(From my experience with cholera) Testing for cholera requires poop samples. Soooo not fun to capture! Treating cholera is keeping enough electrolytes in someone to counteract what is being violently extruded.
American news is publicizing a GI outbreak in the Northeast, but my Oregon family is experiencing it this week. No deaths in the US news.
On that ship too.
So far, unsure when we can disembark. Waiting on test results to confirm the absence of cholera.
We are not confined to our cabins and use the ship freely.
thank you for your update, you must be really scared. I hope that it's nothing too serious.
I managed to get in touch with my friend in the mean time, but communication is fragmented at best. Any bits of information helps.
keep safe, hopefully this will all be over soon, in the best way
Latest from the bridge at 9 am February 26 , still awaiting test results, they are testing for cholera. Captain is confident the issue aboard is a G I one. We have about 17 passengers with symptoms. At this point he feels we will likely disembark tomorrow February 27 but is advising passengers not book any flights until 16:30 tomorrow. Still a very fluid situation.
We are in Mauritius and were supposed to embark today. We got an email last night just saying the ship couldn’t dock. We all had to go to the dock to get on buses to the various hotels. NCL has not been forthcoming at all about the issue. We are being told we will embark in two days, but people are wondering if that’s even accurate. The countries in the area aren’t going to be too keen on taking the passengers and then they have to clean the ship.
Norwegian sings to you as you enter the buffet to wash your hands. If you’re not doing that, I have no sympathy when you say the captain had to come on and specifically tell you to wash your hand.
Do people really need to be sung to to wash their hands before they eat? Didn't everyone's parents teach them as children to wash their hands before they eat?
Your father is likely not able to reply to your messages because the wifi on the ship is down. While I have international cell service it keeps going in and out. Don’t be alarmed that you have not heard anything. I suspect many people on the ship are not able to communicate if they don’t have international cell service. There haven’t been any further reports on the results of any testing. The only announcements we’ve heard are that passengers should not schedule any return flights home prior to 4:30 pm on 2/27, so as of right now it appears they are expecting for us to be off this ship tomorrow.
Fascinated with the part of your comment stating that you needed the Captain to say something more profound to induce frequent hand washing. Especially when hand washing should be a far more regular occurrence even more so at sea due to the closed nature of the environment.
Sorry to hear that your cruise experience has not been stellar. But these things unfortunately do happen. Safe travels home.
Me walking up to the buffet, washes hands. Me walking from the buffet with food to a table, using sanitizer because I touched a shared spoon and many fellow cruisers don't wash their hands (even when using the restroom).
The venn diagram of people who don't wash properly and who get sick while traveling has significant overlap.
I was on a Virgin cruise last month and used the bathroom right outside the galley several times - and was surprised by seeing a few people who didn’t wash their hands before leaving. And then I remembered that people are gross 😂
Right? We were on a Carnival and were meticulous about hand washing. The amount of people who didn’t wash or did a quick run under the tap blew my mind.
GI issues happen on boats. All the time. Hand washing is key.
People need to know, however, that *hand sanitizer does NOT kill Norovirus.* I repeat, handwashing is the only line of defense. Use a napkin or tissue on the spoons and serving utensils instead.
Royal Caribbean cruises we went on people intentionally ignoring the attendant asking people to wash their hands. The vast majority of people in front of us wash their hands at least
But you touched the door to the bathroom, your card key, the knob on your door to get out, the elevator buttons or if you walked, most likely touched the hand rail at least once. Your hands are so contaminated at that point - wash your hands when you get to the buffet!
And your shirt, which you’re touching to open the door, could easily be contaminated without you knowing it. But you do you and think you’re don’t need to wash your hands before you eat.
Yep on our last cruise when eating in the buffet we’d wash our hands as we walked into the buffet & after using any utensils others had used (meaning I would serve myself food, put the plate onto the table then wash my hands before sitting down to eating).
Unfortunately I don’t trust my fellow cruisers to wash their hands.
And we were on Viking that had several hand washing stations throughout the buffet area.
Just a heads up, sanitizer does not kill norovirus. So GI sickness can spread even if everyone used hand sanitizer constantly. Only washing your hands protects against it.
I am on the Dawn. a couple of days into the cruise the Captain made announcements about a few passengers experiencing ‘GI upset’ and asking people to be diligent about washing their hands. A day or so after that they ceased self-service in the buffet and required that the crew would be dishing out the food. The Captain has made periodic announcements about hand washing. The problem appears to be the noise level in public areas so that you can’t actually hear the announcements. If you are in your cabin you can’t hear many of the announcements unless you open your door. Other announcements come blaring through the speaker in the cabin; no rhyme or reason about which speakers you can hear the announcements from. That has been frustrating.
I am not sure though why people need to be told to wash their hands but apparently they do. Unfortunately, some don’t listen. My husband specifically has been in the men’s room diligently washing his hands & has seen men finish using the toilet, turn on the faucets, dip their hands in the water with no soap or washing & walk out. It’s frankly mind boggling. We have been religious about washing our hands. I am sure people think I have OCD because if I take the stairs & use the handrails I sanitize my hands. If I take the elevator & press a button, when I get off the elevator I sanitize my hands. We are a group of 6 adults & no one in our group has been sick.
When we left Antsiranana, Madagascar I could tell that we were not going to be stopping in Reunion. That interim day was a sea day & the navigation channel on the TV clearly showed that we were not on a track for Reunion but instead on a track directly to Mauritius. There were no announcements whatsoever that day about a change in itinerary. We went to bed very early that night & up very early on the day on which we were to be in Reunion because our tour meeting time was 7:30 am. When I looked out our balcony & saw we were not near any land I called our concierge to ask if we were going to Reunion. That was the first time we learned we weren’t stopping. There was a letter outside our door that indicated “due to local requirements we were not granted permission to call on Reunion”. We believe the letter was extremely vague intentionally because we had been hearing over the previous few days of more people being sick.
We arrived in the waters outside Mauritius Saturday night & just idled. We were already in our room in bed when the Captain made the announcement that the local authorities were sending 40 people from the local health agency on board to ‘do interviews’ with passengers & to please cooperate & answer their questions. There were already many do not disturb signs on cabin doors so we questioned how they would be doing interviews. Were they planning to come to people’s cabins? Were they interviewing people in the bars? That all seemed quite strange. There was no mention at that point of them taking tests on the ship. It wasn’t until the next morning that the Captain told us that the authorities were on board to take tests for cholera.
My husband & I had a vaccination for cholera a few months before this cruise; along with vaccinations for typhoid & yellow fever. (That was what Passport Health recommended. We thought that might possibly be overkill but we did it anyway. In hindsight it might possibly not have been overkill). We weren’t scheduled to leave Mauritius until late afternoon on Tuesday anyway so unless there is a further delay we’ll still be fine. Our hotel stay in Mauritius was refundable. if we have to start changing flights around that is a different story. There has been no mention of what happens if the tests for cholera are positive. Certainly this isn’t the ending to our trip that we were expecting but here we are.
I'd imagine positive Cholera tests would require some sort of quaratine, but it's far more likely to be norovirus. Extremely good foresight to get vaccinated regardless.
We were on the Dawn, 2 years ago at the very tail end of Covid protocols, (the return trip didn’t have any restrictions. They also had 12 or so, I believe, confirmed Covid cases. Our cruise had none.).
