Sickness on RC

[hcox31]

All it takes is one person to have it, not report it on the health forms and it will start to spread. IT always seems to go around this time of year. I see it all over my social media. People call it "the flu" but it's not the FLU. It's noro.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Unfortunately, it's not uncommon. DS used to work for one of the major cruise lines, and they'd get breakouts not rarely. It could have been that someone incubating it without knowing, got onboard. Yes, best thing to do is wash hands often and don't touch any more stuff than necessary. VERY difficult to get rid of. I feel bad that Royal Carribbean is getting the bad rap on this, when it affects so many cruise lines.

 

[Marc D]

Noro outbreaks have little to do initially with the cruis line, but little differences can have a big impact on the spread of the virus. How (and how often) the cruise line :

- cleans the public restrooms, especially the handles;
- gives access, and insists on guest using, to hand cleaning products in the dining rooms and buffets;
- cleans specific surfaces in the rooms;
- quarantines guests with symptoms;
- lets guests handle premade food;
- modify the buffet procedures when noro is onboard;

will all impact the spread of the disease.

DCL guests do not have better hygiene and plenty try to skip the hand washing stations or do not wash their hands after using the restrooms or sneezing. BUT, having sailed on multiple cruise lines, DCL is far superior on public restroom cleaning. More often than not, there is a restroom attendant at all time in most public restrooms, or at least during busy periods. They also do a good job on insisting on hand washing at Cabanas and the dining rooms. They are more directive than NCL and the ‘washy-washy’ song.

 

[mousefan73]

I think those health forms are a joke.. Seriously think about it.. Do you think a person who invested time/ money AND actually makes the effort to get to the port, decides then and there, at check-in, to click a box that might keep them from embarking?

either one knows they are sick and simply doesnt care.. or might have in the back of their head " oh something MIGHT" but coming but also kids themselves into thinking all is or will be good.

I mean, the other day I was feeling run-down, a bit warm (fever brewingß don't know) and my nose was running a bit.. i still went to work.. this could have been the start of a real Flu or a small "thing"... turns out it was a small thing. I was congested a bit mainly at night a few days, small sore throat from post nasal drip, but no fever...

Or maybe my tummy feels funny, I am on the way to the port, was it the car driveß, was it the buffet the night before at WDW or am I getting the stomach flu. At this point I feel fine..

what box should I have clicked at port on these.. ?

 

[Dug720]

I mean, the other day I was feeling run-down, a bit warm (fever brewingß don't know) and my nose was running a bit.. i still went to work.. this could have been the start of a real Flu or a small "thing"... turns out it was a small thing. I was congested a bit mainly at night a few days, small sore throat from post nasal drip, but no fever...

Based on what you said here:

I honestly think it’s also just the time of year. I seem to notice over the years that so many people fall out sick right after the new year. I wonder people just relax and chill over the holidays and everything breaks loose then. I commute by train I noticed yesterday that half the train was sneezing and coughing was very disgusting wish people would just simply stay home if they were sick. My boss and our intern are both home this week with the flu too.

Yes. You should have stayed home if you are going to practice what you preach.

As a teacher who is constantly faced with snot and coughing and so forth, I WISH people would keep their kids home when they are sick - but they have to go to work, so they send them, which just perpetuates the whole cycle and makes classrooms giant petri dishes.

 

[mousefan73]

Based on what you said here:



Yes. You should have stayed home if you are going to practice what you preach.

As a teacher who is constantly faced with snot and coughing and so forth, I WISH people would keep their kids home when they are sick - but they have to go to work, so they send them, which just perpetuates the whole cycle and makes classrooms giant petri dishes.

Maybe I wasnt clear.. I was 100% sure if I was getting sick or not. I felt a bit off, but I wasn't sneezing excessivley.. just an annoying run here and there. my congestion was mainly at night and sore throat in the morning. but gone after a a cup of water. I preach if sick stay home... for me there is difference of a slight not 100% "am I sick or not?" to full blown sick. When as in our intern case, sweat is dripping then you are sick.

 

[Dug720]

Maybe I wasnt clear.. I was 100% sure if I was getting sick or not. I felt a bit off, but I wasn't sneezing excessivley.. just an annoying run here and there. my congestion was mainly at night and sore throat in the morning. but gone after a a cup of water. I preach if sick stay home... for me there is difference of a slight not 100% "am I sick or not?" to full blown sick. When as in our intern case, sweat is dripping then you are sick.

Perhaps. But it's a fine line - especially when the most contagious portion of most illness is that just beginning phase where it's maybe you are/maybe you're not. How do you know the people on the train didn't have allergies? It's possible.

The form at the port though - unless it has changed - is pretty explicit that the symptoms need to be combined with fever and/or GI issues. If you've been throwing up or having it out the other end, then you are lying if you check no. They will not necessarily deny you boarding - you will meet with a medic and you can say "We ate really rich food" or whatever your excuse is for it, they will examine you and make a determination. If it was truly food and you have no other symptoms, you will be allowed to board. If it IS something else, then yes, you would be denied (which is where trip insurance comes in handy). If you lie and are discovered to be sick on board, you'll be quarantined - so really no cruise for you anyway.

