HAL needs to drop Covid Testing

[KAKcruiser]

I'm not sure what the answer is but if people are no longer dying from covid and usually the worse that can happen is cold-like symptoms, maybe we should just get used to it because it is not going away.

[Guest ldtr]

15 minutes ago, KAKcruiser said:

I'm not sure what the answer is but if people are no longer dying from covid and usually the worse that can happen is cold-like symptoms, maybe we should just get used to it because it is not going away.

If one also wishes to ignore the greater than 50% increase in the incidence rate of strokes, clots, and cardiac events that have shown up in studies (including a very large one run by the VA) in people that have had Covid compared to a similar population that has not. The study looked at those that had Covid during the previous 12 months vs those that had not had Covid. 

 

While many experience cold symptoms while infected, it seems to have more longer lasting impacts than just a cold.

 

As much as we want it to be unfortunately it is not just a cold.

[bennybear]

19 minutes ago, KAKcruiser said:

I'm not sure what the answer is but if people are no longer dying from covid and usually the worse that can happen is cold-like symptoms, maybe we should just get used to it because it is not going away.

Sure if you’re happy to risk long Covid,  blood clots, strokes,  loss of brain  function , perhaps needing a liver transplant,  continuing fatigue …….

[Wakepatrol]

19 hours ago, KAKcruiser said:

Maybe they should do away with quarantines.  It seems that most people who get covid get either mild or no symptoms.  Maybe at this point it should be treated the same as a cold or flu. Nobody gets guarantined for that.

What about the people who don’t fit into your “Most” category. 

[cowmilker]

20 hours ago, KAKcruiser said:

Maybe at this point it should be treated the same as a cold or flu. Nobody gets guarantined for that.

Uh, yes you DO get quarantined for flu.  I know, because I spent about 48 hours in quarantine with it.  It was because I was running a fever.  I had to go to medical three times a day (or twice a day, I can't remember which) for a temp check, and I had to have THREE of them be normal before I was released. 

My husband was allowed to stay in the cabin with me, but he was placed on Tamiflu as well.

So yes, they DO quarantine with flu.

[Mary229]

52 minutes ago, cowmilker said:

Uh, yes you DO get quarantined for flu.  I know, because I spent about 48 hours in quarantine with it.  It was because I was running a fever.  I had to go to medical three times a day (or twice a day, I can't remember which) for a temp check, and I had to have THREE of them be normal before I was released. 

My husband was allowed to stay in the cabin with me, but he was placed on Tamiflu as well.

So yes, they DO quarantine with flu.

You could have self quarantined and you could have self administered health care.  I certainly don’t go to the doctor every time I feel unwell even when at home why would I seek medical attention on a cruise for a slight fever?  I have always stayed home when sick.  Or is it that your health is so frail it requires you to seek medical attention?  

[Guest ldtr]

16 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

You could have self quarantined and you could have self administered health care.  I certainly don’t go to the doctor every time I feel unwell even when at home why would I seek medical attention on a cruise for a slight fever?  I have always stayed home when sick.  Or is it that your health is so frail it requires you to seek medical attention?  

Maybe because it is not unusual for cruise lines to make announcements when they are experiencing outbreaks of various kinds including norovirus, flu, etc. that anyone experiencing symptoms should contact the medical center.  The same as they are doing now for Covid.

 

So I guess your view would be to ignore such announcements if you were on board and experienced symptoms because you would not do so at home.

[albingirl]

21 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

You could have self quarantined and you could have self administered health care.  I certainly don’t go to the doctor every time I feel unwell even when at home why would I seek medical attention on a cruise for a slight fever?  I have always stayed home when sick.  Or is it that your health is so frail it requires you to seek medical attention?  

See, now, minimizing this whole issue borders on petty at this point.  No one is frail when they seek medical attention and it's nice of you to stay home when you are sick.  But, you are not home.  You are on a cruise ship and if you think it's ok to "self administer" your health care when possibly you have covid, well, that's just self centered and wrong.

