UK passengers in Europe

[Malibustacey79]

Does anyone have any thoughts about if/when an extension is likely to be made about non-Schengen country passengers joining the MSC Med cruises? I know no one can know for sure, but we are pretty close to the current ‘end of June’ date…I’ve only been looking at this recently so has it been end of June for a long time? Or has it been more of a rolling date?

 

Currently have Seaside booked in August and I really don’t want to pay the balance only to find a day or two later I’ve got to get it all back! Any ideas anyone?

[Beamafar]

I believe that the EU Covid digital certificate being introduced on July 1st may be of influence to MSC’s policy, despite the UK no longer being a member.

 

The MSC UK office is also the base for Ireland, so they will probably  allow us travel once we can get the cert.  I reckon MSC will just apply the same criteria required for those eligible to apply for the cert for UK passengers (though subject to whatever restrictions the EU have in place). 

[DCGuy64]

1 hour ago, Beamafar said:

I believe that the EU Covid digital certificate being introduced on July 1st may be of influence to MSC’s policy, despite the UK no longer being a member.

 

The MSC UK office is also the base for Ireland, so they will probably  allow us travel once we can get the cert.  I reckon MSC will just apply the same criteria required for those eligible to apply for the cert for UK passengers (though subject to whatever restrictions the EU have in place). 

Hi, Bea. That is my thinking, as well. We are planning to sail with MSC in August in the Mediterranean (technically it's the Adriatic but they're calling it Med), and our understanding is that Italy (where our embarkation takes place) will be rolling out the Green Certificate to non-Schengen countries next month. Now we just have to pray that the UK's numbers improve and they drop the current quarantine requirement since we have a stopover in London.

[Beamafar]

Hi, DCG.  Hopefully the situation will have improved by then as more and more people are being vaccinated.

 

We’ve both received our second shots in the past week and  are hoping that the restrictions on travel for us will be lifted on July 19th, as they’re due to be here, so we can get the certificate.  Our cruise is not til October so restrictions could be re-introduced by then, anyway.   We’ve some of the most draconian restrictions in place for months, now, and they’re constantly pushing opening-up dates further into the future. 

[sidari]

With Merkel and Macron being bloody minded regarding UK residents in insisting anyone going to their Countries must Isolate regardless of jabbed or not, it could be that they will try to enforce their ban throughout the whole of the EU. No point asking those two to use any common sense, meanwhile it was OK for them to attend the G7 in Cornwall without Isolating! Double standards as per usual from so called leaders.

[Malibustacey79]

Thanks for all replies. Sidari - totally agree, so frustrating. As far as I can see, there are still no flight times assigned to our Fly Cruise in August…arghhh I just don’t know what to do!!

 

If I was to pay the balance (approx £4K) then cancel under flexible booking policy, would I get the difference refunded if I changed to a cheaper cruise? I’m thinking would be more likely to swap for one for just two of us rather than with the kids. 

[Never too young to cruise]

23 minutes ago, Malibustacey79 said:

Thanks for all replies. Sidari - totally agree, so frustrating. As far as I can see, there are still no flight times assigned to our Fly Cruise in August…arghhh I just don’t know what to do!!

 

If I was to pay the balance (approx £4K) then cancel under flexible booking policy, would I get the difference refunded if I changed to a cheaper cruise? I’m thinking would be more likely to swap for one for just two of us rather than with the kids. 

Just 2 days ago, I cancelled my Orchestra cruise out of Venice on 14 August 2021, and swapped it for the Virtuoso from Southampton.

 

I was amazed that there was a 30% reduction on the fare with the NHS discount, so I had a surplus of £700.

 

The money is not refunded, but will be changed to on-board credit instead.

 

Now I've got to think of what to spend £700 on when we're already on a Premium Drinks package?! I'm sure my better half will think of something 

[Malibustacey79]

9 minutes ago, Never too young to cruise said:

Just 2 days ago, I cancelled my Orchestra cruise out of Venice on 14 August 2021, and swapped it for the Virtuoso from Southampton.

 

I was amazed that there was a 30% reduction on the fare with the NHS discount, so I had a surplus of £700.

 

The money is not refunded, but will be changed to on-board credit instead.

 

Now I've got to think of what to spend £700 on when we're already on a Premium Drinks package?! I'm sure my better half will think of something 

Ahh I see, that makes sense. We returned from the Virtuosa today (also NHS rates) and spent our OBC on the Mexican restaurant, some gifts (mainly perfumes), a couple of photos and the casino. At the moment we only have a £1k deposit paid so might be a bigger difference once the balance is paid…But! The casino cashes out in ££ so you don’t need to be stuck with any.

