Have steward clean room or not?

[Kitty Ellas Mom]

What will I be missing if I skip room cleaning for a 7 day cruise?  My cruise on the Majestic in June to Alaska will be my 1st cruise.  Since the pandemic started DH and I have skipped all hotel service (when in hotels on land) and instead have taken out our own trash and requested new towels every day.  It's annoying but it does save having another person coming into our room who could bring the virus.  But I get the impression that it's more service on a cruise beyond just cleaning--for example, they bring the paper Princess Patter if you want it, and I do want one.   If I skip this service on my cruise what will I be missing out on?

[losfp]

If they can't access your stateroom, they simply leave paperwork/patter etc at the door. 

 

In addition, if you have the room set up for 3/4 people, they set up the additional bunk beds etc, that I believe are not possible to do by yourself unless you have the right tools (room/ship dependant)

 

We have on occasion skipped a cleaning (if someone's taking a nap etc etc) but I would think that confined space would get pretty gross without proper cleaning for a week.

 

IMO as long as they're following proper protocol, and you ensure that you're not there when they go to clean up AND you're not going back in straightaway, the risk is minimal.

Edited May 17, 2022 by losfp

[cr8tiv1]

Room Stewards are tested frequently.  They wear masks while in your room.  Will you be in the room when they come in?  Will you have a balcony you can escape to?  Will you be leaving your room?

 

They are in there for a very small period of time.  They are just as fearful of catching COVID from you.  

 

On my first cruise back (in October), my cabin mate did not want anyone in the room.  We compromised and did a morning cleaning, but no turn down service.  I felt pretty safe having crew in my cabin to fix things, clean, change out linens, receiving Patters/laudry, etc.  on later cruises.

 

You need to cruise at your comfort level.  You can ask for them to deliver linens (or not change them/towels out daily).  I wouldn't want to clean my own toilet.  

[MissP22]

3 hours ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

If I skip this service on my cruise what will I be missing out on?

I don't think it's a requirement but what about all the other things on the ship like dining, entertainment, pools, port excursions, etc.

Surely you'll be doing some of those activities as well? 

How will you avoid being near people during the whole cruise?

 

[wowzz]

12 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

I don't think it's a requirement but what about all the other things on the ship like dining, entertainment, pools, port excursions, etc.

Surely you'll be doing some of those activities as well? 

How will you avoid being near people during the whole cruise?

 

Exactly - having a steward come into your room for 15 minutes when you are out, is the least of your worries !

[CruisinFinsUp]

The crew are also required to perform certain duties at certain intervals.  
 

Pre-covid when we cruised with the kids, if the kids had an inside room across the hall they often left the "do not disturb" up for a couple days in a row.   The steward would come to us and request access as they had to do the change of sheets or whatever at certain intervals.   

 

You could speak to your steward and discuss alternatives, but even if you wait for them to come to your room so you can exchange towels and give them your trash bins, you'll be in close contact.    

[pms4104]

The steward's supervisor selects, randomly, cabins for daily post-cleaning inspection.  At least they did so pre-Covid.

 

I question to what extent "don't clean/tend my cabin for a week" impacts the steward's standing with Princess housekeeping dept.

[Steelers36]

38 minutes ago, pms4104 said:

The steward's supervisor selects, randomly, cabins for daily post-cleaning inspection.  At least they did so pre-Covid.

 

I question to what extent "don't clean/tend my cabin for a week" impacts the steward's standing with Princess housekeeping dept.

A smart steward will have already informed their supervisor if a guest not letting them in to clean, etc.  They will want to be in to collect garbage and change out sheets every 3/4 days.  We have deferred some service in the past, but never eliminated it.

 

[GloriaF]

I personally would never limit the steward's access to my cabin for the duration of the cruise.   I like fresh towels daily and sheets changed periodically, and the toiletries refreshed as needed, etc.  I like being pampered, and the steward is vaccinated/boosted and tested.    