[JesseLivermore]

6 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

Every cabin, on every ship, of every cruise line gets fresh air continually.  The entire air volume of every cabin is changed out 6-8 times every hour.  And every bit of that fresh air supply comes from outside the ship.

 fair enough, but  I like the "real" fresh air, hence I'm paying for a balcony.

 

Hope HAL would honor that part on Westerdam, since it says "OV or Verandah".

[Mary229]

8 hours ago, albingirl said:

See, now, minimizing this whole issue borders on petty at this point.  No one is frail when they seek medical attention and it's nice of you to stay home when you are sick.  But, you are not home.  You are on a cruise ship and if you think it's ok to "self administer" your health care when possibly you have covid, well, that's just self centered and wrong.

Why?  Explain to me why it is wrong.  If I have mild symptoms why on earth is it wrong to take care of myself?  My goodness.  I have been on norovirus ships when they informed those who were having mild symptoms to stay in their rooms and do self care.  Now, if I can do that for norovirus why not any other disease, or is Covid so special it has a science all to itself.  

[albingirl]

43 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

Why?  Explain to me why it is wrong.  If I have mild symptoms why on earth is it wrong to take care of myself?  My goodness.  I have been on norovirus ships when they informed those who were having mild symptoms to stay in their rooms and do self care.  Now, if I can do that for norovirus why not any other disease, or is Covid so special it has a science all to itself.  

Unless you are a doctor, you are not qualified to make assumptions about what sort of "self care" you could possibly need.  It is naive to expect that you will have a good experience with covid that you describe unbelievably as "special" when so many other people have had terrible outcomes. This is not noro and to compare the two as similar is just plain wrong.

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, albingirl said:

Unless you are a doctor, you are not qualified to make assumptions about what sort of "self care" you could possibly need.  It is naive to expect that you will have a good experience with covid that you describe unbelievably as "special" when so many other people have had terrible outcomes. This is not noro and to compare the two as similar is just plain wrong.

What I do is between my personal physician and myself.  It is no one else’s business, ever.  There is no where in the cruise contract that requires me to use their medical services.  So wrong in this case is defined by legal criteria and all of the other claims are at best moral judgements bordering on self righteousness

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, Mary229 said:

Why?  Explain to me why it is wrong.  If I have mild symptoms why on earth is it wrong to take care of myself?  My goodness.  I have been on norovirus ships when they informed those who were having mild symptoms to stay in their rooms and do self care.  Now, if I can do that for norovirus why not any other disease, or is Covid so special it has a science all to itself.  

 

Take a deep breath. You're starting to sound like a toddler stamping her foot and saying "I am the boss of me!"

 

On a cruise ship, like it or not, you are not a free agent. You are traveling in an enforced community of some thousands of souls and you don't necessarily get to make all choices based on your individual will.

 

Think about it: there are rules about what you can and cannot bring on board (e.g., weapons, fire hazards), what you can do on board, even what you can bring on a lifeboat in case of evacuation (e.g., no bags). These rules are all for the good of the many, not the desires of a few. 

 

Someone has already pointed out that quarantine exists for flu onboard ships, so clearly it is not only COVID that is special.  Folks with noro -- or any other communicable disease -- can likewise be confined to their cabin. Surely you can see that this is about protection of others from disease, not special treatment of COVID....?

[Mary229]

Just now, cruisemom42 said:

 

Take a deep breath. You're starting to sound like a toddler stamping her foot and saying "I am the boss of me!"

 

On a cruise ship, like it or not, you are not a free agent. You are traveling in an enforced community of some thousands of souls and you don't necessarily get to make all choices based on your individual will.

 

Think about it: there are rules about what you can and cannot bring on board (e.g., weapons, fire hazards), what you can do on board, even what you can bring on a lifeboat in case of evacuation (e.g., no bags). These rules are all for the good of the many, not the desires of a few. 

