Anyone cancelling their cruise?

[LuCruise]

1 hour ago, nbsjcruiser said:

 

I can't speak about Carnival but we were in Florida for 5 weeks and we swore we wouldn't go on a cruise while we were there. Well, we started looking and eventually decided on a short 3 day cruise to ease back into it and see how the cruise line is doing with control. The ship was 30% capacity, 100% vaccinated and enforced mask wearing unless you were eating or on deck. We had one day at Princess Cays and it truly felt like a private island. 

 

Once our cruise started I was a bit worried but as time went on I felt more relaxed and by the end of the 3 days had to admit that Princess did a great job keeping us safe. I'm glad we went. Again, I don't know how well Carnival is doing with it but if you do go, make sure you know about ArriveCan and getting tests before going back. Use Walgreens to get a NAAT test for your return (its free) and be aware of your surroundings at all times.

 

Regarding the safety aspect, to be honest the most dangerous part of our trip was the return to Toronto. Pearson was a cesspool with people jammed together with no social distancing. I was disgusted by what I saw. The Federal Government seems to have gone from discouraging travel to now trying to terrorize people about it and now actively trying to make you sick when you return. I'm vaxed and fully support doing the right thing but for us, it was time to get back to life. I understand its a personal choice and I wouldn't make fun of anyone who decides to stay home for another year but at this point for us, we were willing to be fine if we got sick and we had to isolate. Fully vaxed people in their 50's (like us) who have no underlying conditions are going to be fine so we felt it was time to get back to the real world. I'm not buying into the fear and doubt emanating from Ottawa these days. Fed up with it.

Great to hear you felt safe with Princess having great protocols.

 

With respect to your airport comments, that's exactly why we have chosen to drive to our cruise instead of fly (plus it lets us avoid ubers on each side).  Luckily we have the option as we're flying out of NJ and coming from Ontario....and for that same reason, will probably repeat our NJ cruise in March vs flying to Florida.

 

For boosters, unfortunately DH and I literally qualify for one 2 days after we return from our xmas cruise so will have to wait.  But the time of our cruise marks 6 months from our last vaccine so still should be covered.  Our kids are about about another month behind us so the vaccine would still be good.

Edited December 12, 2021 by LuCruise

[edrussell]

Our FP date is Dec 21 for our planned cruise on Jan 20 out of Baltimore.  As the news continues to develop about the newest variant I feel as though it it won't impact our plans.  Having traveled twice (Mexico and Las Vegas) in 2021 we felt as comfortable as we could have under the circumstances and not much has changed.  We have read extensively about the protocol RCL has adopted and we both believe they are doing everything they can.  We are driving so as of right now that seems to make the process a little (who knows how that will change though) so that brings us comfort.  We hadn't contemplated canceling and still aren't.  What a time to try our first cruise....  I guess on the one hand it means we have nothing to compare it to so there is that.

 

[xcell]

Our cruise is next week. It's been over 2 years since our last cruise and I cannot wait.

 

I think cancel, don't cancel all depends on your risk aversion and there's no right answer that encompasses everyone...safe travel to all or enjoy your staycation.

 

[Oceangoer2]

6 hours ago, GeriatricNurse said:

YES, I cancelled, with no regrets!  I have received a FULL refund, to the penny, from all sources, (except for the outrageous cost of $60 that my Travel 'Advisor' charged me to booked my Air Canada Flights)!

How long did it take to receive your refunds.  I just cancelled 2 June cruises and told it could be 6-8 weeks.

[K_e_short]

7 hours ago, GeriatricNurse said:

YES, I cancelled, with no regrets!  I have received a FULL refund, to the penny, from all sources, (except for the outrageous cost of $60 that my Travel 'Advisor' charged me to booked my Air Canada Flights)!

 

Interesting that you mentioned that extra fee. I'm slowly moving away from using a travel agent as I have seen no benefit in using one. It wasn't less stressful when I had to cancel in March of 2020 and I was also charged that fee ($119 I think).

