A Canadian takes on a S2B2B on Oasis 1/2/22, Odyssey 1/9/22 & 1/15/22 (hopefully)

[jmh2006]

Sounds like things are working out to be the best it can be, although I am disappointed to hear that RCI is invisible after 48 hours.  Praying you continue to be negative so you can home easily.  We have stayed at the Embassy Suites before and agree with you that it is a great location, but the rooms are getting tired.  

[JessyCruises]

Well as mentioned above we HAD planned on actually going somewhere for dinner, but I am STILL on hold with Westjet. It has not been over an hour since they answered - I am currently at 5 hrs 18 minutes....

 

We do not have our cells turned on so I called them on my VOIP line though my work laptop so I am attached to my computer and cannot leave.  I was really looking forward to trying Kelly's Landing tonight but it appears it will be another take out night!

 

 

[orangelime]

47 minutes ago, JessyCruises said:

Well as mentioned above we HAD planned on actually going somewhere for dinner, but I am STILL on hold with Westjet. It has not been over an hour since they answered - I am currently at 5 hrs 18 minutes....

 

We do not have our cells turned on so I called them on my VOIP line though my work laptop so I am attached to my computer and cannot leave.  I was really looking forward to trying Kelly's Landing tonight but it appears it will be another take out night!

 

 

Jessy, not sure if you know this already but you can cross the land border with a positive test as long as you have a quarantine plan. You could fly to a border town close to Saint John and then drive across the border or get someone to pick you up. 

[perfect match]

Jessy, there’s a Publix and a CVS Pharmacy in the shopping center right behind your hotel, there’s a Walgreens if you exit the hotel ind go east for about a block, and a Winn-Dixie if you cross 17th Street and head north a short distance of Cordova. I’m not sure how things are working in Ft Lauderdale, but all three of these places near us in Central Florida are doing testing. Also the Urgent Care Center someone mentioned earlier. All are easy walking distance from you. Hope you’re able to get everything sorted out so you’re able to get home asap.

[JessyCruises]

Right after I posted the msg above the WestJet rep came back and finished the call.  We ran out and were able to get somewhere for dinner.  Kelly’s Landing had a 30+ minute wait so we decided to try Southport Raw Bar instead. We were not impressed and I think I should have waited.  We had Grilled Oysters which were good but not worth $27 in my opinion.  We both ordered fried seafood and maybe we are spoiled because of where we are from but it was not good.  I got clams and Paul got clams/scallops/shrimp:  I guess we were expecting fresh seafood and whole clams but they were just strips and we are pretty sure they were frozen.  I did ask the waitress when I ordered and she did not know if they were whole clams and said she “thinks” they are fresh.  At least the onion rings were good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 19, 2022 by JessyCruises

[ticketsunlimited]

10 minutes ago, JessyCruises said:

Right after I posted the msg about the WestJet rep came back and finished the call.  We ran out and were able to get somewhere for dinner.  Kelly’s Landing had a 30+ minute wait so we decided to try Southport Raw Bar instead. We were not impressed and I think I should have waited.  We had Grilled Oysters which were good but not work $27 in my opinion.  We both ordered fried seafood and maybe we are spoiled because of where we are from but it was not good.  I got clams and Paul got clams/scallops/shrimp:  I guess we were expecting fresh seafood and whole clams but they were just strips and we are pretty sure they were frozen.  I did ask the waitress when I ordered and she did not know if they were whole clams and said he “thinks” they are fresh.  At least the onion rings were good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The dreaded hojos clam strips from the freezer aisle. How cruel could they be?

you can’t back home fast enough Jessy.

[#55worktoplay]

3 hours ago, JessyCruises said:

Right after I posted the msg above the WestJet rep came back and finished the call.  We ran out and were able to get somewhere for dinner.  Kelly’s Landing had a 30+ minute wait so we decided to try Southport Raw Bar instead. We were not impressed and I think I should have waited.  We had Grilled Oysters which were good but not worth $27 in my opinion.  We both ordered fried seafood and maybe we are spoiled because of where we are from but it was not good.  I got clams and Paul got clams/scallops/shrimp:  I guess we were expecting fresh seafood and whole clams but they were just strips and we are pretty sure they were frozen.  I did ask the waitress when I ordered and she did not know if they were whole clams and said she “thinks” they are fresh.  At least the onion rings were good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh it doesn’t look good. Too bad. Better luck tomorrow 

[JamesEM]

If you are in the mood for some good bar food try Duffies, it is at the entrance of Harbor Place.