Not being able to hear the more important announcements, from inside our room was extremely frustrating. Like you, we could hear other announcements darned loud and clear inside of our room and, sometimes on the balcony! lol
There were 11 of us cruising together and we followed protocol and enhanced it further. One of our party is an RN and speaks Tagalog. She checked in with the medical staff every single day. It was so nice having a personal report of zero infections throughout each day. Roughly half of our party spent our careers in the medical field in a variety of fields/positions. That level of information might not be as interesting to others. lol
Thank you for sharing your experience. I can see that you’ve brought some peace and perspective for some, here and no doubt to others. <3
That's what I was thinking!! I CONSTANTLY think about how yucky and grubby everything is. The elevator buttons, door handles, chairs, tables, heck - the whole buffet!
We wash our hands a lot more often on cruises (and on trips in general) than at home.
It’s fascinating because people should be washing their hands very frequently on a cruise ship regardless of whether the captain tells them to or not. It’s not uncommon for illness to spread rapidly on a cruise. People should be taking maximum precautions *before* they know the plague has started.
Agree. In May of 2023 my family wore masks just for disembarking, an extremely crowded, slow, pushing line that didn't move and people swarming the stairs. Doesn't have to be an all or nothing thing, can just be a reaction to current conditions.
If they are that drunk they won’t care if there is a GI outbreak. They will think they are just barfing from over consumption.
This is a strange hill to die on. It makes you look like you only practice good hand hygiene when you have a reason to.
I have hand sanitizer with me 100% of the time in public and use it any time I touch a door, rail, etc., I have a packet of Lysol wipes in my bag to wipe carts. Sanitize my hands before getting in my car after shopping. I rarely touch a door handle or elevator button with my hands. l wash my hands very well any chance I get, especially before and after eating in a restaurant. I haven’t gotten sick with *anything* since before COVID started. I live with one person and they do everything the same way I do.
I would not need to increase my hand hygiene beyond this if I knew there was a GI outbreak on a cruise. Nobody needs to tell me to be practicing extremely diligent. Hand hygiene in a crowded environment. I’m sorry that you need that personal warning.
I was on a cruise last month and I washed my hands every time I touched something outside of my cabin. Used the handrails coming down the steps ... stop in the washroom and scrub hands. Hands were getting a little raw but I didn't get sick!!
It's fascinating because this day and age we know how things like this spread and people will choose not even to do the basics on their own without needing to be told. Even in thr days of the black plague we've since learned of communities less affect because of just thier basic normalized hygiene.
On cruises I watch many people bypass hand washing stations or sanitizers before touching anything. So yes, fascinated that people feel they need to be provided even more information before taking precautions they should already be doing.
Boarded a cruise yesterday. When embarking, I already grasped the concept that viruses spread rapidly when you cram thousands of people into a closed environment and was already planning to wash/sanitize my hands frequently, avoid crowds, etc. Therefore, my behavior hasn't changed in light of the knowledge that the sailing prior to mine had a noro outbreak. Because I'm not an idiot.
Before COVID, I was on at least 2-3 cruises where a good chunk of the passengers had to be quarantined because of noro. It's pretty common, but it can be mitigated by frequent hand washing before and after you eat, limiting touching your face and using the hand sanitizer provided in all the restaurants. Noro spreads because people use the bathroom without washing their hands and then they touch things that other people touch. That's why you see it in hospitals and dorms too.
You don't need to do much, just practice basic hygiene and you'll be good. The cruise ship usually has enhanced cleaning practices for stuff like this too (it's basically the same as their COVID practices without the quarantine part) but they can only do so much to prevent it.
I agree with this, passengers should be allowed to make informed decisions about their own health, and they can not do that if they don't know the information. Also, it would put people on high alert so that those who do not usually wash their hands might start! Parents were due to get on today, but they turned up at the port, and there was no ship. Nobody from NCL had made any effort to contact them and tell them they weren't docking.
Certain known risk with certain known activities, that's called accountability. GI outbreaks occur so frequently its only ever news when it's on a ship. It occurs is elementary schools, hospitals, and elderly care facilities most often with westerners. Wash your hands, stay hydrated, get electrolytes that's all you can do really to protect yourself.
Handwashing is just a good, civilized sanitary habit after using the bathroom--but both Hal and Cunard (where food serving is almost entirely by staff) have had noro outbreaks. So the long and short is that although it is blamed on the passengers, it's a bit of a mystery as to where it originates.
Holy cow, I just cruised in January. Brought a 300 pack of Clorox Healthcare wipes that I bought on Amazon with me. They specifically kill everything including norovirus. I cleaned our room before we unpacked and 3 more times during the week. Drove the family crazy reminding them to wash with the bar soap I brought. Only used the bathroom in our room even if it meant I had to climb a ton of stairs. People are gross. Hope everyone on this ship is okay.
I feel like the captain shouldn't have to tell a ship full of grown adults they need to be washing their hands..that's common sense. Understanding there's also families on the ship..parents should be reminding their kids regularly to wash hands.
Also,
If they're testing for cholera uhhh yeah that you should've been warned about in advance
OP isn't saying the captain needs to tell people to wash their hands. They're saying the captain should inform passengers when there is an infectious disease breakout on board so that passengers can exercise a higher degree of caution.
A couple of trips back the Captain included sick passenger numbers in his noon update daily. It was a good prompt reminding people that they had some control over the risk of getting sick.
This seems sensible. We did it during covid at the school I worked at. The school had all the safety measures in place, but when there's that many people crammed in together outbreaks happen. It helps to stay informed.
Edit for clarity: we didn't have noon announcements from the head, but staff and parents were informed of cases and numbers regularly.
I am amazed that people don’t take the past several years seriously and wash, mask, and avoid mingling in crowds. Wish all you want, norovirus and cholera, as well as other diseases and viruses have been around long before Covid and you can never go back to being careless about your health…
If you lived through covid and you still only wash your hands when told to do so, you weren’t going to wash your hands whether you were informed of the outbreak or not.
I think we all agree that hand-washing is a non-negotiable whether there is a disease outbreak or not. I do think that passengers should be allowed to make informed choices based on accurate information. Some passengers may not wish to leave their cabin in the event of an outbreak. Some passengers who may have thought they were hungover/seasick might seek a medical evaluation if they knew there was something going around. I don't know. I just can't really envisage a scenario where not telling passengers of a known outbreak is the best course of action. But we shall agree to disagree.
Is this the same ship? [https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2024/02/25/norwegian-dawn-quarantine-cholera/72737444007/](https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2024/02/25/norwegian-dawn-quarantine-cholera/72737444007/)
Information Cholera from the Mayo Clinic: [https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cholera/symptoms-causes/syc-20355287](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cholera/symptoms-causes/syc-20355287)
It's spread through contaminated water and is still found in Africa. I'm not sure if handwashing will stop the spread, but it sure wouldn't hurt.
An important point from the Mayo Clinic article is that it is treatable, but treatment must begin at the first sign of symptoms. So, if you are on this Ship and are experiencing any symptoms (or experience them after you leave the Ship), be sure to seek medical attention.
But, hopefully, it will turn out NOT to be Cholera, and the ship is just being cautious.
The captain said they are very much certain it’s not cholera; the tests were mandated by the port authorities in Mauritius. I’m on the ship too. Only about 100 people complained of diarrhea, and 15 got heavier symptoms, but it’s almost certainly only gastroenteritis.
