Explorer June 19-2022- Confused about Regents requirement for Covid Test prior to embarking

[mrstanley]

After reading all the above posts I assume Regent is no longer doing testing at the cruise terminals prior to boarding?

 

This entire process is very confusing.

[papaflamingo]

7 minutes ago, mrstanley said:

After reading all the above posts I assume Regent is no longer doing testing at the cruise terminals prior to boarding?

 

This entire process is very confusing.

Regent will provide a test at the port for $99 per person.   From the Regent website (and my email for my upcoming cruise):

"For guests unable to arrange a test within 48 hours of arriving to the terminal, Regent will have on-site Antigen testing available at the pier for a fee."

[mrstanley]

If Regent is providing testing at the port prior to boarding explain why people are doing testing from their hotel rooms,etc. 

 

Nothing makes any sense anymore.

Makes me want to cancel all my cruises until there is no more testing or quarantine requirements. I’m sick of worrying!

[LvnCruisin]

Because if you don't test prior and have covid then your insurance won't kick in and pay the bill. We tested before hand for this reason alone. We did not want to fly all the way to Italy and be denied boarding. We just got off this morning so this is about as new of information as you can have. I would imagine it will all change again before you go as everything is changing daily.

[Portolan]

And, most options are considerably cheaper than Regent's port testing.  Or free if you can get one in the timeframe before leaving home.

[mrstanley]

We r planning on spending 4 days in Rome prior to boarding.

We will get tested prior to leaving USA. 
If negative we will fly to Rome. If positive we will stay home.

 

Will need another test in order to board.

We now have to worry about get COVID during those days prior to boarding the ship. This is nuts!

[forevertravel]

As far as I know you can get your test at embarkation. You have to pay $99 for the test.  I haven't heard Regent is not doing the test any longer. That's our plan since we'll be in London for three days prior to embarkation.

 

[pingpong1]

18 minutes ago, mrstanley said:

We r planning on spending 4 days in Rome prior to boarding.

We will get tested prior to leaving USA. 
If negative we will fly to Rome. If positive we will stay home.

 

Will need another test in order to board.

We now have to worry about get COVID during those days prior to boarding the ship. This is nuts!

Mrstanley - I completely sympathize with the uncertainty that you and others are now having to (still) deal with for your upcoming cruise/s.

 

This is why many folks (including us) cancelled our previously-booked spring/summer '22 cruise/s before entering the cancellation (penalty) period.   DW and I (along with 2 other travelling companions) had more than enough of that worry/testing/attestation regimen to deal with, before and during our Dec '21 Mariner cruise - with multiple scheduled ports cancelled after the cruise began and with many added "sea days" to the itinerary once the cruise had actually started.  We're not blaming Regent for any of that, but it still didn't make for a "normal" Regent cruise...and not worth the money that we were spending.

 

And despite all the pre-cruise testing, masking, social distancing, inconvenience, etc., that we (compliantly) put up with before and during the cruise... DW and I (but not our travelling companions) STILL wound up testing "positive" on the very last day "at sea" day of that cruise (the testing was mandated at the last minute, and was involuntarily imposed on the entire ship by the Health Board of SF prior to our ship's docking).

 

Despite us having gladly and scrupulously followed ALL required Regent masking and social-distancing protocols throughout the cruise, and having been fully vaccinated and "boosted" before beginning that cruise, we still tested "positive" on that last day of cruising.  And we were completely asymptomatic throughout the entire cruise and even after returned home, as well.  Regent quarantined us in our suite (they and us really had no choice in the matter) for the final 24-hours of the cruise.

 

Fortunately, being U.S. citizens and disembarking in the U.S., we were able to disembark (well...we were actually kept onboard in our suite until all the "non-positive" passengers were allowed to leave the ship first) and immediately drive (a rental car) home from San Francisco back to Phoenix (where we "self-quarantined").  It was fortunate for us that the itinerary began and ended in the U.S. (our home country).  It would have been a "whole other story" (and far more unfortunate, expensive, and inconvenient) if we had found ourselves "stuck" in a foreign port during that cruise.

 

As we were (happily) leaving Mariner and driving out of San Francisco/California (as fast as the law would allow), we (unanimously and immediately) decided that we were simply not going to put ourselves through all of "that" (risk/uncertainty/inconvenience) again on an already-booked Navigator TA Cruise this coming August '22 (BCN to NYC).  The money, the overseas travel involved, the long flights, the foreign ports with constantly changing local rules, the constant worry, and the "getting in and out" of foreign countries, accompanied by the whole "shadow of uncertainly" (along with the still/now very real potential for more "positive" test results in overseas locations) would have just simply over-shadowed and ruined any excitement or anticipation we might have had from that next cruise.