 

[Stefani P.]

My son and I, who have had noro while at home, said "that's a whole lot of people who didn't wash their hands before putting hands to their mouths"... We are pretty hardnosed about noro being something adults and most children can control getting. We got it because we had lousy hand washing habits before meals (as in we'll go to the store then come home and eat without washing...we do wash after bathroom visits LOL) AND we both tend to bite our nails. Bad bad combo. Totally OUR faults we got it.



Of course it does. Have you not noticed the number of people just in your town staying home sick and posting on FB about the "stomach flu" they got? No such thing as "stomach flu"; it's noro or similar. Just scrolling through my FB feed shows me that noro is all around.



OK, having read up on noro (while my son was dealing with it and waiting to see when I'd get it), you do NOT want to suppress that stuff coming out. You want it OUT of your body. The virus is intriguing...it actually slows down digestion as it's incubating for a day or so, so as to have more effect and potentially live on in more people when it comes out. And that is exactly what happened with both my son and I. For a day or two things were very sluggish, and then whammo.

When I've got a virus in my belly, I'm not going to stop it from coming out. Yuck.



It's good you were quarantined, as you could easily have had it. You did the right thing and they did the right thing.

I am a weirdo. When I get a stomach bug I puke continually for hours or days until I take Zofran or go to an ER. I usually get dehydrated so doc gave me a prescription so that after so much getting sick, I can take the meds. He said you don't need to puke every 30 mins for days. After 12 hours, take the meds!!

 

[Stefani P.]

My son and I, who have had noro while at home, said "that's a whole lot

Of course it does. Have you not noticed the number of people just in your town staying home sick and posting on FB about the "stomach flu" they got? No such thing as "stomach flu"; it's noro or similar. Just scrolling through my FB feed shows me that noro is all

And I wasn't clear. I meant do major outbreaks on the Disney Cruise ships happen often. I work in daycare. I know people get sick in the world.

 

[DisneyGirlMI]

This is a big concern of mine.

Does it happen often?? I fear getting sick and ruining my trip.

We have been on seven (Disney) cruises. The only time I came home sick was our very first in 2008. Actually I got Noro worse the following year at WDW.

 

[DisneyGirlMI]

Perhaps. But it's a fine line - especially when the most contagious portion of most illness is that just beginning phase where it's maybe you are/maybe you're not. How do you know the people on the train didn't have allergies? It's possible.

The form at the port though - unless it has changed - is pretty explicit that the symptoms need to be combined with fever and/or GI issues. If you've been throwing up or having it out the other end, then you are lying if you check no. They will not necessarily deny you boarding - you will meet with a medic and you can say "We ate really rich food" or whatever your excuse is for it, they will examine you and make a determination. If it was truly food and you have no other symptoms, you will be allowed to board. If it IS something else, then yes, you would be denied (which is where trip insurance comes in handy). If you lie and are discovered to be sick on board, you'll be quarantined - so really no cruise for you anyway.

Actually, in defense, one of the most contagious periods is after you have (at times unknowingly) been exposed and before you even start to show symptoms. By then it’s often too late.

 

[RAD]

I think RCCL did a nice job of custom relations after this. They gave full refunds for the cruise (not some voucher good for a future cruise) and refunded any in room movie or room service charges.

 

[phinz]

I think RCCL did a nice job of custom relations after this. They gave full refunds for the cruise (not some voucher good for a future cruise) and refunded any in room movie or room service charges.

I agree. They did a fantastic job.

In my case this year, I got a voucher for a one day discount, free room service (They limit what you can have based on how long you've been quarantined to make sure you're eating bland food, and Guest Services tracks whether you order. I can scan the sheet of paper they gave me and post it if wanted.) and free movies. This was on the New Year's Eve Oasis cruise, just before the latest truncated cruise. Medical services were free.

When I was stuck in my room for three days on the Fantasy earlier last year I got free medical service and free room service, but they didn't limit what I could order. I wasn't offered any monetary recompense whatsoever, even though I missed two out of three port days (I didn't expect them to. I was surprised RCCL offered it, but apparently that's not unusual for them). In fact, I was called by Remy about having to cancel our dinner, Palo for not being able to make it to Be Our Chef (My wife had already called them the day my illness began and told them that I would not be making it because they didn't want me in their kitchen) and Guest Services twice for not being able to make it to Be Our Chef. Every time they told me I was going to be charged for having to cancel. My phone rang so many times I finally had to tell them to not call me again because I was trying to rest. I wasn't charged for any of it in the end, but I didn't appreciate being told I would be when there was absolutely no way I should be in their kitchen or should be eating rich French food. Our stateroom host was really good to us, and one of our friends in Guest Services sent us a basket of goodies the evening I came out of quarantine, but the rest of the experience of being sick was frustrating.

 

[Snowwhyt]

I was just in Jamaica on Saturday and the tour guide said the Oasis had been turned away at port because of sick passengers.