 

Someone has already pointed out that quarantine exists for flu onboard ships, so clearly it is not only COVID that is special.  Folks with noro -- or any other communicable disease -- can likewise be confined to their cabin. Surely you can see that this is about protection of others from disease, not special treatment of COVID....?

See my post above..  I did mention norovirus.  I did not deny quarantine just hat I can do it on my own.  The self righteous attitude is getting thick.   You both will be happy to know I am leaving this thread as it has become tedious. 

[StLouisCruisers]

May I add a few points that self quarantining proponents have not mentioned?  

 

When we were in quarantine on Island Princess last month no room stewards were allowed in, we deposited our trash ourselves into plastic bags and set them outside the door (possible hazardous waste), and even exchanged towels by placing our used ones in special plastic bags put outside our door.  Room service did not come in the room or even see us face to face.

 

A friend of ours said why didn't you just stay in your room and not notify Medical so you could stay in your own comfortable cabin with plenty of fresh air?  We had spent two weeks on the ship already, leaving the room for breakfast, eating lunch outside our room, and having dinner in the MDR at the same table every night and allowing our room steward access to our room, trash and linens.  Suddenly we were supposed to hang out in our room 24/7, letting the room steward in to our supposedly contaminated room, handling our used dishes, taking out our trash, changing sheets and towels, cleaning our bathroom, and no one was going to suspect a thing.  All of a sudden we would be calling room service for all our meals.  Nope, no one would think a thing of it.  Wrong!  We didn't want our room steward to be exposed to Covid because of us.  

 

Just a few thoughts no one has mentioned.  You do you, I'll do me.

[colin v]

2 hours ago, Mary229 said:

Why?  Explain to me why it is wrong.  If I have mild symptoms why on earth is it wrong to take care of myself?  My goodness.  I have been on norovirus ships when they informed those who were having mild symptoms to stay in their rooms and do self care.  Now, if I can do that for norovirus why not any other disease, or is Covid so special it has a science all to itself.  

One would think, based on the ENTIRE WORLD SHUTTING DOWN, that COVID is somewhat special.  It kind of feels like it would get a legitimate trophy and not not just a participation ribbon.

[seaoma]

32 minutes ago, StLouisCruisers said:

Suddenly we were supposed to hang out in our room 24/7, letting the room steward in to our supposedly contaminated room, handling our used dishes, taking out our trash, changing sheets and towels, cleaning our bathroom, and no one was going to suspect a thing.  All of a sudden we would be calling room service for all our meals.  Nope, no one would think a thing of it.  Wrong!  We didn't want our room steward to be exposed to Covid because of us.  

 

Thanks for stating this.

 

Way back in early 2020, so many posters on this board were so concerned about the crew losing their jobs since cruising was being unfairly shut down. Today, not so much concern for the crew.

 

If personal responsibility was the solution to covid transmission, we wouldn't be in the situation we are in today.

 

 

 

Edited July 27, 2022 by seaoma

[LocoLoco1]

On 7/25/2022 at 10:52 AM, terrydtx said:

We have not used it, but many in CC have with no problems, as long as the test is monitored by the online testing company.  We leave next week for Italy for 2 cruises and plan to get tested in Rome and Venice before each cruise. Our hotels are setting up the appointments for us. The tests in Italy are 22 Euros per person per test. We are going this way, so we do not have to worry about internet connections.

Hi, So… How’s this going to work?? We Fly into Rome 4-days early. Stay at a Hilton near Spanish Steps and then board the Volendam for a TransAtlantic. We don’t speak or understand Italian writing. WE get a TestKit at a Rome pharmacy and get a translator THEN contact HAL somehow. I see storm clouds…. or am I wrong??

[terrydtx]

9 minutes ago, LocoLoco1 said:

Hi, So… How’s this going to work?? We Fly into Rome 4-days early. Stay at a Hilton near Spanish Steps and then board the Volendam for a TransAtlantic. We don’t speak or understand Italian writing. WE get a TestKit at a Rome pharmacy and get a translator THEN contact HAL somehow. I see storm clouds…. or am I wrong??