 

In retrospect, and after reading many of the recent experiences that others have had (Covid-related), subsequent to our Dec/Jan cruise....we have absolutely no regrets whatsoever for having cancelled that next booked cruise.

 

We now still have a May/June '23 Navigator cruise to look forward to (NYC to Montreal) and have the "hope" that with it still being more than a year from now, this whole "Covid thing" will (by then) be treated more like "seasonal flu" or a "winter cold"....than as a pandemic - like it still now continues to be handled (pre-testing, masks, and quarantines).  If the Covid protocols still remain in place by next January '23 (when our final payment is due for the NYC/Montreal cruise), we'll have no hesitation in cancelling that cruise as well, before penalty.  Best Regards to all.

[Reveuse]

1 hour ago, pingpong1 said:

Mrstanley - I completely sympathize with the uncertainty that you and others are now having to (still) deal with for your upcoming cruise/s.

 

This is why many folks (including us) cancelled our previously-booked spring/summer '22 cruise/s before entering the cancellation (penalty) period.   DW and I (along with 2 other travelling companions) had more than enough of that worry/testing/attestation regimen to deal with, before and during our Dec '21 Mariner cruise - with multiple scheduled ports cancelled after the cruise began and with many added "sea days" to the itinerary once the cruise had actually started.  We're not blaming Regent for any of that, but it still didn't make for a "normal" Regent cruise...and not worth the money that we were spending.

 

And despite all the pre-cruise testing, masking, social distancing, inconvenience, etc., that we (compliantly) put up with before and during the cruise... DW and I (but not our travelling companions) STILL wound up testing "positive" on the very last day "at sea" day of that cruise (the testing was mandated at the last minute, and was involuntarily imposed on the entire ship by the Health Board of SF prior to our ship's docking).

 

Despite us having gladly and scrupulously followed ALL required Regent masking and social-distancing protocols throughout the cruise, and having been fully vaccinated and "boosted" before beginning that cruise, we still tested "positive" on that last day of cruising.  And we were completely asymptomatic throughout the entire cruise and even after returned home, as well.  Regent quarantined us in our suite (they and us really had no choice in the matter) for the final 24-hours of the cruise.

 

Fortunately, being U.S. citizens and disembarking in the U.S., we were able to disembark (well...we were actually kept onboard in our suite until all the "non-positive" passengers were allowed to leave the ship first) and immediately drive (a rental car) home from San Francisco back to Phoenix (where we "self-quarantined").  It was fortunate for us that the itinerary began and ended in the U.S. (our home country).  It would have been a "whole other story" (and far more unfortunate, expensive, and inconvenient) if we had found ourselves "stuck" in a foreign port during that cruise.

 

As we were (happily) leaving Mariner and driving out of San Francisco/California (as fast as the law would allow), we (unanimously and immediately) decided that we were simply not going to put ourselves through all of "that" (risk/uncertainty/inconvenience) again on an already-booked Navigator TA Cruise this coming August '22 (BCN to NYC).  The money, the overseas travel involved, the long flights, the foreign ports with constantly changing local rules, the constant worry, and the "getting in and out" of foreign countries, accompanied by the whole "shadow of uncertainly" (along with the still/now very real potential for more "positive" test results in overseas locations) would have just simply over-shadowed and ruined any excitement or anticipation we might have had from that next cruise.

 

In retrospect, and after reading many of the recent experiences that others have had (Covid-related), subsequent to our Dec/Jan cruise....we have absolutely no regrets whatsoever for having cancelled that next booked cruise.

 

We now still have a May/June '23 Navigator cruise to look forward to (NYC to Montreal) and have the "hope" that with it still being more than a year from now, this whole "Covid thing" will (by then) be treated more like "seasonal flu" or a "winter cold"....than as a pandemic - like it still now continues to be handled (pre-testing, masks, and quarantines).  If the Covid protocols still remain in place by next January '23 (when our final payment is due for the NYC/Montreal cruise), we'll have no hesitation in cancelling that cruise as well, before penalty.  Best Regards to all.

Wow! Scary… testing positive last day of cruising… can you imagine if that happens the last day in Athens! Then what? Does Regents take care of you or tells you bye you are on your own in Athens? Anyone knows the worst case scenario? Any known case of Covid on Regents Europe sailings?

[mrstanley]

From reading posts  from passengers onboard cruises Regent does not discuss how many passengers have COVID and are in quarantine. 
 

