MSC - No Canadians

[K_e_short]

O.k. I will admit I was watching my daily dose of YouTube trash (otherwise known as cruise bloggers).

 

MSC currently does not allow Canadians to cruise out of Florida.

 

Supposedly a Canadian was allowed to book a cruise but was not allowed on the ship.

 

Why am I sharing this? Because it just shows how cruise lines have interpreted rules differently and it's so confusing for Canadians.

[xcell]

their lost but they better change that toon but August 2022

 

[Josie201]

Is this a vaccine issue or they just don’t like Canadians ? 

[Evilmuffin]

I’m quite sure there was a reason other than being Canadian.   Not vaccinated?   Mixed vaccines? 

[K_e_short]

Prior to October 31st they are not allowing Canadians.

After that time:

ARIBBEAN CRUISES - COVID-19: MEASURES TO EMBARK FOR CANADIAN RESIDENTS

 

For all sailings in the upcoming months, starting from November 1st 2021 till March 31st 2022, please note that all Guests will need to follow all of these requirements to be allowed on board: 

 

• All Guests (2 years old and over) need to provide a certificate of a negative RT-PCR test taken within 72 hours before embarkation 
• All Guests (12 years old and over) have to be fully vaccinated (i.e full set of vaccine shots received more than 14 days before the start of the cruise, with an approved Covid-19 vaccine: Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson)

 

https://www.msccruises.ca/health-and-safety-measures/caribbean

[macmax]

1 hour ago, Evilmuffin said:

I’m quite sure there was a reason other than being Canadian.   Not vaccinated?   Mixed vaccines? 

It's because MSC requires that everyone carry Covid insurance and Canadians can't purchase any as long as the Level 4 Avoid Cruise Ship Travel is in place. 

[K_e_short]

23 minutes ago, macmax said:

It's because MSC requires that everyone carry Covid insurance and Canadians can't purchase any as long as the Level 4 Avoid Cruise Ship Travel is in place. 

 

I don't really care as MSC is way out of my price range..

 

But do they know something we don't? According to the website we can start travelling November 1st.

How do they know that our government will drop the travel warning?

[gubby]

Our Retired Teachers of Ontario insurance policy underwritten. by Johnson covers us for Covid. No cancellation, but medical is covered. I am sure  Blue Cross Ontario covers Covid as well.

[Fouremco]

10 hours ago, macmax said:

It's because MSC requires that everyone carry Covid insurance and Canadians can't purchase any as long as the Level 4 Avoid Cruise Ship Travel is in place. 

What type of COVID insurance does MSC require? As several threads on this board attest, there's a number of insurance companies in Canada that provide COVID-related medical insurance while the advisory is in place, but not cancellation or trip interruption.

[Robjame]

11 hours ago, gubby said:

Our Retired Teachers of Ontario insurance policy underwritten. by Johnson covers us for Covid.

Are you sure?

I was told that Covid is treated as a PEC and as long as the Canadian Government has a "NO TRAVEL" for Cruising, we would not be covered. This latest information came from a phone call 2 weeks ago.

Johnson is famous for giving conflicting information so I would not be surprised if you and I were told differently.  

[Robjame]

1 hour ago, Fouremco said:

What type of COVID insurance does MSC require?

"Guests that purchase insurance other than the one offered by MSC Cruises will also be required to purchase a COVID-19 Protection Plan from MSC.The COVID-19 Protection Services is for all guests 3 years and older and costs are: 

$100 per guest for cruises 4 nights or less; 

$150 per guest for cruises 5 nights or longer." 

 

[Fouremco]

11 minutes ago, Robjame said:

Are you sure?

I was told that Covid is treated as a PEC and as long as the Canadian Government has a "NO TRAVEL" for Cruising, we would not be covered. This latest information came from a phone call 2 weeks ago.

Johnson is famous for giving conflicting information so I would not be surprised if you and I were told differently.  

There's a number of insurance companies in Canada providing COVID-related medical insurance while the advisories are in effect. As for Johnson, as I explained in the post linked below, it isn't a question of conflicting information, it's simply different information depending on the specific group that Johnson is ensuring. There's no need to question @gubby 's post stating that the Retired Teachers of Ontario group is covered by Johnson for COVID.

 

 

 

 

[Robjame]

2 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

There's no need to question @gubby 's post stating that the Retired Teachers of Ontario group is covered by Johnson for COVID.

 

Shouldn't you at least find out the facts before you start your criticisms?

 

Re-read the post please. I was questioning the details from Johnson not from the poster 

 

 BTW -  We ARE part of the same group - Retired Teachers of Ontario (RTO) with Johnson. 

[Robjame]

12 hours ago, gubby said:

Our Retired Teachers of Ontario insurance policy underwritten. by Johnson covers us for Covid. No cancellation, but medical is covered.

@gubby Thank you for your post. I just now called Sonya at Johnson RTOERO and you are correct. They are now covering Covid, but as you say no cancellation insurance. This is great news as it changes our approach to cruising.

