Pt 2 I was positive on AOS 7/24

[Coconut Crew]

Well my thread was locked before I could respond so here is a quick response to some questions/comments.  My spouse and I are doing well.  Thank you for all of the well wishes and kind unjudgemental responses! I only posted so others would know the huge hurdles that Royal jumped through for our family.  There were SO many moving parts to getting us back home and they really stepped up and ensured our safety and that of the crew and remaining passengers. Here’s some quick responses.  A family member that was on the cruise with us picked up the car in Florida and a different family member will fly to Florida in a few days and drive it back to us several states away.  We NEVER had the thought cross our mind about not being able to fly back to Florida.  That threw us at first but we fully understand that was a good decision.  So keep in mind a car at the port/hotel could be an issue if this happened to you.  We all had Pfizer.  I had my second shot at the end of March.   Felt great on the cruise and after testing have some congestion.  Spouse has exhaustion and congestion.  Remaining family members all feel great.  The order of test was a rapid test in the main dining room followed by a pcr that somehow only took 1 hour to get back.  I got a CVS pcr within 24 hours (Saturday) of getting home on Friday just to confirm the results.  I am still waiting for that to come back. Contact tracing- they had me detail my movements and used my purchases and reservations as a way to help track things.  That was helpful as I was stressed and my stomach was in knots trying to absorb all the intensity of the moment.  The sh** gets real fast!!  Like crazy fast response.  They helped me walk through where I had been and were going to review security camera footage to see who might also need to be quarantined such as staff/passengers.  They also did make an announcement to the whole cruise that 6 people had tested positive.   As of right now, I had paid $319 for a Travel Guard travel insurance for a family of 4 and don’t have any receipts to submit! It really is amazing that at this moment there aren’t a stack of receipts.  I did have the ship doctor fill out the medical certificate form required by the travel insurance and Royal gave me a letter certifying the illness which is also needed.  As far as transports go, the medical transport I took told me there were 10 transports leaving Freeport that day from other sources not just Royal.  They said they have been busy doing these transports and most were not critical cases just Covid Positive.  The cruise line HAS to send you directly to your home. I was told they need to see me enter the house.  I have not been contacted by any health agencies in terms of quarantine. Cruise line said 14 days. The burning question of a refund— we were told we would get a refund for the unused portion of our cruise back on our card writhing 7-10 days.  How much that will be for those of us that left early vs the family’s group that stayed in quarantine until disembarkation remains to be seen.  No idea about credit for double points.  This was our first Royal cruise.  Regardless,  Royal staff was very helpful and I even had a call from Royal Cares telling me when my spouses flight took off assuring me they would not have just left him in the Bahamas.  Overall amazing experience and we would still cruise again! Night and day response to when our family was quarantined and had the norovirus on NCL 13 years ago.  They were terrible.  Hope I answered the bulk of questions.  Best wishes to you all!  

[rtazz17]

Good. Sounds like protocols work. Sorry this happened to you. Could be anyone.

[CruiseBride926]

Thank you so much for detailing all of this. Glad it went as smoothly as possible and that you both are feeling relatively well.

[smokeybandit]

11 minutes ago, Coconut Crew said:

 I have not been contacted by any health agencies in terms of quarantine. Cruise line said 14 days.

That was all Bahamas rules. That was why the close contacts had to be flown home from Nassau, too (My party had a close contact, so we flew home on a private jet, too. All else aside, I could really get used to that private jet travel) due to Bahamas wanting even close contacts to quarantine 14 days before any commercial travel.

[Coconut Crew]

14 minutes ago, Coconut Crew said:

