The cruise lines are telling Wall Street that 2022 bookings are weakening significantly,
which is not a surprise to me as I’m being asked all the time by potential cruisers
if they should go cruising anytime soon, or even this year at all.
I have been cruising and found many challenges, issues, and things to consider. I’ve managed to
boil it all down to 4 big questions that you need to ask if you are thinking of cruising this year.
And more importantly, through my mistakes and experiences, I have very specific
actions and things you can do if after these questions you still want to go cruising.
By the way, if you are new here, welcome aboard. I’m Gary Bembridge and it’s my goal
to make it fun and easy to discover, plan and enjoy unforgettable cruise vacations
First, you need to ask if you are able
and, more importantly, willing to keep on top of the constantly changing rules.
And of course, be willingly to adapt and change plans as
the rules change – often during the trip - without getting stressed out.
For example, just two days before I left for Panama to join a cruise on Oceania.
Panama changed the rules around vaccination which required
three doses to avoid any of the restrictions and quarantining.
Whilst on my Ponant Antarctic trip, the UK changed the type of test required for my return
which meant finding a new test centre before my flight home.
On the cruise I'm just back from in the Caribbean, as I record this, ports were constantly changing
in-port restrictions, which we would often only discover the night before or even on the day.
St Lucia, Barbados and St Kitts decided we could only go on a cruise-line “bubble” excursions,
or use government approved taxis to a small list of government approved
locations. We only were aware of that often the day before we got into some of those ports.
If you decide you are happy to travel with changing rules likely, like I am,
what should you do to make this less stressful?
First, get someone else to do much of the work. I book through a travel agent,
Sarah Bolton of Travel Counsellors, who I know, trust and have proven herself
to be up to date and proactive in terms of tracking and letting me know the rule changes.
Her agency also has a 24-hour helpline that can be contacted by phone, but also
importantly by email which is key when on a ship.
Second, I make I read every single document the cruise lines send me.
For example, from both Holland America and Oceania cruises I’ve just done almost every day
in the run up to the cruises there were e-mails announcing, reinforcing, or changing rules.
I read every one of them as many require actions and I know if I miss anything
the lines will refuse boarding, and that will be at my expense.
The third critical thing is I found travellers need to be tech savvy to navigate all of this.
You need to be good with a smartphone or tablet. People without these I saw getting really stressed
and struggling because you must complete these various country and cruise line forms online.
And you need access to emails and a device to be able to
pull up the various competed forms to scan QR codes, and to stay in touch with changes.
Also, once on board the cruise lines have now shifted most of the cruise
materials and bookings onto their Smartphone App.
I watch the new muster drill process often on an app. I review the daily program,
book dinner times, book a slot at some events and venues and reserve excursions on those Apps.
Of course, you can get help in person from the crew to do all these too
and will not be excluded, but I have seen less tech-savvy passengers get stressed and fraught
on all my trips struggling to navigate the changes and country, line and port requirements and forms
However, there is an even more fundamental question to ask that could be the killer one.
Will you be comfortable with whatever
protocols the cruise lines will have in place when you cruise?
We will not know exactly what they will be until the time of the cruise.
This struck me when I received an email from one of the followers of the channel
saying their wife had said that she refused to go on their cruise if she had to wear a
mask. They had a cruise booked in 7 months, but what should he do.
My point to him was, we have no idea what the protocols will be throughout this year.
There’s some key protocols which
I am assuming are going to stay for a while, if for much of the year.
First, vaccinations. I think if you can't have, or don't want to have a
vaccine – or soon a booster - then cruising as a vacation option will
be impossible or very restricted and I would not schedule one.
The cruise lines are extending their vaccine mandates further into the year.
And the requirement for ‘fully vaccinated” to require a booster jab is gaining speed.
I received e-mails in the two days before I recorded this
from three lines, I have bookings with this year
(Silversea, Viking and Azamara) advising that I must have a booster to be able to board.
P&O and Cunard in the UK for recent cruises required boosters.
Even Carnival Cruise Line say they will follow whatever the rules the USA CDC have,
and they are indicating they're likely to change the definition of fully vaccinated
to including boosters (which may have happened by time you watch this).
Growing number of countries that cruises call on, like Panama as I already mentioned,
are requiring boosters or vaccines within a certain timeframe to enter.
I cannot even enter the United States without being vaccinated to join a cruise
because the US only let vaccinated visitors in.
The cruise lines will have to keep vaccines
as part of the protocols because many countries require a vaccine before you can even go in.
The second protocol is masks. Mask wearing mandates
will likely over time diminish or be reduced.
However, I believe that cruise lines will be one of the last places to lift mask wearing as
are in an enclosed environment and interacting a lot, and many ports seem set to maintain it.
Lines, I believe, will be slow to lift this as mask protocols have largely been followed
and customer data I’ve seen reported that many find it a reassuring measure.
Less clear to me is around lower capacity and social distancing on ships,
and how quickly they will build back
higher load levels. This brings me though to a related question. One I am wrestling with.
How comfortable will you be if they lift all the protocols?
If the lines say, we're now sailing with full ships, no social distancing,
no masks or even lifting the vaccine rules, how comfortable will you be getting on a ship?
