Stomach flu on the Wonder

[allears33]

We just took our first Disney cruise to the MR on the 4th of Dec. Everything was awesome but the last couple of days my 3 yr old caught a stomach bug and ended up being quarantined in the room for 24 hrs. The medical office said he had caught some G.I bug that was going around and that it was highly contagious. We had 12 family members traveling with us and 9 out of the 12 got sick. The plane home was a nightmare. I did notice other kids, one at the breakfast buffet and another one in the theater that had puked. I know with every passenger being packed together and the kids playing all together in the kids club there is no way to hope that people will not get sick but for future booking is it better to book more into the summer seasons.We are saving to go on another family cruise next year, maybe around Christmas again but I am worried about catching another bug. Any advise or input would be great. Thanks!

 

[mellers]

We just took our first Disney cruise to the MR on the 4th of Dec. Everything was awesome but the last couple of days my 3 yr old caught a stomach bug and ended up being quarantined in the room for 24 hrs. The medical office said he had caught some G.I bug that was going around and that it was highly contagious. We had 12 family members traveling with us and 9 out of the 12 got sick. The plane home was a nightmare. I did notice other kids, one at the breakfast buffet and another one in the theater that had puked. I know with every passenger being packed together and the kids playing all together in the kids club there is no way to hope that people will not get sick but for future booking is it better to book more into the summer seasons.We are saving to go on another family cruise next year, maybe around Christmas again but I am worried about catching another bug. Any advise or input would be great. Thanks!

A few suggestions:

1. Make sure the kids are aware of the importance of handwashing, and that they really wash their hands well and often.

2. Make sure you purchase travel insurance that will reimburse you for sick days on the cruise, and for lost excursions if you book them yourself. Also, if you have any pre-existing conditions like eczema or asthma, which could be triggered by a virus, make sure you buy your cruise insurance from somebody other than Disney.

3. Get your flu shot as soon as it becomes available. It won't protect you from everything, but it's another arrow in your quiver. (BTW--Flu shots, and all other vaccines, DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM!!!)

4. Go on your cruise, wash your hands a lot, and enjoy yourself. If something happens, deal with it then.

 

[jdb in AZ]

Sorry your cruise was so RETCH-ed. I'm glad your son was quarantined for only 24 hrs. An adult cousin of ours drank the local waters on his MR cruise, got the "heaves ho!" and was quarantined 3 days.

Young kids tend to be germ magnets, and they're generous about sharing them. Perhaps your son would've gotten just as sick at home then shared his germs there too.

Along with the PP's comments I would add, make sure everyone eats enough fresh citrus and gets enough rest. (And drink only bottled water in port.)

It seems lately that every time I fly I end up with a cold. Maybe I should take some antiseptic wipes or Purell and "wash" my hands on the plane before snacking on those peanuts. And get more sleep when I get where I'm goin. Hard to do when you're excited about your vacation and visiting with rellies.

 

[DVCMomofThree]

A few suggestions:

1. Make sure the kids are aware of the importance of handwashing, and that they really wash their hands well and often.

2. Make sure you purchase travel insurance that will reimburse you for sick days on the cruise, and for lost excursions if you book them yourself. Also, if you have any pre-existing conditions like eczema or asthma, which could be triggered by a virus, make sure you buy your cruise insurance from somebody other than Disney.

3. Get your flu shot as soon as it becomes available. It won't protect you from everything, but it's another arrow in your quiver. (BTW--Flu shots, and all other vaccines, DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM!!!)
4. Go on your cruise, wash your hands a lot, and enjoy yourself. If something happens, deal with it then.

That would be something to discuss with your doctor. No offense but a flu shot isn't going to do ANYTHING to protect you from a GI virus.

 

[itutorfortravel]

Just wanted to say sorry this happened to you, and our family knows how you feel.

