Updated Vaccation Policy

[Bill Y]

7 hours ago, wowzz said:

If they had just issued a single message in the first place,  clearly stating that 24 hours meant the day before,  there woukd have been nothing to sort out ! 

 

At the end of the day the people that will be looking at the documentation and giving the thumbs up or down will be P&O employees or their contractors.

 

So one hopes that P&O will be capable of briefing them fully and concisely on what  P&O deems to be the criteria, or will they just say use your initiative?

 

The performance so far does not inspire confidence.

[BouncingWheel]

40 minutes ago, devonuk said:

In our case our 12 year old grandson can travel with us on the Ventura this October as within the 270 days but not on the Iona in Feb 23 as just outside the 270 days 🤷‍♂️😡

We really do not know whether we can be a$$ed with all of the testing as just recently when travelling on the Iona with two 9 year olds it was all very stressy 😟

Could you please elaborate on what was stressy with regards to the 9yr olds? Was it the testing and/or something else?

[elmsliebev]

21 hours ago, watsonbeau said:

Cunard have just updated - for ex Southampton departure it’s not medically observed. 

for Canada (we sail from Vancouver in July with Cunard) it has to be a medically observed test for embarkation. 

[mrsgoggins]

7 hours ago, Eglesbrech said:

I don’t know what Celebrity are planning on doing this year as their U.K. procedures are not posted as yet, they are not yet in the U.K.. For guests in the USA they are offering free testing if the booking was made before 16 November last year, bookings after that date pay for their own.

 

I sailed with Celebrity out of Fort Lauderdale this January on a cruise booked pre-pandemic and had to pay for an observed LFT.  Maybe this has now changed?

[Megabear2]

35 minutes ago, mrsgoggins said:

 

I sailed with Celebrity out of Fort Lauderdale this January on a cruise booked pre-pandemic and had to pay for an observed LFT.  Maybe this has now changed?

No, all departures on Celebrity still require the observed LFT.  As far as I can tell no cruise company is dropping testing at this stage unless of course anyone knows something to the contrary ..

[MX-Drew]

I wrote to my (well known) high street TA who have good connections with P&O (usually) and asked the following. I attached the email from P&O.

 

"I have received the email below and I'm unsure about the 5 year old in our party. She will be unvaccinated so I understand she requires a PCR test 72 hours before arriving in Malta but does she also require the antigen test 24 hours before embarkation? I just want to make sure."

 

This is the reply I received, possibly worse than a reply from P&O themselves, but shows the TA don't know or don't want to take responsibility.

 

"Good Afternoon Mr xxxxxx

 

We read and understand that the same as you.

 

Regards"

 

[Selbourne]

14 minutes ago, MX-Drew said:

I wrote to my (well known) high street TA who have good connections with P&O (usually) and asked the following. I attached the email from P&O.

 

"I have received the email below and I'm unsure about the 5 year old in our party. She will be unvaccinated so I understand she requires a PCR test 72 hours before arriving in Malta but does she also require the antigen test 24 hours before embarkation? I just want to make sure."

 

This is the reply I received, possibly worse than a reply from P&O themselves, but shows the TA don't know or don't want to take responsibility.

 

"Good Afternoon Mr xxxxxx

 

We read and understand that the same as you.

 

Regards"

 

Shocking! The ability to provide direct answers to specific questions seems to have been lost by most organisations these days. On the occasions that I have to write a letter or email seeking information or clarification, I have taken to numbering the points and specifically asking that they address each point in turn, yet even that approach rarely works! 

[MX-Drew]

14 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Shocking! The ability to provide direct answers to specific questions seems to have been lost by most organisations these days. On the occasions that I have to write a letter or email seeking information or clarification, I have taken to numbering the points and specifically asking that they address each point in turn, yet even that approach rarely works! 

I agree, I have been known to write at the top "Please read this email to the end before starting to reply".