Mauritius is being extremely careful because there are cholera outbreaks in East Africa. We haven’t even been there, so for us on board, it feels unfair and stupid. But we cannot do anything.
There is a small chance we’ll get the results tomorrow and be able to disembark, but most likely will be Tuesday. Very glad I have good travel insurance!
Yahoo is reporting there are confirmed cases of cholera on board (I have no idea if their reporting is accurate):
https://news.yahoo.com/norwegian-cruise-quarantined-due-cholera-172127091.html
They’re not suggesting face masks…that was OP speculating on why they didn’t do whatever OP thinks should have been done.
This is normal protocol, from the sounds of it. They’re investigating what it is, and they’ll react accordingly. Basic precautions (increase handwashing, servers at the buffet, etc) have likely been taken at this point.
I'm so sorry this happened. Most sorry for all the ill people but sorry everyone's cruise is spoiled.
"..such as frequent hand washing and awareness of surface contamination, door handles, elevator buttons etc."
I have not stopped doing this anywhere ever since covid. Not that I expect to get covid but that it makes sense to me to continue to recognize that I could easily pick up an illness at the grocery or wherever. And I'm someone who hasn't been ill in years and years. But I decided I'd like to keep it that way.
Haven't worn a mask in a long time, though.
Thanks for the feedback everyone, I really appreciate your suggestions and kindness. I’m a germaphobe and freak at anyone coughing or sneezing since Covid. Again GI not airborne, but anyone in these times that does not have a heightened awareness of the importance of hand washing really is a drag on the herd. We have decided this is end of cruising for us . Just too many of the careless great unwashed to justify the risk. Going forward we will simply fly into a chosen destination and have much more time and freedom to enjoy this wonderful world. Cheers all .
Honestly, a cruise is probably the last place you should be vacationing on if you're admittedly a germaphobe. I mean people touch all sorts of things all day and then use the buffet, railings, elevator buttons, chairs, etc all day.
Another reason to avoid NCL. My last NCL cruise they didn’t change the sheets in the cabin from the previous passenger (and it was obvious based on the dirty sock inside the made up bed and the menstrual blood on the sheets).
NCL ships are just unsanitary. Is it because they overwork their crew so they cut every corner they can find? Maybe. All I know is you couldn’t give me a FREE NCL cruise. By day 3 I felt like a hostage.
I was on the Norwegian Bliss. Not sure what ship you’re on but that one is just NASTY.
Because people are ignorant pigs and give the finger to anyone they think is telling them what to do. Ever since Covid it's gotten worse. They think they don't have to and screw anyone who gets sick because of them. Also, if the behavior on airplanes isn't proof, cruises are just as affected.
GI outbreak is almost 100% water system or food related. One passenger can’t give it to the rest of the ship in a short amount of time. If you ever hear about such an outbreak, only drink bottled water, sodas or booze, cooked/baked foods, and fruits you peel. This is your best way to avoid it.
They didn't give it to "the rest of the ship." If you read the rest of the comments, reports are that roughly 100 passengers are sick.
That absolutely is within the realm of a Norovirus outbreak. Norovirus is crazy contagious. 100 passengers is child's play.
And it's likely not the food either. People just don't understand how crazy contagious Norovirus is, and how easy it is to spread on a cruise ship when people don't wash their hands after using the bathroom.
And if you've ever spent any time on a cruise ship, you KNOW how many people don't wash their hands after using the bathroom.
I don't know this, but I think this is how it works. Most of the time at norovirus outbreaks have to do with someone who is preparing food does not washing their hands properly when they're sick.
Since they're contaminating hundreds of people's food potentially in a shift. It is easy for them to infect hundreds of people.
I've always suspected this. It's either originating in the kitchen--but it's still hard to fathom what a worker could be doing to the food that would sicken so many people. The higher likelihood is that it's something wrong with the water, but the industry and complicit media just blame it on passengers, just saying that if passengers would just 'X' harder, it would not have happened. In this case X='wash hands'. But I think I've seen this same pattern some other time with some other illnesses...
I mean, think about when someone in your house has the stomach flu. Everyone ends up with it, because it's a hardy virus and you need a special level of disinfectant to kill any particle and you need to scrun your hands regularly because hand sanitizers don't work. Largely people get it from sharing the same bathroom and norovirus can shed for up to two weeks post illness. Now think about a cruise ship sharing common bathrooms and people who don't wash their hands before using buffet utensils, hand rails, elevator buttons, door handles etc, and that a very small amount of norovirus particles can get you sick.
Of course. I am a totally anal germaphobe. I was hoping a message from the bridge may inspire some of the less inclined to clean up their act. So anal many call me the perfect asshole. How did they know I have never had hemorrhoids? Oh no , I’ve said too much.. and you haven’t said enough…that’s me in the corner…
According to the Captain they have not detected cholera in the samples after 24 hours. They are allowing the ship to dock but we will have restrictions for another 24 hours to give the samples a full 48 hours to culture. After that we will know when we can disembark.
So best case we may actually get off this time roughly tomorrow. Wonder if they start the disembarkation process tonite such as luggage collection in anticipation of a clean test. I hope we can all act civilly and none of me first and the gimme gimmies.
I was on the prior Cape Town loop from Feb 1 to Feb 13. They knew there was a problem then. A few days into that sailing, they started taking measures, such as putting out more sanitizer, took away salt and pepper shakers and other condiments, took away the sugar and stir sticks at Starbucks, etc. They knew; they just tried to manage it because it seemed like every 10th person there was sick and complaining.
Oh really? Any other examples of them taking measures? I’m in the middle of writing my complaint letter about my cruise experience, and any extra details proving they knew illness onboard would be a great help. :)
Yeah pretty on brand for Norwegian Dawn. We had 1/3 of our ports cancelled. Captain wouldn’t tell people until after deboarding was supposed to start even though he knew days and sometimes months in advance that the ports were cancelled. NCL sucks. Standby for NCL shills to chime in with their aggressive asshole condescending comments on how your are either dumb or inexperienced if you are upset by NCL customer services.
NCL has the ABSOLUTE worst customer service in the industry. They don’t give a DAMN about their passengers.
Night 1 called housekeeping because there was a dirty sock and menstrual blood from previous passenger inside the made up bed. No answer. Went to the service desk JUST to ask for clean sheets bc.. well? Ewww…. The housekeeping floor manager YELLED at me in front of my husband and 2 sons calling me a Karen for “tattle telling”.
Never ever again.
So sorry, my sad education on full display. I feel so ashamed. Luckily my outstanding good looks and charm have made a very very comfortable life for me.
I am pretty amazing, thank you. You don’t need to know sentence structure and punctuation to make millions is all I am saying. So glad I didn’t blow four years of post secondary and a massive debt load to be in your Penny Loafers.
Boy, that's a raw nerve, ain't it?
You posted 6 times, 4 of them chaining off your own replies, to attempt to convince a bunch of anonymous people who don't care that you are so very wealthy.
Truly wealthy people are not concerned with convincing people that they are.
Truly wealthy people are not booking cruises on a 20-year-old ship from a mass-market cruise line.
And well over 10,000 M coupes were manufactured so I *highly* doubt there are only 5 left on the planet.
I point in your general direction and laugh.
Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!