[MamatoJack]

14 hours ago, orangelime said:

Jessy, not sure if you know this already but you can cross the land border with a positive test as long as you have a quarantine plan. You could fly to a border town close to Saint John and then drive across the border or get someone to pick you up. 

 

I'd be sure to check the new regulations posted on Canada.ca as they added a "may be fined $5000 each" which seems to imply you'll be fined if you try and cross while positive (it's considered a not valid test). There may be provincial fines as well. 

[JessyCruises]

I started feeling a bit of a sinus/head cold coming on last night so I actually decided last night to get a test today.  If I am going to pop positive, I would rather do it now.  I had read on the thread I posted over on the FL Homeport board about BeeperMD who some to you so I signed up for a PCR test (not a rapid one) and it was free.  I requested a 7:30-9:30 AM time and they arrived at the door of my hotel at 9AM.  She actually gave me a rapid antigen and a PCR test.  The Rapid antigen was negative again. She said I should get the PCR results tomorrow.

 

Depending on how long it actually takes to get the PCR results, I may just use them again on Friday and save RCL a little $$.

Edited January 19, 2022 by JessyCruises

[JessyCruises]

20 minutes ago, MamatoJack said:

 

I'd be sure to check the new regulations posted on Canada.ca as they added a "may be fined $5000 each" which seems to imply you'll be fined if you try and cross while positive (it's considered a not valid test). There may be provincial fines as well. 

 

Thanks.  I have been reading up on all this stuff like a mad woman.  The fine is only if you don't follow the rules, which would either be a negative PCR test within 72 hours OR a positive test 11+ days ago.

 

COVID-19 vaccinated travellers entering Canada - Travel restrictions in Canada – Travel.gc.ca

 

 

[JessyCruises]

8 hours ago, JamesEM said:

If you are in the mood for some good bar food try Duffies, it is at the entrance of Harbor Place.

Thanks I will check it out!

[LuCruise]

I've been following your ideal and am so sorry this has happened.  And extra disappointing with missing your second leg with others hoping to join you.  Glad your husband wasn't too sick and hope you remain ok.  It sucks how hard it is to return and that you have to quarantine.  It's a shame too that you can't return after 5 days to match the actual quarantine time, as per my understanding

 

One silly question as obviously this would have been more ideal... I am assuming that Royal has stopped flying people home when they are positive?  Considering it is just the two of you (with the jets being small), they could have done that.  Am guessing there are too many getting positives now that they have stopped that option?

 

Hoping it's just a cold and the pcr returns negative.

 

Edited January 19, 2022 by LuCruise

[JessyCruises]

20 minutes ago, LuCruise said:

One silly question as obviously this would have been more ideal... I am assuming that Royal has stopped flying people home when they are positive?  Considering it is just the two of you (with the jets being small), they could have done that.  Am guessing there are too many getting positives now that they have stopped that option?

Based on the Canadian rules, I am not sure sureif they could have flown us home on a private jet even if they wanted to.   It is my understanding the Canadian government requires the negative test or the postive test taken 11+ days ago, regardless of how you are getting in.

 

I think the private jets have gone by the wayside because of the number of cases.  It would be just too expensive for them.  I honestly cannot see how they will be able to sustain even what they are doing now (ie footing bill for quarantine & travel).  I think our bill is going to be over $4000 USD just for the two of us.  Multiply that by the number of cases they have going on and it is not a small number.  I know most people are going to be from the US so their costs will not be as high as ours, but it is still a substantial number.  I am kind of surprised they are not forcing everyone to buy travel insurance and making them file claims.

 

Keep in mind that our cruise was comped.  The only thing we paid was taxes and fees and maybe a small upgrade charge and I had bought a 1 device wifi package. They make their money from us in the casino but we had not really had the chance to do much gambling on the 1/9 sailing.  They definitely lost money in our case!

