Ask Room Steward for Limited Service (Covid)??

[Naismith]

We have a Caribbean cruise booked for later this month, and (like so many) have been going over the risk-benefit calculations.  

 

We can drive to the cruiseport in a half-day, so that eliminates the risk of flying.  Specific ports are much less important for this itinerary--give me some sun and surf, I don't really care which island.   

 

But I had a question about whether anyone has asked their stewards NOT to enter the room?  We've also done a lot of overnight hotel stays during the past year, and most hotels seem to have shifted to "service upon request" only.  We still intend to pay the recommended crew incentive, but it would make us happiest not to have anyone enter unless we need something special.  

 

Yes, I love the pampering on a cruise from thoughtful room stewards....but if that would reduce risk, I can do without. 

 

Anyone else tried this?  

 

 

[Lilly-Ann]

I agree with you 100%. If we are able to cruise in a few weeks we were going to do the same thing.  That is what we have done at the hotels we have stayed at since covid. We will also still of course tip. We can tidy our own room.  I just bring extra Lysol wipes to wipe down the bathroom everyday.

[shipshapegirl]

We have been on 3 cruises since cruising  has resumed.  With each cruise, the cabin stewards have asked us what service we want.  We only asked they come in once a day and to bring us ice.  I would think they would be fine to only come in if you needed something.   

[RGEDad]

Yes - you could certainly request that non-service. On the two cruises we have been on - the stewards have asked what service we would like - with the hint that they "typically" now they do service once per day.  We asked for service at 11 AM and 5:30 PM - with ice delivery each time. With one day exception, they delivered each and every time. The one or two times they came in - we just skedaddled out (Somebody's gonna come and clean my room I will give them all the clearance they need).

What concerns we have on the cruise is with the (few) chin-maskers & fake-maskers on the cruise, not the service touch services in the room. But that is us. 

 

Nice thing about cruises - especially in these troubled times - you should do whatever you feel comfortable with. 

[GeezerCouple]

By all means, be clear that you are requesting LESS rather than more services. 🙂 

 

We've occasionally done this at hotels, for example if not feeling well, we'll just ask for extra towels (we'll even specify how much of which sizes).  We told them it was a "don't call us; we'll call you!".  And we asked for room service to be left at the door, and wheeled the table in ourselves.  And we'd wheel the table out, and then call to tell them it was there to be picked up.

As long as they know that "all is well" inside, they'll leave you alone (unless they think someone is trashing the room).  So "signs of life" are good (literally).

 

There were times one of us (or both!) were preparing for a major talk, and we didn't want to be disturbed then, either.  Then one of us might go out for sandwiches and not even deal with room service some of the time.  (We didn't want or need fancy room service meals then anyway.)

 

If providing you with fewer services makes you a happier guest, that makes everyone happy.

And these days, they'll understand.

 

GC

[SargassoPirate]

OP, are you not vaccinated and boosted?

 

Last week I flew to Miami for a cruise.  Masks were required in the airport and on the plane.  Planes have been retrofitted with HEPA filters and the air is completely circulated something like every 15 minutes.

 

In the hotel, I just hung the do not disturb sign on the door.  I don't get fresh towels everyday at home, so it's no big deal.

 

On the shuttle to the ship, everyone was masked, as well as in the terminal.  On the ship, everyone is masked indoors except when eating or drinking and the crew is masked everywhere.

 

The room steward cleans my cabin when I'm not in it.

 

With a background in public health, I can say that as a member of the vaccinated community, I feel completely safe flying and cruising.  I would also feel safe in ports, wearing a mask when required.

 

If not now, when will you feel safe?

[albingirl]

I've often wondered about the cleaning materials that go from room to room, like sponges and cleaning rags.  Do they use new ones for each cabin now?  It seems that it could spread germs otherwise.  Or am I crazy?

[SargassoPirate]

1 hour ago, albingirl said:

I've often wondered about the cleaning materials that go from room to room, like sponges and cleaning rags.  Do they use new ones for each cabin now?  It seems that it could spread germs otherwise.  Or am I crazy?

