Royal reverses policy on proof of vaccination. Will Celebrity follow suit?

[Cruising89143]

Just now, pinnacleking2021 said:

if you want to wear a mask no one is stopping you. we all work to hard for our money and some of us go on one or two cruises a year to relax. traveling for vacation is already so stressful and now you wanna include all these rules testing and masks in tropical climate no thank you. this is my opinion and you don't have to agree with me. right now there is no mask because everyone is vaccinated but once they include everyone they will make everyone wear a mask and that will not go well with vaccinated or unvaccinated people. bad for business  

The cruise lines must follow the CDC. They dictate the rules. We all know your position on this. Please stop the going back and forth. Other posters have “kindly” tried to explain it to you. 

[Redtravel]

Just another reason to wait and see how things go.  If I had booked thinking the ship would be fully vaccinated and it wasn’t, I would be upset.  Bait and switch comes to mind.  

[ECCruise]

39 minutes ago, phoenix_dream said:

Why should you care?  You could still get sick and need to spend your cruise quarantined in your room - hopefully only mildly ill.   If enough cases arise, your cruise could be cancelled mid-way.  If cases occur onboard your ports could be skipped.  Your itinerary could be changed drastically if ports only allow vaccinated travelers.  To me, that's enough reason to care.

This is so very obvious and yet I cannot fathom why people cannot get it.  

[AbbyCruiser45]

6 minutes ago, ECCruise said:

This is so very obvious and yet I cannot fathom why people cannot get it.  

It's one of the most frustrating things. The people who say "why care about what I'm doing if you're vaccinated" are very clearly anti-vaxers who have absolutely no concept of how vaccines actually work. Yes, we can still test positive. If we're lucky, it's asymptomatic but if we're discussing travel that throws a whole wrench into the plan. We could have to quarantine on-board, delay travel arrangements home, delay returning to work, etc. 

[TomTN]

16 hours ago, phoenix_dream said:

If Celebrity follows suit I will be beyond angry.  Even though I am fully vaccinated I do not want to spend thousands of dollars with a much higher risk that our ship could be quarantined, ports could prevent us from docking, etc., etc.  And then , of course, even though vaccinated the potential risk to my own health increases exponentially.  I booked with the statement from them that vaccination would be required. If they can’t abide by that guarantee I expect them to offer us full refunds.

 

I have lost faith in the cruise industry to act honorably. I suspect non-refundable deposits will be kept for passengers wanting to cancel. I doubt "vaccinations required" is in the contract.

[Auntiemomo]

If you leave Florida and return, you don't have to quarantine for 10 days.  Florida is open and people are free to come and go.  I didn't drag Canada into this, someone else did.  I was just comparing the policies of the two.   

[AC Stew]

I've been a member since 2005. For the very first time in those 16 years, my couple of posts on this thread have been removed. I honestly felt that a question needed to be raised. For those of you who "liked" my unvarnished comments, thanks for your support.

 

Too much for the moderator? OK, I respect that. I do however, thank that moderator for also removing several of the other more incendiary comments made by the poster in question.

 

Rest assured, I will not be adding to this thread. No need for further comment. Done.

[Blackduck59]

10 minutes ago, Auntiemomo said:

If you leave Florida and return, you don't have to quarantine for 10 days.  Florida is open and people are free to come and go.  I didn't drag Canada into this, someone else did.  I was just comparing the policies of the two.   

 

But I bet if a Floridian leaves the United States they are subject to the quarantine laws of the country they visit. And if that Floridian leaves Florida and picks up the virus while gone and brings it home and spreads it to their unsuspecting friends, that's a great policy.

[Cruising89143]

3 hours ago, ECCruise said:

This is so very obvious and yet I cannot fathom why people cannot get it.  

I saw your comment somewhere about Azamara’s vaccine policy. That sounds great. We were booked on the Pursuit in early September but we canceled knowing that it probably would not be a go. It was canceled. It was a great itinerary out of Rome. We may have to give them another look.

[Peteymil]

When we booked Alaska out of Seattle yesterday, the agent said that vaccines would be required, and starting in August, that will be true for any traveler 12 years and older.

I hope that holds true.

[wagontrail]

Yes I will sail. 

[phoenix_dream]

6 hours ago, pinnacleking2021 said:

before covid plenty of people lied im sure on the health questionnaire did they wear a mask ...nope plenty of other illnesses u can get on a cruise not just covid 

I don't think anyone can seriously compare lying about norovirus symptoms to lying about getting a Covid-19 vaccine.  One illness may make you feel like you want to die for a day or two, but the other can literally kill you as it has done for many (I personally know, or know of 5).   It's not that you can't potentially harm someone by lying about something like the flu, but the mortality odds are significantly less, and the odds of a few people catching the flu causing an entire ship to quarantine or cancel a sailing mid-cruise are close to zero.   Huge difference IMHO

[Straughn]

I am a Floridian.

 

I support a lot of what Gov. DeSantis has done related to COVID.

