My Covid experience on Princess

[Wastegirl]

8 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Good to hear you've recovered. I really hope your husband tests negative tomorrow. I must admit I was starting to feel a bit antsy at the end of my isolation period. 

 

It's very strange how two ships of the same cruuse line have handled Covid so differently. I would have thought the initial experiences with Coral - what to expect as an outbreak ramps up, what worked and what didn't - would have been documented and transmitted to the other ships operating here. Grand seems to be dropping the ball all over the place whereas Coral managed the situation on my cruise very well, with only minor hiccups as the number of cases grew. I'm beginning to think the current CEO of Princess isn't doing his job properly.

Thanks Julie, I think the anti virals went a long way to fixing me up. Hubby wasn’t on them as he wasn’t as bad but then he’s been infectious longer. It’s interesting though, I’ve been talking to a few couples on my wander round and they’ve all said ‘why did you declare it, there’s been people coughing all over the place and they just haven’t told Princess’. Well that explains why it’s rife in the ship 🙄

[OzKiwiJJ]

19 minutes ago, Wastegirl said:

Thanks Julie, I think the anti virals went a long way to fixing me up. Hubby wasn’t on them as he wasn’t as bad but then he’s been infectious longer. It’s interesting though, I’ve been talking to a few couples on my wander round and they’ve all said ‘why did you declare it, there’s been people coughing all over the place and they just haven’t told Princess’. Well that explains why it’s rife in the ship 🙄

Selfish gits! We noticed quite a bit of coughing on a couple of the Coral cruises we did. That's how I think I caught it - sitting in Good Spirits having a drink and someone came and stood right next to me while they chatted to friends sitting behind me, with no mask and a cough. We'd been so careful with wearing masks etc too.

[Ozwoody]

7 hours ago, Wastegirl said:

Update on how we are going. Room service slow but I suspect with so many Covid cases now it’s getting difficult. 
 

We advised Medical on the 22nd we had Covid and when I saw the Doctor on the 23rd he said the 22nd counted as Day 0. So effectively from the 22nd using Princesses calculations Day 5 (or the 6th day of our incarceration) was the 27th. Then we found out that they don’t test until Day 6. Then we further found out that they didn’t start counting until my Doctor visit 😳. I told them vehemently that we notified them the day previous to that visit. I got  the run around of a ‘nurse will call you’ but they never did. So finally today the 29th, 7 days after we first reported we were tested at 11.30 am and told we would be advised within approx an hour. So about 45 minutes later I get the call, I’m clear but the Rats shows my husband as still having Covid, so he is being tested again tomorrow morning, Day 8. I’m allowed out but my husband is so depressed I’m worried about him. So to anyone thinking they could do 5 days in a cabin fine, in our case it isn’t 5, it was 7 for me and at least 8 for my husband. He is an active person and has hardly felt sick at all. 

Hi Wastegirl

Glad to hear your recovered, hope your hubby clears soon. My wife and I know your frustration, a bit of follow up contact would go a long way to believing they are concerned for your well being. But our experience with P&O was like they did not want to know us.

Hang in there hopefully you get to enjoy the last days of your cruise.

Personally I'm with your hubby, I would have found it difficult to deal with not getting out of the cabin at all during the 5 to 7 days. My wife handles these things better than I,  she just quietly simmered with exasperation with the ships lack of concern. I would have gone adjo if I hadn't been able to wander up for food each day.

I would have needed more than a bottle of red.🥴

 

Best wishes John

[arxcards]

12 hours ago, Wastegirl said:

Thanks Julie, I think the anti virals went a long way to fixing me up. Hubby wasn’t on them as he wasn’t as bad but then he’s been infectious longer. It’s interesting though, I’ve been talking to a few couples on my wander round and they’ve all said ‘why did you declare it, there’s been people coughing all over the place and they just haven’t told Princess’. Well that explains why it’s rife in the ship 🙄

Really disappointing, we are our own worst enemies. I guess that also explains why it is circulating on many other ships as well.

[MMDown Under]

44 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Really disappointing, we are our own worst enemies. I guess that also explains why it is circulating on many other ships as well.