[LuCruise]

2 minutes ago, JessyCruises said:

Based on the Canadian rules, I am not sure sureif they could have flown us home on a private jet even if they wanted to.   It is my understanding the Canadian government requires the negative test or the postive test taken 11+ days ago, regardless of how you are getting in.

 

I think the private jets have gone by the wayside because of the number of cases.  It would be just too expensive for them.  I honestly cannot see how they will be able to sustain even what they are doing now (ie footing bill for quarantine & travel).  I think our bill is going to be over $4000 USD just for the two of us.  Multiply that by the number of cases they have going on and it is not a small number.  I know most people are going to be from the US so their costs will not be as high as ours, but it is still a substantial number.  I am kind of surprised they are not forcing everyone to buy travel insurance and making them file claims.

 

Keep in mind that our cruise was comped.  The only thing we paid was taxes and fees and maybe a small upgrade charge and I had bought a 1 device wifi package. They make their money from us in the casino but we had not really had the chance to do much gambling on the 1/9 sailing.  They definitely lost money in our case!

I thought there was a Canadian in the past who go flown home, but maybe I'm mixing up the posts. True, though, we have the rules must be negative or after 11 days rule today.  

 

That's what I figured with the private jets.  Back in the fall, there weren't that many cases with Delta.  Sadly, that's not the case with omnicron. I suppose any US citizens can drive themselves home if they came by car...but then again, they might not even know if they are positive unless not feeling well or came in close contact and had to be tested. Unfortunately, they removed the driving option now for Canadians too with the possible fine.  You are right...that's very pricey for Royal.  I'm sure they will remove this support soon.

 

Glad at least you didn't have to put out much additional money.

[marchand28]

OMG Southport Raw Bar used to be my favorite dive bar when I lived in Ft. Lauderdale. That was a LOT of years ago. Eating was never high on my list but the beers were always cold. 😎 😂 From the pictures it looks like they've cleaned it up since then.

[A&L_Ont]

Jessy, check out the 17 St Grill if it is still open. It’s a few minutes walk from the Embassy Suites and has amazing burgers and other foods.  It’s a “go to” spot for us. It’s a family run business too.
 

https://gilberts17thstgrill.com/Home_Page.php

[JessyCruises]

2 minutes ago, A&L_Ont said:

Jessy, check out the 17 St Grill if it is still open. It’s a few minutes walk from the Embassy Suites and has amazing burgers and other foods.  It’s a “go to” spot for us. It’s a family run business too.
 

https://gilberts17thstgrill.com/Home_Page.php

 

Yes that is definitely on the list of where we want to go.  We have just not felt like burgers yet.  Maybe tonight!

[schiff1997]

I am following along you have incredible spirit and I wish you and your husband a very safe journey home, hopefully very soon.   You are giving all us Canadians incredible information .  Thank you 

 

Hope you do not mind, I have put your thread on the Canadians Board for others to follow

Edited January 19, 2022 by schiff1997

[cruising sister]

Call me crazy but if I was worried about testing positive before flying to Canada I would not be eating out in restaurants. With incubation as short as 2 days exposure today and positive by Friday. 

[OACAggie]

4 hours ago, JessyCruises said:

 

Thanks.  I have been reading up on all this stuff like a mad woman.  The fine is only if you don't follow the rules, which would either be a negative PCR test within 72 hours OR a positive test 11+ days ago.

 

COVID-19 vaccinated travellers entering Canada - Travel restrictions in Canada – Travel.gc.ca

 

 

Hi Jessy,

 

Edit to add this is for land crossing if you had chosen/choose to drive home, not for flying.

