DCL Make a decision please!

Ol Goof

Mouseketeer
Joined
Jul 25, 2018
My Alaska 2020 got cancelled, moved the money to May 2021, moved that money to August. I still don’t know if we are cruising or not. I wish Disney would decide are we sailing? So much of the enjoyment of cruising is all the planning and dreaming of the adventure. I’m ready to jump ship to NCL. They are sailing with 100% vaccinated cruisers. Let’s go. 👏🏼👏🏼
 
My Alaska 2020 got cancelled, moved the money to May 2021, moved that money to August. I still don’t know if we are cruising or not. I wish Disney would decide are we sailing? So much of the enjoyment of cruising is all the planning and dreaming of the adventure. I’m ready to jump ship to NCL. They are sailing with 100% vaccinated cruisers. Let’s go. 👏🏼👏🏼
All the cruise lines that are hoping to restart in Alaska this summer are requiring vaccinations and that may be what is holding DCL back.
 
To require vaccination, DCL would have to limit kids to 5% or less (depending on vaccinated adults) and that would be hugely problematic in a number of ways based on existing bookings.
 


To require vaccination, DCL would have to limit kids to 5% or less (depending on vaccinated adults) and that would be hugely problematic in a number of ways based on existing bookings.
That's probably the primary reason they haven't made any announcement, I think, even though there's a calendar out there from the Alaskan Cruise Tourism Agency saying that the Wonder will sail out of Seattle on July 7, it probably won't happen. IMHO I think they're waiting for the Pfizer to announce application for full use authorization of the vaccine in everyone including children, or at leasts get EUA for kids under 12, thus allowing them to vaccinate and meet the 95% level the CDC recently announced for resumption of sailings under the current CSO. That all remains to be seen, but as has been said, DCL always takes the safest route and won't even think about risking anything unless it would be safe for all guests and crews.
 
The other option is test cruises, social distancing and masks on board, and they've made no motions towards a test cruise model. Several have been approved from Florida; for an AK season they'd have to get the Wonder to Seattle and test cruise there, and have the crew vaccinated. For a mid-July sailing they're already running short on time for "staff, Seattle, vax," even without test sailings - and the full vax crew is necessary for a 95% sailing without test cruises.

Most lines are getting their crews in, vaccinating, and then doing quarantine and testing. For a lot of crew, it's not possible to get them vaccinated in their home countries. (And they cannot even bring in crew from India right now.) A two-shot cycle requires 6-7 weeks; a one-shot cycle is still going to be 28 days per data and recommendation for full effectiveness. And it's already May 29. The calendar math is super-shaky even if the plan is get crew to Florida, vax 'em, and use the voyage time through the PC as the quarantine period.
 


We're still booked for Alaska 2020 and holding out hope, but every day that passes I get a little less optimistic. It just seems like a race against the clock and as others have mentioned, I'm not sure if it's even logistically possible at this point to get a crew vaccinated, quarantined, and all the way to Seattle in time. I was also thinking that even if they are able to put a crew together, is there any possibility they'd be able to get shows cast and rehearsed in time? I truly hope they have been planning for this and have all of that on "standby" ready to go, but if not, it seems even if they do sail it likely won't be the "Disney" experience we pay a premium for :( Only time will tell though - still hoping for the best but expecting to be disappointed.
 
It does seem like we are hearing news from all the other major cruise lines but silence from DCL

THIS! This is what is driving me crazy! :crazy: Even if they can't definitively say anything, at least give us an idea of what is going on...what they are trying to do to get going. It wasn't bothering me before because I figured our August cruise would not be going, just another month of no cruising. But now, seeing another cruise line with plans, almost every night on the news, and silence from DCL is like torture. :hyper: Throw us a bone, DCL!
 
And that's not really surprising, because Disney likes to take a safe, wait and see approach, like they did with their theme park reopenings last summer.
I am not sure what you mean. They reopened relatively quickly in FL and would have reopened sooner in CA if the state had allowed it. And when they reopened in FL, this is from the BBC headline: "Walt Disney World Resort has begun to reopen in Florida despite a coronavirus surge across the US state." Whether that indicates a safe approach is debatable.
 
