St Maarten - EHAS Form

[msears101]

On 5/26/2021 at 2:07 PM, themutis said:

Early Cruisers to St Maarten - Would love to hear your experience getting into St Maarten and the EHA Form (LINK)

It is relatively painless to get into and out of SXM.  I have been twice in the pandemic.  It is one of my favorite places.  It has sentimental value.  It was the first vacation with my wife.

 

It is all pretty straightforward.  It is one of the easier place to get to. I think only Mexico is easier at the moment. Their instructions are very clear.

 

I have had to test three times coming back into the USA.  it is nerve racking. Behave yourself and limit your exposure as much as you can. There are people who test positive even after being vaccinated.  If you have had covid, it might be better to get the proof you have had it and be cleared by a doctor.

[msears101]

On 5/28/2021 at 2:31 PM, RMS Olympic said:

I’m getting cranky. I read the St Maarten requirements for testing. Was it 120 hours before departure or 72 hours before departure?

I emailed the authorities in St Maarten...told them I was flying in from Miami fully vaccinated ....they responded, test results for the PCr  within 120 hours of departure.

well I’m going to try to get the PCr test and the antigen test . I’m getting on that boat come he’ll or high water.

It is 120 to go to SXM, and 72 to leave SXM.   PCR to go to SXM, pretty much anything to leave.  I have never found a test not approved by the CDC.  You can even buy a test in the USA (pack of 5 PER PERSON) and do a video conference (SKYPE) and do it in your hotel/cruise ship/airbnb.

[wesport]

What dates are being used if we fly in one night before the cruise?  Staying for just one night, or putting the whole 8 day stay in the ehas form even though you are on the ship for 7 of the 8 nights and flying home after getting off the ship. 

[ATL Tiger]

On 6/1/2021 at 11:24 AM, msears101 said:

It is relatively painless to get into and out of SXM.  I have been twice in the pandemic.  It is one of my favorite places.  It has sentimental value.  It was the first vacation with my wife.

 

It is all pretty straightforward.  It is one of the easier place to get to. I think only Mexico is easier at the moment. Their instructions are very clear.

 

I have had to test three times coming back into the USA.  it is nerve racking. Behave yourself and limit your exposure as much as you can. There are people who test positive even after being vaccinated.  If you have had covid, it might be better to get the proof you have had it and be cleared by a doctor.

Just out of curiosity. How is the airport reconstruction going. It has been a nightmare getting though security after Irma. 

[msears101]

On 6/3/2021 at 5:57 PM, ATL Tiger said:

Just out of curiosity. How is the airport reconstruction going. It has been a nightmare getting though security after Irma. 

I would say it is still a mess. Security flowed well just because passenger volume was down.  A local I talked to up in Grand Case said that they are seeking Bids for Phase 2.  The rumor was Phase 2 would start in the fall.  Progress is slow.

 

 

[RMS Olympic]

Well I’ll be happy when I get to the Breeze. I scheduled a Covid test at CVS on Monday June 14. If I get the results on Wed I can fill out the form and hopefully download the results and send it off to St Maarten on Wed. Then hope I get an approval/acceptance by Friday evening. My Flight out of Tampa to Miami leaves at 8 am....so I need St Maarten ok by Friday night.

They say it takes up to 12 hours to process...but the idea of a big Celebrity ship with more than 2000 passengers processing their applications at the same time worries me.

if I don’t get an approval and get denied entry and miss the cruise....because of St Maartens delay.....I’ll be wild.

But all I can do is follow the rules.

I need a drink as soon as I get on board!

Happy happy joy joy.

 

[wesport]

17 minutes ago, RMS Olympic said:

Well I’ll be happy when I get to the Breeze. I scheduled a Covid test at CVS on Monday June 14. If I get the results on Wed I can fill out the form and hopefully download the results and send it off to St Maarten on Wed. Then hope I get an approval/acceptance by Friday evening. My Flight out of Tampa to Miami leaves at 8 am....so I need St Maarten ok by Friday night.

They say it takes up to 12 hours to process...but the idea of a big Celebrity ship with more than 2000 passengers processing their applications at the same time worries me.

if I don’t get an approval and get denied entry and miss the cruise....because of St Maartens delay.....I’ll be wild.

But all I can do is follow the rules.

I need a drink as soon as I get on board!

Happy happy joy joy.

 

Call your cvs pharmacy and find out when the tests get picked up. I called walgreens, and they told me the tests get picked up around 4 to 5 pm. So, I will take the test well before the pickup time so they lab gets it the next day. You might have the results back Tues or Wednesday at the latest. Fill out the ehas form immediately. Some people are getting approved between 20 minutes to 6 hours later.  Done. The first Celebrity cruise only had 600 people on it. I sometimes tell myself maybe we should have gone to Alaska, but here we are. Good Luck. 