[Selbourne]

Just now, MX-Drew said:

I agree, I have been known to write at the top "Please read this email to the end before starting to reply".

😂 I might try that approach as well!

[terrierjohn]

1 hour ago, MX-Drew said:

I agree, I have been known to write at the top "Please read this email to the end before starting to reply".

That as well as the inability for them to fully understand simple english, results in replies that are irrelevant. Although I often wonder if customer service deliberately avoid providing a direct answer.

[cublet]

44 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

That as well as the inability for them to fully understand simple english, results in replies that are irrelevant. Although I often wonder if customer service deliberately avoid providing a direct answer.

Hello,

 

I think to be fair, though not usually in my nature, all they are doing is pushing out what the American CDC have put out (and probably don't either agree with it or understand it).

 

Not only are we two nations divided by a common language, the rules of grammar and punctuation are different too based on what I have read on the RCI website re vaccinations and testing.

 

That the UK is not the 51st State of the Union seems to have passed them by.

 

Regards,

 

Cublet

[Megabear2]

Nothing much to do with testing but the Celebrity Silhouette transatlantic has a Covid outbreak and it transpires they have rearranged their quarantine area to be on deck 3 which only offers outside (portholes it states) and inside cabins. This is apparently due to the UK sailings following being at almost maximum capacity.  

 

Is there any news on P&O's movement on quarantine zones with the expected increase in passengers?  

[Bill Y]

2 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

That as well as the inability for them to fully understand simple english, results in replies that are irrelevant. Although I often wonder if customer service deliberately avoid providing a direct answer.

Ah, they probably recruit politics graduates! Always wondered what became of them.

[davecttr]

Oh well! there goes the idea of keeping the pre cruise LFT test topic tightly focused on the practical problems and suggestions of getting your  P&O required test. 😟

[terrierjohn]

13 minutes ago, davecttr said:

Oh well! there goes the idea of keeping the pre cruise LFT test topic tightly focused on the practical problems and suggestions of getting your  P&O required test. 😟

I blame CC, on my smart phone I dont see the topic header, so I just reply to the last post. If you can get CC to get their IT dept to show a thread header I will try to stay on topic.

[davecttr]

24 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

I blame CC, on my smart phone I dont see the topic header, so I just reply to the last post. If you can get CC to get their IT dept to show a thread header I will try to stay on topic.

No problem the topics have been separated again.

[PEMCO007]

On 4/14/2022 at 2:18 PM, yorkshirephil said:

I think it has been long established that temperature checks are not a viable method of indicating covid. Cruise ships will always be an issue for transmittable "deceases" as will schools, hospitals etc especially in winter. If Spain are making it more difficult for cruise ships to dock then the cruise lines need to find alternative ports. It isn't too long ago that Spain were complaining that the restrictions were too severe and they were losing out to other warmer climes for tourist numbers, cake and eat it springs to mind.

I agree, both my daughters have had covid twice with no raised temperature, and hubby and me also recently, no elevated temp so I think this symptom is not that present in everyone x

 

[molecrochip]

9 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

Nothing much to do with testing but the Celebrity Silhouette transatlantic has a Covid outbreak and it transpires they have rearranged their quarantine area to be on deck 3 which only offers outside (portholes it states) and inside cabins. This is apparently due to the UK sailings following being at almost maximum capacity.  

 

Is there any news on P&O's movement on quarantine zones with the expected increase in passengers?  

I’m not aware of any changes to P&O quarantine zones. 
 

My guess is that come the end of the month, we’ll get another round of cabin movements to empty the quarantine zone of existing June bookings.

[Yorkypete]

Whilst it might not apply to many people  just keep an eye on the 'proof of vaccination' required to be shown  before you are allowed on board. If you have had two plus the booster you will need the NHS certificate . We realised today that they are only valid for 30 days after you request them so watch this. I cannot understand why it is only 30 days as you cannot be suddenly 'unvaccinated' and it must cost the NHS having to issue new ones every 30 days if you travel a lot or go to events etc where you have to show the proof.