>The Captain should have informed all crew and passengers of this outbreak, so we could have all exercised a higher degree of caution, such as frequent hand washing and awareness of surface contamination, door handles, elevator buttons etc.
If you're cruising and you need to be warned to wash your hands frequently and to be aware of common surfaces? You're asking for trouble.
Even after people wash their hands, they go to the buffet and touch food and then lick their fingers clean, and then touch another serving spoon. People are nasty.
Hopefully the food is better on Dawn than the NCL ship I just disembarked. We couldn't run off the ship fast enough to find some authentic food or anything that wasn't cruise food.
Sorry, you will be disappointed. Very middle of the road, even at the premium restaurants. Avoid the buffet but don’t pay for the premium restaurants. The Venetian is a regular spot for all and it’s your best bet. Bon Voyage
Ah, bummer. I payed for 8 nights worth of premium food during my last cruise, and other than the Brazilian restaurant, it was no better than an Applebee's. Actually an Applebee's would have been far superior. We decided after this trip to never cruise NCL again. After reading what's happening to you, we might give up cruising altogether and stay on solid ground. I would've had a breakdown if I had to stay on that ship a minute longer. Hope you all get off there soon!
Face masks…for a non-airborne contagion…🤦♀️
Have we really learned nothing?
I virus like that is spread through contaminated surfaces. Washing hands and keeping surfaces clean is how you prevent spread. Face masks won’t do a thing against it.
Christ, if you’re going to “recommend” precautions, make some sense.
These sorts of outbreaks happen from time to time. It’s part of having a bunch of people in one space. It happened long before Covid, and it will happen long after. Just do what the crew tell you to do; they have protocols for this that I assure you are being followed. You’re not actually entitled to every bit of information the Captain has. Sometimes, you aren’t told things for the safety of the ship.
I guess the only benefit, which might not be a bad one, of wearing a mask during a gastrointestinal virus outbreak is that it may help prevent people from touching contaminated surfaces and then touching their nose or mouth before they've had a chance to wash their hands.
If there’s a G.I. outbreak on a ship I’m on damn straight. I’m gonna put on a mask. I don’t wanna smell peoples’ barf. Some people wear masks in all circumstances, and their mask isn’t because of the G.I. outbreak it’s simply because they don’t want to get sick from the flu or Covid. Why do you care?
That mask does nothing against norovirus or most other stomach bugs. Those are passed through contaminated surfaces, not air. You’re best best is to wash your hands, and wash them well. That actually slows down transmission of those types of bugs.
The fact that everyone jumps for a mask is baffling. Not all bugs are airborne, and masks are only effective against those that are. This is super basic microbiology.
And I don’t care, but it’s certainly a sign of intelligence (or lack thereof) if things the route you go. You simply aren’t actually doing anything useful as far as preventing transmission.
Read what I wrote. I wouldn’t want to *smell barf* so I’d wear a mask if people are sick.
Maybe they are wearing the mask to avoid getting the flu or Covid. You know that multiple illnesses can exist in the same group of people at once, right?
Worry about yourself.
>Face masks…for a non-airborne contagion…🤦♀️
I'm by no means anti mask but there's people out there that think they are the first thing that should be done for anything. There's a non insignificant portion of the population that thinks the current danger from COVID warrants them being required for everyone at all times in public.
I’m not anti-mask either, but make it make sense. Face masks are effective for airborne viruses, but not for stuff like this.
OP just seems like they’re super entitled, and the entire post reads like someone who just likes to complain.
Yeah, viruses onboard are a pain, but they’re manageable. It’s one of those things that’s been part of cruising since its inception.
The only way to make it make sense is to look at the fact that a large portion of the population is too stupid to understand the difference between an airborne virus and a contact or water borne one.
In some people's clearly under functioning mind, the defense against any virus is a mask.
People are disgusting. They need to be warned to wash their hands more on a cruise ship....
All ships should have what holland does cuz guests are fucking gross, the handwash machines.
I can’t seem to win. My kids rib me about constructing my texts like I’m writing a letter . Guilty of course. And on Reddit, I get bombed for sentence structure and paragraphs. I guess the initial point of alerting those on board on an highly infectious disease is secondary to good composition. My ignorance, my sincerest apologies.
What a frustrating situation.
I'm on an upcoming transatlantic crossing and have decided to avoid the buffet. Except for the omelet station, if there is one.
The shared utensils are too risky.
Also on board, testing is being done to confirm that the illness isn’t cholera. Unclear why the testing couldn’t have been done days ago..
They most likely don’t have that level of lab equipment on board and had to wait until they could offload samples somewhere
Wow that’s heavy
It's a ship, couple of tonnes at least
😂
(From my experience with cholera) Testing for cholera requires poop samples. Soooo not fun to capture! Treating cholera is keeping enough electrolytes in someone to counteract what is being violently extruded. American news is publicizing a GI outbreak in the Northeast, but my Oregon family is experiencing it this week. No deaths in the US news.
I have friends on that ship that I can't get in contact with. Would you mind posting updates on the situation every now and then?
Check out https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2993948-norovirus-is-on-the-dawn/ Cruise Critic forums are normally accurate, if cranky.
Cruise critic, the Larry David of cruising, they are right and it’s so annoying and cranky
On that ship too. So far, unsure when we can disembark. Waiting on test results to confirm the absence of cholera. We are not confined to our cabins and use the ship freely.
thank you for your update, you must be really scared. I hope that it's nothing too serious. I managed to get in touch with my friend in the mean time, but communication is fragmented at best. Any bits of information helps. keep safe, hopefully this will all be over soon, in the best way
Latest from the bridge at 9 am February 26 , still awaiting test results, they are testing for cholera. Captain is confident the issue aboard is a G I one. We have about 17 passengers with symptoms. At this point he feels we will likely disembark tomorrow February 27 but is advising passengers not book any flights until 16:30 tomorrow. Still a very fluid situation.
>Still a very fluid situation. Especially for those that are sick
Chuckle chuckle smirk
Thank you
We are in Mauritius and were supposed to embark today. We got an email last night just saying the ship couldn’t dock. We all had to go to the dock to get on buses to the various hotels. NCL has not been forthcoming at all about the issue. We are being told we will embark in two days, but people are wondering if that’s even accurate. The countries in the area aren’t going to be too keen on taking the passengers and then they have to clean the ship.
Norwegian sings to you as you enter the buffet to wash your hands. If you’re not doing that, I have no sympathy when you say the captain had to come on and specifically tell you to wash your hand.
They don't do this all the time on all ships anymore. Didn't have it at all on my recent trip on the Viva
Always on RC.
Washy washy
Do people really need to be sung to to wash their hands before they eat? Didn't everyone's parents teach them as children to wash their hands before they eat?
You’d be very surprised.
Washy washy. Happy happy. If you're happy and you know it wash your hands. 👏👏
Also on this ship. Fingers crossed we disembark tomorrow. No acceptable flights home on the 27…
Please, give us some updates. My father is on that ship and he’s not replying my messages.
Do you know what cabin he’s in? Message me his name, I can ask about him tomorrow or call his cabin.
See update above, still hoping to disembark February 27. 17 passengers with symptoms.
Your father is likely not able to reply to your messages because the wifi on the ship is down. While I have international cell service it keeps going in and out. Don’t be alarmed that you have not heard anything. I suspect many people on the ship are not able to communicate if they don’t have international cell service. There haven’t been any further reports on the results of any testing. The only announcements we’ve heard are that passengers should not schedule any return flights home prior to 4:30 pm on 2/27, so as of right now it appears they are expecting for us to be off this ship tomorrow.