I think there's many who will not be comfortable with that change once they think about it.
I've been on quite a few cruises since shutdown. All at very reduced capacity.
My Holland America Nieuw Statendam was around 30%. Other cruises I've been on,
including Celebrity, Princess, Viking and even Ponant Antarctica we had 50% capacity.
I am used to space and no crowded and busy places on board. It was reassuring.
I noticed for example, when I was on my last cruise, that people were
informally socially distancing in the theatre. And if a stranger sat down next to someone,
people would get up and move to keep space between them
and the new arrivals - even though it wasn't part of the rules and regulations.
How comfortable will I, and you, be with full theatres, full excursion busses and so on?
If you are not comfortable to cruise not knowing what protocols will be in place when you cruise,
I have some actions and tips.
First, look at delaying or pushing back your cruise now.
But even if you are happy to go without clarity on protocols,
understand the rules, key decision dates and flexibility your line is
offering in case the protocols are not suitable close to the cruise.
Check if the line offers a “cruise with confidence” fare
that allows you, even once you've paid final balance, to cancel
or postpone your cruise. I made the mistake of not checking on my last cruise and realised
too late that only 30 days before departure could I change with no penalty.
If booking a new cruise, go for a refundable deposit or very low one. For example, I recently
booked a Christmas 2022 cruise on Westerdam which only has a £120 (about $170) deposit.
But if you have any reservations do not pay your final balance and move your cruise, as once you
have paid it even if you delay and get Future Cruise Credit you have a lot of money tied up.
But there is another thing to consider based on the type of cruise you are doing.
Is the cruise a bucket list cruise? Perhaps one that you've
always wanted to do and may only do once in your life, or maybe there is a destination, port,
or activity fundamental to why you are going on the cruise.
There is no certainty on when lines and ports will be able to deliver
everything, so are you willing to pay a full fare and not get that full experience.
I got no compensation for a change of port (from Martinique to Grenada) or a cancelled St Thomas
call on my Caribbean cruise and neither have others for more port cancellations.
I was happy to go to the Caribbean knowing that ports may chop and change because any of them
offered that I wanted to do: escape European winter, get some sun, and go to the beach. So,
whether I was doing this is in Grenada, or Martinique was less important to me.
But if that Martinique was fundamental to my going, this would be very different
For example, I have a Baltic cruise during the summer,
and knowing I will get to go to Saint Petersburg is essential.
For that cruise, I bought cancellation insurance for any reason as I could not get
a “cruise with confidence” fare.
Also, linked to this is ask if there are specific things that you want to do
onboard the ship or in a port that is fundamental to the experience.
If you are doing a cruise where the itinerary,
or on-board activities, are key then these are my tips:
First, if you have an absolute must do, must go to place, look at your options
to move now and, at least, know the key decision dates to shift without penalties.
Second, if making a new booking look for a fare that offers changes close to the cruise or with
low financial risk, like that Christmas cruise I mentioned with only $175 deposit.
There is one question which few seem to ask which, in my view, is
essential as it could make a huge difference to how your trip plays out, and costs.
This is asking exactly what happens if you test positive for Covid
or are a close contact of someone who tests positive. And, who's
going to cover any costs of isolation, quarantine and medical care if needed.
I have found that cruise lines have not made it that easy to find out what those will be.
On my recent cruise on Oceania, they were the first to have sent to me in detail in
a pre-cruise email, and unpromoted, what happens if I tested positive.
For example, testing positive in the pre-boarding test means
5 days quarantine in a hotel arranged and covered by Oceania.
Testing positive and symptomatic means 10 days quarantine on board. If the cruise ends before
that time is up, then I would be disembarked into a hotel arranged and covered by them.
If asymptomatic and been in quarantine for at least 5 days, means disembarking
as planned and able to travel home.
On most lines I have been on, positive passengers are moved from their cabin
to dedicated cabins in a secure and restricted area on the ship.
Close contacts are usually quarantined in the cabin they have booked.
However, these rules differ by region. In the Caribbean isolated passengers
and crew are kept on the ship or perhaps transferred to a separate quarantining ship.
However, in Europe, positive and close contact guests are
usually removed from the ship for isolation.
In all those cases the cruise line was covering costs, transfers home arranged, and costs covered.
This is what I do and recommend
First, get your travel agent or the line to confirm will happen at all stages and
who covers the costs, including if you will be refunded any of the fare while in isolation.
Second, have insurance that covers Covid issues like quarantine,
return home and medical. My insurance covers that.
Third, if travelling to a foreign country to catch a cruise, time it so you can do the required
cruise line PCR or Antigen test for boarding at home. So you don’t have to do it once there,
as if you test positive then you will have to sort and pay for your quarantine and miss the cruise.
Fundamental to this whole thing is flexibility. If you are flexible
and you know that you will not get stressed by some of this uncertainty, keep going.
Why not find out more about what it's like to cruise right now during the current situation,
look at this video where I show you in detail exactly what it's like starting with one of the
things that I had probably thought was going to be a massive issue, but turned out not to
be a massive issue, and one that caught me completely blindsided. See you over there.