I  support the law (or whatever it is) that says vaccine passports cannot be required by businesses. The “intent” behind the bill was to prevent businesses such as bars, restaurants, stores, entertainment venues, etc. from requiring proof of vaccination. It was not aimed at the cruise lines. But the law didn’t say that.This is a textbook example of “ready, fire, aim.”

 

Somehow, no one thought about the cruise industry. In the Governor’s haste to get cruising restarted, and his very obvious dislike of the CDC’s requirements to restart cruising, no one thought that the CDC just might have some requirements for passenger vaccination as part of their return to service.. His hope was that the lawsuit filed by Florida would get the no sail order lifted and that would remove any restrictions on cruise lines. So now, he has been backed into a corner and is trying to figure a way out and to save political face.
 

Should cruise lines decide to move some ships from Florida and to homeport elsewhere, things will change. Businesses and elected officials in South Florida are already lobbying to get the law changed to exempt cruise lines from the no proof of vaccination.

 

 

[LGW59]

7 minutes ago, Straughn said:

I am a Floridian.

 

I support a lot of what Gov. DeSantis has done related to COVID.

I  support the law (or whatever it is) that says vaccine passports cannot be required by businesses. The “intent” behind the bill was to prevent businesses such as bars, restaurants, stores, entertainment venues, etc. from requiring proof of vaccination. It was not aimed at the cruise lines. But the law didn’t say that.This is a textbook example of “ready, fire, aim.”

 

Somehow, no one thought about the cruise industry. In the Governor’s haste to get cruising restarted, and his very obvious dislike of the CDC’s requirements to restart cruising, no one thought that the CDC just might have some requirements for passenger vaccination as part of their return to service.. His hope was that the lawsuit filed by Florida would get the no sail order lifted and that would remove any restrictions on cruise lines. So now, he has been backed into a corner and is trying to figure a way out and to save political face.
 

Should cruise lines decide to move some ships from Florida and to homeport elsewhere, things will change. Businesses and elected officials in South Florida are already lobbying to get the law changed to exempt cruise lines from the no proof of vaccination.

 

 

Come on, after March and April of 2020...no one thought that the CDC would have some requirements.  Really???  Gov, legislators, they messed up, I don’t think so, I believe they knew exactly what they were voting on.

 

Edited June 6, 2021 by LGW59

[Blackduck59]

6 minutes ago, Straughn said:

I am a Floridian.

 

I support a lot of what Gov. DeSantis has done related to COVID.

I  support the law (or whatever it is) that says vaccine passports cannot be required by businesses. The “intent” behind the bill was to prevent businesses such as bars, restaurants, stores, entertainment venues, etc. from requiring proof of vaccination. It was not aimed at the cruise lines. But the law didn’t say that.This is a textbook example of “ready, fire, aim.”

 

Somehow, no one thought about the cruise industry. In the Governor’s haste to get cruising restarted, and his very obvious dislike of the CDC’s requirements to restart cruising, no one thought that the CDC just might have some requirements for passenger vaccination as part of their return to service.. His hope was that the lawsuit filed by Florida would get the no sail order lifted and that would remove any restrictions on cruise lines. So now, he has been backed into a corner and is trying to figure a way out and to save political face.
 

Should cruise lines decide to move some ships from Florida and to homeport elsewhere, things will change. Businesses and elected officials in South Florida are already lobbying to get the law changed to exempt cruise lines from the no proof of vaccination.

 

 

 

Well it would be helpful if he just said "oh oops" I understand that cruise ships are another kettle of fish altogether and actually State Law doesn't apply. Instead you get a bunch of threats over $5,000.00 fines. Cruise lines should move all their ships out of Florida until you can get you poop in a group. All this just tells me stay out of Florida forever, I know you won't miss me but I don't think I'm the only one who thinks that way.

[Cruising89143]

1 hour ago, Peteymil said:

When we booked Alaska out of Seattle yesterday, the agent said that vaccines would be required, and starting in August, that will be true for any traveler 12 years and older.

I hope that holds true.

I don’t think that you will have any issues. The cruises in question are the ones that are scheduled to leave from Florida. 

[LGW59]

6 minutes ago, Blackduck59 said:

 

Well it would be helpful if he just said "oh oops" I understand that cruise ships are another kettle of fish altogether and actually State Law doesn't apply. Instead you get a bunch of threats over $5,000.00 fines. Cruise lines should move all their ships out of Florida until you can get you poop in a group. All this just tells me stay out of Florida forever, I know you won't miss me but I don't think I'm the only one who thinks that way.

Ditto.  For me very easy to find the cruises I want that leave/depart from so many other ports.  Plus I don’t do the Caribbean.

[ItsADryHumor]

27 minutes ago, Straughn said:

I am a Floridian.

 

I support a lot of what Gov. DeSantis has done related to COVID.

