Down the road a bit from vaccination...

[4077]

So, if the vaccine roll out were to have the desired effect (such as the threat of spread of Covid 19 being similar to the threat of common cold, yearly flu, norovirus), would cruises (and the restaurant industry in general) revisit the buffet? Or is the buffet basically done no matter the eventual outcome of the vaccine's ability to control the disease?

 

[DisneYE]

My guess is the buffets and all self serve areas are gone (meaning CM's will serve) until the virus is complete eradicated. Anywhere from 2 to 10 years. And that's incredibly sad imo.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

That would be lovely, really, if they kept it as host serve forever. Fewer people doing questionable things with serving utensils is a desirable outcome.

 

[Intr3pid]

Or, this is the start of a new era of viruses which mutate every few years.

Whether it's the buffet, cleaning, occupancy, on-board medical staff - the industry is changing in a fundamental way. I hope they keep the changes.

 

[ladyofthetramp]

Seriously- I have no clue. But given the reputation of buffet? We shall see...

 

[Ila Sikorski]

I would prefer they keep the change of CM serving in a car style!

 

[BartmanLA]

Potentially and specifically with Cabanas, serving cafeteria style might very well speed up the serving line and move guests through it faster and get people seated, eat and leave in a more timely manner.

 

[jane01jp]

I just saw an article in the New York Times entitled "How 700 Epidemiologists Are Living Now, and What They Think is Next." Some of their insights were really sobering, and I have to admit, kind of sad. Here are some of them:

“The new normal will be continued masking for the next 12 to 18 months and possibly the next few years. This is a paradigm shift.”​

​

Roberta Bruhn, co-director, Vitalant Research Institute​

​

“It’s hard for me to imagine that it will ever go back to our previous ‘normal,’ but I do think that new preventive measures that we’ve had to adopt, like masks, will feel normal in time. In that sense, I’m optimistic that life will settle into a new kind of normal.”​

​

Marilyn Tseng, assistant professor, Cal Poly​

​

“I expect that wearing a mask will become part of my daily life, moving forward, even after a vaccine is deployed,” said Amy Hobbs, a research associate at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.​

These are some of the experts. Kind of eye opening that they don't seem to think the vaccine will help us return to normal anytime soon.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

These are some of the experts. Kind of eye opening that they don't seem to think the vaccine will help us return to normal anytime soon.

Do you have a link?

ETA: Never mind. I found it.

You are quite the pessimist, and a cherry picker too I might add. I can do that too.
You left out all of the encouraging comments.

This is the first line
"Even with coronavirus vaccines on the way, many epidemiologists do not expect their lives to return to pre-pandemic normal until most Americans are vaccinated."
To me, this is just common sense. The only way to get back to pre-pandemic normal is to give the virus no where to go, no new hosts to infect.

Then further down:
"Most scientists say around 70% of the population will need to be immune for the United States to reach herd immunity, when the virus slows down significantly or stops. Herd immunity is crucial, they say, for people to safely resume many parts of life, and the fastest and safest way to achieve it is through vaccination."

“I think widespread availability of vaccines will result in the further relaxation of most precautions by mid-to-late summer 2021.” — Michael Webster-Clark, postdoctoral researcher, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“I am optimistic that the encouraging vaccine results mean we’ll be back on track by or during summer 2021,” said Kelly Strutz, an assistant professor at Michigan State University.

“Once I and my family are vaccinated, I would change behaviors, except I can’t imagine being in a crowd or attending any crowded events until 80% or more are vaccinated.” — Julie Bettinger, associate professor, University of British Columbia

 

[John VN]

My thinking is that being served at a buffet will be the norm and thankfully so. The days of food molestation by the uncaring - inconsiderate cruiser is over along with the Yeti High Piled plate.

 

[jane01jp]

Do you have a link?

ETA: Never mind. I found it.

You are quite the pessimist, and a cherry picker too I might add. I can do that too.
You left out all of the encouraging comments.

This is the first line
"Even with coronavirus vaccines on the way, many epidemiologists do not expect their lives to return to pre-pandemic normal until most Americans are vaccinated."
To me, this is just common sense. The only way to get back to pre-pandemic normal is to give the virus no where to go, no new hosts to infect.

