Updated Celebrity testing requirements eff 9/13/21

[Ipeeinthepools]

12 hours ago, cangelmd said:

I wonder if the Royal group is watching Carnival to see how their plan works out, then go for testing at the port?

 

Disney has announced that they will be doing testing for all guests at the port.  I think that one will be the one to watch.

[cbfb]

6 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

There is nothing in Celebrity’s email announcing the new timeline (quoted in comment 4 above) that says anything about providing a link to the proctored test (let alone some sort of dedicated one). It says they are working to set up a link for purchasing the test kits. 

They are providing the option to purchase a home kit. 
 

For full vaccinated guests living in the U.S., a home-test kit will be available for purchase on our Website as of Wednesday, September 8, 2021. We are working with an authorized medical provider to be able to offer this option. You will complete your pre-cruise test right at home or at any other place of your choosing with the help of a live video supervision by a Certified Guide.

[Ipeeinthepools]

2 minutes ago, cbfb said:

They are providing the option to purchase a home kit. 
 

For full vaccinated guests living in the U.S., a home-test kit will be available for purchase on our Website as of Wednesday, September 8, 2021. We are working with an authorized medical provider to be able to offer this option. You will complete your pre-cruise test right at home or at any other place of your choosing with the help of a live video supervision by a Certified Guide.

 

If Celebrity follows the same approach as they do with shore excursions, it may cost 25% more to purchase it on their website.  😉

[Turtles06]

1 hour ago, cbfb said:

They are providing the option to purchase a home kit. 
 

 

Which was exactly what I had said. 

[cbfb]

14 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

Which was exactly what I had said. 

Ok 

[hcat]

14 hours ago, megfla said:

I don't know if I am spoiled, but Hillsborough County (FL) offers free antigen (rapid) tests with results in under one hour.  No appointment necessary. 

 

With the increased spread, I am glad they cut it down to 2 days.  It may identify more positive cases before boarding.

Can u list locations and details for sign up.? We are about 90 minutes  south of Tampa, but have  fewer test site options.. .free or pay.

Thanks

[hcat]

14 hours ago, cbfb said:

Is that one of the County sites? We are in Manatee County. Both Manatee and Sarasota county locations are close to us. I’m just not sure if the results for the rapid test are given in a PDF form or just a verbal. 

Could you list those sites..closer to us than Hillsborough.. thanks

 

I thought they  just closed one at the old dog track near the  Sarasota airport. Did it reopen....

[hcat]

2 hours ago, Ipeeinthepools said:

 

Disney has announced that they will be doing testing for all guests at the port.  I think that one will be the one to watch.

Best way to go if fully staffed and xan give quick results.

X tried this and it was a "cluster....."

[cbfb]

18 minutes ago, hcat said:

Could you list those sites..closer to us than Hillsborough.. thanks

 

I thought they  just closed one at the old dog track near the  Sarasota airport. Did it reopen....

Bradenton area convention center in Palmetto is doing walk up testing from 7 to 7 daily. 

 

Robert L. Taylor Community Complex parking lot
1845 34^th Street, 
Sarasota, FL 34234

This testing site will be closed on Labor Day (Monday, September 6)

M-F 9-4 Saturday 9-1

There are a few other places in Sarasota too. Just look on the scgov.net website 

 

 

[Papa C]

Seems like to me that if the cruising industry wants to get back to profitable status they are going to need to address this issue themselves. Given the American idea of freedom I don't see the need for testing to go away and the 2 day requirement puts a large hurdle in the way of cruisers. The lines need to put in or at least support a quick affordable way of testing at the embarkation site to makes it easy to cruise. These boards are full of experienced cruisers saying they are thinking of cancelling their cruises due to this issue. It will be even tougher to attract first time cruisers. Why not partner with a 3rd party testing firm to provide tests (antigen for speed) at the port and leverage the volume they can provide to keep costs down? The promise of capitalism is that if there is a market someone will want to step up to fill the need in return for profits. Just the view of an old retired guy.

[Fouremco]

11 hours ago, Josie201 said:

Curious on this.  Do you know if you could have it done at your uS hotel or is there a specification it’s for US residents only ?  

The wording on Celebrity's webpage suggests that the offer is only for US residents, but I agree that if you can place an order for delivery to your Airbnb, you should be ok. Purchasing directly from Celebrity would be convenient, but it will be interesting to see their pricing: are they offering these test kits as a convenience for passengers or are they simply developing another profit centre?