 

Can I just check; did you have to rebook onto a later cruise or were you allowed to bring it forward at all?

[Never too young to cruise]

4 minutes ago, Malibustacey79 said:

Ahh I see, that makes sense. We returned from the Virtuosa today (also NHS rates) and spent our OBC on the Mexican restaurant, some gifts (mainly perfumes), a couple of photos and the casino. At the moment we only have a £1k deposit paid so might be a bigger difference once the balance is paid…But! The casino cashes out in ££ so you don’t need to be stuck with any.

 

Can I just check; did you have to rebook onto a later cruise or were you allowed to bring it forward at all?

 

Both sailings were the same date (14 August). I would expect to be able to bring the date forward though to be honest

[Malibustacey79]

Just now, Never too young to cruise said:

 

Both sailings were the same date (14 August). I would expect to be able to bring the date forward though to be honest

I’ve been told I can’t…but then I’ve been told various different things over the last few weeks! I’ve got a feeling I’m gonna be pressed for the balance very soon so I’ll need to make a decision really. 
 

I’m sure you’ll love the Virtuosa, we had a fabulous time. 

[ConnieTact]

4 hours ago, Never too young to cruise said:

 

The money is not refunded, but will be changed to on-board credit instead.

 

Now I've got to think of what to spend £700 on when we're already on a Premium Drinks package?! I'm sure my better half will think of something 

If it was me I would be putting the £700 towards another cruise booked while onboard!

I’ve not booked another one while onboard on MSC before but always do on NCL as you get ‘free money’ with them with their Cruise Next Offers.

 

[8420PR]

Even if MSC remove the 'only schengen' restrictions on Med cruises restrictions by the end of June (which seems likely) there will likely be Government restrictions (from either end) for UK travellers through to the end of summer and probably longer.  

[dritan]

I'm holding fire for now.  I was emailed again the other day by the MSC consultant to ask if I still wanted to move my deposit to another booking.  I responded that I wanted to wait and see what happens and if MSC would be flexible with the final payment.  Waiting for a response.  

 

If "forced" to pay up, I'll probably cancel and rebook with either MSC or Costa at the last minute in August, should the stars all align.

 

( my hope is that by end of July, the delta variant will be on the decline in UK and that either Italy has managed to keep its numbers low or alternatively have seen similar delta numbers to UK.  Not that I wish high delta number on Italy but the evidence does indicate that those infected in UK have been the young and not impacted so much - hospitalisations and deaths have not seen the massive increases we saw with the Alpha variant back in Jan).

[Malibustacey79]

3 hours ago, 8420PR said:

Even if MSC remove the 'only schengen' restrictions on Med cruises restrictions by the end of June (which seems likely) there will likely be Government restrictions (from either end) for UK travellers through to the end of summer and probably longer.  

But would this allow us to cancel without penalty? Or would it be a case of MSC will allow us to board and the rest (ie quarantining in Italy) is our problem?

[Malibustacey79]

1 hour ago, dritan said:

I'm holding fire for now.  I was emailed again the other day by the MSC consultant to ask if I still wanted to move my deposit to another booking.  I responded that I wanted to wait and see what happens and if MSC would be flexible with the final payment.  Waiting for a response.  

 

If "forced" to pay up, I'll probably cancel and rebook with either MSC or Costa at the last minute in August, should the stars all align.

 

( my hope is that by end of July, the delta variant will be on the decline in UK and that either Italy has managed to keep its numbers low or alternatively have seen similar delta numbers to UK.  Not that I wish high delta number on Italy but the evidence does indicate that those infected in UK have been the young and not impacted so much - hospitalisations and deaths have not seen the massive increases we saw with the Alpha variant back in Jan).

I am expecting a call any day from my TA asking for payment - I may do as you did and request an extension. Failing that I think I will just have to get a voucher for the deposit value. 

[DCGuy64]

6 hours ago, 8420PR said:

probably longer. 

Why do you say "probably longer"?

Every time I hear someone predict bad news it makes me more depressed and more likely to cancel my cruises. I'm beginning to think it was a mistake to book anything in 2021. 😥

[Beamafar]

1 minute ago, DCGuy64 said:

 I'm beginning to think it was a mistake to book anything in 2021. 😥

Same here!  😔

[DCGuy64]

Regarding those traveling from the UK: Italy's current rules say that, among other things, you must undergo isolation for 5 days upon arrival in Italy. However, there are exceptions for, among other things, anyone who travels by private transport and leaves the country within 36 hours. I wonder if this is an exploitable loophole for those of us planning to sail from Italy. I wish I knew the answer.

https://www.salute.gov.it/portale/nuovocoronavirus/dettaglioContenutiNuovoCoronavirus.jsp?lingua=english&id=5412&area=nuovoCoronavirus&menu=vuoto&tab=6

The above link seems to speak only of those who plan to travel to and remain in Italy.