If ships wanted to stop the spread of Covid, they could make a better attempt.  On my small ship cruise this year, a nurse took our temperature on the way in to breakfast each day.  We had a RAT on day of boarding and PCT within a specified time of boarding.  I know there is a different scale in numbers, but not all ships appear serious in trying to control the spread of Covid.  

[arxcards]

7 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

If ships wanted to stop the spread of Covid, they could make a better attempt.  On my small ship cruise this year, a nurse took our temperature on the way in to breakfast each day.  We had a RAT on day of boarding and PCT within a specified time of boarding.  I know there is a different scale in numbers, but not all ships appear serious in trying to control the spread of Covid.  

Temp testing is not reliable on current strains. For all their extra efforts, the same small ship had an outbreak of their own.

 

None of the large ships will screen test after embarkation, nor are they required to. The system in place is that if you have symptoms, you step forward for a free test. If that is treated with contempt by some passengers, those passengers are the weak link, not the ship. 

 

To mirror your comment .... not all passengers appear serious in trying to control the spread of covid.

[Cruisers47]

6 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Temp testing is not reliable on current strains. For all their extra efforts, the same small ship had an outbreak of their own.

 

None of the large ships will screen test after embarkation, nor are they required to. The system in place is that if you have symptoms, you step forward for a free test. If that is treated with contempt by some passengers, those passengers are the weak link, not the ship. 

 

To mirror your comment .... not all passengers appear serious in trying to control the spread of covid.

Watching the news last night as the Princess ship docked in Melbourne I was disappointed that they focused on a driver saying his company would not be picking anybody up from the ship.    
 

as in Australia you do not have to isolate if positive then they probably drive Covid positive people every day of the week as there are more than 20,000 cases, in Victoria.  If the driver wears a mask and passengers do the same surely that limits spread.

 

this is with us for a long time.

 

Eileen

 

 

[arxcards]

6 minutes ago, Cruisers47 said:

Watching the news last night as the Princess ship docked in Melbourne I was disappointed that they focused on a driver saying his company would not be picking anybody up from the ship.    
 

as in Australia you do not have to isolate if positive then they probably drive Covid positive people every day of the week as there are more than 20,000 cases, in Victoria.  If the driver wears a mask and passengers do the same surely that limits spread.

 

this is with us for a long time.

 

Eileen

 

 

The ship doesn't dock till tomorrow, and I had read about the Limo driver. Yes, the risk is all over, but there is nowhere else you could go in Victoria where 5 to 10 out of every 100 people have covid, or anywhere near that density. Victoria is running at around 0.3 per hundred.

 

Odds are, for his 13 booked passengers that one will have it. His call, but selectively choosing your customers can be bad for business in the long run.

[MMDown Under]

39 minutes ago, arxcards said:

Temp testing is not reliable on current strains. For all their extra efforts, the same small ship had an outbreak of their own.

 

None of the large ships will screen test after embarkation, nor are they required to. The system in place is that if you have symptoms, you step forward for a free test. If that is treated with contempt by some passengers, those passengers are the weak link, not the ship. 

 

To mirror your comment .... not all passengers appear serious in trying to control the spread of covid.

Agree.  Some passengers don't seem to understand the mask is to protect them as much as others. 

[PescadoAmarillo]

On 11/25/2022 at 4:28 PM, MMDown Under said:

Can you imagine Americans putting up with this lack of service re food delivery, etc?  Sometimes I think Aussie are too accomodating.  The squeaky wheel gets the attention unfortunately.  I think they should write a letter to CEO of Carnival.  People are going to stop cruising, if heaven forbid they catch covid on a cruise, and aren't cared for with compassion.  

I have to comment on this. My American husband was treated the same way on the Ruby Princess last April. Many others on others ships have been as well. People infected with a virus they’ve never had before, and no medical history was even taken, nor vitals monitored. Quarantined seniors were offloaded to hotels in Europe with promises of aid to get food, rebook flights, etc, and basically left alone. Those without smart phones would wait on hold for hours to try to contact the number Princess gave them as a liaison. It’s been a mess in most cases, though there have been a few reports of great service in quarantine. I swore off Princess for awhile. DH is back at it without me. I guess he’s more tolerant than I am. 

[arxcards]

1 hour ago, MMDown Under said:

Agree.  Some passengers don't seem to understand the mask is to protect them as much as others. 

