Tracking Cruising Restart: News and Updates

[hrhdhd]

Thanks for posting.

 

[OhBother1984]

Key word is may.....still have a lot to go to get started and not official yet

 

[Husker Mike]

I'm not sure this is much of a change for Disney.

Ships can bypass the required simulated test voyages carrying volunteers and jump to sailings with paying passengers if 98% of crew and 95% of passengers are fully vaccinated.

At face value, that statement will not allow Disney to resume operations, unless there is a missing asterisk that clarifies that it's 95% of adult passengers are fully vaccinated. Of course, this then throws the issue into the Florida state capitol, where that's a non-starter under state policy.

 

[yowcruiser]

I'm not sure this is much of a change for Disney.



At face value, that statement will not allow Disney to resume operations, unless there is a missing asterisk that clarifies that it's 95% of adult passengers are fully vaccinated. Of course, this then throws the issue into the Florida state capitol, where that's a non-starter under state policy.

True - but for those cruise lines that still elects or need to go the test cruise route, the plans will be reviewed within 5 days rather than 60 "CDC will review and respond to applications from cruise lines for simulated voyages within 5 days, a review previously expected to take 60 days" So this is still an improvement - it may take a bit more time for DCL and other family oriented cruise lines - but there still is a path

 

[Intr3pid]

This just in!
https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2021/04/28/cdc-cruises-could-restart-july/4883450001/

None of this is official, but to list the highlights of the reported letter:

1. Cruises could begin passenger voyages from the United States in mid-July, depending on cruise lines' pace and compliance with the CDC's Framework for Conditional Sailing Order.

2. The CDC offered clarifications to its guidance based on industry feedback and still expects cruise lines to meet its requirements before sailing can resume.

3. Ships can bypass the required simulated test voyages carrying volunteers and jump to sailings with paying passengers if 98% of crew and 95% of passengers are fully vaccinated.

4. CDC will review and respond to applications from cruise lines for simulated voyages within 5 days, a review previously expected to take 60 days.

5. The CDC has clarified guidance on quarantine guidelines for passengers who may be exposed to or contract COVID-19. For example, local passengers may be able to drive home and passengers who have traveled by air to cruise may quarantine in a hotel.

6. CDC has clarified that cruise ship operators may enter into a "multi-port agreement" rather than a single port agreement as long as all port and local authorities sign the agreement.

The #5 and #6 are likely directed at the broader requirements of securing shoreside medical care and setting up non-congregating terminals.

The letter has a more encouraging comment:

"CDC looks forward to continued engagement with the industry and urges cruise lines to submit Phase 2A port agreements as soon as possible to maintain the timeline of passenger voyages by mid-July."

It suggests that the CDC and the industry are working together more collaboratively. That should have been the way forward instead of the lawsuits!

 

[John VN]

DW began to "pack cruise specific items" for our OCTOBER CRUISE following 2nd Moderna injection back in February We felt confident back then that the cruise out of PC would set sail.

 

[mevelandry]

None of this is official, but to list the highlights of the reported letter:

1. Cruises could begin passenger voyages from the United States in mid-July, depending on cruise lines' pace and compliance with the CDC's Framework for Conditional Sailing Order.

2. The CDC offered clarifications to its guidance based on industry feedback and still expects cruise lines to meet its requirements before sailing can resume.

3. Ships can bypass the required simulated test voyages carrying volunteers and jump to sailings with paying passengers if 98% of crew and 95% of passengers are fully vaccinated.

4. CDC will review and respond to applications from cruise lines for simulated voyages within 5 days, a review previously expected to take 60 days.

5. The CDC has clarified guidance on quarantine guidelines for passengers who may be exposed to or contract COVID-19. For example, local passengers may be able to drive home and passengers who have traveled by air to cruise may quarantine in a hotel.

6. CDC has clarified that cruise ship operators may enter into a "multi-port agreement" rather than a single port agreement as long as all port and local authorities sign the agreement.