I  support the law (or whatever it is) that says vaccine passports cannot be required by businesses. The “intent” behind the bill was to prevent businesses such as bars, restaurants, stores, entertainment venues, etc. from requiring proof of vaccination. It was not aimed at the cruise lines. But the law didn’t say that.This is a textbook example of “ready, fire, aim.”

 

Somehow, no one thought about the cruise industry. In the Governor’s haste to get cruising restarted, and his very obvious dislike of the CDC’s requirements to restart cruising, no one thought that the CDC just might have some requirements for passenger vaccination as part of their return to service.. His hope was that the lawsuit filed by Florida would get the no sail order lifted and that would remove any restrictions on cruise lines. So now, he has been backed into a corner and is trying to figure a way out and to save political face.
 

Should cruise lines decide to move some ships from Florida and to homeport elsewhere, things will change. Businesses and elected officials in South Florida are already lobbying to get the law changed to exempt cruise lines from the no proof of vaccination.

 

 

I am a Floridian and not a DeSantis fan. But I’m willing to say that he gambled a lot with Covid and got lucky. Now, saying that, he isn’t EVER going to back down. We know who he is- like him, dislike him, meh towards him, whatever. He’s not a complex man. 
 

I’d love to see an alternating pattern of some sort as compromise- a sailing with vaccinations recommended, another with vaccinations required. But that would put a lot of stress on the cruise lines. Or what if they started with vaccinated passengers only. Let them get protocol down and some data first, and then open it back up. 
 

It’s turned into a game of chicken. If restaurants can still limit capacity in Florida - and TJ Maxx, too- shouldn’t a floating city be able to have some say in how they run things for their business? 

[TMLAalum]

So make proof of vaccination voluntary for cruises out of FL. But if you chose not to show that you are vaccinated then make Covid testing mandatory with a negative test required to sail. 
 

[AbbyCruiser45]

6 minutes ago, TMLAalum said:

So make proof of vaccination voluntary for cruises out of FL. But if you chose not to show that you are vaccinated then make Covid testing mandatory with a negative test required to sail. 
 

That’s the route RCL is going using test cruises. Celebrity is currently not approved to do so. 

[bajathree]

36 minutes ago, stinkyenglishteacher said:

I am a Floridian and not a DeSantis fan. But I’m willing to say that he gambled a lot with Covid and got lucky. Now, saying that, he isn’t EVER going to back down. We know who he is- like him, dislike him, meh towards him, whatever. He’s not a complex man. 
 

I’d love to see an alternating pattern of some sort as compromise- a sailing with vaccinations recommended, another with vaccinations required. But that would put a lot of stress on the cruise lines. Or what if they started with vaccinated passengers only. Let them get protocol down and some data first, and then open it back up. 
 

It’s turned into a game of chicken. If restaurants can still limit capacity in Florida - and TJ Maxx, too- shouldn’t a floating city be able to have some say in how they run things for their business? 

Exactly...he is dug in. I seriously do think he was working on something with the cruise lines but I honestly think Celebrity jumped the gun with there very bold sales call to their TA's saying they were working a back room deal with him and it all blew up. These cruise lines can say whatever they want about vaccine only sailings and people can go crazy and say I wouldn't sail and will go over to such and such cruise line cause they are going to sail fully vaccinated. Well I bet  that there isn't going to be a cruise line sailing vaccine only out of FL as early as end of July.

Edited June 7, 2021 by bajathree

[Auntiemomo]

50 minutes ago, TMLAalum said:

So make proof of vaccination voluntary for cruises out of FL. But if you chose not to show that you are vaccinated then make Covid testing mandatory with a negative test required to sail. 
 

You also need to do this with vaccinated folks.  Test them also as they may have covid but are  asymptomatic.

[hcat]

I would "show" my original vaccination card if required, but would not " submit" it....meaning hand it in to someone,,,if that's what this requirement means???

And  I expect there's little chance of obtaining a Certified Copy,.....

 

Local NY CVS now  only requires un-vaccinated individuals to wear a mask..no one asks and if course no one wears a mask,..sems that's how things may play out????

[Oville]

34 minutes ago, hcat said:

I would "show" my original vaccination card if required, but would not " submit" it....meaning hand it in to someone,,,if that's what this requirement means???

And  I expect there's little chance of obtaining a Certified Copy,.....

 

Local NY CVS now  only requires un-vaccinated individuals to wear a mask..no one asks and if course no one wears a mask,..sems that's how things may play out????

Not sure there is any info on how the vaccination card will come into play but you need to submit your passport, what’s the difference?

[Nymich]

13 hours ago, bajathree said:

I don't think they would hit the 95% threshold by volunteering. This is why I think that all cruise lines out of FL will quickly be changing their stance on proof of vaccine. I honestly don't think it's going to be a choice in FL of what cruise lines are or aren't going to sail fully vaccinated....believe thats what the 180 turnaround with Royal. 

It's pretty simple stuff.  Cruise Lines want 100% of people eligible to get on their ships.  Vaccinated people do not make up 100%.  Whether one agrees with this emotionally means little to these giant companies.