 

The steward will learn what time to clean based on when you tend to vacate your cabin, and the notification on the door will confirm best time to clean.

Edited May 17, 2022 by GloriaF

[Esprit]

Knowing the steward is coming in each day means the wife has a tidy up beforehand. Our cabin would be an absolute tip if the steward's daily service was declined 😂

[Potstech]

On the Majestic you can set your room to either "Do not Disturb" Or "Service Please" on the display outside your door. Last week we selected service when we knew we would be gone for a while.  Your steward can explain this on your first meeting.

[cruzin4us]

I worry less about my cabin steward and worry way more about my fellow cruisers.

 

[GloriaF]

1 minute ago, cruzin4us said:

I worry less about my cabin steward and worry way more about my fellow cruisers.

 

In crowded spaces like the Princess Theatre particularly.  We will probably wear masks in some areas on ship.

[Kitty Ellas Mom]

I should have added that, during covid, when we've gone to hotels we've wiped down every surface (not the walls, but touchable surfaces) with disinfecting wipes.  It is a huge chore and the thought of doing it every day after the steward sounds difficult.  I realize that this may sound a bit extreme but once we got our hotel room sanitized we truly felt like it was our safe space vs the rest of the hotel.  But cruising seems different with a much higher level of service.  Also, I just hate having to hide all my things every day.  

Edited May 17, 2022 by Kitty Ellas Mom

[wowzz]

8 minutes ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

I should have added that, during covid, when we've gone to hotels we've wiped down every surface (not the walls, but touchable surfaces) with disinfecting wipes.  It is a huge chore and the thought of doing it every day after the steward sounds difficult.  I realize that this may sound a bit extreme but once we got our hotel room sanitized we truly felt like it was our safe space vs the rest of the hotel.  But cruising seems different with a much higher level of service.  Also, I just hate having to hide all my things every day.  

You do know that the chances of contracting Covid via surface transmission are virtually zero ?

[karatemom2]

31 minutes ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

I should have added that, during covid, when we've gone to hotels we've wiped down every surface (not the walls, but touchable surfaces) with disinfecting wipes.  It is a huge chore and the thought of doing it every day after the steward sounds difficult.  I realize that this may sound a bit extreme but once we got our hotel room sanitized we truly felt like it was our safe space vs the rest of the hotel.  But cruising seems different with a much higher level of service.  Also, I just hate having to hide all my things every day.  

Why would you hide things? Are you talking about valuables? I can assure you that the room stewards would never take anything. I have left jewelry, cash and credit cards laying around and it is always carefully left within plain view. If I rush out and leave my makeup in a mess it is neatly arranged when I return. Clothes are folded and sunglasses are neatly stacked on the book by my bed. There is a safe in the room for anything you want to keep secure - we only ever use it to store our passports so we know where they are at all times. 
 

Your steward provides a much higher level of service then you receive at a hotel. It’s a small room and daily cleaning and refreshing makes it so much more pleasant. I can’t imagine forgoing that service. 
 

Your room steward is masked with a KN95, tested frequently and is not in the room with you at the same time. Any exposure from him or her would be virtually nonexistent. I work in healthcare and can assure you your risk from your steward is negligible - COVID is an airborne illness that require fairly close personal contact with an infected person. As has been pointed out, your risk in elevators, lounges and dining areas onboard is much greater. Let your steward clean your room - you will appreciate the service.

[skynight]

 If I skip this service on my cruise what will I be missing out on?

The level of service is one of the things that attracts people to cruise lines. 

clean bathroom, fill shower soap, new bars of hand soap, replace toilet paper rolls, clean sheets, make the bed, take out the trash (there is no place to dump trash yourself and it is separated by the cabin steward), new clean towels, vacuum, dust, outside cabin clean the glass, any notices or paperwork will be kind of attached to your door if not placed in your cabin. Better to have this done each day. If you call the steward's number you may get a delivery when you are in your cabin or maybe when you are away from the cabin. How are you going to do all this yourself without calling the cabin steward? 