We have cruised on the Magic twice at Christmas. The first time we had no issues, but the second time DH got sick a couple days into the trip. Like your child, he was quarantined to the room for 48 hours. The real bummer was that this happened on December 23rd, so he missed going into port that day and also missed ALL of Christmas Eve with my DD and me. He was allowed to come out mid-day on Christmas Day, but he was so weak and felt so horrible that he really didn't feel like doing anything and certainly didn't want to eat. Thankfully, it was an 11 night cruise so he still had a good bit of the trip where he felt well. But to not be able to really celebrate Christmas together (DD and I tried to stay out of the cabin as much as possible!)...that was a disappointment to say the least. The good news is that after a little over a year, he is willing to cruise again (honestly, I thought he would never go again). This time we are going at spring break, the same time we took our first cruise...nice weather and no problems on that trip. Hopefully it will be the same this time!

 

[gichicdoc]

That would be something to discuss with your doctor. No offense but a flu shot isn't going to do ANYTHING to protect you from a GI virus.

That's not entirely true. While there are many, many viruses which can cause GI illness and are not covered at all by the flu vaccine, the actual flu can and does frequently cause GI symptoms. Certainly won't hurt and could help!

 

[AlohaDisney]

A few suggestions:


3. Get your flu shot as soon as it becomes available. It won't protect you from everything, but it's another arrow in your quiver. (BTW--Flu shots, and all other vaccines, DO NOT CAUSE AUTISM!!!)

The flu shot will not help the stomach flu. The Flu shot is against influenza, not a GI bug. I had the flu shot last year and again this year, and still got the stomach flu this year! Perks of running a daycare!

 

[bibbidibobbidibecky]

We also caught a nasty GI bug on our first cruise on the Wonder in May '09. I was SO paranoid before our second cruise this past summer b/c all five of us were SO sick after our first cruise. I went into the stateroom first and sprayed most surfaces with Lysol (I brought a travel size one) and wiped down the bathroom with clorox wipes. We always had hand-sanitizer with us and were relentless about washing our hands. Now I'm sure this was all over-kill but it made me feel better But the truth is only hand-washing and not being exposed will actually help you. If my kids had been in the club when another child got sick then all that would have been in vain.

I'm happy to report none of us even got so much of a cold on our last cruise and I will be bringing Clorox wipes AND Lysol along on our next again!

 

[HappyPeach]

There was a GI-bug outbreak on the 1-3-12 Dream cruise also. It was bad enough that the self-service drink stations were no longer self-service; employees staffed the machines. Salt and pepper shakers were removed from tables and employees served buffet foods (even at Palo brunch.) I reminded my family to wash their hands often, used purell, and tried to avoid unnecessary touching of things like the handrails on the stairs. All five of us managed to avoid the virus, thankfully. There were people quarantined on our hall and I just hope they recovered quickly.

 

[goiu]

We got the roto virus on the 2010 Transatlantic cruise. First week in Europe was awesome. Then my 1 yr old got it the 2nd week. Then we passed it between all 4 of us for the next week. It was a nightmare! He caught it from someone that had been in Flounders. Talked to other parents from there later and there kids had gotten it too. Also, an adult two tables over from us got it and they had no kids. Of course, I was paranoid in 2011 when we went to the Carribean. Amazing cruise! So, all that said is that you just never know! It is so contagious that kids and adults can pick it up from anywhere. We are even thinking of doing the transatlantic again next year!!

 

[kcashner]

The best thing you can do is frequent, thorough hand washing. DCL certainly does their part by making hand wipes available outside all food outlets, teaching hand washing and sanitizer use in the kid programming, etc.

This may sound compulsive, but I bring a couple of wipes and clean all obvious surfaces on the plane before touching/eating. Probably over-kill, but better than a sick vacation.