 

[mrstanley]

My friend tested positive… was separated from his wife and put into a quarantine cabin for the last 3 days of their cruise. Then he was transferred to a local hotel in Miami to finish the quarantine and was responsible for ordering his own food from the grocery store. Was put up in a awful hotel/ condo. 

Then he had to make his way to the airport to return to his hometown. Separating older couples who rely on each other for many reasons is really awful. 

[Lonedaddy]

3 hours ago, pingpong1 said:

 

We now still have a May/June '23 Navigator cruise to look forward to (NYC to Montreal) and have the "hope" that with it still being more than a year from now, this whole "Covid thing" will (by then) be treated more like "seasonal flu" or a "winter cold"....than as a pandemic - like it still now continues to be handled (pre-testing, masks, and quarantines).  If the Covid protocols still remain in place by next January '23 (when our final payment is due for the NYC/Montreal cruise), we'll have no hesitation in cancelling that cruise as well, before penalty.  Best Regards to all.

We are booked on the NYC to Montreal cruise and that "Hope" could be enhanced depending on Nov 2nd!

 

We leave on May 17 for May 21 Spendor out of Southhampton.  We are dreading taking a test after we are there on the 18th.  However the UK and Ireland don't give a crap anymore and don't require any of that testing nonsense.  So if denied boarding we will just rent a car or take the train and see some sights in the UK and fly to Ireland and do the same.   Only issue is when we can fly back to the US but there are no quarantine mandates in the UK anymore for having a cold.

[pingpong1]

2 hours ago, Lonedaddy said:

We are booked on the NYC to Montreal cruise and that "Hope" could be enhanced depending on Nov 2nd!

 

We leave on May 17 for May 21 Spendor out of Southhampton.  We are dreading taking a test after we are there on the 18th.  However the UK and Ireland don't give a crap anymore and don't require any of that testing nonsense.  So if denied boarding we will just rent a car or take the train and see some sights in the UK and fly to Ireland and do the same.   Only issue is when we can fly back to the US but there are no quarantine mandates in the UK anymore for having a cold.

Hi Lonedaddy - We'll certainly look forward to meeting you on the Navigator next May 31st ('23)!  If you haven't experienced it before, the evening sail away out of the lower Manhattan cruise terminal and passing by the Statue of Liberty just before sunset can certainly be one of those "Kodak Moments" (Yes, I know I'm dating myself)!  We've done the Manhattan evening departure before on Navigator and it makes this itinerary quite memorable.

 

It also sounds like your alternative plan this month (if necessary), for the car tour around  UK and Ireland to be a good clear case of making lemonade out of lemons, too!  😄 Best Regards.

[edgee]

On 5/1/2022 at 5:35 PM, Reveuse said:

Are you sure the Covid home kits results will be accepted by Regents when we embark. How do you show the results? 🤔It sounds too easy. We will certainly take a few with us.

Home test kits are accepted if they are the proctored kind...almost universally. Results are contained in an email from the company on your phone just like most any Covid test result. Essentially you do via video what you would do in any physical testing site with a proctor/employee of the testing company supervising the test and verifying the result. Not to be confused with home tests where you read the result yourself with no outside verification..of course those are not acceptable.

Edited May 3, 2022 by edgee

[victorialynne22]

On the same cruise.  We plan to purchase  the Inspire tests before we leave for London on the 19th. Then pre-arrange to test the afternoon of the 20th. Cruise leaves the 23rd. Hoping this timing works out, we pass the test and can enjoy a wonderful trip.

[Lonedaddy]

9 hours ago, victorialynne22 said:

On the same cruise.  We plan to purchase  the Inspire tests before we leave for London on the 19th. Then pre-arrange to test the afternoon of the 20th. Cruise leaves the 23rd. Hoping this timing works out, we pass the test and can enjoy a wonderful trip.

you could take the test on the  18th or 19th (3days prior)

[LvnCruisin]

9 hours ago, victorialynne22 said:

On the same cruise.  We plan to purchase  the Inspire tests before we leave for London on the 19th. Then pre-arrange to test the afternoon of the 20th. Cruise leaves the 23rd. Hoping this timing works out, we pass the test and can enjoy a wonderful trip.

Just remember the time zone changes, they make all of the difference.

 

We just tested negative so now we can go home! yay

[papaflamingo]

On 5/2/2022 at 8:14 AM, mrstanley said:

If Regent is providing testing at the port prior to boarding explain why people are doing testing from their hotel rooms,etc. 

 

Nothing makes any sense anymore.

Makes me want to cancel all my cruises until there is no more testing or quarantine requirements. I’m sick of worrying!