I am not sure what you mean. They reopened relatively quickly in FL and would have reopened sooner in CA if the state had allowed it. And when they reopened in FL, this is from the BBC headline: "Walt Disney World Resort has begun to reopen in Florida despite a coronavirus surge across the US state." Whether that indicates a safe approach is debatable.
Disney World waited a full month to reopen after both Universal and Sea World had reopened. They did not jump in and reopen as soon as the law allowed. In the context of theme parks in Florida, they were the slow and cautious ones. They maintained their safety-first image by waiting to reopen and by maintaining the strictest protocols upon reopening. The opinion of a British editorial board on Florida's reopening is irrelevant to that (not to mention that the BBC is currently under investigation for unethical behavior).

Likewise, I have no doubt that DCL will hang back and watch the other cruise lines resume sailings before they do the same. Whenever cruising resumes, there will undoubtedly be some opinion pieces written claiming that it's too soon. But that doesn't change the fact that DCL is undoubtedly going to err on the side of caution and watch other lines sail for at least a month or two before they do the same.
 
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I agree with others. They should be making some kind of announcement. If they're waiting to require vaccines for kids say so. If they're waiting for restrictions to lift say so. Then at least those who won't cruise due to no vaccine requirement can cancel. And then the opposite, those who won't vaccinate themselves and/or their children can cancel.
 
They haven't called back show casts to rehearse, so that is another key issue.

I don't care if they can get a full cast back. After 16 months on shore, you need to do a lot of walkthroughs to get timing back. This is also why even though NYC has announced when Broadway can reopen, most of the big shows have said "uh, gonna take us longer." And they aren't looking at performing on a rough Pacific! (Taking Alaska routes out of the Inside Passage, it will be bumpier.)
 
Disney World waited a full month to reopen after both Universal and Sea World had reopened. They did not jump in and reopen as soon as the law allowed. In the context of theme parks in Florida, they were the slow and cautious ones. They maintained their safety-first image by waiting to reopen and by maintaining the strictest protocols upon reopening. The opinion of a British editorial board on Florida's reopening is irrelevant to that (not to mention that the BBC is currently under investigation for unethical behavior).

Likewise, I have no doubt that DCL will hang back and watch the other cruise lines resume sailings before they do the same. Whenever cruising resumes, there will undoubtedly be some opinion pieces written claiming that it's too soon. But that doesn't change the fact that DCL is undoubtedly going to err on the side of caution and watch other lines sail for at least a month or two before they do the same.

I think that is exactly the point. :) I (as would many, I believe) would be absolutely fine if they took this approach and waited. Sure it's disappointing to have another cruise canceled, but err on the side of caution, we get it. The issue is they aren't telling us this is what they are going to do. It's all speculation on our part. They are telling us nothing while other cruise lines are making announcements. That is the frustrating thing, at least to me. ;)

I have a back up hotel booked in case my cruise doesn't go. I will also need to make plans, purchase park tickets, book my park days, and soon book meals. I can't do that until I know about the cruise.
 
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My head hurts just thinking how complicated it must be to get everything restarted.
You have to have crew that can, and are willing to be vaccinated and are willing to return to work
You have to passengers.
You have food suppliers. I have to wonder say in Alaska how many of those companies that depended on the cruise industry have gone belly up.
You have to have excursion operators.
I'm just afraid that if some of the cruise lines that are among the first back in service has a misstep, they will go belly up. Unlike DCL, they are not a smaller part of a major company, they are the entire company.
 
Disney World waited a full month to reopen after both Universal and Sea World had reopened. They did not jump in and reopen as soon as the law allowed. In the context of theme parks in Florida, they were the slow and cautious ones. They maintained their safety-first image by waiting to reopen and by maintaining the strictest protocols upon reopening. The opinion of a British editorial board on Florida's reopening is irrelevant to that (not to mention that the BBC is currently under investigation for unethical behavior).
The BBC's info is a fact, not an opinion. CNN and the NY Times noted the same information in their articles. Cases were way up in July when Disney reopened.
 
My head hurts just thinking how complicated it must be to get everything restarted.
You have to have crew that can, and are willing to be vaccinated and are willing to return to work
You have to passengers.
You have food suppliers. I have to wonder say in Alaska how many of those companies that depended on the cruise industry have gone belly up.
You have to have excursion operators.
I'm just afraid that if some of the cruise lines that are among the first back in service has a misstep, they will go belly up. Unlike DCL, they are not a smaller part of a major company, they are the entire company.
I feel like the food situation on board will be very similar to the WDW resorts...where they all have limited menus. Hopefully not for long though.
 

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