The following link (I can only find it in Italian) gives exceptions to the rules.

https://www.salute.gov.it/portale/nuovocoronavirus/dettaglioContenutiNuovoCoronavirus.jsp?lingua=italiano&id=5411&area=nuovoCoronavirus&menu=vuoto&tab=6

This is the paragraph that interests me:

a chiunque transita, con mezzo privato, nel territorio italiano per un periodo non superiore a trentasei ore, con l'obbligo, allo scadere di detto termine, di lasciare immediatamente il territorio nazionale o, in mancanza, di iniziare il periodo di sorveglianza e di isolamento fiduciario conformemente all'art. 51, commi da 1 a 5, del DPCM 2 marzo 2021 

It's discussing exceptions to the 5-day self-isolation rule and in my quickly translated version it says:

"to whoever transits, with private means, the Italian territory for a period not greater than 36 hours, with the obligation at the expiration of said term, immediately to leave the national territory..." It goes on to say that the surveillance and isolation periods would then come into play upon failure to leave the country.

My point being, if someone comes to Italy from the UK and plans to leave Italy within 36 hours, it is certainly implied that the 5-day isolation wouldn't be required. I have selfish reasons for thinking this: we are booked on the Splendida for the end of August, and our flight from DC to Venice has a layover in the UK at Heathrow. Our travel agent got us incredibly cheap airfares, and to rebook now via a different airport not in the UK would currently cost us at least $2,000 more. Furthermore, we can't afford the 5-day isolation period because we both work full time, so unless we find a solution, or Italy drops the quarantine for UK passengers, our trip is off.

[Malibustacey79]

35 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

Regarding those traveling from the UK: Italy's current rules say that, among other things, you must undergo isolation for 5 days upon arrival in Italy. However, there are exceptions for, among other things, anyone who travels by private transport and leaves the country within 36 hours. I wonder if this is an exploitable loophole for those of us planning to sail from Italy. I wish I knew the answer.

https://www.salute.gov.it/portale/nuovocoronavirus/dettaglioContenutiNuovoCoronavirus.jsp?lingua=english&id=5412&area=nuovoCoronavirus&menu=vuoto&tab=6

The above link seems to speak only of those who plan to travel to and remain in Italy.

The following link (I can only find it in Italian) gives exceptions to the rules.

https://www.salute.gov.it/portale/nuovocoronavirus/dettaglioContenutiNuovoCoronavirus.jsp?lingua=italiano&id=5411&area=nuovoCoronavirus&menu=vuoto&tab=6

This is the paragraph that interests me:

a chiunque transita, con mezzo privato, nel territorio italiano per un periodo non superiore a trentasei ore, con l'obbligo, allo scadere di detto termine, di lasciare immediatamente il territorio nazionale o, in mancanza, di iniziare il periodo di sorveglianza e di isolamento fiduciario conformemente all'art. 51, commi da 1 a 5, del DPCM 2 marzo 2021 

It's discussing exceptions to the 5-day self-isolation rule and in my quickly translated version it says:

"to whoever transits, with private means, the Italian territory for a period not greater than 36 hours, with the obligation at the expiration of said term, immediately to leave the national territory..." It goes on to say that the surveillance and isolation periods would then come into play upon failure to leave the country.

My point being, if someone comes to Italy from the UK and plans to leave Italy within 36 hours, it is certainly implied that the 5-day isolation wouldn't be required. I have selfish reasons for thinking this: we are booked on the Splendida for the end of August, and our flight from DC to Venice has a layover in the UK at Heathrow. Our travel agent got us incredibly cheap airfares, and to rebook now via a different airport not in the UK would currently cost us at least $2,000 more. Furthermore, we can't afford the 5-day isolation period because we both work full time, so unless we find a solution, or Italy drops the quarantine for UK passengers, our trip is off.

That translation is really helpful, thank you!!
 

Isn’t it depressing that we are still going round and round with this after nearly 18 months. I don’t think any holiday will ever feel ‘guaranteed’ again 😞

[DCGuy64]

15 minutes ago, Malibustacey79 said:

That translation is really helpful, thank you!!
 

