Anyone Else Concerned About Norovirus Outbreak???

[jerseygal]

Thinking about cruising again in May, 2015 on either DCL or Royal Caribbean..
Had a FABULOUS cruising experience on the Inaguaral Voyage on The Dream summer, 2011!!!

Must say though that the newest ship, The Quantum of The Seas, Royal Caribbean LOOKS AMAZING!
WOW...Will certainly be giving DCL competition, which is "healthy" for consumers and pricing hopefully!: So happy that in 2015 will not have to travel in the summer with school crowds as our youngest will be completing his first year of college. May is a beautiful time of year to cruise!

Extremely concerned about the recent severe outbreaks of norovirus that caused two very well regarded cruiselines to return home...Royal Caribbean about a week ago and now Princess down in Houston! Nothing worse than to pay a good sum of money and to be very sickened on a cruise with norovirus! Have read many have been hospitalized between both ships which is quite concerning!

Anyone else highly concerned about RECENT NEWS ON NOROVIRUS OUTBREAKS ON MAJOR CRUISELINES?

Just in the "research and planning" stage, but from my knowledge and experience with our Dream Cruise, the BEST PRICES AND AVAILABILITY OF CABINS comes with advance planning, about 13 months in advance!

THANKS in advance!

 

[Scrappygrrl]

Winter is generally high season for norovirus, May should be much lower risk. Best thing you can do as far as prevention is don't put your hands in your mouth/near your face, use a napkin or paper towel to grab buffet handles and doorknobs, and wash hands frequently.

 

[CurtisB]

Outbreaks can happy anytime anywhere. Cruise lines are just required to report it. Wash your hands, use smart preventitive measures and relax and have fun. Don't let fear keep you from enjoying a cruise.

 

[Sir William]

Outbreaks can happy anytime anywhere. Cruise lines are just required to report it. Wash your hands, use smart preventitive measures and relax and have fun. Don't let fear keep you from enjoying a cruise.

Exactly! No more worried about norovirus (or any other virus) than usual.

Got a dose of norovirus last New Years, the day I disembarked, which severelly impacted my post-cruise plans. Not fun, but it hasn't influenced my desire to cruise.

 

[ocspartan]

Outbreaks can happy anytime anywhere. Cruise lines are just required to report it. Wash your hands, use smart preventitive measures and relax and have fun. Don't let fear keep you from enjoying a cruise.

yeah I would say take care of basics like washing hands and avoiding obvious contaminated areas like bathroom door handles and such, most of the public bathrooms on board have auto faucets and paper towels so that you don't need to touch anything... while I would hate to get sick with anything on a cruise, in general it's no worse than being on land statistically....

"While the outbreak of gastrointestinal illness on Explorer of the Seas was one of the largest ever on a cruise ship, it occurred amid a general decline in such incidents. The number of outbreaks on cruise ships sailing from U.S. ports hit a multi-year low last year, continuing a downward trend that began nearly a decade ago as the industry increased prevention efforts.

The CDC recorded just nine outbreaks of illnesses such as norovirus on ships in 2013, down from 16 in 2012 and more than 30 as recently as 2006.

The decline comes even as the number of people cruising continues to rise. The Cruise Lines International Association estimates the industry will carry 21.7 million passengers in 2014, up from 15 million in 2010."

 

[luv2sleep]

I wouldn't let that fear keep me from cruising. You could get anything anywhere. Wash, wash, wash hands or use those sanitizers cloths or hand sanitizer constantly. Just try not to have your hands touch your face or eat with them unless they are clean. That will prevent illness.

 

[DisneYE]

I wouldn't let that fear keep me from cruising. You could get anything anywhere. Wash, wash, wash hands or use those sanitizers cloths or hand sanitizer constantly. Just try not to have your hands touch your face or eat with them unless they are clean. That will prevent illness.

this. Although it won't ever keep me from cruising I am watching closely the outbreak of H1N1 in Mexico. 300+ deaths so far this year.

http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=1551690&CategoryId=14091

If it jumps from Mexico city into resorts like Cancun I may stay on the ship during stops in CM and Coz. (yes, I am paranoid)

 

[Gigi22]

A TA once told me that another protective measure you can take is to avoid the buffets.

 

[luv2sleep]

A TA once told me that another protective measure you can take is to avoid the buffets.

That's a good tip.

 

[wiigirl]

Outbreaks can happy anytime anywhere. Cruise lines are just required to report it. Wash your hands, use smart preventitive measures and relax and have fun. Don't let fear keep you from enjoying a cruise.

 

[darkwing818]

Outbreaks can happy anytime anywhere. Cruise lines are just required to report it. Wash your hands, use smart preventitive measures and relax and have fun. Don't let fear keep you from enjoying a cruise.

Excellent advice.

 

[Cheerio]

We sail this coming Saturday and I am a little worried about it but have lots of sanitizer, kids know to wash with hot water and soap before eating (And we will sanitize after going through the buffet) and after using the bathroom - we brought spray lysol to give the room a one over once we get there.