 

 

[gmbhardy]

Since this whole Covid thing started,  I have been the poster child for embracing public health protocols and living my life in the context of caution, caution, caution. . I am nearly 70 years old and have a number of chronic health conditions that right now have little  effect on my lifestyle, but who knows down the road. I refuse to live the rest of my life in a bubble and subsequently,  I have made the decision to start cruising again. We cruised on the Encore last week and although we did have a hiccup (missed embarkation because of a flight delay due to a mechanical issue), it had nothing to do with the pandemic. The cruise itself was wonderful and we have another booked on the Joy in January. 

[Jcol5786]

We did our first cruise in 2 years the last week of October on Oasis of the Seas out of New Jersey. At the time the land border was closed so we flew from TO to Newark. The cruise was fantastic. Oasis is a wonderful ship. Our next cruise is on Anthem leaving December 31'st again out of New Jersey. This time we will be driving which will make things someone simpler. We don't have any plans to cancel but are watching things closely. I think what would make us cancel would be a sudden increase in the  number of people getting infected with Covid on cruises leading up to ours. Up to now cruises have had relatively low numbers of Covid cases reported. If there is a sudden increase of onboard cases due to Omicron that would suggest that the current protocols are not going to be adequate to contain this variant. I certainly hope that this does not happen however for us that will be the indicator for us as to whether we cruise or not.

[Fouremco]

2 hours ago, K_e_short said:

 

Interesting that you mentioned that extra fee. I'm slowly moving away from using a travel agent as I have seen no benefit in using one. It wasn't less stressful when I had to cancel in March of 2020 and I was also charged that fee ($119 I think).

 

 

I don't want to hijack this thread, but thought it worthwhile to mention that I use the big box store TA  and I've never been charged a fee for cancellations. I switched to them as soon as they opened the TA department in Canada and have been extremely happy with their service. For me, the major benefit is getting back approximately 10% of the booking fees for each cruise. Just something for you to consider if you aren't happy with your current TA. 

[Florida_gal_50]

43 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

I don't want to hijack this thread, but thought it worthwhile to mention that I use the big box store TA  and I've never been charged a fee for cancellations. I switched to them as soon as they opened the TA department in Canada and have been extremely happy with their service. For me, the major benefit is getting back approximately 10% of the booking fees for each cruise. Just something for you to consider if you aren't happy with your current TA. 

Yes but you get that back in Costco cards correct? It's not like it comes off the top of what you pay.  I've also heard of people waiting on the phone for hours to speak with someone.  I hate Costco so give cards have no allure.  I book directly with a cruise consultant and I like not having a middle person.

[xcell]

I book with the big C but that's because I shop there a lot. The cash back is anywhere from 5-10% depending on how much your cruise cost (the higher the cruise cost, the more you get back).

 

Also when you book via TA, some do not subscribed to the bidding system...in case you like that.

 

 

 

[Fouremco]

4 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Yes but you get that back in Costco cards correct? It's not like it comes off the top of what you pay.  I've also heard of people waiting on the phone for hours to speak with someone.  I hate Costco so give cards have no allure.  I book directly with a cruise consultant and I like not having a middle person.

Clearly not a suggestion intended for someone who hates the store. 🙄

 

Just for the record, I've never had to wait for more than a minute or so to get through. Waits can arise if the agent has to get through to the cruise line, but that's the same wait experienced by other TAs and by people dealing directly with the cruise line. On my last call, the TA advised me that she was experiencing lengthy delays getting through to Celebrity, and rather than keeping me waiting, offered to call me back once she had resolved my issue. Worked like a charm.

 

The money I get back varies in format. In some cases it's a cash card, which is as good as cash as we shop there regularly. With some lines, it's in the form of refundable OBC. And part of it comes to me as part of my annual 2% cash back.

[ljtinney]

Getting back on track here.....

In this past week I cannot count the number of times that I changed my mind about going. It's been a roller coaster reading some of these threads/comments. It can really get your mind going! There really is alot to think about. Yesterday after reading some posts, I was about ready to cancel our upcoming cruise.  So this morning I sat and did the pros and cons. Lots of pros but only one con.... and it's a big one.