Cabin stewards are tested frequently. I would not worry about them entering your cabin. 

Edited May 17, 2022 by skynight

[MJSailors]

You stated that this will be your first cruise. Perhaps you do not realize the number people,both crew and fellow passengers, you will interact with on the ship other than your room steward.

As others have posted, a steward who is masked, been given protocols to follow re: cleaning cabins and who is tested frequently is far less concerning than sharing seating, handrails,elevators and various other venues with passengers who may or may not be following Covid prevention guidelines.

After experiencing this cruise you may realize that sharing close quarters with hundreds of people on vacation may not be the best choice for you. 

Unless you choose to remain in your cabin or on your balcony 

and plan to order every meal from room service, you will find yourself interacting with many people both on the ship and in port besides your steward.

Edited May 17, 2022 by MJSailors
Needed to add more information.

[akeasley]

1 hour ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

I should have added that, during covid, when we've gone to hotels we've wiped down every surface (not the walls, but touchable surfaces) with disinfecting wipes.  It is a huge chore and the thought of doing it every day after the steward sounds difficult.  I realize that this may sound a bit extreme but once we got our hotel room sanitized we truly felt like it was our safe space vs the rest of the hotel.  But cruising seems different with a much higher level of service.  Also, I just hate having to hide all my things every day.  

It's sad that you feel like you need to hide your things from people who would never think to touch them. If you're that worried, than you probably shouldn't have someone service your room during your cruise. 

[prmssk]

1 hour ago, Kitty Ellas Mom said:

Also, I just hate having to hide all my things every day.  

 

This is not a concern I have on cruise ships although absolutely is a concern I have had in hotels (I know people who have had things go missing in hotels).  Your room steward depends on his or her job too much to risk taking a passengers things.  I do make use of the safe for my jewelry generally but I do not go out of my way to make sure everything is put away or out of sight.

[Homosassa]

The refusal to let the steward in is a red flag during these Covid  days.

 

Besides the required periodic services that must be done, they will also wish to determine if an active Covid case is avoiding quarantine.

[disneyochem]

OP, are you a solo cruiser for this cruise?  I seem to remember reading on one of your post that you are traveling without kids and hubby?  Maybe your concern is also based on being a solo female traveler? (and forgive me if I am wrong!). I have cruised solo and always felt comfortable with the staff entering my cabin.  The door is propped open and there are usually two people cleaning.

 

A cruise cabin is very different from staying numerous days at a hotel.  You will appreciate the daily freshening up—trash emptied, beds made, bathrooms cleaned.  I’ve never felt the need to hide anything from a room steward though I will make sure that nothing too sensitive is out (place in a drawer or toiletry bag)—underwire, medications, etc.  I also have a conversation with him/her on the first day to talk about our needs.  Hubby and I are pretty low maintenance (no evening turn downs for us!), hubby likes to sleep in, and I like extra towels.

 

I always clean all surfaces of our cabin when we first gain access with Clorox wipes.  Not just concerned about Covid but others bugs as well!    But after the first day, I find that our interactions with the room steward is pretty minimal.

[BabySarge]

Your best bet may be to not cruise if you have these types of concerns regarding the room stewards.

[villauk]

OP,

I understand where you are coming from as my DS has OCD and hates others touching his things in his room, in fact he doesn’t welcome anyone in his room. We were considering asking the steward to just replace towels etc. and let him sort the rest of the cleaning himself; like you, he feels that once he’s cleaned everything, then his area is his ‘safe space’. And I presume you didn’t mean anyone ‘stealing’ your possessions when you mentioned ‘hiding them away,’ more the case of you didn’t want anyone touching your items after you’d cleaned/wiped them over. COVID has definitely left a huge mark on how many people now live their lives. Everyone has to find their own level of comfort sailing in these post-covid times.

 

 

[mtnesterz]

Deleted

Edited May 17, 2022 by mtnesterz