Iona - COVID Testing Changes

[dunnster1965]

Firstly, Mods, please move to a more appropriate section if this is the wrong place. Important testing changes emailed out this morning.

 

Removal of testing for guests on Iona 25 June to 23 July 2022 (inclusive) departures As the health protocols for COVID-19 continue to evolve across the world, P&O Cruises will be changing its policy on Iona to remove the pre-departure testing for all guests. As a result, guests travelling on the following five cruise holidays will no longer need to purchase or take a lateral flow (antigen) test prior to boarding the ship: G220 25 June 2022 G221 2 July 2022 G222 9 July 2022 G223 16 July 2022 G224 23 July 2022 All guests aged 12 years and over are still required to be fully vaccinated* with an approved COVID-19 vaccine a minimum of 14 days prior to travel. For guests aged 16 years and over, if more than 270 days (calculated from the last day of the cruise) have passed since the full completion of a vaccination course, a booster vaccine will also be needed and must be administered a minimum of seven days prior to travel. At this time, a second booster vaccination is not required, however, we strongly recommend all guests to have booster vaccinations at the earliest opportunity, should they be available to them, in order to comply with evolving vaccine policies from the countries we visit. *The definition of ‘fully vaccinated’ is having completed a two-dose COVID-19 vaccination course or single-dose Janssen COVID-19 vaccine (plus a booster if applicable) approved by the MHRA, EMA or WHO. Guests under 12 years of age are exempt from vaccination and pre-travel testing for these cruise holidays. For the moment, the removal of testing is only on the above cruises. Should this be extended, we’ll let guests know as necessary. You can rest assured that the protection of your health and well-being is, as always, very important to us and we still have a number of protocols in place to help you relax and enjoy your holiday.

Why are you doing this just on Iona and on these selected cruises? We chose Iona as she is sailing shorter duration cruises on the same itinerary each week. Will you be extending this change in policy to all Iona cruises and all ships? Initially the removal of testing requirement will only be on these five Iona cruises but should this be extended then we will advise guests as necessary. I have bought a test for my cruise, will you reimburse me for the cost? With this change in policy, we are unable to reimburse guests for the cost of any tests purchased. Whilst it is no longer a requirement, you are of course able to use the test for your own peace of mind prior to travel. We can't wait to welcome you on board.

Edited June 21, 2022 by dunnster1965

[Vampiress88]

Maybe this is a trial to see if we can remove all testing 

[sagaris]

Good news. Does anyone want to purchase 3 Randox tests, half price😁.

Molly

[gsmt47471015]

1 hour ago, sagaris said:

Good news. Does anyone want to purchase 3 Randox tests, half price😁.

Molly

Luckily we have managed to cancel our parties lft tests at Lloyds pharmacy at no cost as they were due to be paid on the day of the test ,and saved us a round trip of 40 miles, at last some positive news about this cruise😃👍

[paulatsea]

Wow ! 👍

[JohnCoffield]

On G221 on July 2nd - are we all the P&O guinea pigs? Not surprising that absolutely noting is being offered to those of us who have purchased the LFT tests, which probably applies to just about all the passengers departing this Saturday (25th June)

So, I have a one time only offer of 2 LFT tests for the bargain price of £35 - any takers?🤣

[molecrochip]

It’s a trail.

[sparky5942]

Personally I think it's a bit early to remove testing on any ship. We don't have another cruise booked in the near future, so we will use up our Randox kits for our own peace of mind for our cruise on the 25th. Aside from that I don't get why people feel the need to drive miles out of their way to get an in person test when they can do it on line or through an app.

[Dermotsgirl]

Is there a hint to the reasoning for choosing this time for a trial, what with a new Covid wave starting? 
 

[terrierjohn]

8 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

Is there a hint to the reasoning for choosing this time for a trial, what with a new Covid wave starting? 
 

Gotta learn to ride these waves DG, otherwise you will be paddling in the covid sea forever.

[grapau27]

3 hours ago, dunnster1965 said:

Firstly, Mods, please move to a more appropriate section if this is the wrong place. Important testing changes emailed out this morning.

 

Removal of testing for guests on Iona 25 June to 23 July 2022 (inclusive) departures As the health protocols for COVID-19 continue to evolve across the world, P&O Cruises will be changing its policy on Iona to remove the pre-departure testing for all guests. As a result, guests travelling on the following five cruise holidays will no longer need to purchase or take a lateral flow (antigen) test prior to boarding the ship: G220 25 June 2022 G221 2 July 2022 G222 9 July 2022 G223 16 July 2022 G224 23 July 2022 All guests aged 12 years and over are still required to be fully vaccinated* with an approved COVID-19 vaccine a minimum of 14 days prior to travel. For guests aged 16 years and over, if more than 270 days (calculated from the last day of the cruise) have passed since the full completion of a vaccination course, a booster vaccine will also be needed and must be administered a minimum of seven days prior to travel. At this time, a second booster vaccination is not required, however, we strongly recommend all guests to have booster vaccinations at the earliest opportunity, should they be available to them, in order to comply with evolving vaccine policies from the countries we visit. *The definition of ‘fully vaccinated’ is having completed a two-dose COVID-19 vaccination course or single-dose Janssen COVID-19 vaccine (plus a booster if applicable) approved by the MHRA, EMA or WHO. Guests under 12 years of age are exempt from vaccination and pre-travel testing for these cruise holidays. For the moment, the removal of testing is only on the above cruises. Should this be extended, we’ll let guests know as necessary. You can rest assured that the protection of your health and well-being is, as always, very important to us and we still have a number of protocols in place to help you relax and enjoy your holiday.

