What happens if you test Covid positive after several days on board?

[fudge]

This is similar to our situation. We cancelled our Feb 19th sailing, we took the 50/50  deal however, to use the FCC we had to book and cruise by the end of this year.

We have two other cruises, one in June the other in October, we have looked at one mid December, we could have done without it or at least sailed in 2023, we tried but Seabourn wont do this. 

[ciaoYacht]

7 hours ago, markham said:

By year-end? That’s incredible and if true (pending adjustment by Seabourn) unsatisfactory. You cannot keep a customer happy who cancels in July due to Covid and then tells him there are no substitute cruises in the next few months. Customers need a policy out a year from the cancellation date to use their FCC, for sure.

 

Happy and healthy sailing!

I would anticipate them extending the time period to use the FCC once they realize how short of a period people will have. 

[Dunnedg]

Ciao Yacht

I love your optimism but I have doubts. I am lucky we cancelled and only Deposit moved to FCC. Even then they wanted £30 more than the deposit we paid for some strange reason. Still not worked that one out. We will struggle to fit another holiday in this year with plans we already have in place. If we lose the deposit, as much as I have enjoyed sailing with Seabourn they will get no more money from me. Silver Sea or another similar company will benefit. Fully appreciate how difficult it is for them at the moment but that cuts both ways and we have shown great loyalty to Carnival and Seabourn in particular for a number of years.

[ciaoYacht]

I just can’t imagine them only allowing someone who cancels a September sailing 3 months to use the credit. God forbid we are still in this level of the pandemic/surges/restrictions at that point in time it just wouldn’t make sense. The difference between cruising in September and November is negligible. In fact, the virus would probably be surging again at year end if it follows ordinary viral patterns.  

[worcestergal]

Am I correct that the “worry free promise” is not applicable for voyages on the new expedition ship, Venture?  We are booked on a September cruise on that ship and I am already concerned about it. I am wondering whether we should pull out when we can…

[cruiseej]

I don't see anything in the wording of the Worry Free Promise which carves out the Venture from  the promise. As long as the cruise begins prior to September 30, you should be covered. What makes you think otherwise?

 

The world could be a different place by September; I don't know why you'd cancel now. You have until your cruise goes into penalty (120 days before the cruise, or 150 if the cruise is longer than 25 days). If you're on the September 4 cruise, then you have until the start of May to decide if you want to cancel for a refund under the normal cancellation policy; and you can cancel for a credit up until the beginning of August. 

[ciaoYacht]

7 hours ago, cruiseej said:

I don't see anything in the wording of the Worry Free Promise which carves out the Venture from  the promise. As long as the cruise begins prior to September 30, you should be covered. What makes you think otherwise?

 

I agree with you that the world may be different soon, especially with countries starting to reverse covid orders as omicron subsides, such as the UK did yesterday. But it still is a concern when spending so much money. The Venture is in fact, excluded. Check out the FAQs:

https://www.seabourn.com/en_US/worry-free-promise/worry-free-promise-faq.html

 

Q: Are Book with Confidence and Best Fare Guarantee applicable for every sailing?
A: No, Book with Confidence and Best Fare Guarantee are available on select voyages, and not valid on World Cruises or segments thereof and sailings on Seabourn Venture.  

Edited January 20, 2022 by ciaoYacht

[cruiseej]

Thanks @ciaoYacht Wow, that's pretty buried in the fine print! While I understand special rules for a World Cruise, I don't for the Venture. At this time, I would probably cancel trip on Venture at the start of the penalty phase because of uncertainty how the world will look 4 or 5 months hence. But… if you have a trip scheduled for September, then I'd wait right up until that deadline before deciding whether to cancel or move forward. As we've seen over the past two months, a things can flip upside down and (hopefully) back again in a short time with Covid, so things might seem a lot more positive by May when a decision has to be made. 

[Covepointcruiser]

Our Venture trip in September in round trip from Iceland to Greenland.   Both islands have done very well in their control of COVID.   I am not not even thinking about canceling this cruise.

[cruiseej]

@Covepointcruiser My post above was in response to @worcestergal who said "I am wondering whether we should pull out when we can…" on what I believe is the same cruise as yours. 

 

3 hours ago, Covepointcruiser said:

Both islands have done very well in their control of COVID.