The protocols are solid, except for the human element:

Some will fudge a pre-embark test,

Some will pretend they don't have symptoms to avoid testing positive and going into isolation,

Some will not wear masks when requested.

 

They are probably all the same people, but the protocols don't work when they all become a bit too voluntary.

[Wastegirl]

25 minutes ago, arxcards said:

The protocols are solid, except for the human element:

Some will fudge a pre-embark test,

Some will pretend they don't have symptoms to avoid testing positive and going into isolation,

Some will not wear masks when requested.

 

They are probably all the same people, but the protocols don't work when they all become a bit too voluntary.

Yes some people just don’t get it. Picking up breakfast in the buffet this morning to take back to hubby in quarantine an old bloke was stopped by a staff member because he didn’t have a mask on. He was handed one and he grabbed it muttering and cursing and by the time he got it on he was half way round the buffet. You think it would be the young ones being difficult but actually I’ve seen mostly the oldies acting up. 

[marinating]

It seems that people are having totally different experiences whilst being Covid positive onboard. Currently on Majestic Princess in NZ,  yesterday tested Covid Positive but husband negative. I must say we have been well looked after, completed medical forms, phone consult with doctor and antivirals commenced. We were given information on what to expect during quarantine from smoking on balcony (if smoker) to getting clean linen. We have been ordering room service from the main dining room menu, bottled water supplied, meals have arrived on time and hot. I was given the option of moving to a quarantine stateroom which I declined. 
I’m really sorry for those that are having a different experience from mine, my thoughts and best wishes to you for a swift recovery. 

[OzKiwiJJ]

2 hours ago, Wastegirl said:

Yes some people just don’t get it. Picking up breakfast in the buffet this morning to take back to hubby in quarantine an old bloke was stopped by a staff member because he didn’t have a mask on. He was handed one and he grabbed it muttering and cursing and by the time he got it on he was half way round the buffet. You think it would be the young ones being difficult but actually I’ve seen mostly the oldies acting up. 

It varied on our Coral cruises, especially the earlier ones. There were just as many self-entitled young ones as there were stubborn old coots! 🤣🤣🤣 

 

One middle-aged woman, very well dressed, looked quite offended when told to wear a mask to enter the Universe Lounge for one of the Captain's Circle cocktail parties. Mind you masks didn't stay on very long at those events as most people seemed to think "sip and cover" means take your mask off completely and leave it off as long as there is a drink in front of you. 

[AnyMajorCruiseDude]

1 hour ago, marinating said:

It seems that people are having totally different experiences whilst being Covid positive onboard. Currently on Majestic Princess in NZ,  yesterday tested Covid Positive but husband negative. I must say we have been well looked after, completed medical forms, phone consult with doctor and antivirals commenced. We were given information on what to expect during quarantine from smoking on balcony (if smoker) to getting clean linen. We have been ordering room service from the main dining room menu, bottled water supplied, meals have arrived on time and hot. I was given the option of moving to a quarantine stateroom which I declined. 
I’m really sorry for those that are having a different experience from mine, my thoughts and best wishes to you for a swift recovery. 

We also were well taken care of, on both the Grand And the Ruby.  Regular calls about visits from medical staff, food and beverages delivered regularly.  One of the doctors thanked us many times for being compliant and not screaming at her for ruining the cruise.  Its a very difficult situation to handle, and some peoples perception have been quite different.  

[PescadoAmarillo]

58 minutes ago, AnyMajorCruiseDude said:

We also were well taken care of, on both the Grand And the Ruby.  Regular calls about visits from medical staff, food and beverages delivered regularly.  One of the doctors thanked us many times for being compliant and not screaming at her for ruining the cruise.  Its a very difficult situation to handle, and some peoples perception have been quite different.  

Gosh, you’ve spent at least six days in quarantine twice on Princess ships and keep going back for more! What profoundly bad luck. Karma?

[lara h]

Folks, don't just call Princess out about the way they handle COVID pax.

 

We have not long returned from Celebrity Eclipse Transpacific, in iso for 10 days!

Cold food, missing crockery and cutlery, incorrect meals, and the list goes on and on.

We are now in dispute about even being in iso, they have NO record, so the onus is on us to prove we were. Lucky we have kept all correspondence! 