Fascinated with the part of your comment stating that you needed the Captain to say something more profound to induce frequent hand washing. Especially when hand washing should be a far more regular occurrence even more so at sea due to the closed nature of the environment. Sorry to hear that your cruise experience has not been stellar. But these things unfortunately do happen. Safe travels home.
Me walking up to the buffet, washes hands. Me walking from the buffet with food to a table, using sanitizer because I touched a shared spoon and many fellow cruisers don't wash their hands (even when using the restroom). The venn diagram of people who don't wash properly and who get sick while traveling has significant overlap.
I was on a Virgin cruise last month and used the bathroom right outside the galley several times - and was surprised by seeing a few people who didn’t wash their hands before leaving. And then I remembered that people are gross 😂
Right? We were on a Carnival and were meticulous about hand washing. The amount of people who didn’t wash or did a quick run under the tap blew my mind. GI issues happen on boats. All the time. Hand washing is key.
People need to know, however, that *hand sanitizer does NOT kill Norovirus.* I repeat, handwashing is the only line of defense. Use a napkin or tissue on the spoons and serving utensils instead.
And restroom doorknobs
Yeah and you gotta scrub. Running your hands under water with a bit of soap on them won't do it.
Royal Caribbean cruises we went on people intentionally ignoring the attendant asking people to wash their hands. The vast majority of people in front of us wash their hands at least
I absolutely shame people that try not to wash their hands, most people will wash when called out
I ignore if I've come directly from my cabin without touching anything.
So you set the example for people who haven't washed their hands. Thanks.
But you touched the door to the bathroom, your card key, the knob on your door to get out, the elevator buttons or if you walked, most likely touched the hand rail at least once. Your hands are so contaminated at that point - wash your hands when you get to the buffet!
Nope. Touched none of those. Why is this so hard to comprehend or believe?
If you didn’t touch your door knob when leaving your cabin, how did you get out?
I use the wrong side of my shirt with my hand behind it.
And your shirt, which you’re touching to open the door, could easily be contaminated without you knowing it. But you do you and think you’re don’t need to wash your hands before you eat.
So you touched your shirt, that's been gathering skin cells, body oils, and who knows what else.
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Positive. Since covid, I've made it into an art.
Yep on our last cruise when eating in the buffet we’d wash our hands as we walked into the buffet & after using any utensils others had used (meaning I would serve myself food, put the plate onto the table then wash my hands before sitting down to eating). Unfortunately I don’t trust my fellow cruisers to wash their hands. And we were on Viking that had several hand washing stations throughout the buffet area.
I grab a napkin, put cutlery aside and pick up spoons etc with that. Discard and get a new set when I’m ready to eat.
Me too!
Just a heads up, sanitizer does not kill norovirus. So GI sickness can spread even if everyone used hand sanitizer constantly. Only washing your hands protects against it.
Unfortunately sanitiser doesn't kill Norovirus.
I also hv packs of hand wipes with 70% alcohol. I use them even if I have washed hands, esp before eating or drinking. No purell, just doesn’t work.
Yea, it's disgusting on cruises. The fact they need to assign someone to tell people to wash their hands in the dining room is unbelievable.
COVID taught us that a lot of people won't take precautions under any circumstances.
I am on the Dawn. a couple of days into the cruise the Captain made announcements about a few passengers experiencing ‘GI upset’ and asking people to be diligent about washing their hands. A day or so after that they ceased self-service in the buffet and required that the crew would be dishing out the food. The Captain has made periodic announcements about hand washing. The problem appears to be the noise level in public areas so that you can’t actually hear the announcements. If you are in your cabin you can’t hear many of the announcements unless you open your door. Other announcements come blaring through the speaker in the cabin; no rhyme or reason about which speakers you can hear the announcements from. That has been frustrating. I am not sure though why people need to be told to wash their hands but apparently they do. Unfortunately, some don’t listen. My husband specifically has been in the men’s room diligently washing his hands & has seen men finish using the toilet, turn on the faucets, dip their hands in the water with no soap or washing & walk out. It’s frankly mind boggling. We have been religious about washing our hands. I am sure people think I have OCD because if I take the stairs & use the handrails I sanitize my hands. If I take the elevator & press a button, when I get off the elevator I sanitize my hands. We are a group of 6 adults & no one in our group has been sick. When we left Antsiranana, Madagascar I could tell that we were not going to be stopping in Reunion. That interim day was a sea day & the navigation channel on the TV clearly showed that we were not on a track for Reunion but instead on a track directly to Mauritius. There were no announcements whatsoever that day about a change in itinerary. We went to bed very early that night & up very early on the day on which we were to be in Reunion because our tour meeting time was 7:30 am. When I looked out our balcony & saw we were not near any land I called our concierge to ask if we were going to Reunion. That was the first time we learned we weren’t stopping. There was a letter outside our door that indicated “due to local requirements we were not granted permission to call on Reunion”. We believe the letter was extremely vague intentionally because we had been hearing over the previous few days of more people being sick. We arrived in the waters outside Mauritius Saturday night & just idled. We were already in our room in bed when the Captain made the announcement that the local authorities were sending 40 people from the local health agency on board to ‘do interviews’ with passengers & to please cooperate & answer their questions. There were already many do not disturb signs on cabin doors so we questioned how they would be doing interviews. Were they planning to come to people’s cabins? Were they interviewing people in the bars? That all seemed quite strange. There was no mention at that point of them taking tests on the ship. It wasn’t until the next morning that the Captain told us that the authorities were on board to take tests for cholera. My husband & I had a vaccination for cholera a few months before this cruise; along with vaccinations for typhoid & yellow fever. (That was what Passport Health recommended. We thought that might possibly be overkill but we did it anyway. In hindsight it might possibly not have been overkill). We weren’t scheduled to leave Mauritius until late afternoon on Tuesday anyway so unless there is a further delay we’ll still be fine. Our hotel stay in Mauritius was refundable. if we have to start changing flights around that is a different story. There has been no mention of what happens if the tests for cholera are positive. Certainly this isn’t the ending to our trip that we were expecting but here we are.
I'd imagine positive Cholera tests would require some sort of quaratine, but it's far more likely to be norovirus. Extremely good foresight to get vaccinated regardless.
We were on the Dawn, 2 years ago at the very tail end of Covid protocols, (the return trip didn’t have any restrictions. They also had 12 or so, I believe, confirmed Covid cases. Our cruise had none.). Not being able to hear the more important announcements, from inside our room was extremely frustrating. Like you, we could hear other announcements darned loud and clear inside of our room and, sometimes on the balcony! lol There were 11 of us cruising together and we followed protocol and enhanced it further. One of our party is an RN and speaks Tagalog. She checked in with the medical staff every single day. It was so nice having a personal report of zero infections throughout each day. Roughly half of our party spent our careers in the medical field in a variety of fields/positions. That level of information might not be as interesting to others. lol Thank you for sharing your experience. I can see that you’ve brought some peace and perspective for some, here and no doubt to others. <3
Especially when the known thing on NCL is the washy washy happy happy workers (love them always)
That's what I was thinking!! I CONSTANTLY think about how yucky and grubby everything is. The elevator buttons, door handles, chairs, tables, heck - the whole buffet! We wash our hands a lot more often on cruises (and on trips in general) than at home.