I wouldn't worry about it.  What I have been observing is the rags/sponges are dipped into a bucket of cleaning solution or used with a spray bottle of solution.

 

Think about it   Even if a sponge was able to transfer a germ or a virus from one cabin to another, how is that germ or virus going to get into your mouth or nose if it were even able to survive on a surface long enough?

 

 

[travelx4]

I’m on the Nieuw Amsterdam right now and it’s definitely not the crew entering your cabin that you should have any worry about. All of the crew - ALL- wear n95-style masks, and, as I’ve just discovered, are not allowed to go onshore (as of very recently) during Caribbean cruises. It’s the passengers who’ve become more lax about mask guidelines and general health protocols on the 7th day of our 9-day cruise. Yes, I’m talking to you, lady, licking your ice cream cone as you walk through the spa area, and you, “Larry David”, as you hack your whole ass morning next to the pool without covering your cough - gross!

 

This far into our journey, we’ve taken to eating our Lido meals on the lido pool deck, or sea view deck for some additional ventilation. This was working great until this morning’s incident involving my waffles and a bird. No, that was not sea spray I felt. 

[FlaMariner]

They would love you if you did not want much room steward service!  I be they would be a little concerned that you may be doing that do avoid/rationalize not tipping so I would re-assure them that you are just scared of Covid and it's not going to impact tipping. 

 

We've been on two HAL cruises since the unpleasantness.  In both, the room stewards came by and asked us how often and what all we needed.  They are there to serve you as you wish.  And they are awesome!

 

Enjoy the 'dam ship......This is the best time to cruise!

[highland cruiser]

We also were asked when and how often we wanted service on the Eurodam in September.

We said once a day in the morning was fine.  We rarely were there when they came  and if we were in the cabin, we left or went on our balcony.  I did ask for the chocolate about getting the chocolate if we didn't have an evening turn down.  They laughed and said I would get it!  Which I did every morning after they were done.  DH asked for ice which showed up magically sometime in the afternoon. 

I did notice that we got very little in the way of spa or future cruise information put in our door mailbox.  That was fine with me as I usually just recycled those.  The daily program was put outside our door in the evening.  

We felt really safe and well taken care of.  Our stewards were still around cleaning other rooms most of the day so if we needed something they weren't hard to find.  You can call them also.

 

[Florida_gal_50]

3 hours ago, travelx4 said:

I’m on the Nieuw Amsterdam right now and it’s definitely not the crew entering your cabin that you should have any worry about. All of the crew - ALL- wear n95-style masks, and, as I’ve just discovered, are not allowed to go onshore (as of very recently) during Caribbean cruises. It’s the passengers who’ve become more lax about mask guidelines and general health protocols on the 7th day of our 9-day cruise. Yes, I’m talking to you, lady, licking your ice cream cone as you walk through the spa area, and you, “Larry David”, as you hack your whole ass morning next to the pool without covering your cough - gross!

 

This far into our journey, we’ve taken to eating our Lido meals on the lido pool deck, or sea view deck for some additional ventilation. This was working great until this morning’s incident involving my waffles and a bird. No, that was not sea spray I felt. 

I agree some passengers don't think they have to wear masks or try to get away with the chin or below the nose deal.  That said, on the Koningsdam I had 2 different rooms for my 2 weeks, so I had 4 different  cabin stewards.  Every time I saw them one in each team had their mask below their noses and I saw them several times a day.  They should know better.

[Naismith]

I appreciate hearing the experiences of others. 

 

Yes, I am vaxed and boosted.  In one local hospital, 54 percent of COVID patients are fully vaccinated.  To be fair, that hospital is not breaking out patients “with” COVID (incidentally, such as car accident survivors who were tested at the hospital upon admission) vs. those who are sick “from” COVID and in the hospital specifically due to COVID symptoms.  But since those are the same data collection methods as in the last year, it is a sharp increase (the previous pattern for many months was 90 percent unvaccinated, 10 percent vaccinated.)