 

For full vaccinated guests living in the U.S., a home-test kit will be available for purchase on our Website as of Wednesday, September 8, 2021. We are working with an authorized medical provider to be able to offer this option. You will complete your pre-cruise test right at home or at any other place of your choosing with the help of a live video supervision by a Certified Guide.  These test kits will be delivered anywhere in the U.S, within two business days and you will receive validated results in 15 minutes.

 

 

 

 

 

[TeeRick]

The two day requirement is the final nail in the coffin for us.  Here is why this change makes cruising from a distant city now very difficult. 😬

 

Our Sept 24th Alaska cruise now becomes near impossible and very risky.  We cannot change our flights (again) and we are flying cross- country from Philadelphia.  We were planning on getting tested Tuesday, and getting a rapid result before flying to Seattle early Wed morning for the Friday cruise.   Now we would need to take the test Wed morning but our flight is 9AM so leaving for the airport around 6:30 AM.  Even if we could do a 6AM at home test (is that even possible?) it is a big risk to fly without knowing the result or alternatively test the day before somewhere in Seattle.  If positive then what?  Stranded in Seattle. Sleepless in Seattle.   At least if we cruised on the Easy coast from FL we could always rent a car and drive home in about a day.  IMO no reason the CDC had to make this change as cruise ships of fully vaccinated people have been just fine even with Delta around for months.  A few positives here and there.  So irritating!

[LuvCruzn4Evr]

5 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

The two day requirement is the final nail in the coffin for us.  Here is why this change makes cruising from a distant city now very difficult. 😬

 

Our Sept 24th Alaska cruise now becomes near impossible and very risky.  We cannot change our flights (again) and we are flying cross- country from Philadelphia.  We were planning on getting tested Tuesday, and getting a rapid result before flying to Seattle early Wed morning for the Friday cruise.   Now we would need to take the test Wed morning but our flight is 9AM so leaving for the airport around 6:30 AM.  Even if we could do a 6AM at home test (is that even possible?) it is a big risk to fly without knowing the result or alternatively test the day before somewhere in Seattle.  If positive then what?  Stranded in Seattle. Sleepless in Seattle.   At least if we cruised on the Easy coast from FL we could always rent a car and drive home in about a day.  IMO no reason the CDC had to make this change as cruise ships of fully vaccinated people have been just fine even with Delta around for months.  A few positives here and there.  So irritating!

We are in the same predicament for our Oct. Summit cruises. Haven't found a testing facility that will test someone on Sundays who is not having symptoms. We will have to change our flight to late afternoon Monday and arrive close to midnight...ugh!

[TeeRick]

So I just got an email 10:01 AM this morning from Celebrity.  So 25 mins ago.

 

Important Updates to Testing and Health Screening Requirements.

(The first part of the email states:)

"For US sailings departing through October 1, 2021, all guests two years of age and older, regardless of vaccination status, will now be required to present a negative COVID-19 test result at the time of embarkation. This test may be taken as either a PCR test or an Antigen test, conducted within three days of embarkation."

 

But there is also a link to the Healthy At Sea Q&A and that says 2 days.  Why would the send me an update email a few minutes ago specifically on testing with contradictory information???

[Fouremco]

1 minute ago, TeeRick said:

So I just got an email 10:01 AM this morning from Celebrity.  So 25 mins ago.

 

Important Updates to Testing and Health Screening Requirements.

(The first part of the email states:)

"For US sailings departing through October 1, 2021, all guests two years of age and older, regardless of vaccination status, will now be required to present a negative COVID-19 test result at the time of embarkation. This test may be taken as either a PCR test or an Antigen test, conducted within three days of embarkation."

 

But there is also a link to the Healthy At Sea Q&A and that says 2 days.  Why would the send me an update email a few minutes ago specifically on testing with contradictory information???

Too many responsibility centres within Celebrity that operate independently and are extremely slow in sharing information. No one seems to have a global perspective.

[upwarduk]

45 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

IMO no reason the CDC had to make this change as cruise ships of fully vaccinated people have been just fine even with Delta around for months.

As these are CDC rulings, I wonder whether there will be a change in UK?