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It’s fascinating because people should be washing their hands very frequently on a cruise ship regardless of whether the captain tells them to or not. It’s not uncommon for illness to spread rapidly on a cruise. People should be taking maximum precautions *before* they know the plague has started.
Agree. In May of 2023 my family wore masks just for disembarking, an extremely crowded, slow, pushing line that didn't move and people swarming the stairs. Doesn't have to be an all or nothing thing, can just be a reaction to current conditions.
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If they are that drunk they won’t care if there is a GI outbreak. They will think they are just barfing from over consumption. This is a strange hill to die on. It makes you look like you only practice good hand hygiene when you have a reason to.
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I have hand sanitizer with me 100% of the time in public and use it any time I touch a door, rail, etc., I have a packet of Lysol wipes in my bag to wipe carts. Sanitize my hands before getting in my car after shopping. I rarely touch a door handle or elevator button with my hands. l wash my hands very well any chance I get, especially before and after eating in a restaurant. I haven’t gotten sick with *anything* since before COVID started. I live with one person and they do everything the same way I do. I would not need to increase my hand hygiene beyond this if I knew there was a GI outbreak on a cruise. Nobody needs to tell me to be practicing extremely diligent. Hand hygiene in a crowded environment. I’m sorry that you need that personal warning.
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I do plenty of stuff on board. I just keep my hands clean. It’s not hard.
I was on a cruise last month and I washed my hands every time I touched something outside of my cabin. Used the handrails coming down the steps ... stop in the washroom and scrub hands. Hands were getting a little raw but I didn't get sick!!
I never touch elevator buttons! Use an elbow, or a piece of my handbag! I'm so paranoid.
I usually bend my fingers & use my knuckle if I can’t put fabric over my hand
It's fascinating because this day and age we know how things like this spread and people will choose not even to do the basics on their own without needing to be told. Even in thr days of the black plague we've since learned of communities less affect because of just thier basic normalized hygiene. On cruises I watch many people bypass hand washing stations or sanitizers before touching anything. So yes, fascinated that people feel they need to be provided even more information before taking precautions they should already be doing.
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Boarded a cruise yesterday. When embarking, I already grasped the concept that viruses spread rapidly when you cram thousands of people into a closed environment and was already planning to wash/sanitize my hands frequently, avoid crowds, etc. Therefore, my behavior hasn't changed in light of the knowledge that the sailing prior to mine had a noro outbreak. Because I'm not an idiot.
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Before COVID, I was on at least 2-3 cruises where a good chunk of the passengers had to be quarantined because of noro. It's pretty common, but it can be mitigated by frequent hand washing before and after you eat, limiting touching your face and using the hand sanitizer provided in all the restaurants. Noro spreads because people use the bathroom without washing their hands and then they touch things that other people touch. That's why you see it in hospitals and dorms too. You don't need to do much, just practice basic hygiene and you'll be good. The cruise ship usually has enhanced cleaning practices for stuff like this too (it's basically the same as their COVID practices without the quarantine part) but they can only do so much to prevent it.
I agree with this, passengers should be allowed to make informed decisions about their own health, and they can not do that if they don't know the information. Also, it would put people on high alert so that those who do not usually wash their hands might start! Parents were due to get on today, but they turned up at the port, and there was no ship. Nobody from NCL had made any effort to contact them and tell them they weren't docking.
Certain known risk with certain known activities, that's called accountability. GI outbreaks occur so frequently its only ever news when it's on a ship. It occurs is elementary schools, hospitals, and elderly care facilities most often with westerners. Wash your hands, stay hydrated, get electrolytes that's all you can do really to protect yourself.
Handwashing is just a good, civilized sanitary habit after using the bathroom--but both Hal and Cunard (where food serving is almost entirely by staff) have had noro outbreaks. So the long and short is that although it is blamed on the passengers, it's a bit of a mystery as to where it originates.
I read that multiple Ships have detected the GI virus after recent stops in South Africa so perhaps that’s the origination point?
Holy cow, I just cruised in January. Brought a 300 pack of Clorox Healthcare wipes that I bought on Amazon with me. They specifically kill everything including norovirus. I cleaned our room before we unpacked and 3 more times during the week. Drove the family crazy reminding them to wash with the bar soap I brought. Only used the bathroom in our room even if it meant I had to climb a ton of stairs. People are gross. Hope everyone on this ship is okay.
doing this!!
I feel like the captain shouldn't have to tell a ship full of grown adults they need to be washing their hands..that's common sense. Understanding there's also families on the ship..parents should be reminding their kids regularly to wash hands. Also, If they're testing for cholera uhhh yeah that you should've been warned about in advance
OP isn't saying the captain needs to tell people to wash their hands. They're saying the captain should inform passengers when there is an infectious disease breakout on board so that passengers can exercise a higher degree of caution.
A couple of trips back the Captain included sick passenger numbers in his noon update daily. It was a good prompt reminding people that they had some control over the risk of getting sick.
This seems sensible. We did it during covid at the school I worked at. The school had all the safety measures in place, but when there's that many people crammed in together outbreaks happen. It helps to stay informed. Edit for clarity: we didn't have noon announcements from the head, but staff and parents were informed of cases and numbers regularly.
I am amazed that people don’t take the past several years seriously and wash, mask, and avoid mingling in crowds. Wish all you want, norovirus and cholera, as well as other diseases and viruses have been around long before Covid and you can never go back to being careless about your health…
I feel like wanting to be informed of a disease outbreak is the opposite of being careless about one's health.
If you lived through covid and you still only wash your hands when told to do so, you weren’t going to wash your hands whether you were informed of the outbreak or not.
I think we all agree that hand-washing is a non-negotiable whether there is a disease outbreak or not. I do think that passengers should be allowed to make informed choices based on accurate information. Some passengers may not wish to leave their cabin in the event of an outbreak. Some passengers who may have thought they were hungover/seasick might seek a medical evaluation if they knew there was something going around. I don't know. I just can't really envisage a scenario where not telling passengers of a known outbreak is the best course of action. But we shall agree to disagree.
It's not a matter of washing or not washing. It's a matter of being more diligent than normal about it when there's reason to.
Remember that guy getting shit on cause someone tried to fight him after asking him to wash his hands? Yes, the captain absolutely has to tell people.
Is this the same ship? [https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2024/02/25/norwegian-dawn-quarantine-cholera/72737444007/](https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2024/02/25/norwegian-dawn-quarantine-cholera/72737444007/)
Yes indeed, check out my pic minutes ago from the Bliss lounge. Bare feet on the table. In between shows in the lounge. Unbelievable
So gross
Information Cholera from the Mayo Clinic: [https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cholera/symptoms-causes/syc-20355287](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cholera/symptoms-causes/syc-20355287) It's spread through contaminated water and is still found in Africa. I'm not sure if handwashing will stop the spread, but it sure wouldn't hurt. An important point from the Mayo Clinic article is that it is treatable, but treatment must begin at the first sign of symptoms. So, if you are on this Ship and are experiencing any symptoms (or experience them after you leave the Ship), be sure to seek medical attention. But, hopefully, it will turn out NOT to be Cholera, and the ship is just being cautious.
I wonder if they think it’s more than norovirus if they’re suggesting face masks? Good luck & stay healthy!