[OzKiwiJJ]

7 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

Gosh, you’ve spent at least six days in quarantine twice on Princess ships and keep going back for more! What profoundly bad luck. Karma?

I have absolutely no complaints about the way Princess treated us when I caught Covid on Coral Princess. As far as I was concerned I'm glad I caught Covid on Coral Princess rather than at home, and so was my husband. We had delicious meals delivered to our cabin, free drinks so we could indulge in an XO cognac as a nightcap, free medical treatment, a very comfy bed to sleep in even if we had to change the sheets ourselves, and a balcony for fresh air (sometimes too fresh!). If we'd been at home it would have been far harder - just having to deal with getting meals for ourselves would have been stressful.

[AnyMajorCruiseDude]

11 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

Gosh, you’ve spent at least six days in quarantine twice on Princess ships and keep going back for more! What profoundly bad luck. Karma?

Nope.  First time turned out to be false positive on The Grand .  was released after a pcr was negative. Ruby was thanks to people not following masking and distancing requirements.  But symptoms were mild and they took good care of us.  Been on 4 cruises since and had no issues.  Can only follow reasonable recommendations and hope that others around you do too!

[Thrak]

On 11/29/2022 at 2:29 PM, PescadoAmarillo said:

I swore off Princess for awhile. DH is back at it without me

 

@PescadoAmarillo Popping in here somewhat off topic. My wife and I were sitting in Vines last night and I told her, "I know that face". I asked the smiling man  talking to the wine steward, "Are you G?". Yep, it was. We talked for a short bit before we went our separate ways. 

Edited December 3, 2022 by Thrak

[PescadoAmarillo]

2 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

@PescadoAmarillo Popping in here somewhat off topic. My wife and I were sitting in Vines last night and I told her, "I know that face". I asked the smiling man  talking to the wine steward, "Are you G?". Yep, it was. We talked for a short bit before we went our separate ways. 

I know!  He sent me a pic, and I recognized you and your lovely wife immediately and it made me smile, too. I am getting all sorts of messages and emails from people who have read my blog in the past and spotted him on board and in ports.  I hope you have a wonderful cruise. 

[windsor26]

On majestic princess now husband is positive so isolated in cabin and after every single meal we get a telephone call asking if we had had the meal delivered and was everything OK is there anything else we want cannot complain in any way about our treatment the medical center phone on the first day twice to see if we need you to need medication and no complaints whatsoever here on the majestic

[nnps]

1 hour ago, windsor26 said:

On majestic princess now husband is positive so isolated in cabin and after every single meal we get a telephone call asking if we had had the meal delivered and was everything OK is there anything else we want cannot complain in any way about our treatment the medical center phone on the first day twice to see if we need you to need medication and no complaints whatsoever here on the majestic

Thanks for posting this report. I was booked on this cruise but ended up cancelling because we had symptoms prior and were nervous of a 13 day cruise after the last one to NZ. Have you noticed many other cases? tables outside rooms?

[RobinBancs]

5 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

I know!  He sent me a pic, and I recognized you and your lovely wife immediately and it made me smile, too. I am getting all sorts of messages and emails from people who have read my blog in the past and spotted him on board and in ports.  I hope you have a wonderful cruise. 

Oh I just connected the dots.  Our family have been reading your blog from the 2019/20 season extensively and I wanted to thank you so much for the daily patters and menus that you shared there. It's been high quality escapism from a busy work schedule to sit down as a family and decide 'what would have for dinner tonight' from the menus! Its been really helpful for all the planning we have for Grand in next month.  Thank you!

[PescadoAmarillo]

24 minutes ago, RobinBancs said:

Oh I just connected the dots.  Our family have been reading your blog from the 2019/20 season extensively and I wanted to thank you so much for the daily patters and menus that you shared there. It's been high quality escapism from a busy work schedule to sit down as a family and decide 'what would have for dinner tonight' from the menus! Its been really helpful for all the planning we have for Grand in next month.  Thank you!

That’s very kind. Thank you!  I was quite happy with with 2019/20 season blog because, at least on the Ruby, we had excellent unlimited MedallionNet WiFi and I could finally blog the way I wish I could have done for years. Menus, Patters, lots of pics, and our favorite winter escape destination…it was quite fun. The Majestic was an entirely different story, WiFi-wise, but, hey, it got done. Safe and healthy travels!