Well my thread was locked before I could respond so here is a quick response to some questions/comments.  My spouse and I are doing well.  Thank you for all of the well wishes and kind unjudgemental responses! I only posted so others would know the huge hurdles that Royal jumped through for our family.  There were SO many moving parts to getting us back home and they really stepped up and ensured our safety and that of the crew and remaining passengers. Here’s some quick responses.  A family member that was on the cruise with us picked up the car in Florida and a different family member will fly to Florida in a few days and drive it back to us several states away.  We NEVER had the thought cross our mind about not being able to fly back to Florida.  That threw us at first but we fully understand that was a good decision.  So keep in mind a car at the port/hotel could be an issue if this happened to you.  We all had Pfizer.  I had my second shot at the end of March.   Felt great on the cruise and after testing have some congestion.  Spouse has exhaustion and congestion.  Remaining family members all feel great.  The order of test was a rapid test in the main dining room followed by a pcr that somehow only took 1 hour to get back.  I got a CVS pcr within 24 hours (Saturday) of getting home on Friday just to confirm the results.  I am still waiting for that to come back. Contact tracing- they had me detail my movements and used my purchases and reservations as a way to help track things.  That was helpful as I was stressed and my stomach was in knots trying to absorb all the intensity of the moment.  The sh** gets real fast!!  Like crazy fast response.  They helped me walk through where I had been and were going to review security camera footage to see who might also need to be quarantined such as staff/passengers.  They also did make an announcement to the whole cruise that 6 people had tested positive.   As of right now, I had paid $319 for a Travel Guard travel insurance for a family of 4 and don’t have any receipts to submit! It really is amazing that at this moment there aren’t a stack of receipts.  I did have the ship doctor fill out the medical certificate form required by the travel insurance and Royal gave me a letter certifying the illness which is also needed.  As far as transports go, the medical transport I took told me there were 10 transports leaving Freeport that day from other sources not just Royal.  They said they have been busy doing these transports and most were not critical cases just Covid Positive.  The cruise line HAS to send you directly to your home. I was told they need to see me enter the house.  I have not been contacted by any health agencies in terms of quarantine. Cruise line said 14 days. The burning question of a refund— we were told we would get a refund for the unused portion of our cruise back on our card writhing 7-10 days.  How much that will be for those of us that left early vs the family’s group that stayed in quarantine until disembarkation remains to be seen.  No idea about credit for double points.  This was our first Royal cruise.  Regardless,  Royal staff was very helpful and I even had a call from Royal Cares telling me when my spouses flight took off assuring me they would not have just left him in the Bahamas.  Overall amazing experience and we would still cruise again! Night and day response to when our family was quarantined and had the norovirus on NCL 13 years ago.  They were terrible.  Hope I answered the bulk of questions.  Best wishes to you all!  

Also, some asked about being in a small plane….I was nervous about that but was pleasantly surprised.  The jet took off and landed smoothly. The whole flight was smooth and didn’t feel shaky at all.  It was snug in our jet with the medical stretcher but more leg room and wider seats than commercial flights!  It was also a quicker flight home than commercial and you don’t have any lines to deal with because no one wants you to come near them!  

[smokeybandit]

3 minutes ago, Coconut Crew said:

Also, some asked about being in a small plane….I was nervous about that but was pleasantly surprised.  The jet took off and landed smoothly. The whole flight was smooth and didn’t feel shaky at all.  It was snug in our jet with the medical stretcher but more leg room and wider seats than commercial flights!  It was also a quicker flight home than commercial and you don’t have any lines to deal with because no one wants you to come near them!  

 

Ours didn't have the stretcher installed, but the pilots explained the setup when they do have it in a medical config.

[cruiselvr04]

Thanks for your first hand report of how it was handled.

[Babr]

TravelGuard has a disclaimer on their website that they will not pay any cancellation, trip delay, or trip interruption expenses related to Covid, but the language is somewhat contradictory. Since you had a documented diagnosis, you may just have to file a claim to see what they do. You will have coverage for medical, but it sounds like you do not need that. It may be that the greatest financial relief you get will be from Royal. You are lucky in the sense that this happened the way it did so that you were covered by the Royal assistance plan.

 

Thanks for letting us know how it works. Best wishes to you and your family for a speedy and complete recovery.

 

Edited August 1, 2021 by Babr

[Tudy]

Again, thank you for your report. I especially appreciate that you stuck to the facts and did not get on a "soap box."