 

[TitanBrett]

There was a GI-bug outbreak on the 1-3-12 Dream cruise also. It was bad enough that the self-service drink stations were no longer self-service; employees staffed the machines. Salt and pepper shakers were removed from tables and employees served buffet foods (even at Palo brunch.) I reminded my family to wash their hands often, used purell, and tried to avoid unnecessary touching of things like the handrails on the stairs. All five of us managed to avoid the virus, thankfully. There were people quarantined on our hall and I just hope they recovered quickly.

I was on that cruise also and was shocked at the amount of people that were complaining that they couldn't serve themselves food anymore, HELLO people Disney is trying to keep you from getting sick!

 

[SeaHawkeye]

We were on the Dream last week as well and noticed the precautions being put into place on Friday (Day 4) of the cruise. What I thought was interesting is that there was no reason given for the precautions until the next day. And, the reason given the next day was billed as an "elevated level of service" (by the CD) and not a reaction to any particular incidence.

I'm glad they took the precautions but it would have been nice to have some more information sooner about the "why".

 

[TitanBrett]

I'm glad they took the precautions but it would have been nice to have some more information sooner about the "why".

Yep, I saw a CM at the Buffett tell a lady it was simply a change in policy, I know they don't want to panic people and while I had an idea what was going on many people were just pissed.

 

[HappyPeach]

We were on the Dream last week as well and noticed the precautions being put into place on Friday (Day 4) of the cruise. What I thought was interesting is that there was no reason given for the precautions until the next day. And, the reason given the next day was billed as an "elevated level of service" (by the CD) and not a reaction to any particular incidence.

I'm glad they took the precautions but it would have been nice to have some more information sooner about the "why".

I read the book "Cruise Confidential" last year, so as soon as I saw normally self-serve things being served, I was sure there was a GI issue. Plus, I saw a team of 2 employees washing the handrails in the middle of the day; one with a cleanser bucket and one with a rinse bucket. That's not the kind of in-depth work that's done during busy times (i.e. lunch time.) The clincher for me was the sea day. Palo brunch buffet was not self-serve and the servers were wearing plastic gloves plus people had been sick IN the hallway near our cabin. We asked our housekeeper and she told us that it was a "pretty bad" outbreak.

 

[DVCMomofThree]

That's not entirely true. While there are many, many viruses which can cause GI illness and are not covered at all by the flu vaccine, the actual flu can and does frequently cause GI symptoms. Certainly won't hurt and could help!

Right, but the flu vaccine only provides some immunity to the actual flu...not rotovirus or other GI bugs found on cruise ships.

There is a rotovirus vaccine out there.

 

[narsibvl]

We just took our first Disney cruise to the MR on the 4th of Dec. Everything was awesome but the last couple of days my 3 yr old caught a stomach bug and ended up being quarantined in the room for 24 hrs. The medical office said he had caught some G.I bug that was going around and that it was highly contagious. We had 12 family members traveling with us and 9 out of the 12 got sick. The plane home was a nightmare. I did notice other kids, one at the breakfast buffet and another one in the theater that had puked. I know with every passenger being packed together and the kids playing all together in the kids club there is no way to hope that people will not get sick but for future booking is it better to book more into the summer seasons.We are saving to go on another family cruise next year, maybe around Christmas again but I am worried about catching another bug. Any advise or input would be great. Thanks!

Ouch !! We were on the same cruise. Luckily we didn't have any such issues. DW was not 100% during the first two port days but nothing very serious. As about summer or winter sailing, I don't think it makes as much of a difference. Hope your family members have recovered.

 

[TitanBrett]

Does insurance offer any compensation when someone gets sick and is quarantined? Not sure how you would prove it but would be nice to get a few hundred dollars back if you were stuck in a cabin

 

[mellers]

Does insurance offer any compensation when someone gets sick and is quarantined? Not sure how you would prove it but would be nice to get a few hundred dollars back if you were stuck in a cabin

I think it depends upon the insurance--I would check with your insurer.

 

[TitanBrett]

I have never bought insurance nor did I get sick on the recent cruise, was just curious