[Harrylinden]

I have a cruise in December and if this 2 day testing is still in place,I just might cancel.This is causing a lot of worrying for us, and I'm sure for others too!! What if we can't get the results in those 2 days? I forsee a lot of people being left at the port because they didn't get their test results back in time. Covid is becoming rampant and the new variant MU is here and I see the testing facilities being overwhelmed with tests and getting behind.As much as we want to cruise ,I'm considering canceling to avoid being confined to our cabin if we have symptoms or was around someone who tested positive!

[Fouremco]

5 minutes ago, Harrylinden said:

I have a cruise in December and if this 2 day testing is still in place,I just might cancel.This is causing a lot of worrying for us, and I'm sure for others too!! What if we can't get the results in those 2 days? I forsee a lot of people being left at the port because they didn't get their test results back in time. Covid is becoming rampant and the new variant MU is here and I see the testing facilities being overwhelmed with tests and getting behind.As much as we want to cruise ,I'm considering canceling to avoid being confined to our cabin if we have symptoms or was around someone who tested positive!

The home kit that Celebrity will be selling offers results within 15 minutes. Once CC members start reporting on how good the actual turnaround time is, you'll be better placed to make a decision.

[Turtles06]

7 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

The home kit that Celebrity will be selling offers results within 15 minutes.

 

But what is left unsaid is the unknown and unknowable wait time for the observer to watch you take the test.  Since you can't schedule your test, you log on and hope for the best.  A couple of weeks ago, people were reporting two hour wait times for the observer.  More recently, that time was much shorter, but there's no way to know what it will be in the future, especially if more and more people start using these tests. 

 

I'm glad it's an option, but folks should not be misled by the "results in 15 minutes" language in terms of planning when they can take the test. 

[canderson]

2 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

I'm glad it's an option, but folks should not be misled by the "results in 15 minutes" language in terms of planning when they can take the test. 

Indeed ... it takes 15 minutes for the test process to complete once the supplied reagent is added to the test media.  How long it takes to get hooked up with someone to start the test will be the issue. 

[jgmorgan]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

The two day requirement is the final nail in the coffin for us.  Here is why this change makes cruising from a distant city now very difficult. 😬

I feel your pain.  We went though this thought process for our recent cruise when the three-day requirement was in place.  Now at two days, it would have been much more difficult for us.  We a have a cruise scheduled for Jan.2 and I can imagine the challenges of getting a test on New Year's Eve.  Hopefully by then things will be easier and Celebrity will have figured out a process with minimal friction.  It is absolutely in their economic interest to do so.

 

However, for now, before you throw in the towel, you might consider going ahead with your local test as planned and scheduling another upon arrival at the Seattle airport or other Seattle location.  If your local test is negative, it would be very unlikely that your Seattle test would be different given what I suspect has been your very cautious pre-cruise activities.  According to our testing folks, the antigen test is much more likely to result in false negative than a false positive. The downside of this approach is the cost of an extra test, but the upside might be getting on the cruise you have been looking forward to.

 

 

[Fouremco]

9 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

 

But what is left unsaid is the unknown and unknowable wait time for the observer to watch you take the test.  Since you can't schedule your test, you log on and hope for the best.  A couple of weeks ago, people were reporting two hour wait times for the observer.  More recently, that time was much shorter, but there's no way to know what it will be in the future, especially if more and more people start using these tests. 

 

I'm glad it's an option, but folks should not be misled by the "results in 15 minutes" language in terms of planning when they can take the test. 

Totally agree. That's why I also said in my post that "Once CC members start reporting on how good the actual turnaround time is, you'll be better placed to make a decision."

[TourDeCruise]

Just changed our flights this morning to fly to Ft L the day before our November cruise that starts on a Saturday instead of 2 days before to accommodate this testing requirement. We did not want to fly on a Friday before Thanksgiving week so had booked to go on Thursday but now do not have a choice because of this revised testing requirement (unless we were willing to go with the home test option). Fortunately we had booked with Southwest so no change fees but got hit with a higher price for the flight.

Edited September 4, 2021 by TourDeCruise

[CHEZMARYLOU]

We are changing our plans for our October cruise and will go to Ft. Lauderdale one day early instead of 2.  Planning on doing the home test.

[Mark_T]

1 hour ago, upwarduk said:

As these are CDC rulings, I wonder whether there will be a change in UK?

I'm watching the website and my e-mails carefully, but I wouldn't be surprised if they at least changed with effect from after the last 'staycation' cruise...