Over 800 people have COVID on the Majestic Princess

[PescadoAmarillo]

https://www.perthnow.com.au/travel/covid-outbreak-looms-on-majestic-princess-cruise-ship-c-8830820.amp?fbclid=IwAR2-X-BZv-uNYkf3sQ4JX4FMVFlBWedsvX2FQj_Tc15PLmhYEtlLosoDON4

[azbirdmom]

Yep, it's tier 3 https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/travel/cruising-rules

 

The virus seems to be revving up on the Enchanted too from what I have read.

 

Stay safe out there folks!

[brucedodge]

It's not going away.  It's something we're all going to have to live with.

[dog]

21 minutes ago, azbirdmom said:

Yep, it's tier 3 https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/travel/cruising-rules

 

The virus seems to be revving up on the Enchanted too from what I have read.

 

Stay safe out there folks!

True, off Enchanted Saturday. One in our group tested negative, then positive on Tuesday.

heard from some others with Covid just showing symptoms Wed.

 

wear the masks!  Very few had masks on Oct 28 th cruise.

[MissP22]

At least for now we still have a choice to wear a mask, or not. 

[azbirdmom]

12 minutes ago, dog said:

True, off Enchanted Saturday. One in our group tested negative, then positive on Tuesday.

heard from some others with Covid just showing symptoms Wed.

 

wear the masks!  Very few had masks on Oct 28 th cruise.

 

The Enchanted crew have been told to wear masks again the last couple of days.  Hope you stay healthy.

[Tak8]

That's a sizeable number.  Hope everyone gets well quickly. 

[geocruiser]

I hope that every one recovers quickly.  

[jeromep]

43 minutes ago, brucedodge said:

It's not going away.  It's something we're all going to have to live with.

Correct!  I wish I could give you a "thank you" and a prize.

[Guest ldtr]

1 hour ago, brucedodge said:

It's not going away.  It's something we're all going to have to live with.

What it does show is that cruise ships, which restrictions removed, are environments where it does spread rapidly and that the protections did make a difference.  When testing, vaccinations and masking was in place you did have some spread, but 1-2 percent, even during a 2 week or longer cruise, was a large outbreak.  Now with restrictions removed we are seeing things like the Majestic with 20% outbreaks (at the same time when case counts on shore are significantly lower than during the earlier peak times)  As well as far more reports related to number of people developing Covid immediately after getting off short cruises.

 

Pretty clear that Covid is on cruise ships, spreads pretty rapidly there, and if one cruises they can be pretty sure that sooner or later they will be exposed on board.  

[Yehootu]

My wife and I wore our masks on our 14day Alaska cruise in May/June. DW likes to stay in our cabin and read and have peace and quiet, I was out at bars and in the hot tubs ( no masks in the tubs ). She caught Covid and was asymptomatic and I stayed negative. In Sept I attended a Hawaii football game and with all the beer drinking, didn't have a mask on much, I got it. We are pretty sure she got it from our room steward who "disappeared" 3 days before we got back to YVR. To mask or not to mask should be a passengers choice, but the crew should be wearing masks to prevent the spread. It's here and will be dealt with like the flu, yearly boosters. Not vaxed, roll the dice.

[NownZen]

40 minutes ago, ldtr said:

What it does show is that cruise ships, which restrictions removed, are environments where it does spread rapidly and that the protections did make a difference.  When testing, vaccinations and masking was in place you did have some spread, but 1-2 percent, even during a 2 week or longer cruise, was a large outbreak.  Now with restrictions removed we are seeing things like the Majestic with 20% outbreaks (at the same time when case counts on shore are significantly lower than during the earlier peak times)  As well as far more reports related to number of people developing Covid immediately after getting off short cruises.

 

Pretty clear that Covid is on cruise ships, spreads pretty rapidly there, and if one cruises they can be pretty sure that sooner or later they will be exposed on board.  

We were on a two week cruise in may and the covid percentage was closer to 25%. They ran out of pool deck tables to put in front of doors.

Issues to be considered. If you have had covid, how long before you are likely to get it again (unknown).

How severe are the symptoms. Vaccinated people seem to have very mild symptoms. In that case, it is not so important that they get covid. Unvaccinated people can have, in general, much more severe symptoms.  My and my family's recent bout with covid was a couple of days of discomfort but we are vaccinated and boosted. How much effect is the new bivalent booster going to have?

Being careful still sounds like a good idea.

[geocruiser]

7 minutes ago, Yehootu said:

My wife and I wore our masks on our 14day Alaska cruise in May/June. DW likes to stay in our cabin and read and have peace and quiet, I was out at bars and in the hot tubs ( no masks in the tubs ). She caught Covid and was asymptomatic and I stayed negative. In Sept I attended a Hawaii football game and with all the beer drinking, didn't have a mask on much, I got it. We are pretty sure she got it from our room steward who "disappeared" 3 days before we got back to YVR. To mask or not to mask should be a passengers choice, but the crew should be wearing masks to prevent the spread. It's here and will be dealt with like the flu, yearly boosters. Not vaxed, roll the dice.