I ordered a couple RT Lamp kits and some antigen kits this morning to take along only to be used if absolutely necessary. 

 

We are going, unless there is some crazy change that will prevent us from returning to Canada. 

[DHLuCruise]

43 minutes ago, ljtinney said:

ordered a couple RT Lamp kits and some antigen kits this morning to take along only to be used if absolutely necessary. 

 

We are going, unless there is some crazy change that will prevent us from returning to Canada

This is where we are too. We are going to go unless some crazy stuff goes down.

 

We are driving to the port so we don't have to deal with airports and can get back even if one of us tests positive. So we are doing this as safe as possible.

 

Out of curiosity where are you getting your RT LAMP kits from ?

[ski ww]

We have until Apr. for our final payment. We're keeping a close eye on case counts in Europe to see what's happening. It's a two week Med cruise and after cancelling two previous cruises we want to get back on a ship. Hoping things get back to normal soon.

[Sistersinlaw]

Sadly, we did cancel our cruise (I'm the OP).  Our 3 kids (16, 15 and 12 years old) were too nervous about going.  They sat us down and had a 'cruise intervention', lol.  Their fear wasn't actually of getting covid, it was more about possibly getting stuck on the ship and/or ports closing so we would end up on the ship the whole time.  We are still going to drive down to Florida to visit our parents, so we still get some sun.  Carnival did give us a full refund (not received yet). 

[Fouremco]

4 minutes ago, Sistersinlaw said:

Sadly, we did cancel our cruise (I'm the OP).  Our 3 kids (16, 15 and 12 years old) were too nervous about going.  They sat us down and had a 'cruise intervention', lol.  Their fear wasn't actually of getting covid, it was more about possibly getting stuck on the ship and/or ports closing so we would end up on the ship the whole time.  We are still going to drive down to Florida to visit our parents, so we still get some sun.  Carnival did give us a full refund (not received yet). 

It sounds like you have a great family dynamic, where the opinion of the kids counts. 👍👍👍

[melbrook]

2 hours ago, Sistersinlaw said:

Sadly, we did cancel our cruise (I'm the OP).  Our 3 kids (16, 15 and 12 years old) were too nervous about going.  They sat us down and had a 'cruise intervention', lol.  Their fear wasn't actually of getting covid, it was more about possibly getting stuck on the ship and/or ports closing so we would end up on the ship the whole time.  We are still going to drive down to Florida to visit our parents, so we still get some sun.  Carnival did give us a full refund (not received yet). 

I also love that you had this discussion with the kids.  My husband was getting nervous and it ended up being he was nervous to get stuck on board and not be able to come back to port.  I think we can dispel that scenario.  If we get sick or quarantined we both agree we can manage that.  If ports are cancelled and we end up with more sea days that is ok too.  So for now we sail in 5 weeks.  A lot can change by then - the gov't is changing things daily.  Sadly 2020/21 has taught us that not being able to travel isn't the end of the world and if we have to cancel or postpone AGAIN we will.  Being flexible has definitely become a skill in all of this.  Enjoy your time in Florida!!

[gubby]

We cancelled our TA, British Isles and Baltic cruises this morning. Kept our Greenland and Canada/New England ones that leave in August. Although Covid did play a part in our decision, it was also partly the 8 hour flight home, the mess that is Pearson, and perhaps silly gov't regulations. Also part of our discussion was the uncertainty over the Russia/Ukraine situation. Many things can change, but we felt it was in our best interests to cancel.

 

Having said all that, we are talking about booking a long ( 74 day) grand voyage of SA and Antarctica in 2023. This would make up for what we just  gave up, and be our winter get-away. I do miss cruising, but the added stress of trying to figure everything out was too much for me. For the first time ever, we had bòoked cruise air, so a single phone call dealt with everything. All hotels had free cancellations and so did our booked excursions although most of them had no deposits yet. I am feeling less stress already. 