 

It's not just the destinations you need to think about, but your fellow travelers. The worst-case scenario is that several people get exposed to the virus in traveling to Iceland, test negative upon boarding that day, but spread the virus the next several days on the ship, and once people test positive aboard, the ship is blocked from its port calls. That is what has happened on several Seabourn and Silversea cruises in the past month. For many people, the concern about having a drastically curtailed itinerary, or worse, being restricted to a cabin for 10 days without their spouse, is more worrisome than actually contracting the virus. 

[worcestergal]

Yes, we will wait until the last moment to make our decision. Who knows what the situation will be in May…much less how well we can envision September from May!  We are on the Venture cruise which goes from Greenland to Newfoundland, Canada. It just seems weird that Seabourn would exclude this - and all Venture cruises - from the “worry free promise”. I, for one, find the situation worrisome!

[Covepointcruiser]

I am not sure expedition port calls are the same as port calls in the Caribbean.    We probably won’t even touch land or at least not populated land in most areas of Greenland.   We are fully faxed and boosted and will get any additional boosters if made available so we are not worried about getting very I’ll if COVID is on board.   We will see how things change by the summer.

[cruiseej]

18 hours ago, Covepointcruiser said:

I am not sure expedition port calls are the same as port calls in the Caribbean.    We probably won’t even touch land or at least not populated land in most areas of Greenland.

 

We did an expedition trip to Greenland on Silversea prior to Covid which had a very similar itinerary to your Venture cruise. While some days are purely scenic cruising (such as Skjoldungen Fjord, which was the absolute highlight of our cruise on a picture-perfect day), you do go ashore in multiple small towns and cities. And since those small coastal communities (such as Aappilattoq and Qaqortoq) have very limited medical facilities, the government could decide to not allow 200 cruise passengers to wander around town and interact with local residents. 

[Vineyard View]

We are in the process of determining who we would like to next sail with and are very attracted to a few of SB itineraries next year. In reading through this thread, it sounds as if SB Covid protocols are not including:

Testing at the pier prior to boarding? I am reading on another thread that pier testing is being done, yet there are reports here that is not the case? Is this port dependent at embarkation?

Testing during the cruise to detect new outbreaks (unless required by the port/country)? Is SB doing this at regular intervals? 

thank you 

Edited January 24, 2022 by Vineyard View

[cruiseej]

No one can give you a definitive answer about this, because the protocols are ever-changing. In general, since last summer, Seabourn did pier-side testing on almost all cruises. Only recently have there been a few cruises without pier-side testing. If you're considering a cruise for next year, though, trying to make any decision about what has happened in the past, or is happening currently, would be a mistake. Who knows what the world will look like even a month or two from now, let alone next year, and the protocols for safety will surely change as conditions around the world continue to change. 

[2SailingNomads]

It seems to be an evolving process.

[Vineyard View]

Thank you for your input. I completely understand that there is no crystal ball for the future, and how all of this will impact cruising. I was only asking  what SB has been doing, not what they may do in the future. 
As I read this, SB is not pier side testing for all cruises. I think this is important to note, at least it is to us. 
I have not read whether SB tests during the cruise. Many lines have set testing schedules (ie: every ‘x’ days, every day, etc). 
thanks again for feedback. 

[Utopia1]

I understand you are concerned about pier side testing  .  I called Seabourn yesterday to check their pier side testing for my upcoming Feb. 13 cruise.  They said there will be pier side testing.

 

 I read your previous post about inquiring if they were doing pier side test for your possible cruise over a year from now ("next fall") and shipboard testing.  I don't understand how Seabourn could answer that question --  will the covid pandemic still be here 18 months from now?

My only suggestion  is follow your own instincts.

[Vineyard View]

Thank you for your update Lois10028. 
I do not expect anyone, including SB to know what it will be like a year from now. I may have not made that clear in my initial post. I was asking what SB has been doing - both pier side testing and onboard testing protocols (in addition to quarantine policies). 
Cruise lines have varied in this area, including at least one that tests daily, a few that test every determined number of days, etc. These protocols will obviously change and evolve over time as Covid does the same. For us, right or wrong, how the various companies have implemented their policies up to now, will impact who we will seriously look at for booking later this year or next Spring.