[CaroleC]

34 minutes ago, Coconut Crew said:

Well my thread was locked before I could respond so here is a quick response to some questions/comments.  My spouse and I are doing well.  Thank you for all of the well wishes and kind unjudgemental responses! I only posted so others would know the huge hurdles that Royal jumped through for our family.  There were SO many moving parts to getting us back home and they really stepped up and ensured our safety and that of the crew and remaining passengers. Here’s some quick responses.  A family member that was on the cruise with us picked up the car in Florida and a different family member will fly to Florida in a few days and drive it back to us several states away.  We NEVER had the thought cross our mind about not being able to fly back to Florida.  That threw us at first but we fully understand that was a good decision.  So keep in mind a car at the port/hotel could be an issue if this happened to you.  We all had Pfizer.  I had my second shot at the end of March.   Felt great on the cruise and after testing have some congestion.  Spouse has exhaustion and congestion.  Remaining family members all feel great.  The order of test was a rapid test in the main dining room followed by a pcr that somehow only took 1 hour to get back.  I got a CVS pcr within 24 hours (Saturday) of getting home on Friday just to confirm the results.  I am still waiting for that to come back. Contact tracing- they had me detail my movements and used my purchases and reservations as a way to help track things.  That was helpful as I was stressed and my stomach was in knots trying to absorb all the intensity of the moment.  The sh** gets real fast!!  Like crazy fast response.  They helped me walk through where I had been and were going to review security camera footage to see who might also need to be quarantined such as staff/passengers.  They also did make an announcement to the whole cruise that 6 people had tested positive.   As of right now, I had paid $319 for a Travel Guard travel insurance for a family of 4 and don’t have any receipts to submit! It really is amazing that at this moment there aren’t a stack of receipts.  I did have the ship doctor fill out the medical certificate form required by the travel insurance and Royal gave me a letter certifying the illness which is also needed.  As far as transports go, the medical transport I took told me there were 10 transports leaving Freeport that day from other sources not just Royal.  They said they have been busy doing these transports and most were not critical cases just Covid Positive.  The cruise line HAS to send you directly to your home. I was told they need to see me enter the house.  I have not been contacted by any health agencies in terms of quarantine. Cruise line said 14 days. The burning question of a refund— we were told we would get a refund for the unused portion of our cruise back on our card writhing 7-10 days.  How much that will be for those of us that left early vs the family’s group that stayed in quarantine until disembarkation remains to be seen.  No idea about credit for double points.  This was our first Royal cruise.  Regardless,  Royal staff was very helpful and I even had a call from Royal Cares telling me when my spouses flight took off assuring me they would not have just left him in the Bahamas.  Overall amazing experience and we would still cruise again! Night and day response to when our family was quarantined and had the norovirus on NCL 13 years ago.  They were terrible.  Hope I answered the bulk of questions.  Best wishes to you all!  

Many thanks for this and also your original post. Really interesting and reassuring to know how well Royal handled matters. Very best wishes to you and your family.

[ptf2009]

The good news is that it sounds like vaccination worked...you got the virus, but you and your wife are doing well.

[Coconut Crew]

27 minutes ago, Babr said:

TravelGuard has a disclaimer on their website that they will not pay any cancellation, trip delay, or trip interruption expenses related to Covid, but the language is somewhat contradictory. Since you had a documented diagnosis, you may just have to file a claim to see what they do. You will have coverage for medical, but it sounds like you do not need that. It may be that the greatest financial relief you get will be from Royal. You are lucky in the sense that this happened the way it did so that you were covered by the Royal assistance plan.

 

Thanks for letting us know how it works. Best wishes to you and your family for a speedy and complete recovery.

 

We heard from Travel Guard that what Royal did was amazing and not something they have been hearing.  They have the disclaimer but they also said it would be covered for trip interruption and are considering Covid as a regular illness.  We are out several hundred dollars for air and amusement tickets we had to cancel for flying in a niece/nephew to Florida  for the day we were supposed to disembark.  Since the tickets weren’t for us we are going to have to eat it but it is a small cost considering the situation.  Thank you.  

[Sunshine3601]

2 minutes ago, Coconut Crew said:

We heard from Travel Guard that what Royal did was amazing and not something they have been hearing.  They have the disclaimer but they also said it would be covered for trip interruption and are considering Covid as a regular illness.  We are out several hundred dollars for air and amusement tickets we had to cancel for flying in a niece/nephew to Florida  for the day we were supposed to disembark.  Since the tickets weren’t for us we are going to have to eat it but it is a small cost considering the situation.  Thank you.  

Glad to hear you and hubby are doing well.     It sure does sound like Royal took very good care of you and your family.    take care and feel better soon!

[Coconut Crew]

37 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

 

Ours didn't have the stretcher installed, but the pilots explained the setup when they do have it in a medical config.

My spouses transport also did not have the stretcher but they explained how they would adapt it if needed.  That jet seated 8 and was roomier whereas ours seated 3-4 plus the stretcher.  