The #5 and #6 are likely directed at the broader requirements of securing shoreside medical care and setting up non-congregating terminals.

The letter has a more encouraging comment:

"CDC looks forward to continued engagement with the industry and urges cruise lines to submit Phase 2A port agreements as soon as possible to maintain the timeline of passenger voyages by mid-July."

It suggests that the CDC and the industry are working together more collaboratively. That should have been the way forward instead of the lawsuits!

So, if I understand this correctly: by making vaccination mandatory for all passengers/crew... Cruiselines wouldn’t have to subject themselves to « simulated voyages » and resume sailings right away?

 

[Husker Mike]

Not right away... but mid-July. And while it's not mandatory, the threshold is so high that only the most serious objections to the vaccine would be acceptable. (i.e. medical or perhaps long-standing religious exemptions)

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Obviously still challenges on crew vac. Most crew won't be vaxed at home, so I'd they bring them in they need to quarantine them and have them stateside for 6 weeks before they can work.

RCCL has canceled all crew contracts in India because basically nowhere they can embark crew will allow arrivals from India right now.

 

[Princess Merida]

They could shorten the time they need to vaccinate crew by weeks with the J&J shot which is what I would imagine they would do. I’m very interested in whether or not that 95% threshold is for 18+ or not. I really hope so or I’m sure my Disney cruise will cancel due to the amount of children onboard.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

They could shorten the time they need to vaccinate crew by weeks with the J&J shot which is what I would imagine they would do. I’m very interested in whether or not that 95% threshold is for 18+ or not. I really hope so or I’m sure my Disney cruise will cancel due to the amount of children onboard.

If they can get the J&J. Keep in mind that vaccine has heavy export control and cannot yet be sold to a private enterprise. Companies holding on-site clinics for employees are getting supply from their state. So to vaccine everyone for staffing a PC-based ship, the supply to do it would likely have to come from State of Florida. And that can depend on what they have for supply, and the politics. Given that Florida is saying "no one can require vaccines in Florida for access!" and is also suing the CDC... I can see them not providing this flow of vaccine to the companies, KWIM?

 

[mevelandry]

They could shorten the time they need to vaccinate crew by weeks with the J&J shot which is what I would imagine they would do. I’m very interested in whether or not that 95% threshold is for 18+ or not. I really hope so or I’m sure my Disney cruise will cancel due to the amount of children onboard.

It looks like they are not specific regarding the age. Because of that reason, I could see DCL cruise resume later than other cruise lines.

 

[Husker Mike]

It looks like they are not specific regarding the age. Because of that reason, I could see DCL cruise resume later than other cruise lines.

After my April 2021 cruise was cancelled, I took a chance on a late July cruise. I only gave it a 10% chance of occurring, but I figured it was worth a shot and I could always push to a later date when it came time to PIF in May. As vaccination restrictions waned a few weeks ago, I pushed that up to a 20%-25% chance...but as I saw little movement from the cruise lines, it started sliding back to 15%. Last night, I jumped it to a 1 in 3 chance we go. Disney could still do a test sailing (because they can't run a 95% adult cruise) and possibly get things approved by the CDC in time, now that the time to approve went from 60 days to five.

So now the ball is in Disney's court. I don't expect an immediate announcement, but I would expect to hear some sort of response in the next couple of weeks unless Disney has already given up on July. (In which case, go cancel them.)

 

[Intr3pid]

Here is an overview of CDC's phased approach:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/pdf/CSO-Phased-Approach-Infographic-p.pdf
Phase 1 was crew testing and onboard safety procedures, and presumably all cruise lines have completed it.

Phase 2A is primairly the shoreside housing and medical agreements with ports and service providers, and that's what I think the cruise lines are working on right now.

Phase 2B is the simulated voyages, and you can skip this if you have a sufficient number of vaccinated crew and guests on board.

