Oasis Labadee

[Cruise a holic]

We have an Oasis cruise scheduled for August.  One stop is listed as Labadee.  First, I thought that Royal uses cocoCay now, and I am concerned that Labadee might not be the best place to stop.  Are all of the merchants from Haiti tested daily for Covid?  Is the area rebuilt and safe?  We used to enjoy Labadee but are concerned.

 

Thanks

[AF-1]

Royal sails to both Labadee and CocoCay.  I don't believe Royal would send you to Labadee for a day at the beach if they thought the people on the island may have Covid.  Same applies to all the Royal sponsored shore excursions.  The shore excursion companies don't want to put cruise passengers at risk;  they would never get another contract with Royal Caribbean.

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, Cruise a holic said:

We used to enjoy Labadee but are concerned.

 

Maybe stay on the ship?

[Joseph2017China]

1 hour ago, Cruise a holic said:

We have an Oasis cruise scheduled for August.  One stop is listed as Labadee.  First, I thought that Royal uses cocoCay now, and I am concerned that Labadee might not be the best place to stop.  Are all of the merchants from Haiti tested daily for Covid?  Is the area rebuilt and safe?  We used to enjoy Labadee but are concerned.

 

Thanks

why would they test daily?  You are outside, in the sunshine on a beach, and if you are concerned, than just stay on the ship, at the pool, with the staff on the ship who do not get tested daily either.

[Cruise a holic]

So sad that we will probably stay on the ship.  However since many people will be off the ship then return back on the ship- who knows.  I would have felt more secure at Coco Cay as just a few people live on the island and food service etc is managed by the ship staff.

We have been lucky thus far and are fully vaccinated and boosted- so we must be doing something right.!

[Ocean Boy]

Any damage to the place has been fixed. It looks like it always has. If you are worried about being near the locals then stay away from them. 

[Cruise a holic]

5 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

Any damage to the place has been fixed. It looks like it always has. If you are worried about being near the locals then stay away from them. 

Glad that the place has been fixed- Good advice.  I guess we will decide once on board.  

[MiniChunks]

3 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

Glad that the place has been fixed- Good advice.  I guess we will decide once on board.  

 

Out of a group of a little over 500 on FB, over 75 tested positive upon return, which is about 15%. If you think you are safe from covid on the ship, you may be fooling yourself. Enjoy your vacation, go see the sights and enjoy the stops. Staying onboard is not going to make you any safer.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

2 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

 Are all of the merchants from Haiti tested daily for Covid?  

that's pretty funny.

My DH and I got covid on the Allure last week.  And yes, we are vaxxed and boostered, and didn't get covid until now, and we wore masks on the ship at all time (unless actively eating in MDR or buffet or in our cabin), but nobody else wore masks and everybody coughed and sneezed. You have a bigger chance of catching covid on the ship.

 

The guards on Labadee were wearing masks. I didn't approach any of the vendors, so I can't tell if they are wearing masks, but nobody is testing them daily for covid.

 

Labadee was lovely and we enjoyed ourselves very much.

Edited June 9, 2022 by Itchy&Scratchy

[S.A.M.J.R.]

Have you not gone into SOME store, attended SOME event, been around SOME people not of your household for the last 2+ years?  Do you ask THEM if they've been tested daily?  

 

I understand being concerned about getting exposed, don't blame you.  BUT, you get the same chance of exposure no matter where you are (grocery store, sporting event, work, etc).  It seems strange to me to focus on the Labadee vendors when you're getting ready to get on a ship with 5000+ of "your closest friends". 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

2 minutes ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

It seems strange to me to focus on the Labadee vendors when you're getting ready to get on a ship with 5000+ of "your closest friends". 

exactly.

 

Those "closest" friends will be coughing on you, shoulder to shoulder, during any show you are going to attend on Oasis.

[PTC DAWG]

Stopped in Labadee 3 weeks ago on the Mariner…I really enjoyed it, laid back vibe there..we also went to Coco, I enjoyed Labadee more.  

 

FYI Royal handles all the food/ beverage service on Labadee, they bring it off the ship. 

Edited June 9, 2022 by PTC DAWG

[babys mom]

3 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

We have an Oasis cruise scheduled for August.  One stop is listed as Labadee.  First, I thought that Royal uses cocoCay now, and I am concerned that Labadee might not be the best place to stop.  Are all of the merchants from Haiti tested daily for Covid?  Is the area rebuilt and safe?  We used to enjoy Labadee but are concerned.

 

Thanks

What day are you going ? Our stop  is Cocay did they change yours? I thought that was there stop Port Canaveral  CoCay ,  Nassau & Bahamas.

[Cruise a holic]

6 minutes ago, babys mom said:

What day are you going ? Our stop  is Cocay did they change yours? I thought that was there stop Port Canaveral  CoCay ,  Nassau & Bahamas.