You can cross the land border with a positive test less than 11 days old and not be fined unless this changed since Dec. 24. You will just not have the fully vaccinated traveller exemption, which just means you have to isolate for 10 days. Close contacts travelling with you with negative tests will have to quarantine for 14 days. My wife tested positive on our Dec. 12 Anthem cruise. Myself and 2 boys tested negative. We drove down to NJ so we did not have to worry about flights coming back if we were positive. We crossed back into Canada the day we got off the ship (Dec. 24) and had no problems at the border other than we had to wait (about an hour) for public health to come speak with us and give us take home proctored tests. We all were given tests to do when we got home and myself and boys had to also complete a day 8 test. You still need to complete the ArriveCan app, which nobody actually looked at or scanned! If you do not complete the app, then you can be fined. The whole proctored tests through Switch Health seems like a rinky-dink operation and waste of funds, but that is for another day. We did not get our day 8 tests back until Jan 13&14. We did the tests on Dec. 31!! The rules do say that you can leave after your 14 days even if you do not have the tests back....makes no sense to me?? The government did call each of us individually twice within our quarantine period to ensure we were following the rules...again discussion for another day!

 

In the end, we all ended up positive through our day 1 (myself) and day 8 (boys) tests. We all had minor symptoms and are all well now. With our positive tests, we are exempt from needing a pre-entry test to get back into Canada for the next 180 days. Works for us as we have a Symphony cruise booked in March.

Edited January 19, 2022 by OACAggie

[orangelime]

3 hours ago, JessyCruises said:

Based on the Canadian rules, I am not sure sureif they could have flown us home on a private jet even if they wanted to.   It is my understanding the Canadian government requires the negative test or the postive test taken 11+ days ago, regardless of how you are getting in.

 

I think the private jets have gone by the wayside because of the number of cases.  It would be just too expensive for them.  I honestly cannot see how they will be able to sustain even what they are doing now (ie footing bill for quarantine & travel).  I think our bill is going to be over $4000 USD just for the two of us.  Multiply that by the number of cases they have going on and it is not a small number.  I know most people are going to be from the US so their costs will not be as high as ours, but it is still a substantial number.  I am kind of surprised they are not forcing everyone to buy travel insurance and making them file claims.

 

Keep in mind that our cruise was comped.  The only thing we paid was taxes and fees and maybe a small upgrade charge and I had bought a 1 device wifi package. They make their money from us in the casino but we had not really had the chance to do much gambling on the 1/9 sailing.  They definitely lost money in our case!

You can drive across the border with a positive test and skip the quarantine. See the article in the Toronto Star. 

 

"My only source of stress — and it’s a big one — is figuring out how to get home. Our week of quarantine is about to end but we cannot board a plane to Canada until at least 14 days have passed since Isaac tested positive. The CDC, meanwhile, has changed U.S. quarantine to five days. Following many phone calls and much research, I find a loophole: fly from Aruba to Buffalo via Newark and drive across the border from there. If you’re a Canadian citizen, you cannot be turned away at the border (you may, however, be subject to a $5,000 fine). At the end of the day, there’s nothing illegal about taking this route."

Tropic lockdown: my family vacation in quarantine

[LuCruise]

9 minutes ago, orangelime said:

You can drive across the border with a positive test and skip the quarantine. See the article in the Toronto Star. 

 

"My only source of stress — and it’s a big one — is figuring out how to get home. Our week of quarantine is about to end but we cannot board a plane to Canada until at least 14 days have passed since Isaac tested positive. The CDC, meanwhile, has changed U.S. quarantine to five days. Following many phone calls and much research, I find a loophole: fly from Aruba to Buffalo via Newark and drive across the border from there. If you’re a Canadian citizen, you cannot be turned away at the border (you may, however, be subject to a $5,000 fine). At the end of the day, there’s nothing illegal about taking this route."

Tropic lockdown: my family vacation in quarantine

But you could be charged $5000/person if you have a positive test less than 11 days.  I believe the fine part is quite new.

[orangelime]

2 minutes ago, LuCruise said:

But you could be charged $5000/person if you have a positive test less than 11 days.  I believe the fine part is quite new.

It does say that in the article - this lady was not fined though. 

I guess it depends on how much it would cost to quarantine in the States. 11 days can add up very quickly. 

Edited January 19, 2022 by orangelime

[JessyCruises]

1 hour ago, schiff1997 said:

Hope you do not mind, I have put your thread on the Canadians Board for others to follow

Not at all!