Cruising Returns - Preparation

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After a long fifteen months, cruise lines are tiptoeing back to the sea. I am booked on the Celebrity Millennium this Saturday, June 26, 2021, and will be posting a series of blogs about the experience.

Our ship is sailing round trip from St. Maarten, a workaround to the stringent and in my opinion outdated rules imposed on cruise ships by the CDC.  But St. Maarten has its own set of rules and regulations.  We are required to get a negative pcr test 120 hours prior to departure to the island, along with a health form from the government of St. Maarten.  You must wait for your negative results before filling out the form, and then upload the results plus a copy of your vaccination card.  So on Monday, my traveling companion and I got our first test, and received the results within 12 hours.  Then we filled out the form, which was approved within minutes.  Step 1 completed.

Celebrity has its own set of rules; you must present a negative pcr test within 72 hours of boarding the ship.  That meant another test today.  I had an easier time than my friend.  Her first appointment was cancelled; her second was met with a very rude technician.  As I write this we are both awaiting our results.

Takeaway:  If you are a cruise addict and are anxious to get back on the sea, just know that you will have some hoops to jump through first.  If you don’t have a lot a patience for the process, it might be best to wait a bit.