[sunnydelyght]

On 12/9/2021 at 6:11 PM, DHP1 said:

Go and enjoy. For us, we refuse to be lock up at home, especially at our age. One suggestion is to get good travel insurance. We purchase Princess Vacation Protection “and” Manulife Covid Plan. So if anything does happen, we’re covered. 

Hello

Our trip is coming up in January and we have looked into the Manulife Covid Plan and it states if there is a travel advisory in place that it will not cover people, there is a travel advisory right now to avoid all cruises so I am to assume that one would not be covered?  Please correct if I am wrong.  Thanks in advance.

 

 

 

[Diane67B]

1 hour ago, sunnydelyght said:

Hello

Our trip is coming up in January and we have looked into the Manulife Covid Plan and it states if there is a travel advisory in place that it will not cover people, there is a travel advisory right now to avoid all cruises so I am to assume that one would not be covered?  Please correct if I am wrong.  Thanks in advance.

 

 

 

Manulife is covering cruise ships now, even with the Canadian advisory in place. I was able to get medical and cancellation insurance for covid under their covid plan.

[LouCoop]

2 hours ago, gubby said:

We cancelled our TA, British Isles and Baltic cruises this morning. Kept our Greenland and Canada/New England ones that leave in August. Although Covid did play a part in our decision, it was also partly the 8 hour flight home, the mess that is Pearson, and perhaps silly gov't regulations. Also part of our discussion was the uncertainty over the Russia/Ukraine situation. Many things can change, but we felt it was in our best interests to cancel.

 

Having said all that, we are talking about booking a long ( 74 day) grand voyage of SA and Antarctica in 2023. This would make up for what we just  gave up, and be our winter get-away. I do miss cruising, but the added stress of trying to figure everything out was too much for me. For the first time ever, we had bòoked cruise air, so a single phone call dealt with everything. All hotels had free cancellations and so did our booked excursions although most of them had no deposits yet. I am feeling less stress already. 

Sad that you needed to cancel your cruise but I can sure understand why. 

We are also going on a Greenland and Canada cruise in August. Are you with Princess on that one?

 

[ljtinney]

16 hours ago, DHLuCruise said:

This is where we are too. We are going to go unless some crazy stuff goes down.

 

We are driving to the port so we don't have to deal with airports and can get back even if one of us tests positive. So we are doing this as safe as possible.

 

Out of curiosity where are you getting your RT LAMP kits from ?

 

I ordered them from the Air Canada website. Should have them before the end of the week. 

 

I ordered a box of 5 Antigen tests from The Canadian Shield. I hope to have them next week. I should have waited and just got them from the grandkids since they are giving them out at school. 

 

Edited December 13, 2021 by ljtinney

[schiff1997]

2 hours ago, ljtinney said:

 

I ordered them from the Air Canada website. Should have them before the end of the week. 

 

I ordered a box of 5 Antigen tests from The Canadian Shield. I hope to have them next week. I should have waited and just got them from the grandkids since they are giving them out at school. 

 

Provinces should provide these tests for free to anyone who wants them especially when Canada provides them free to provinces.  In the UK they are free, my brother and SIL test themselves twice a week because they can 

[gubby]

2 hours ago, LouCoop said:

Sad that you needed to cancel your cruise but I can sure understand why. 

We are also going on a Greenland and Canada cruise in August. Are you with Princess on that one?

 

Yes, we are. We needed to go somewhere different and decided that Greenland may not be open to tours forever., so let's go while we can. Where are you located? Maybe we can plan a couple of excursions.

[1kaper]

13 hours ago, schiff1997 said:

Provinces should provide these tests for free to anyone who wants them especially when Canada provides them free to provinces.  In the UK they are free, my brother and SIL test themselves twice a week because they can 

I can get them free in my province.  The school even sent some home for kids.  I took a test last night and gave my son one this  morning.  I still had to pay to get one done to fly to the US in September.  They used the exact same test.  But I needed the certificate.  
As I understand, the LAMP test is done online with someone who can complete the certificate, which is the difference. 

 

Edited December 14, 2021 by 1kaper