet/index.html

 

[SteadyBetty]

I am booked for an RCCL cruise in May 2022.  I look forward to it, but a bit in reserve as things could not be ready by then or change.  🤞

[iancal]

That is a huge question mark for us.  At present, there are simply too many variables, too many unknows.  We believe that covid has a long way to go yet.

 

We do not have any cruises booked nor any FCC's etc.   We are not particularly concerned about a sudden increase in cruise prices.  There are alternatives.

 

We have been receiving some incredible offers to book land based resorts over the past six months.  Much of it targeting for the Nov-March/April timeframe.   There is simply no way we would pay above the odds for any cruise if these  offers are still on the table at time of booking..  Which many probably will be. 

 

We have no intention of booking anything at the moment nor are we in any way confident as to the date when we anticipate to restart international travel.   One thing for certain....there are, and will be, some very attractive competitive offers from all sorts of land based travel vendors.

Edited April 3, 2021 by iancal

[SelectSys]

2 hours ago, iancal said:

One thing for certain....there are, and will be, some very attractive competitive offers from all sorts of land based travel vendors

Any prediction on airfares?  Do you think we will see significantly higher fares as people try and make up for more than a year's worth of lost travel?

[iancal]

19 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

Any prediction on airfares?  Do you think we will see significantly higher fares as people try and make up for more than a year's worth of lost travel?

No idea.  BUT....we have been watching airfares to Europe and to Mexico for this  Sept/Oct and Nov/Dec. respectively.  And to SE Asia in the Jan/Feb.    Mexico fares for us have remained constant for the past two months.  Our  European destination is up about 10-12 over the past two or three months.  Both slightly over what we had paid in late 2019.  Asia (Bangkok) is exactly the same but this mirrors the pricing history of past years.

 

Mind you, this is somewhat meaningless until we are actually ready to push the buy button. 

 

Other than Alaska, we have to fly.  Does not matter if it is a cruise or a land vacation so air is a bit of a constant for us.  Necessary evil unless we do a driving holiday.

Edited April 3, 2021 by iancal

[SelectSys]

12 minutes ago, iancal said:

No idea.

No worries, I was just curious.  My general speculation is that prices will be higher as fleet sizes will grow more slowly than they contracted from COVID.   

 

My other speculation is prices might already be rising in the US for  domestic travel with the new CDC policies relating to vaccinated people.

 

 

12 minutes ago, iancal said:

Other than Alaska, we have to fly

Do you live in the Yukon or are you referring to going on a cruise from the Vancouver area?   Alaska is a pretty long way for just about everyone by car.

Edited April 3, 2021 by SelectSys

[iancal]

27 minutes ago, SelectSys said:

No worries, I was just curious.  My general speculation is that prices will be higher as fleet sizes will grow more slowly than they contracted from COVID.   

 

My other speculation is prices might already be rising in the US for  domestic travel with the new CDC policies relating to vaccinated people.

 

 

Do you live in the Yukon or are you referring to going on a cruise from the Vancouver area?   Alaska is a pretty long way for just about everyone by car.

I meant Alaska cruise.  But...we live on the BC/Alberta border and driving to Alaska would not be an issue if we so wished...other than the road itself!

Edited April 3, 2021 by iancal

[LynnTTT]

On 3/22/2021 at 4:12 PM, SelectSys said:

BTW - these were the previous results:

Even though cruising has started, we were all probably a bit optimistic.

 We are booked on a Norwegian Transtlantic cruise from Rome to NYU, departing November 2 2021.

However, we plan to travel thru Spain and Italy for six weeks beforehand, so I suspect the whole thing may be cancelled.  Last year we made it thru 3/4 of a world cruise before we left in Australia. I really miss it.