[zap99]

14 minutes ago, Yorkypete said:

Whilst it might not apply to many people  just keep an eye on the 'proof of vaccination' required to be shown  before you are allowed on board. If you have had two plus the booster you will need the NHS certificate . We realised today that they are only valid for 30 days after you request them so watch this. I cannot understand why it is only 30 days as you cannot be suddenly 'unvaccinated' and it must cost the NHS having to issue new ones every 30 days if you travel a lot or go to events etc where you have to show the proof.

We just download a new one before we go. In Lanzarote a couple of weeks ago Spain were quite vigilant in checking the NHS QR code and the Spanish health declaration. As you say ,watch out for the 30 days validity.

[Valfan]

1 hour ago, Yorkypete said:

Whilst it might not apply to many people  just keep an eye on the 'proof of vaccination' required to be shown  before you are allowed on board. If you have had two plus the booster you will need the NHS certificate . We realised today that they are only valid for 30 days after you request them so watch this. I cannot understand why it is only 30 days as you cannot be suddenly 'unvaccinated' and it must cost the NHS having to issue new ones every 30 days if you travel a lot or go to events etc where you have to show the proof.

Interesting to read this about your proof of vaccination certificates only lasting 30 days. I thought ours in Scotland were bad - they only last for 3 months. I've already had to ask for an updated one recently, in the hope of maybe returning to cruising relatively soon. But the way P&O are moving the goalposts re testing requirements etc., I'll likely need a fair few 3 month certificates before I actually get on a ship.

[clevercruiser]

On 4/12/2022 at 6:58 PM, terrierjohn said:

If you are double jabbed then you should now be able to get a booster jab which would then qualify you for cruising.

I realise that, but I had a really bad reaction to my second jab, so I don't want to risk having

a booster just to be able to go on holiday, especially as I had Omicron a few weeks ago,

so my antibodies have been naturally 'boosted' anyway!

 

I have recently just had to cancel a Celebrity cruise from Civitavecchia this Summer because 

I (naively!) assumed that onerous restrictions such as testing and mandatory boosters for 

cruise passengers would have been long gone by now when I booked it last year!

 

I'm still hopeful for next February (Arvia in the Caribbean), as that will be three years since

Covid started being an issue on cruise ships, or do people think that testing and proof of

vaccine boosters will be the 'new normal' on cruises for years to come...?

 

 

 

[Annabel50]

If you order from the NHS via calling them by phone there is no expiry date on the certificate, dont ask me why but this may be helpful to you.

[BouncingWheel]

2 hours ago, clevercruiser said:

I realise that, but I had a really bad reaction to my second jab, so I don't want to risk having

a booster just to be able to go on holiday, especially as I had Omicron a few weeks ago,

so my antibodies have been naturally 'boosted' anyway!

 

I have recently just had to cancel a Celebrity cruise from Civitavecchia this Summer because 

I (naively!) assumed that onerous restrictions such as testing and mandatory boosters for 

cruise passengers would have been long gone by now when I booked it last year!

 

I'm still hopeful for next February (Arvia in the Caribbean), as that will be three years since

Covid started being an issue on cruise ships, or do people think that testing and proof of

vaccine boosters will be the 'new normal' on cruises for years to come...?

 

 

 

Certain countries have always required proof of vaccinations against specific diseases before you can enter them and cruise companies had an approach for people travelling there. My thoughts are that whilst many countries continue to require Covid proof then the cruise companies will keep the blanket approach. Once it reduces to a small, select number of countries then Covid joins the list on the old approach. 

[MX-Drew]

32 minutes ago, Annabel50 said:

If you order from the NHS via calling them by phone there is no expiry date on the certificate, dont ask me why but this may be helpful to you.

There is an expiry date, at least there is one on the one I received on the 31st January, it expired the 2nd March.

I thought the same and checked, lucky I did as I was relying on them.