Royal Dropping Testing for Vaxxed on Cruises 5 nights or shorter

[Weedy]

Less than six nights for vaccinated passengers
https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/...-testing-vaccinated-cruisers-shorter-sailings

 

[EddieK76]

Just announced on their earnings call.

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/...-testing-vaccinated-cruisers-shorter-sailings

I assume we will see more with this line of thinking. This is what I had anticipated would be close to the scenario.

 

[Henlady]

Hopefully DCL decides to follow a similar process in the next couple months.

 

[nancipants]

They’ll probably drop testing before acknowledging that kids 4 and under can get vaccinated.

 

[HeatherLassell]

Why though? What a weird change. Either drop it completely or don't. (I just really can't understand the reasoning for not pre-testing on 1-6 nights but testing on 7+...?)

 

[tinkattitude!]

that's good news - while I had hoped they'd drop it altogether, small steps are better than no steps. We have a 7 night RCCL booked for Thanksgiving week so by the sounds of it we'll probably not have to test for that one . Looks like we may not be so lucky for our 10/1 DCL Fantasy though, which stresses me more because fly for that one (as opposed to driving to port for the November one).

 

[Disney mac]

We went on an 8 night cruise on Royal's Mariner back in June. We were one of the few that wore masks inside, except for dinner and when we had a family table at trivia events. And 36 hours after getting off the boat, my son tested positive and then the rest of the family tested positive over the next week from him. On cruisecritic, there were hundreds of other people who also reported testing positive. My advice would be to be careful, but be aware that you will have a decent chance at exposure.
Have fun

 

[dcassetta]

Why though? What a weird change. Either drop it completely or don't. (I just really can't understand the reasoning for not pre-testing on 1-6 nights but testing on 7+...?)

Maybe is has to do with where the cruises are going. Short cruises are often close to shore and medical evacuation would be easier if someone developed serious issues with Covid. Longer cruises may be a long distance from medical assistance. If people have to be quarantined, this would be easier to cope with on a shorter cruise.

 

[brentm77]

Why though? What a weird change. Either drop it completely or don't. (I just really can't understand the reasoning for not pre-testing on 1-6 nights but testing on 7+...?)

Wouldn't it be something along the lines of, if someone brings it on the short cruise, it won't have too much time to spread, but on a long cruise, it has much more time to infect a big group if brought on board from the start?

I think it should be dropped entirely. While I am sure it has some mitigating effect to test, I can't imagine it's very big at all, since antigen tests are pretty bad at picking up positive cases, someone could develop an infection just between testing and boarding, someone can develop a positive infection just after boarding, and someone can pick it up at the ports and bring it on the ship that way. It just seems like one of those cartoons where you plug one hole in the sinking ship (sorry for the bad analogy on a cruise board) and there are ten more holes leaking. Sure, you might help a little, but how much are you really helping at this point? Everyone has or will be exposed if they live any semblance of a normal life now, so I suspect we have reached the point where we treat cruising like any other activity. I don't see it too much more risky than visiting a theme park, for example, now that the variant is ridiculously contagious.

But I understand why opinions vary on this issue and that some would prefer the risk of not being able to cruise, as well as the extra time and expense, in exchange for some level of increased risk mitigation.

 

[Sykes]

Wouldn't it be something along the lines of, if someone brings it on the short cruise, it won't have too much time to spread, but on a long cruise, it has much more time to infect a big group if brought on board from the start?

I think it’s a combination of this, and that if you test positive on board it’s their problem (they have to provide onboard care and they’ve chosen to give a partial refund) while if you test positive at home they don’t really have any reason to care. When I caught COVID on board my last (non-DCL) sailing the medical team said it is very consistent that their COVID cases spike significantly on days 6+ of a longer cruise. Even if you only catch a moderate percentage of the cases up-front it’s still potentially a lot fewer refunds in the end.

 

[ladyofthetramp]

I believe I also heard that very serious cases or deaths attributed to covid on cruises is extremely low (I think it was a statement from Virgin). I think as long as this holds, we will begin to see pre-cruise testing being dropped. It will then be up to each person, to weigh their risk in participating in a cruise vacation

 

[dcassetta]

I believe I also heard that very serious cases or deaths attributed to covid on cruises is extremely low (I think it was a statement from Virgin). I think as long as this holds, we will begin to see pre-cruise testing being dropped. It will then be up to each person, to weigh their risk in participating in a cruise vacation

I think this is true. As the cruises require most everyone to be vaccinated, the chances of serious illness are low. I could see testing going away before vaccination requirements.

 

[Mango7100]

Testing 2-3 days before really does nothing and is not really any benefit. You can test positive on Thursday, and then board on Saturday and be infectious. Even testing the day of misses alot. I can see most cruises dropping testing but keeping vaccine requirements because of not wanting to deal with serous medical cases on board.

 

[HeatherLassell]

I think it’s a combination of this, and that if you test positive on board it’s their problem (they have to provide onboard care and they’ve chosen to give a partial refund) while if you test positive at home they don’t really have any reason to care.

That's where my thoughts went also.

 

[mousefan73]

It’s very simple. Those that catch Covid on board or board infected but show no symptoms lost likely will be off the ship by time if/ any major symptoms show up. Have symptoms increases spread and chances of being tested and asked to quarantine adding additional stress on ship resources.

 

[dreamer17555]

I understand the idea is of you catch COVID on the ship you should be off before it is their problem but this assumes no one is willing to board already in the midst of a covid infection and thinking they are through the worst of it when in reality it can get much worse quickly. You can easily mask early symptoms with a DayQuil if someone simply doesn’t care about being honest.

One day it was a bad cold for our family- next day 104 fevers and we are all vaccinated and boosted.

 

[Kwami]

I understand the idea is of you catch COVID on the ship you should be off before it is their problem but this assumes no one is willing to board already in the midst of a covid infection and thinking they are through the worst of it when in reality it can get much worse quickly. You can easily mask early symptoms with a DayQuil if someone simply doesn’t care about being honest.

One day it was a bad cold for our family- next day 104 fevers and we are all vaccinated and boosted.

It's about minimizing RCCL's risk while maximizing their profit. They might get a few more cases to handle with the new testing scheme, but they'll probably get more paying customers, too. The safety of their guests is apparently not the priority. I don't mean to single out RCCL with that statement, either. The fact that every cruise line is using antigen tests 2-3 days before sailing shows that the other lines are also prioritizing convenience and profits over safety. It'll be up to the customers to decide whether that's OK.

 

[n2mm]

Sounds like a lot of good reasons. Get on a short cruise, pass the virus around, but we want you all off before you get too sick and impact our resources. I don’t take short cruises, so watching what is coming on the horizon.

 

[Cheburashka]

I don't see it too much more risky than visiting a theme park, for example, now that the variant is ridiculously contagious.

Bingo.

 

[coast2coastmickey]

It's about minimizing RCCL's risk while maximizing their profit. They might get a few more cases to handle with the new testing scheme, but they'll probably get more paying customers, too. The safety of their guests is apparently not the priority. I don't mean to single out RCCL with that statement, either. The fact that every cruise line is using antigen tests 2-3 days before sailing shows that the other lines are also prioritizing convenience and profits over safety. It'll be up to the customers to decide whether that's OK.

As it should be.