 

Other than cruising, another favorite vacation is long-distance bicycle travel, including a 10-day trip from Harpers Ferry WV into downtown Pittsburgh PA.  On such trips, we often face the challenge of rain, and have tools to mitigate the effect of the rain.  Sometimes the rain is a gentle light misting, and a light jacket is enough.  I also have rain pants and rain shoes and waterproof covers for my saddle bags.  There have been times that these protections kept me dry underneath, and other occasions when the rain was so heavy that I was soaked to the skin by the end of the day.  There were also times that rain and wind were so dangerous that cycling would be unsafe, so we pulled over and sought shelter in a highway overpass or restaurant until the conditions became a bit more favorable.   

 

And that is how I view the Covid situation:  Recent data suggest the rain is no longer merely a light drizzle, so the protection used previously may not be enough to keep me dry now.  Perhaps it is time to bring out some additional mitigation tools.  Things others mentioned like eating outside (hopefully avoiding the bird!).  And I do think that avoiding cabin service would be another incremental risk reduction.  Some may feel it is time to seek shelter and wait a while before stepping on a cruise ship. 

 

I have flown a fair bit in the last six months.  I spent a month (Sep to Oct) in Europe, in North Macedonia and Northern Greece.  They were both rated CDC Level 4 when we left, but we knew something about the mitigation efforts there, the many umbrellas that would be available to us:  No indoor seating at restaurants, proof of vaccination before eating at an outdoor café, masks and proof of vaccination to enter a museum, no room service in hotels.  The international flights had very few cloth masks (gaiters forbidden), most people wearing a KN-95 or Korean equivalent.  I felt safer there than at home, and the experience made me feel more positive about the closed system of a cruise ship with various mitigation strategies in place. 

 

Of course in making our request to the stewards, we will make it clear that we are still paying the crew incentive.  One plus is that if the stewards are Indonesian (is that still common?), we speak Bahasa Indonesia and can communicate that way.  

 

Thanks for the input.  I'll report back in a few weeks.

[zgscl]

On 1/4/2022 at 6:48 PM, Naismith said:

But I had a question about whether anyone has asked their stewards NOT to enter the room?  We've also done a lot of overnight hotel stays during the past year, and most hotels seem to have shifted to "service upon request" only.  We still intend to pay the recommended crew incentive, but it would make us happiest not to have anyone enter unless we need something special.  

 

I don't think this will be an issue at all. Just let your room stewards know when you first see them and I am sure they will be happy to refresh ice or towels or anything else as needed. Hope you have a fabulous cruise!

 

15 hours ago, travelx4 said:

Yes, I’m talking to you, lady, licking your ice cream cone as you walk through the spa area, and you, “Larry David”, as you hack your whole ass morning next to the pool without covering your cough - gross!

 

I completely agree the fellow guests are a much bigger risk than the crew. I never saw a single crew member without their mask on either of our sailings post covid. Guests have varying levels of compliance and consideration. I seem to recall a CDC report of several outbreaks onboard ships started by people already exhibiting COVID symptoms decided to get on their cruise anyway. 

 

I really wish people would be more considerate of the health of their fellow travelers (especially during a global pandemic). On our August Nieuw Amsterdam sailing we were riding in the elevator with one other person. The doors opened and someone without a mask who was coughing and sneezing tried to get on. The other person in the elevator put their hand up to block the door and said "no thank you" as the person tried to get on.

[mplscondodweller]

We did a 17 day cruise in December and only had them in the room one time to switch out the sheets.  Otherwise we went to them for tp or fresh towels or trash empty.  So they were in our room one time!   We had prepaid gratuities in our plan so they knew they were going to get their tip money.  If the tips were not included in our package I like the suggestion that you let the room stewards know you will still tip the normal amount that gets 'applied to your account' at the end of the cruise.