[FLbeachbaby]

3 hours ago, RMS Olympic said:

Well I’ll be happy when I get to the Breeze. I scheduled a Covid test at CVS on Monday June 14. If I get the results on Wed I can fill out the form and hopefully download the results and send it off to St Maarten on Wed. Then hope I get an approval/acceptance by Friday evening. My Flight out of Tampa to Miami leaves at 8 am....so I need St Maarten ok by Friday night.

They say it takes up to 12 hours to process...but the idea of a big Celebrity ship with more than 2000 passengers processing their applications at the same time worries me.

if I don’t get an approval and get denied entry and miss the cruise....because of St Maartens delay.....I’ll be wild.

But all I can do is follow the rules.

I need a drink as soon as I get on board!

Happy happy joy joy.

 

This sounds so stressful, yikes.

[FLbeachbaby]

3 hours ago, wesport said:

Call your cvs pharmacy and find out when the tests get picked up. I called walgreens, and they told me the tests get picked up around 4 to 5 pm. So, I will take the test well before the pickup time so they lab gets it the next day. You might have the results back Tues or Wednesday at the latest. Fill out the ehas form immediately. Some people are getting approved between 20 minutes to 6 hours later.  Done. The first Celebrity cruise only had 600 people on it. I sometimes tell myself maybe we should have gone to Alaska, but here we are. Good Luck. 

I was going to do that Celebrity. Not that it would be any easier getting there. I just know the in's and outs of Celebrity and have always been well cared for. The cruise director is my favorite of all time. I would have gone just for that had I known.

[cabosal1]

Got our Covid test scheduled for Tuesday, June 15th @ CVS.  Hopefully I can get the results and figure out how to download to EHAS and then get their reply in time for Saturday flight.  If we ever get on the Star Breeze they better hand out lots of champagne.  This will be our first WS cruise and, though we've been on many cruises, this one is really stressing me out. (Maybe need to change that champs to pain killers).  

[FLbeachbaby]

1 hour ago, cabosal1 said:

Got our Covid test scheduled for Tuesday, June 15th @ CVS.  Hopefully I can get the results and figure out how to download to EHAS and then get their reply in time for Saturday flight.  If we ever get on the Star Breeze they better hand out lots of champagne.  This will be our first WS cruise and, though we've been on many cruises, this one is really stressing me out. (Maybe need to change that champs to pain killers).  

Hoping it all goes well. It does seem so stressful. Please come back and let us nervous Nellies know how it goes. I definitely don't want to be out of the game on a technical error !

[wesport]

I see the St Maarten ehas site will be down for maintenance June 9 from 3 to 4 am. Could this possibly be when they remove the testing requirement and only require vaccine proof. Fingers crossed. 

[FLbeachbaby]

22 minutes ago, wesport said:

I see the St Maarten ehas site will be down for maintenance June 9 from 3 to 4 am. Could this possibly be when they remove the testing requirement and only require vaccine proof. Fingers crossed. 

I noticed that as well and wondered what was cooking. I will cross everything that can be crossed. The Breeze and the Millennium will definitely be fighting for approvals as their schedule is Saturday-Saturday as well. 

[msears101]

7 hours ago, cabosal1 said:

Got our Covid test scheduled for Tuesday, June 15th @ CVS

A friendly suggestion that you might want to consider.  Get a test as soon as you can, and make sure it would be accepted by them.  It took us a few tries to find a place that had the right paperwork that said the right things.  Not all CVS, Walgreens, etc do the same test at all locations.

 

The tests are not fun, but it is worth it.

[wesport]

Looks like nothing has changed with the update Wednesday am. Oh well.

[FLbeachbaby]

2 hours ago, wesport said:

Looks like nothing has changed with the update Wednesday am. Oh well.

Same, same 😪

[FLbeachbaby]

All visitors, including Sint Maarten, Sint Martin residents and flight crews that are going to remain on the island are required to fill out the health authorization form. For visitors 10 years and under, the application should be filled out by the parents. Airline and private flight crews must demonstrate a valid (performed within 120 hours of departure to Sint Maarten, last leg in case of multiple flights) negative rt-PCR test. Crew members not in possession of a valid negative rt-PCR test must self-quarantine until their departure flight.

 

This was in the FAQ's- So, does that mean people going straight to and from the ship don't have to do it ?  Maybe it's just their bad wording again ? Ugh

[themutis]

I am honestly still confused about which test I need -  Is everyone getting the rt-PCR test instead of the antigen test?