Why are you doing this just on Iona and on these selected cruises? We chose Iona as she is sailing shorter duration cruises on the same itinerary each week. Will you be extending this change in policy to all Iona cruises and all ships? Initially the removal of testing requirement will only be on these five Iona cruises but should this be extended then we will advise guests as necessary. I have bought a test for my cruise, will you reimburse me for the cost? With this change in policy, we are unable to reimburse guests for the cost of any tests purchased. Whilst it is no longer a requirement, you are of course able to use the test for your own peace of mind prior to travel. We can't wait to welcome you on board.

Great news thanks for posting.

[Dermotsgirl]

20 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

Gotta learn to ride these waves DG, otherwise you will be paddling in the covid sea forever.

As ever, riding waves involves taking action, not ignoring them!

 

How’s it going on Britannia? Is it true that mask wearing has been reinstated? 

[terrierjohn]

13 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

As ever, riding waves involves taking action, not ignoring them!

 

How’s it going on Britannia? Is it true that mask wearing has been reinstated? 

Quite true, but as ever not compulsary, it seems either the Capain or P&O have similar views to you about the uptick in UK cases , although the numbers on board are very small, so far.

As for your first point, I guess my surfboard is the regular vaccinations we have been getting, that's the action which I still.maintain will keep covid,  and its perils, at bay for the majority of us.

[Dermotsgirl]

37 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

Quite true, but as ever not compulsary, it seems either the Capain or P&O have similar views to you about the uptick in UK cases , although the numbers on board are very small, so far.

As for your first point, I guess my surfboard is the regular vaccinations we have been getting, that's the action which I still.maintain will keep covid,  and its perils, at bay for the majority of us.

I think that none of the cruise companies will ever be completely open about  the number of cases onboard.

 

As for the surfing analogy, I tend to think protections are multi faceted, so I would use all that are available - surfboard and wetsuit for a start! 

[Cathygh]

1 hour ago, molecrochip said:

It’s a trail.

Will passengers still have to go ito quarantine if they test positive?

[zap99]

1 hour ago, grapau27 said:

Great news thanks for posting.

Perhaps the others will follow suit. We are on Celebrity silhouette in July. Followed by RC and then Britannia. Unlike P&O to lead the pack, so well done to them.

Edited June 21, 2022 by zap99

[Gettingwarmer]

1 minute ago, zap99 said:

Perhaps the others will follow suit. We are on Celebrity silhouette in July. Followed by RC and then Britannia. Unlike O&O to lead the pack, so well done to them.

I thought Viking had led the pack. 

[Selbourne]

2 hours ago, molecrochip said:

It’s a trial.

Let’s hope that it is successful then, as it’s another positive step towards normality. 
 

With Iona doing prolonged runs of 7 night cruises, where most people who pick up Covid are unlikely to become symptomatic until they return home (if at all), I am struggling to see why quarantine zones are needed. Is this being reviewed? We will be cancelling our Iona cruise next year if they are still being maintained, as we aren’t able to relocate to an alternative cabin that would be acceptable to us. 

[molecrochip]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Let’s hope that it is successful then, as it’s another positive step towards normality. 
 

With Iona doing prolonged runs of 7 night cruises, where most people who pick up Covid are unlikely to become symptomatic until they return home (if at all), I am struggling to see why quarantine zones are needed. Is this being reviewed? We will be cancelling our Iona cruise next year if they are still being maintained, as we aren’t able to relocate to an alternative cabin that would be acceptable to us. 

As you say, 7 night cruises, to a country with a low infection rate. Iona has very few back to back passengers because of the repetitive itinerary. Perfect trial opportunity.

[Selbourne]

36 minutes ago, molecrochip said:

As you say, 7 night cruises, to a country with a low infection rate. Iona has very few back to back passengers because of the repetitive itinerary. Perfect trial opportunity.

So can they also trial the abolition of quarantine zones as well, or is that not a decision that P&O can make? I just can’t see them being needed. With people no longer testing, surely hardly anybody is announcing themselves as positive to warrant isolation and the handful that do could isolate in their booked cabin or, if they are inside cabin passengers, be moved to any vacant balcony cabin (as far as I know, ships aren’t sailing full). What am I missing? 

[Valfan]

9 hours ago, sparky5942 said:

I don't get why people feel the need to drive miles out of their way to get an in person test when they can do it on line or through an app.

A lot of people, myself included, don't have a smartphone, have never seen an app, and don't feel confident doing very much online. I also don't have the option to drive miles to get an in person test, as I don't drive either. So I've been in limbo while this edict for passengers to "organize, book and pay for" pre-cruise testing has been going on. 

[Edith1950]

Personally for us this is not a good move as we both got Covid  from our Ventura cruise. Fortunately we had our double booster in April so wouldn't like to think how we could feel even worse than we are. Really upset as it's the first time we have had covid despite us taking extra precautions during the cruise.

[gsmt47471015]

17 hours ago, sparky5942 said:

Personally I think it's a bit early to remove testing on any ship. We don't have another cruise booked in the near future, so we will use up our Randox kits for our own peace of mind for our cruise on the 25th. Aside from that I don't get why people feel the need to drive miles out of their way to get an in person test when they can do it on line or through an app.

It is quite possible that a lot of people mistrust the technology , or are unsure how to use it , or even don't have the equipment to do it

[sagaris]

19 hours ago, JohnCoffield said:

On G221 on July 2nd - are we all the P&O guinea pigs? Not surprising that absolutely noting is being offered to those of us who have purchased the LFT tests, which probably applies to just about all the passengers departing this Saturday (25th June)

So, I have a one time only offer of 2 LFT tests for the bargain price of £35 - any takers?🤣

Mine are only 18.50 for 3😁

[newbie cruissy]

Interesting that cruises are now the outlier in testing. Little or no testing required mostly everywhere now. Our daughter is off to the US next week, they've just removed all pre flight testing requirements.