August 5 from bayonne 

[George C]

Love ladabee , I stayed on board while in coco cay since it doesn’t have a suite beach.

[Cruise a holic]

10 minutes ago, George C said:

Love ladabee , I stayed on board while in coco cay since it doesn’t have a suite beach.

They have a fabulous beach club.  You pay but lunch fabulous , waiter service and the  seating upscale and comfortable 

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, Cruise a holic said:

However since many people will be off the ship then return back on the ship- who knows.  I would have felt more secure at Coco Cay as just a few people live on the island and food service etc is managed by the ship staff.

Many people will be off the ship and then return back on the ship at every port of call.  Not sure what the difference would be?  In fact IMO at Labadee the risk may be less as there are far fewer locals at Labadee than any other port of call.  None of the locals at Labadee live there either - only RCCL staff.  And the food service there is managed by the ship staff just as at CocoCay.

 

I think you will be fine and agree that RCCL would not risk stopping there is there was a greater concern there than anywhere else.  If you are concerned, perhaps wear a mask.

Edited June 9, 2022 by leaveitallbehind

[dcgrumpy]

I'd be more worried about being packed like sardines with other guests in On Air over locals in Labadee. You're outside and you don't have to go near them if you don't want to.

[Cruise a holic]

9 minutes ago, dcgrumpy said:

I'd be more worried about being packed like sardines with other guests in On Air over locals in Labadee. You're outside and you don't have to go near them if you don't want to.

Inside also.  I am in a suite and stay mostly in uncrowded venues.  We were recently on the adventure of the seas and the crowding was horrible.  So I am now cautious 

[PTC DAWG]

Labadee is much less crowded, only one ship, CocoCay had two on our last trip, my ship arrived 3 hours earlier, it was nice until 2nd ship arrived..after that, we reboarded Mariner. 

Edited June 9, 2022 by PTC DAWG

[hazeleyes46]

49 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

Inside also.  I am in a suite and stay mostly in uncrowded venues.  We were recently on the adventure of the seas and the crowding was horrible.  So I am now cautious 

Do you normally stay at home and haven't gone out in the last 2 years? No work, friends, family, events, shopping, etc?

[Cruise a holic]

8 minutes ago, hazeleyes46 said:

Do you normally stay at home and haven't gone out in the last 2 years? No work, friends, family, events, shopping, etc?

We have gone out DH works.  We when shopping wear masks. Eat in restaurants that have good spacing or outdoor seating.  No public transportation or theatres. Have even attend a select few parties   Have manicures.  They all wear masks. Even flew a few times. We had a great celebrity cruise in March.  Ship was 1/3 full.  Just being cautious as our recent adventure cruise was a nightmare   Sad as we love Royal 

Edited June 9, 2022 by Cruise a holic

[vegascruiser1]

We were on Labadee in April, felt very safe. They now have chairs and umbrellas in place. You no longer have to drag or carry to a location on the beach. We did not go to the market. We were on the Symphony in May and quite a few people got covid, including 2 friends we were traveling with. I wouldn’t worry about getting covid on Labadee, you have a greater chance of getting it on the ship. 

[leaveitallbehind]

40 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

Just being cautious as our recent adventure cruise was a nightmare   Sad as we love Royal 

All cruise lines followed the same protocols with the return to sailing as painstakingly developed by RCCL and NCL with the CDC.   As the CDC has lifted the no sail order requirements regarding capacity and on board protocols, most (if not all) of the cruise lines are attempting to reach higher capacity bookings in a much needed and IMO deserved effort to increase revenue - all of which was lost over the past 18 months. 

 

Cruise ships remain IMO among the safest environments today as the cruise lines still follow the same basic operating protocols as those in place with the restart.  With every passenger (and crew) needing a negative covid test and with all but a very small percentage of passengers limited to a select age range needing to be vaccinated, most with boosters, and the same with the crew - who also still are all double masked - there is very little to fear in my view with cruising today.  The bigger issue seems to be with staffing keeping pace with increased capacity.  But that does not affect the risk to cruising. 

 

We have enjoyed three cruises to date since October and are looking forward this weekend to our fourth.  This just seems to be the current world we live in with regards to cruising and as it remains an option to all, anyone still not comfortable with the current situations can always opt not to cruise until they feel it is a better time. Just my opinion.

Edited June 9, 2022 by leaveitallbehind

[hazeleyes46]

39 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

We have gone out DH works.  We when shopping wear masks. Eat in restaurants that have good spacing or outdoor seating.  No public transportation or theatres. Have even attend a select few parties   Have manicures.  They all wear masks. Even flew a few times. We had a great celebrity cruise in March.  Ship was 1/3 full.  Just being cautious as our recent adventure cruise was a nightmare   Sad as we love Royal 

Ugghh that stinks, sorry to hear that.