[Babr]

7 minutes ago, Coconut Crew said:

We heard from Travel Guard that what Royal did was amazing and not something they have been hearing.  They have the disclaimer but they also said it would be covered for trip interruption and are considering Covid as a regular illness.  We are out several hundred dollars for air and amusement tickets we had to cancel for flying in a niece/nephew to Florida  for the day we were supposed to disembark.  Since the tickets weren’t for us we are going to have to eat it but it is a small cost considering the situation.  Thank you.  

Good to hear. Glad you were fully covered except for that small part.

 

Yes, Royal and Celebrity are setting the bar high. The bad part is that people expect insurance to do the same thing. It just

doesn’t work that way.

 

There is another incident that happened on a recent Carnival sailing. That family had a very different experience. Apparently, Carnival is not nearly as helpful. That family is fending for themselves in a Houston hotel and will have to depend on insurance reimbursement for all expenses.

Edited August 1, 2021 by Babr

[rtazz17]

Wonder if carnival will up the bar? (Testing all passengers) Not saying they should or not. Time will tell. Certainly things will evolve over time for all cruise  lines. Just glad they are back. Wouldnt want to see the bar set low and then something unthinkable happens or is forced on them.

Edited August 1, 2021 by rtazz17

[smokeybandit]

1 minute ago, rtazz17 said:

Wonder if carnival will up the bar? (Testing all passengers) Not saying they should or not. Time will tell. Certainly things will evolve over time for all cruise  lines. Just glad they are back. Wouldnt want to see the bar set low and then something unthinkable happens or is forced on them.

I'm guessing in the end the varying protocols won't matter at all.  Every ship will have positive tests now and then at the end of a cruise.
 

[DISFANS3]

Good info, thanks..

[Babr]

25 minutes ago, rtazz17 said:

Wonder if carnival will up the bar? Not saying they should or not. Time will tell. Certainly things will evolve over time for all cruise  lines. Just glad they are back. Wouldnt want to see the bar set low and then something unthinkable happens or is forced on them.

Protocols are subject to change, but I was talking about the assistance plans that help passengers who test positive by arranging for them to get home.

 

Those plans were formulated months as part of the agreement to return to sailing and will expire on Oct. 31. Royal, Celebrity, and Princess have published the details of their plans on their websites, but I have not seen anything in writing from Carnival.  I don’t know why they don’t have to be forthcoming in the same way as the other lines, but their assistance is minimal, and I don’t know why they would change now. 

 

The point is that all of them will expire by the end of the year (Princess in December), and people need to realize that they will be responsible for their own arrangements after that.

Edited August 1, 2021 by Babr

[kleibo]

Thank you for your posts and very glad you are all feeling well.   How many people do you think were tested to fly back to the us.  You stated there were 1200 on the cruise.  It would be nice to know just for a statistical comparison.   6 people out of 1200 tests is a half percent.  Even 6 out of 600 is 1% positive.    Alabama has a 21% positivity rate right now.  Some areas of Florida 25%.       

[ReneeFLL]

Thanks for your first post explaining everything and for this follow up one. Glad to hear you are both doing well.

[sfaaa]

A very helpful and informative thread. Thank you OP.

[Ocean Boy]

Thanks for the follow up. Hopefully, the rest of us will not get this thread locked on you.

[rtazz17]

31 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I'm guessing in the end the varying protocols won't matter at all.  Every ship will have positive tests now and then at the end of a cruise.
 

No doubt they will have positives. The protocols matter more then anything. Thats what they will point to when they have positives. Protocols dont stop covid. They are in place to show how you reacted to the situation. Thats what I meant. No protocols no cruising.

[Coconut Crew]

25 minutes ago, kleibo said:

Thank you for your posts and very glad you are all feeling well.   How many people do you think were tested to fly back to the us.  You stated there were 1200 on the cruise.  It would be nice to know just for a statistical comparison.   6 people out of 1200 tests is a half percent.  Even 6 out of 600 is 1% positive.    Alabama has a 21% positivity rate right now.  Some areas of Florida 25%.       

I have no idea how many were tested as this was something Royal offered for free to meet the requirement for reentry in to the US.  I just know we had 1200 on board and 7 tested positive (once my spouse was retested a third time 24 hrs later).