She suggested a call back if/when Canada lifts the "DO NOT CRUISE" directive as we then may be eligible for cancellation Insurance.

Thanks again - I would not have known without your post.

 

[Fouremco]

51 minutes ago, Robjame said:

Shouldn't you at least find out the facts before you start your criticisms?

 

Re-read the post please. I was questioning the details from Johnson not from the poster 

 

 BTW -  We ARE part of the same group - Retired Teachers of Ontario (RTO) with Johnson. 

Your comments such as "Johnson is famous for giving conflicting information" indicate your predisposition towards the company. That's a shame, because readers may be influenced by posts of this nature and not seek insurance from one of the few companies actually providing COVID insurance.

 

I'm glad to see that you now have found out the facts.

 

Edited October 5, 2021 by Fouremco

[gubby]

I think the conflicting information opens our minds to things we may not have thought of before we read it here. It at least allows us to question our perceptions and hopefully get new and updated info. That is exactly what happened here. As long as it is done in a respectful manner, we should all welcome questions.

[macmax]

2 hours ago, Fouremco said:

What type of COVID insurance does MSC require? As several threads on this board attest, there's a number of insurance companies in Canada that provide COVID-related medical insurance while the advisory is in place, but not cancellation or trip interruption.

From msccruises.ca

To ensure peace of mind, MSC Cruises requires all guests to have a specific and mandatory Covid-19 insurance policy to embark, covering against COVID-19 related risks, i.e cancellation, interruption, repatriation expenses, quarantine, medical assistance and related expenses, as well as hospitalization. A proof of the specific COVID-19 coverage insurance policy - which must be in one of the following languages: English, Italian, German, French or Spanish - must be presented at embarkation or boarding will be denied.

[Fouremco]

26 minutes ago, macmax said:

From msccruises.ca

To ensure peace of mind, MSC Cruises requires all guests to have a specific and mandatory Covid-19 insurance policy to embark, covering against COVID-19 related risks, i.e cancellation, interruption, repatriation expenses, quarantine, medical assistance and related expenses, as well as hospitalization. A proof of the specific COVID-19 coverage insurance policy - which must be in one of the following languages: English, Italian, German, French or Spanish - must be presented at embarkation or boarding will be denied.

Thanks, that's exactly what I was looking for. Quite an extensive range of coverage required! Even if there was a Canadian insurer that could provide that level of coverage, I hate to think how much it might cost. 

[macmax]

Just now, Fouremco said:

Thanks, that's exactly what I was looking for. Quite an extensive range of coverage required! Even if there was a Canadian insurer that could provide that level of coverage, I hate to think how much it might cost. 

Currently MSC is accepting Canadian bookings for sailings after Nov.1/21 as they are hoping that the Level 4 warning will be lowered to a Level 3 and Covid coverage will then be available.

[Fouremco]

Just now, macmax said:

Currently MSC is accepting Canadian bookings for sailings after Nov.1/21 as they are hoping that the Level 4 warning will be lowered to a Level 3 and Covid coverage will then be available.

Interesting. There has been chatter on the boards about the possibility of the advisory being either lowered or completely dropped in concert with the ban on cruise ships being dropped, but I've seen nothing giving any credence to the possibility. Maybe MSC know something we don't.

 

Of course, even if it is dropped or the level lowered, it doesn't mean that the travel insurers would be immediately willing to provide the extensive coverage MSC is looking for. Definitely something to keep an eye on.

[macmax]

1 hour ago, Fouremco said:

Interesting. There has been chatter on the boards about the possibility of the advisory being either lowered or completely dropped in concert with the ban on cruise ships being dropped, but I've seen nothing giving any credence to the possibility. Maybe MSC know something we don't.

 

Of course, even if it is dropped or the level lowered, it doesn't mean that the travel insurers would be immediately willing to provide the extensive coverage MSC is looking for. Definitely something to keep an eye on.

 

Manulife has said that they will be offering Covid coverage for cruisers once it's lowered to a Level 3 Advisory.

[xcell]

I  thought MSC offered their own insurance?

[Robjame]

27 minutes ago, xcell said:

I  thought MSC offered their own insurance?

They do - see Post #11 in answer to Fouremco's question and According to MSC website:

"Guests that purchase insurance other than the one offered by MSC Cruises will also be required to purchase a COVID-19 Protection Plan from MSC.The COVID-19 Protection Services is for all guests 3 years and older and costs are: 

$100 per guest for cruises 4 nights or less; 

$150 per guest for cruises 5 nights or longer." 

 

[Reenie75]

I have a hard time believing that MSC stopped a Canadian from embarking as long as they did what was required. 

I'm calling MSC Canada tomorrow about a cruise for March 2022.

 

[K_e_short]

29 minutes ago, Reenie75 said:

I have a hard time believing that MSC stopped a Canadian from embarking as long as they did what was required. 

I'm calling MSC Canada tomorrow about a cruise for March 2022.

 

They did.

 

Canadians aren't allowed to cruise until Nov 1st.

There is no restriction  to book.

 

You can cruise in March no issues.