 

1. A rt-PCR test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed in the country of origin and within 72 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten (last leg in case of connecting flights) is required for all travelers originating from a country that is categorized as high risk. Antibody tests and tests performed outside of the 72 hours period will not be accepted. Results from home covid-19 collection test kits will also not be accepted. Airlines might require you to show a negative lab test result. For travelers from the USA, US territories and Canada the time frame remains 120 hrs. prior to departure. This will remain in effect as long as the national health authorities of the USA and Canada do not require differently for their traveling citizens.
2. Alternatively, travelers originating from the USA and Canada can do an antigen test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed within 48 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten. All FDA approved antigen tests including those with Emergency Use Authorization only (EUA) are accepted. Tests performed outside of the 48 hours period and home tests will not be accepted.

[wesport]

42 minutes ago, themutis said:

I am honestly still confused about which test I need -  Is everyone getting the rt-PCR test instead of the antigen test?

 

1. A rt-PCR test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed in the country of origin and within 72 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten (last leg in case of connecting flights) is required for all travelers originating from a country that is categorized as high risk. Antibody tests and tests performed outside of the 72 hours period will not be accepted. Results from home covid-19 collection test kits will also not be accepted. Airlines might require you to show a negative lab test result. For travelers from the USA, US territories and Canada the time frame remains 120 hrs. prior to departure. This will remain in effect as long as the national health authorities of the USA and Canada do not require differently for their traveling citizens.
2. Alternatively, travelers originating from the USA and Canada can do an antigen test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed within 48 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten. All FDA approved antigen tests including those with Emergency Use Authorization only (EUA) are accepted. Tests performed outside of the 48 hours period and home tests will not be accepted.

Im doing the pcr test 5 days before departure. Departure 7/16(one day early) 10:30 am. Doing the test after 10:30am on 7/11. Hopefully get results the next day. Fill out ehas with a screen shot of the negative result, and wait for approval. Seems like you get approval from 20 minutes to 8 hours later.  Take passport, vaccination card, test results, and ehas approval with me to the airport. I am thinking it may have been easier to go to Alaska. It’s a lot of work. 

[wesport]

49 minutes ago, themutis said:

I am honestly still confused about which test I need -  Is everyone getting the rt-PCR test instead of the antigen test?

 

1. A rt-PCR test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed in the country of origin and within 72 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten (last leg in case of connecting flights) is required for all travelers originating from a country that is categorized as high risk. Antibody tests and tests performed outside of the 72 hours period will not be accepted. Results from home covid-19 collection test kits will also not be accepted. Airlines might require you to show a negative lab test result. For travelers from the USA, US territories and Canada the time frame remains 120 hrs. prior to departure. This will remain in effect as long as the national health authorities of the USA and Canada do not require differently for their traveling citizens.
2. Alternatively, travelers originating from the USA and Canada can do an antigen test for the SARS-COV-2 virus obtained from a naso-pharyngeal swab performed within 48 hours prior to departure to Sint Maarten. All FDA approved antigen tests including those with Emergency Use Authorization only (EUA) are accepted. Tests performed outside of the 48 hours period and home tests will not be accepted.

If one waits to do the antigen 2 days prior, it doesn’t give you much time in cast something goes wrong. 

[ridethetide]

1 minute ago, wesport said:

Im doing the pcr test 5 days before departure. Departure 7/16(one day early) 10:30 am. Doing the test after 10:30am on 7/11. Hopefully get results the next day. Fill out ehas with a screen shot of the negative result, and wait for approval. Seems like you get approval from 20 minutes to 8 hours later.  Take passport, vaccination card, test results, and ehas approval with me to the airport. I am thinking it may have been easier to go to Alaska. It’s a lot of work. 

Windstar is not sailing in Alaska again until next summer. We are booked and sure hope it is easier by then!

[Windsailer]

38 minutes ago, wesport said:

If one waits to do the antigen 2 days prior, it doesn’t give you much time in cast something goes wrong. 

But the rt-PCR has to be sent to a lab and it's hard to tell when the results will be back. One place I spoke to said it could be 3 to 5 days. That wouldn't work. So I am opting for the antigen test - the results should be available almost immediately. 

[adomatic]

I'm thinking about doing both tests, depending on the result. From what i heard from my doctor, the antigen test is less sensitive than the PCR test. Meaning that you can have the dead virus in your nostrils, dead cells that won't infect anyone, but test positive for the virus. I wish St Maarten would have just changed their rules yesterday! It would have been the best birthday present for me!

[wesport]

[wesport]

Just now, wesport said:

Just read this on the ehas site. As I understand it if you fly in one day earlier you still need to test, but are not required to buy the insurance if not staying more than one day. They also added all the cruise lines on the site.