I am very sorry that both of you had covid. I hope that both of you are feeling better now.

[PescadoAmarillo]

53 minutes ago, ldtr said:

What it does show is that cruise ships, which restrictions removed, are environments where it does spread rapidly and that the protections did make a difference.  When testing, vaccinations and masking was in place you did have some spread, but 1-2 percent, even during a 2 week or longer cruise, was a large outbreak.  Now with restrictions removed we are seeing things like the Majestic with 20% outbreaks (at the same time when case counts on shore are significantly lower than during the earlier peak times)  As well as far more reports related to number of people developing Covid immediately after getting off short cruises.

 

Pretty clear that Covid is on cruise ships, spreads pretty rapidly there, and if one cruises they can be pretty sure that sooner or later they will be exposed on board.  

I completely agree. But I also wonder what impact this will have on ports on more isolated islands such as in Vanuatu, New Caledonia and Fiji which the Majestic is scheduled to visit. I can’t imagine they’re going to greet cruise ships with open arms when they don’t have ready access to facilities to treat COVID. 

[dog]

2 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

 

The Enchanted crew have been told to wear masks again the last couple of days.  Hope you stay healthy.

I only saw one crew ( in MDR) wearing a mask last week.

we had 1700 passengers & I put my mask on when near others, but most did not.

 

I tested negative Tuesday. Will test again today- I have a deep cough. 4 vax so far.

 

[paradiselivin1]

@PescadoAmarillo Thanks for the post. We will be on a similar cruise at the end of January and wonder if NZ and AU will be forced to "shut down" again. Sad to see the posting by @azbirdmom as we are on that 20 day cruise as well on the Enchanted. Fingers crossed for those affected.

[leck57]

We are due to board Majestic later today. Our embarkation has been delayed 4 hours.

[azbirdmom]

52 minutes ago, dog said:

I only saw one crew ( in MDR) wearing a mask last week.

we had 1700 passengers & I put my mask on when near others, but most did not.

 

I tested negative Tuesday. Will test again today- I have a deep cough. 4 vax so far.

 

 

The crew masking happened after you disembarked.  I heard from someone on the Enchanted on Wednesday that they are now "Level 2 Covid" which means enhanced cleaning measures and masks for crew.  Not sure what all of the levels are but I've been paying attention as we will be onboard in December.

 

Hope you feel better soon.

Edited November 11, 2022 by azbirdmom

[XLVIII]

11 minutes ago, azbirdmom said:

 

The crew masking happened after you disembarked.  I heard from someone on the Enchanted on Wednesday that they are now "Level 2 Covid" which means enhanced cleaning measures and masks for crew.  Not sure what all of the levels are but I've been paying attention as we will be onboard in December.

 

Hope you feel better soon.

We’re on Enchanted right now (St Kitts). Most crew members are not wearing masks. 

[azbirdmom]

3 minutes ago, XLVIII said:

We’re on Enchanted right now (St Kitts). Most crew members are not wearing masks. 

 

Well that's interesting.  My friend confirmed repeated the same thing yesterday.  Maybe it's just below decks or something else changed?

[XLVIII]

4 minutes ago, azbirdmom said:

 

Well that's interesting.  My friend confirmed repeated the same thing yesterday.  Maybe it's just below decks or something else changed?

Maybe? Outside you see very few masked staff. Inside maybe 50/50 (at least where we hang out). 

[justafem]

They just opened up unfettered cruising to unvaxxed, which in my opinion is the reason for the high positives.

 

I got covid on my June cruise.  I knew I had it, I've had it before, so I KNEW.  I went to medical on Thurs, they tested me, I was negative.  Disembarked Friday, took the cruise transfer to the airport, went through customs, sat in the airport for 2 hours, flew in a tin can for an hour and went home.  Where I stuck another q-tip up my nose, which was positive.    

 

And on Friday, I was starting to feel better.  How many thousands did I infect?  

[MissP22]

1 hour ago, Buckeye10640 said:

Umm yeah. No vaccine requirements. No testing. Increased case count. It is simple math. And I truly hope it does not add up to the sip-n-cover masking policy...again...

I think that preventive measure was one of the least effective measures in spreading the virus. I can't say I recall anyone on the ship following that procedure.

[capriccio]

This is being discussed on the Australia and New Zealand Cruisers board.  Check out this thread beginning with post 287.

And this brand new thread:

 

 

[vkay]

3 hours ago, leck57 said:

We are due to board Majestic later today. Our embarkation has been delayed 4 hours.

Stay safe!  My Dad was meant to be onboard as well but in the process of updating his Medallion details, his RAT came back positive... needless to say that he is unimpressed.