Then further down:
"Most scientists say around 70% of the population will need to be immune for the United States to reach herd immunity, when the virus slows down significantly or stops. Herd immunity is crucial, they say, for people to safely resume many parts of life, and the fastest and safest way to achieve it is through vaccination."

“I think widespread availability of vaccines will result in the further relaxation of most precautions by mid-to-late summer 2021.” — Michael Webster-Clark, postdoctoral researcher, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“I am optimistic that the encouraging vaccine results mean we’ll be back on track by or during summer 2021,” said Kelly Strutz, an assistant professor at Michigan State University.

“Once I and my family are vaccinated, I would change behaviors, except I can’t imagine being in a crowd or attending any crowded events until 80% or more are vaccinated.” — Julie Bettinger, associate professor, University of British Columbia

I'm not really a pessimist. The optimistic quotes are contingent on the vast majority of people being vaccinated, which I personally think is a long shot.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I'm not really a pessimist. The optimistic quotes are contingent on the vast majority of people being vaccinated, which I personally think is a long shot.

Time will tell.

 

[braysmommy]

I'm not really a pessimist. The optimistic quotes are contingent on the vast majority of people being vaccinated, which I personally think is a long shot.

Also think it is a long shot but hope others in the industry follow Qantas in moving to require vaccine for flights and that cruise lines do the same.

 

[jane01jp]

Also think it is a long shot but hope others in the industry follow Qantas in moving to require vaccine for flights and that cruise lines do the same.

It could happen, but the more heavy-handed we are in requiring the vaccine, the more pushback there will be. I think allowing people to warm up to it is the right approach. According to what I've read, the FDA isn't even recommending it for children at this point. It also isn't clear whether the vaccine is safe for people with certain allergies.

Perhaps DCL could require it for all adults.

From an article today in the Stamford Advocate:

"The FDA, in clearing the vaccine Friday, issued a broad authorization for people 16 and older. Marks said Saturday the agency was "very comfortable that the safety profile" for 16- and 17-year-olds was "acceptable" even though there were fewer clinical trial participants of those ages.

He said the agency didn't have enough data to recommend the vaccine for younger children or pregnant women. The latter should talk to their doctors about whether to get the shots, he said."

https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/ne...s-vaccine-begins-to-roll-out-FDA-15797303.php

 

[braysmommy]

@jane01jp I don't disagree with you and I have a 14 yr old so we won't be traveling until there is enough research showing it is safe for him to get the vaccine and he has had it. Most likely means we won't be getting on a plane this summer to vacation since I don't see the vaccine rolling out that quickly for his age group but I would love to be wrong!

 

[jane01jp]

@jane01jp I don't disagree with you and I have a 14 yr old so we won't be traveling until there is enough research showing it is safe for him to get the vaccine and he has had it. Most likely means we won't be getting on a plane this summer to vacation since I don't see the vaccine rolling out that quickly for his age group but I would love to be wrong!

That's a tough decision. My children are grown and have a lot to think about. One has severe allergies, and the other has had adverse reactions to sulfa. Both are in their 20s and may want to have children.

Both my wife and I are free of known allergies, and well past our reproductive years, so it is a much less risky decision for us.

 

[braysmommy]

That's a tough decision. My children are grown and have a lot to think about. One has severe allergies, and the other has had adverse reactions to sulfa. Both are in their 20s and may want to have children.

Both my wife and I are free of known allergies, and well past our reproductive years, so it is a much less risky decision for us.

So true and we will be watching the UK closely, so nice of them to get approval first so we have the data.

 

[tvguy]

So true and we will be watching the UK closely, so nice of them to get approval first so we have the data.

LOL. Watched a Jeff Denham comedy special last night and he touched on that. Something to the effect of "just like World War II, the British will go in first, then the U.S. will come in and take credit for everything"

 

[Cruising Engineer]

Back to the original question . . . I also would like to see the end of self serve buffet and the transition to a served line, much like a mess hall. Hopefully, a one-way in and one-way out set up so I'm not dive-bombed from all side by others cutting in to grab the spoon right in front of me. For the soda and coffee machines in Cabanas and on the upper deck, I would like to see a mechanism for self serve but not self touch such as a motion-activated dispenser or an object identifier placed in a specific spot.

 

[AquaDame]

The only part that bums me about losing the buffet is my ability to truly take a LITTLE bit of something. I have a very hard time wasting food once its on my plate..