Isn’t it depressing that we are still going round and round with this after nearly 18 months. I don’t think any holiday will ever feel ‘guaranteed’ again 😞

Indeed it is depressing!

BTW when you're on the Italian page for that portion I linked, you can click "EN" at the top right of the page to have it displayed in English. Or at least, that's what you'd expect. But rather than show you the exact same page in English, it instead takes you to an English language homepage, you have to then search for the page, and the part dealing with the UK/Northern Ireland doesn't mention the exception to the rule I pointed out. For some reason, they only have that part in Italian. 🤷‍♂️

[8420PR]

5 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

Why do you say "probably longer"?

Every time I hear someone predict bad news it makes me more depressed and more likely to cancel my cruises. I'm beginning to think it was a mistake to book anything in 2021. 😥

The "probably longer" was the advice given by the UK Prime Minister who said "“There will be hassle, there will be delays, I am afraid, because the priority has got to be to keep the country safe and stop the virus coming back in.”    

 

But the good news for everyone else is this is a specific UK issue.  For the rest of Europe and also US travel is normalising, so no need to be depressed.  For Americans, as long as you are vaccinated you can fly to most European countries tomorrow with no problems (avoid transitting in the UK though).    I cruised on MSC Seaside in May and then spent a month in Italy - it was a really great time.   

[DCGuy64]

56 minutes ago, 8420PR said:

The "probably longer" was the advice given by the UK Prime Minister who said "“There will be hassle, there will be delays, I am afraid, because the priority has got to be to keep the country safe and stop the virus coming back in.”    

 

But the good news for everyone else is this is a specific UK issue.  For the rest of Europe and also US travel is normalising, so no need to be depressed.  For Americans, as long as you are vaccinated you can fly to most European countries tomorrow with no problems (avoid transitting in the UK though).    I cruised on MSC Seaside in May and then spent a month in Italy - it was a really great time.   

Thanks for your reply. I see now that you were specifically referring to the UK (which makes sense given the title of this thread). Yes, I am American, and you're right about the good news: a lot of countries previously closed to the US are now open. Unfortunately, our cruise on MSC begins in Italy and I was unaware of the restrictions on the UK when our travel agent bought our tickets. We are supposed to transit through Heathrow so unless Italy drops the required 5-day quarantine, we'll have to cancel our trip. We can't afford to take off 5 extra days from work to sit in a quarantine hotel in Italy just because we were stupid enough to buy tickets with a 2 1/2 hour layover in the UK. I personally think the rule is ridiculous, but I don't make the rules.

[hamrag]

7 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

....we can't afford the 5-day isolation period because we both work full time, so unless we find a solution, or Italy drops the quarantine for UK passengers, our trip is off.

Fingers and toes crossed for you, but I'd speculate (and it is purely speculation) there's a very good chance quarantine rules will change by August! 🤞

[Malibustacey79]

1 hour ago, DCGuy64 said:

Thanks for your reply. I see now that you were specifically referring to the UK (which makes sense given the title of this thread). Yes, I am American, and you're right about the good news: a lot of countries previously closed to the US are now open. Unfortunately, our cruise on MSC begins in Italy and I was unaware of the restrictions on the UK when our travel agent bought our tickets. We are supposed to transit through Heathrow so unless Italy drops the required 5-day quarantine, we'll have to cancel our trip. We can't afford to take off 5 extra days from work to sit in a quarantine hotel in Italy just because we were stupid enough to buy tickets with a 2 1/2 hour layover in the UK. I personally think the rule is ridiculous, but I don't make the rules.

What month did you say your trip is? Apparently there will soon be arrangements for double vaccinated people from UK not to have to quarantine in ‘Amber’ countries (of which I think Italy is one) so hopefully this will apply to you too while in transit. 
 

Wouldn’t it be nice to just do an excited holiday countdown again… 
 

 

Edited June 25, 2021 by Malibustacey79
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[DCGuy64]

5 minutes ago, hamrag said:

Fingers and toes crossed for you, but I'd speculate (and it is purely speculation) there's a very good chance quarantine rules will change by August! 🤞

Thank you, kindly, @hamrag! 😄

3 minutes ago, Malibustacey79 said:

What month did you say your trip is?

August, specifically 26 August is when we fly from the US. And my wife and I are both fully vaccinated (Pfizer). For now even that doesn't matter to Italy. 😟

I'd be interested in the arrangements you spoke about. It seems sensible to relax the rules for vaccinated Britons.

Edited June 25, 2021 by DCGuy64