We are staying at a Hilton in Rome and they are going to set up an appointment for us to be tested in person (not a kit) at a local pharmacy. We have been to Rome 3 times and have never needed to speak Italian to get around and order whatever what we needed. It is a very simple process, that you are making in your mind, way more complicated than it will be. Thousands of travelers have been doing this all year.

[LocoLoco1]

2 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

We are staying at a Hilton in Rome and they are going to set up an appointment for us to be tested in person (not a kit) at a local pharmacy. We have been to Rome 3 times and have never needed to speak Italian to get around and order whatever what we needed. It is a very simple process, that you are making in your mind, way more complicated than it will be. Thousands of travelers have been doing this all year.

Thanks!! I need to call our Rome Hotel and get this arranged. Our times in Italy were all Pre—covid, this new twist somewhat blindsided me as our recent Carribean cruises departed from Florida and we did the FACETIME tests at home. Q: Will we be handed a ‘Covid-Free’ Card to presented to HAL in Civit. or will this be a Cyber messaging exercise?

[cowmilker]

13 hours ago, Mary229 said:

You could have self quarantined and you could have self administered health care.

Of course I could have.  And actually I did for a while.  But I had a horrible cough and when I developed a fever, I knew it was time to see a real doc. Tamiflu and I was better really fast.  (It wasn't a "slight fever." It was something like 103 F.)

None of that is the point.  My point was that IF you are running a fever, you WILL be quarantined IF you go to medical, even if what you have is the flu.

[terrydtx]

4 minutes ago, LocoLoco1 said:

Thanks!! I need to call our Rome Hotel and get this arranged. Our times in Italy were all Pre—covid, this new twist somewhat blindsided me as our recent Caribbean cruises departed from Florida and we did the FACETIME tests at home. Q: Will we be handed a ‘Covid-Free’ Card to presented to HAL in Civit. or will this be a Cyber messaging exercise?

 My understanding is that you will get a paper copy in 15 minutes or less and a copy sent to your email Current cost is 22 Euros. We contacted our hotel in Rome and they said when we check in, contact their Concierge to get our appointment for the test set up. You can still do a facetime test if you prefer, but this way we do not have to worry about a reliable internet connection.

[NavyCruiser]

I have a simple solution:

At Miami or Galveston ports, etc:

HAL, or Carnival, or RCCL, etc, have their cruise ships on Saturday - Saturday sailings requiring testing, while Sunday - Sunday sailings do NOT require testing.

Then let the market decides.

Those want want testing sail on Saturdays.

Those who do NOT want testing sail on Sundays.

Let them sail with other like-minded people, so no more bickering onboard, unless you're traveling with spouse...

[BermudaBound2014]

6 minutes ago, NavyCruiser said:

I have a simple solution:

At Miami or Galveston ports, etc:

HAL, or Carnival, or RCCL, etc, have their cruise ships on Saturday - Saturday sailings requiring testing, while Sunday - Sunday sailings do NOT require testing.

Then let the market decides.

Those want want testing sail on Saturdays.

Those who do NOT want testing sail on Sundays.

Let them sail with other like-minded people, so no more bickering onboard, unless you're traveling with spouse...

 

I've been preaching this niche market approach for over a year. Saving the cruise industry shareholders is going to take out of the box thinking. Considering more and more ports have ZERO covid protocols (no testing, no quarantine, no vaccination).... someone needs to do the experiment ;-). 

[strickerj]

3 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

I've been preaching this niche market approach for over a year. Saving the cruise industry shareholders is going to take out of the box thinking. Considering more and more ports have ZERO covid protocols (no testing, no quarantine, no vaccination).... someone needs to do the experiment ;-). 

This is a good idea. As long as the cruise lines follow the same schedule, and untested ships aren't in the same ports at the same time as tested ones, this is about as close to a scientifically rigorous experiment as you could do.