Leaving for My Carnival Victory Cruise
Well, its about 5 am and its time for me to get moving. I’m not much of a coffee drinker but this morning it seems to be the cure for what ails me. My plane leaves in about three hours and I still have to drop off the car, so I guess it would be in my best interest to get going. I made a little video so that you all can get a glimmer of my pre-cruise ritual, let me know what you think.
All my bags are packed I’m ready to go,
I’m standing here outside your door,
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye,
But the dawn is a breakin’ its early morn,
The taxi’s waitin he’s blowin his horn,
Already I’m so lonesome I could die,
Over 300 Cruise Passengers Fall Ill
What happens when 400 passengers on a cruise ship catches Norovirus. The short answer would be, the cruise ship’s septic system gets one hell of a workout. The longer answer involve things like a CDC (center for disease control) investigation, additional medical personnel and a hot tub that I would not be visiting.
When passengers boarded the Celebrity Mercury for an 11 day cruise heading out of Charleston, South Carolina they were expecting a dream vacation. Instead, many of them (over 300) ended up with getting sick. No, it wasn’t due to rough seas or anything that mundane, it looks to be a full blown outbreak of what may be Norovirus.
Standard procedures during these outbreaks dictate that affected passengers are quarantined, although I am not sure how you quarantine 20% of the passengers. The good news is it has been reported that passengers are responding favorably to over the counter medications being given onboard. Those passengers will be compensated in the form of on-board credit for the number of days they were locked-up. The better news is that this norovirus outbreak will not effect the next sailing of the Mercury.
The Center for Disease control will be launching an investigation into this outbreak, standard procedure for any outbreak of more than 2 percent of a cruise. The reason for this investigation is to determine if it was indeed a Norovirus outbreak or just something mimicing Noro. The Mercury is due back into Charleston this Friday and it doesn’t look as if the next sailing will be affected. However if you are cruising any time soon or are just curious this may be a good time to familiarize yourself with Norovirus. Here is a post I wrote last year about Norovirus. The post includes a description of what Norovirus is and ways to help prevent contracting Noro.
Stay Connected With Royal Connect
When the crown jewel of the Royal Caribbean fleet Oasis of the Seas set sail one of the cool new features it contained was a service that would help parents keep track of their children. The “Royal Connect” service combined the use of a specially modified Apple Iphone with a track-able electronic wristband. For the low cost of 17.50, parents could strap this low jack around their child’s wrist and be able to see in real time the exact location of the child (cheap at twice the price). Additionally, passengers who enrolled in the service would be able to call and text each other, make calls to cabins, arrange spa and restaurant reservations and read about the latest on-board activities (saving paper and reducing wastes).
Not Just For Adults
A parent can also rent a phone not only for themselves but also for their child since there is no age restriction on who can use one. Sounds like a pretty good idea doesn’t it. However if you are going to rent for either yourself or anyone else in your party make sure they are handled responsibly, passengers not returning the “Royal Connect” iPhone will be charged 1,000 dollars. That is unless you happen to have an iPhone.
An App for Everything
Passengers who have an iPhone will now be able to use the Royal Connect service on their personal phone through the use of the “Royal Connect” Iphone app (the 17.50 fee does still apply). Through the use of the 1000 wi-fi hotspot locations on-board the Oasis of the Seas, passengers with an iPhone can now enjoy the same benefits of those using the Royal Caribbean phones. Although the idea of losing a 400 dollar iPhone isn’t exactly comforting it does allow you to enjoy the benefits of Royal Connect without the specter of a 1000 dollar lost phone fee hanging over their heads.
Since I don’t usually travel with more than one or two other people I don’t really have a need for this type of technology so to me it would just be a waste of money, still I can understand the merits of the “Royal Connect” system. Paying 35.00 dollars would just be a waste when traveling with only my girlfriend, but when traveling in groups of 4 or more the costs are more justified (especially on board a ship as massive as the Oasis of the Seas).
Some of the best instances when a phone would be useful uses for this service would be during a family reunion, on-board wedding or some other big gathering a people when coordination is crucial or where teens would be more inclined to travel in packs. All that would be needed is for one member of the pack such as one responsible child to carry the phone allowing effortless coordination of plans or tracking of children while keeping costs to a minimum.
Although I (and many others) try to disconnect myself from technology and the burden of gadgets as much as possible while on vacation I do consider this a great use of technology. Currently this is only available on the Oasis of the Seas however Royal Caribbean has stated that it may retrofit more of its fleet with the “Royal Connect” service.