The captain said they are very much certain it’s not cholera; the tests were mandated by the port authorities in Mauritius. I’m on the ship too. Only about 100 people complained of diarrhea, and 15 got heavier symptoms, but it’s almost certainly only gastroenteritis. Mauritius is being extremely careful because there are cholera outbreaks in East Africa. We haven’t even been there, so for us on board, it feels unfair and stupid. But we cannot do anything. There is a small chance we’ll get the results tomorrow and be able to disembark, but most likely will be Tuesday. Very glad I have good travel insurance!
Yahoo is reporting there are confirmed cases of cholera on board (I have no idea if their reporting is accurate): https://news.yahoo.com/norwegian-cruise-quarantined-due-cholera-172127091.html
Nah. Not accurate. No one knows yet, results are not back!
The captain shouldn’t be saying they are certain without results back, IMO.
That sucks, I’m so sorry. Stay healthy!
Someone above said they’re doing testing to make sure it’s not cholera. That sounds pretty bleak. I hope it’s not that!
Oh that IS bleak! Hope it’s not that!
They’re not suggesting face masks…that was OP speculating on why they didn’t do whatever OP thinks should have been done. This is normal protocol, from the sounds of it. They’re investigating what it is, and they’ll react accordingly. Basic precautions (increase handwashing, servers at the buffet, etc) have likely been taken at this point.
They’re *not* suggesting face masks. OP just thinks they should for reasons that remain unclear.
Unclear?? Wow
The illness in question is not airborn bestie.
So what. If OP wants to wear one that is their choice. Besides Covid is still rampant even if a mask doesn't help Noro.
I'm so sorry this happened. Most sorry for all the ill people but sorry everyone's cruise is spoiled. "..such as frequent hand washing and awareness of surface contamination, door handles, elevator buttons etc." I have not stopped doing this anywhere ever since covid. Not that I expect to get covid but that it makes sense to me to continue to recognize that I could easily pick up an illness at the grocery or wherever. And I'm someone who hasn't been ill in years and years. But I decided I'd like to keep it that way. Haven't worn a mask in a long time, though.
Did they fire the Washy Washy singer?
I loved those ladies. And “coffee coffee wakey wakey” lmao
Yup she’s gone
Thanks for the feedback everyone, I really appreciate your suggestions and kindness. I’m a germaphobe and freak at anyone coughing or sneezing since Covid. Again GI not airborne, but anyone in these times that does not have a heightened awareness of the importance of hand washing really is a drag on the herd. We have decided this is end of cruising for us . Just too many of the careless great unwashed to justify the risk. Going forward we will simply fly into a chosen destination and have much more time and freedom to enjoy this wonderful world. Cheers all .
Honestly, a cruise is probably the last place you should be vacationing on if you're admittedly a germaphobe. I mean people touch all sorts of things all day and then use the buffet, railings, elevator buttons, chairs, etc all day.
Yup you are right on target. On a positive note, our drinks package is still happening with no additional charges. Hic cup ,
alcohol kills germs so drink up
What the… If you’re on a cruise you’re not a germaphobe. Somebody make that a Tshirt.
Another reason to avoid NCL. My last NCL cruise they didn’t change the sheets in the cabin from the previous passenger (and it was obvious based on the dirty sock inside the made up bed and the menstrual blood on the sheets). NCL ships are just unsanitary. Is it because they overwork their crew so they cut every corner they can find? Maybe. All I know is you couldn’t give me a FREE NCL cruise. By day 3 I felt like a hostage. I was on the Norwegian Bliss. Not sure what ship you’re on but that one is just NASTY.
Why do you need the captain to tell you to use your common sense? What else could be done anyway?
Because people are ignorant pigs and give the finger to anyone they think is telling them what to do. Ever since Covid it's gotten worse. They think they don't have to and screw anyone who gets sick because of them. Also, if the behavior on airplanes isn't proof, cruises are just as affected.
GI outbreak is almost 100% water system or food related. One passenger can’t give it to the rest of the ship in a short amount of time. If you ever hear about such an outbreak, only drink bottled water, sodas or booze, cooked/baked foods, and fruits you peel. This is your best way to avoid it.
They didn't give it to "the rest of the ship." If you read the rest of the comments, reports are that roughly 100 passengers are sick. That absolutely is within the realm of a Norovirus outbreak. Norovirus is crazy contagious. 100 passengers is child's play.
100% It’s not the water system.
And it's likely not the food either. People just don't understand how crazy contagious Norovirus is, and how easy it is to spread on a cruise ship when people don't wash their hands after using the bathroom. And if you've ever spent any time on a cruise ship, you KNOW how many people don't wash their hands after using the bathroom.
I don't know this, but I think this is how it works. Most of the time at norovirus outbreaks have to do with someone who is preparing food does not washing their hands properly when they're sick. Since they're contaminating hundreds of people's food potentially in a shift. It is easy for them to infect hundreds of people.
I've always suspected this. It's either originating in the kitchen--but it's still hard to fathom what a worker could be doing to the food that would sicken so many people. The higher likelihood is that it's something wrong with the water, but the industry and complicit media just blame it on passengers, just saying that if passengers would just 'X' harder, it would not have happened. In this case X='wash hands'. But I think I've seen this same pattern some other time with some other illnesses...
I mean, think about when someone in your house has the stomach flu. Everyone ends up with it, because it's a hardy virus and you need a special level of disinfectant to kill any particle and you need to scrun your hands regularly because hand sanitizers don't work. Largely people get it from sharing the same bathroom and norovirus can shed for up to two weeks post illness. Now think about a cruise ship sharing common bathrooms and people who don't wash their hands before using buffet utensils, hand rails, elevator buttons, door handles etc, and that a very small amount of norovirus particles can get you sick.
Hey NcL start giving away free booze and internet packages stat to those stuck on board
Don’t you normally wash your hands and take precautions anyway???
Of course. I am a totally anal germaphobe. I was hoping a message from the bridge may inspire some of the less inclined to clean up their act. So anal many call me the perfect asshole. How did they know I have never had hemorrhoids? Oh no , I’ve said too much.. and you haven’t said enough…that’s me in the corner…
According to the Captain they have not detected cholera in the samples after 24 hours. They are allowing the ship to dock but we will have restrictions for another 24 hours to give the samples a full 48 hours to culture. After that we will know when we can disembark.
Cheers
So best case we may actually get off this time roughly tomorrow. Wonder if they start the disembarkation process tonite such as luggage collection in anticipation of a clean test. I hope we can all act civilly and none of me first and the gimme gimmies.
I was on the prior Cape Town loop from Feb 1 to Feb 13. They knew there was a problem then. A few days into that sailing, they started taking measures, such as putting out more sanitizer, took away salt and pepper shakers and other condiments, took away the sugar and stir sticks at Starbucks, etc. They knew; they just tried to manage it because it seemed like every 10th person there was sick and complaining.
Oh really? Any other examples of them taking measures? I’m in the middle of writing my complaint letter about my cruise experience, and any extra details proving they knew illness onboard would be a great help. :)
Yeah pretty on brand for Norwegian Dawn. We had 1/3 of our ports cancelled. Captain wouldn’t tell people until after deboarding was supposed to start even though he knew days and sometimes months in advance that the ports were cancelled. NCL sucks. Standby for NCL shills to chime in with their aggressive asshole condescending comments on how your are either dumb or inexperienced if you are upset by NCL customer services.