In addition to the higher cost, testing at the pier delays boarding.  You have to wait and be isolated until your test results are read.  Why do that?  We're using EMed.  It's a Telehealth service and is acceptable by Regent.  We are flying to Montreal on May 26 to board on May 28. Since we have to test within 48 hours we will test as soon as we get into the hotel.  Assuming it's negative, then we're good to go.  

We would set up a PCR before we leave home (within 72 hours of boarding), but the results may not be received in time and rapid PCR is very expensive.  So we'll do the Antigen in our hotel room,.

Waiting until boarding simply extends the angst associated with this whole thing.  Why do that to yourself? 

 

Edited May 3, 2022 by papaflamingo

[victorialynne22]

I agree on not waiting to test until boarding. I’m going to get it out of the way and test as soon as I’m in the 72 hour window ( since I’m arriving a few days early).

[edgee]

6 hours ago, papaflamingo said:

In addition to the higher cost, testing at the pier delays boarding.  You have to wait and be isolated until your test results are read.  Why do that?  We're using EMed.  It's a Telehealth service and is acceptable by Regent.  We are flying to Montreal on May 26 to board on May 28. Since we have to test within 48 hours we will test as soon as we get into the hotel.  Assuming it's negative, then we're good to go.  

We would set up a PCR before we leave home (within 72 hours of boarding), but the results may not be received in time and rapid PCR is very expensive.  So we'll do the Antigen in our hotel room,.

Waiting until boarding simply extends the angst associated with this whole thing.  Why do that to yourself? 

 

Maybe I am missing something, but where are you getting a 48 hour window for testing? Regent critieria for non U.S. ports say a 72 hour window. However, it looks like Canada has a 24 hour pre cruise Antigen testing requirement, according to the Transport Canada website. Seems like it is either 72 or 24, but not 48 for Canada embarkations.

Edited May 3, 2022 by edgee

[MaxBuck]

On 5/2/2022 at 12:09 PM, Reveuse said:

Wow! Scary… testing positive last day of cruising… can you imagine if that happens the last day in Athens! Then what? Does Regents take care of you or tells you bye you are on your own in Athens? Anyone knows the worst case scenario? Any known case of Covid on Regents Europe sailings?

Our cruise (Lisbon to Barcelona via Canary Islands, etc.) had, I believe, 8 cases.  So far as I know, none were serious enough to require hospitalization.

[Reveuse]

8 hours ago, MaxBuck said:

Our cruise (Lisbon to Barcelona via Canary Islands, etc.) had, I believe, 8 cases.  So far as I know, none were serious enough to require hospitalization.

Good But what happened? What did Regents do? Did this happen during the cruise or at the end? 

[2012_Alaska_bound]

On 5/2/2022 at 8:09 PM, Reveuse said:

Wow! Scary… testing positive last day of cruising… can you imagine if that happens the last day in Athens! Then what? Does Regents take care of you or tells you bye you are on your own in Athens? Anyone knows the worst case scenario? Any known case of Covid on Regents Europe sailings?

 

 

You can read about a passenger who disembarked from Splendor TA in Barcelona then took train to Madrid the next day to fly home and tested positive. Luckily the Westin in Madrid was able to accommodate them and help with further testing. 

 

 

[papaflamingo]

14 hours ago, edgee said:

Maybe I am missing something, but where are you getting a 48 hour window for testing? Regent critieria for non U.S. ports say a 72 hour window. However, it looks like Canada has a 24 hour pre cruise Antigen testing requirement, according to the Transport Canada website. Seems like it is either 72 or 24, but not 48 for Canada embarkations.

We received an email dated April 21, 2022 which states:

 

"For cruises starting in Canada, all guests are required to complete a COVID-19 PCR test within 72 hours of arriving at the cruise terminal or an Antigen test from a lab or pharmacy within 48 hours of arriving to the cruise terminal."

 

This may be due to Canada's regulations.  Not sure where you read "24 hour pre cruise" as the below website is consistent with Regent's email. 

https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/cruise

Edited May 4, 2022 by papaflamingo

[edgee]

55 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

We received an email dated April 21, 2022 which states:

 

"For cruises starting in Canada, all guests are required to complete a COVID-19 PCR test within 72 hours of arriving at the cruise terminal or an Antigen test from a lab or pharmacy within 48 hours of arriving to the cruise terminal."

 

This may be due to Canada's regulations.  Not sure where you read "24 hour pre cruise" as the below website is consistent with Regent's email. 

https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/cruise

I now see the updated info. Of course you are correct. I was looking at an earlier version,evidently. Enjoy your cruise!