Phase 3 is the certification and - if the cruise lines have met the conditions of the prior phases - is largely administrative. It looks like the length of time it will take to get the certificate has now been slashed down to 5 days (from 60 days before).

Phase 4 is your revenue sailings (with restrictions).

----------------------------------------------------

So, Disney could still qualify for revenue sailings without vaccination requirements if it undertook the simulated voyages (Phase 2B) first. The CDC is saying that it's possible to sail in July with Phase 2B in the mix, but I think that's a stretch. August looks more likely if all other ducks are in the row.

 

[Intr3pid]

RCL Chairman Fain thinks that the new path is practical and very doable:

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/29/roy...aises-cdcs-new-path-to-resume-us-cruises.html

 

[brentm77]

RCL Chairman Fain thinks that the new path is practical and very doable:

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/29/roy...aises-cdcs-new-path-to-resume-us-cruises.html

Glad to hear. This move by the CDC was a good one and it will take a lot of the wind out of the sails of Florida's lawsuit. It won't take much for the lawsuit to become moot, and I think the court will be particularly reluctant to issue a preliminary injunction instead of allowing this to play out.

 

[Intr3pid]

New CDC technical instructions for a cruising restart are in!

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/1-cdc-advances-plan-resumption-200942822.html
"On Wednesday, the CDC announced two new phases and said operators now have all necessary requirements needed to start simulated voyages before resuming restricted passenger voyages and apply for a COVID-19 conditional sailing certificate to begin sailing with restricted passenger voyages."

More details:

Technical instructions for simulated voyages:
https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/cruise/ti-simulated-voyages-cso.html
COVID-19 Operations Manual for Simulated and Restricted Voyages:
https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/cruise/covid19-operations-manual-cso.html

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

You know, I've worked for the Federal Government since I was 18. I still have a hard time reading that verbiage. My takeaway? Tons of paperwork that I really hope that DCL and the other cruise lines have already foreseen and prepared IOT execute the test cruises. I didn't realize that these were actual cruises from port A to port B. I thought they'd be 'fast cruises' where the crew would go about their daily routine as if they were underway but not actually leave anchorage. We would routinely do pierside events as if we were underway if the training/certification event didn't require the ship to actually be out to sea..

 

[brentm77]

New CDC technical instructions for a cruising restart are in!

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/1-cdc-advances-plan-resumption-200942822.html
"On Wednesday, the CDC announced two new phases and said operators now have all necessary requirements needed to start simulated voyages before resuming restricted passenger voyages and apply for a COVID-19 conditional sailing certificate to begin sailing with restricted passenger voyages."

More details:

Technical instructions for simulated voyages:
https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/cruise/ti-simulated-voyages-cso.html
COVID-19 Operations Manual for Simulated and Restricted Voyages:
https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/cruise/covid19-operations-manual-cso.html

The CDC has now made two big moves to make the preliminary injunction in Florida v. CDC almost certain to be denied. First, they are allowing a quicker path to cruising via vaccinated ships. Second, they have released the guidance that Florida was arguing wouldn't be available in time for the summer season. I do think the lawsuit might have been at least one motivating factor, as the CDC's response is actually due today. I am glad to see things progressing.

 

[Intr3pid]

As I am reading through the conditions of the simulated voyages, here are some salient points:

1. In lieu of conducting a simulated voyage, cruise ship operator ... may sign and submit to CDC ... that 98 percent of crew are fully vaccinated and ... a clear and specific vaccination plan and timeline to limit cruise ship sailings to 95 percent of passengers who have been verified by the cruise ship operator as fully vaccinated prior to sailing.

2. Cruise ship operators are advised that CDC has no responsibility for enforcing requirements relating to the PVSA and no authority to waive these statutory requirements.

3. Simulated voyage specs:
- At least one simulation per ship
- Ship must have a green or orange color code
- Between 2 to 7 days of length, but recommended 3 days minimum
- At least one overnight stay
- Ship must visit each port with which it has the shoreside housing and medical care agreement
- New simulation only and has to be in US waters