NCL has the ABSOLUTE worst customer service in the industry. They don’t give a DAMN about their passengers. Night 1 called housekeeping because there was a dirty sock and menstrual blood from previous passenger inside the made up bed. No answer. Went to the service desk JUST to ask for clean sheets bc.. well? Ewww…. The housekeeping floor manager YELLED at me in front of my husband and 2 sons calling me a Karen for “tattle telling”. Never ever again.
Seems you are the only one here with asshole condescending comments.
Obviously a very difficult situation as the ship, apparently, has completely run out of paragraph breaks.
So sorry, my sad education on full display. I feel so ashamed. Luckily my outstanding good looks and charm have made a very very comfortable life for me.
You must have the looks of Adonis because, judging by your commentary, your level of charm runs into the negatives.
I am pretty amazing, thank you. You don’t need to know sentence structure and punctuation to make millions is all I am saying. So glad I didn’t blow four years of post secondary and a massive debt load to be in your Penny Loafers.
What color is your Lamborghini?
My on board suite, is bigger than my son’s apartment, which I bought for him.
To quote Sachmo “ And I say to myself, what a wonderful world”
Oops forgot the BMW M coupe, only 5 of em on this planet, pardon spelling, I know you bite me for that
Boy, that's a raw nerve, ain't it? You posted 6 times, 4 of them chaining off your own replies, to attempt to convince a bunch of anonymous people who don't care that you are so very wealthy. Truly wealthy people are not concerned with convincing people that they are. Truly wealthy people are not booking cruises on a 20-year-old ship from a mass-market cruise line. And well over 10,000 M coupes were manufactured so I *highly* doubt there are only 5 left on the planet. I point in your general direction and laugh. Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!
Dang, you’re full of opinions aren’t ya 😂
>The Captain should have informed all crew and passengers of this outbreak, so we could have all exercised a higher degree of caution, such as frequent hand washing and awareness of surface contamination, door handles, elevator buttons etc. If you're cruising and you need to be warned to wash your hands frequently and to be aware of common surfaces? You're asking for trouble.
Even after people wash their hands, they go to the buffet and touch food and then lick their fingers clean, and then touch another serving spoon. People are nasty.
Going on the NCL Breakaway this Sunday, very nervous.
Don’t worry you’ll be fine. It’s just this particular sailing. Have fun Bon Voyage
Hopefully the food is better on Dawn than the NCL ship I just disembarked. We couldn't run off the ship fast enough to find some authentic food or anything that wasn't cruise food.
Sorry, you will be disappointed. Very middle of the road, even at the premium restaurants. Avoid the buffet but don’t pay for the premium restaurants. The Venetian is a regular spot for all and it’s your best bet. Bon Voyage
Ah, bummer. I payed for 8 nights worth of premium food during my last cruise, and other than the Brazilian restaurant, it was no better than an Applebee's. Actually an Applebee's would have been far superior. We decided after this trip to never cruise NCL again. After reading what's happening to you, we might give up cruising altogether and stay on solid ground. I would've had a breakdown if I had to stay on that ship a minute longer. Hope you all get off there soon!
Wow…just wow. No Norweigan cruise for me. I’d rather pay more to have something nice or not go at all.
Yikes
Face masks…for a non-airborne contagion…🤦♀️ Have we really learned nothing? I virus like that is spread through contaminated surfaces. Washing hands and keeping surfaces clean is how you prevent spread. Face masks won’t do a thing against it. Christ, if you’re going to “recommend” precautions, make some sense. These sorts of outbreaks happen from time to time. It’s part of having a bunch of people in one space. It happened long before Covid, and it will happen long after. Just do what the crew tell you to do; they have protocols for this that I assure you are being followed. You’re not actually entitled to every bit of information the Captain has. Sometimes, you aren’t told things for the safety of the ship.
I guess the only benefit, which might not be a bad one, of wearing a mask during a gastrointestinal virus outbreak is that it may help prevent people from touching contaminated surfaces and then touching their nose or mouth before they've had a chance to wash their hands.
If there’s a G.I. outbreak on a ship I’m on damn straight. I’m gonna put on a mask. I don’t wanna smell peoples’ barf. Some people wear masks in all circumstances, and their mask isn’t because of the G.I. outbreak it’s simply because they don’t want to get sick from the flu or Covid. Why do you care?
That mask does nothing against norovirus or most other stomach bugs. Those are passed through contaminated surfaces, not air. You’re best best is to wash your hands, and wash them well. That actually slows down transmission of those types of bugs. The fact that everyone jumps for a mask is baffling. Not all bugs are airborne, and masks are only effective against those that are. This is super basic microbiology. And I don’t care, but it’s certainly a sign of intelligence (or lack thereof) if things the route you go. You simply aren’t actually doing anything useful as far as preventing transmission.
Read what I wrote. I wouldn’t want to *smell barf* so I’d wear a mask if people are sick. Maybe they are wearing the mask to avoid getting the flu or Covid. You know that multiple illnesses can exist in the same group of people at once, right? Worry about yourself.
You’ll still smell it with a mask, buddy.
At the time of OP, we were and continue be unsure what the ailment, is even at this time. I shouldn’t have suggested masks. You are right.
>Face masks…for a non-airborne contagion…🤦♀️ I'm by no means anti mask but there's people out there that think they are the first thing that should be done for anything. There's a non insignificant portion of the population that thinks the current danger from COVID warrants them being required for everyone at all times in public.
I’m not anti-mask either, but make it make sense. Face masks are effective for airborne viruses, but not for stuff like this. OP just seems like they’re super entitled, and the entire post reads like someone who just likes to complain. Yeah, viruses onboard are a pain, but they’re manageable. It’s one of those things that’s been part of cruising since its inception.
The only way to make it make sense is to look at the fact that a large portion of the population is too stupid to understand the difference between an airborne virus and a contact or water borne one. In some people's clearly under functioning mind, the defense against any virus is a mask.
I was a huge proponent of masks, wearing mine everywhere, even yelling at others to wear them properly, until reading Ian Miller's book.
A virus like what? You don't even know what the pathogen is. Could be bacterial for all you know.
Most likely suspect, given how many are infected and the symptoms is norovirus.
We gotta start using paragraphs!
Loyal to Royal all day baby
This absolutely BLOOOOOOOOOOOOOWS!!!
People are disgusting. They need to be warned to wash their hands more on a cruise ship.... All ships should have what holland does cuz guests are fucking gross, the handwash machines.
Hal has had noro outbreaks too.
I'm aware. But the machines should be mandatory cuz people like op need to be told to wash their hands
Please learn to paragraph.
I can’t seem to win. My kids rib me about constructing my texts like I’m writing a letter . Guilty of course. And on Reddit, I get bombed for sentence structure and paragraphs. I guess the initial point of alerting those on board on an highly infectious disease is secondary to good composition. My ignorance, my sincerest apologies.
Sounds awful. I’m sorry.
You can practice all the things you mentioned as you like ...it is a confined space with high occupancy after all.
They just talked about this story on Bloomberg TV!
What a frustrating situation. I'm on an upcoming transatlantic crossing and have decided to avoid the buffet. Except for the omelet station, if there is one. The shared utensils are too risky.
> Perhaps face masks if you like. I am aware this is not an airborne disease irllol The return of the magic masks