Before you book that cruise, read on.....

addenda..

First contact by Norwegian was this on 4/22. I was disembarked or dumped on 2/8.

“Thank you for choosing the Norwegian Escape for your recent vacation at sea.

”While we sympathize with your situation and please understand that it is not our intent to cause any further distress, unfortunately, we are unable to offer compensation for the missed days of your cruise voyage.”

“Please understand that guests who choose to leave the ship early for personal or medical reasons are not entitled to a cruise refund, as stated in our brochure and contract of passage.” (Emphasis mine )

I was never given a choice.

Klinker said:

mtierney said:

Mea culpa on my part, but the contempt shown me and my horrific experience in Jamaica should not have surprised me. I, a Catholic Conservative, risked it as a public service. The usual suspects have shown up. 

While I certainly have contempt for your contemptible politics, as a human being I am sympathetic to your suffering.  What I still don't see, however, is what you would have had the cruise company do differently.

Mtierney, I sympathize with your horrible experience, and wish you well on all future travels.

I suspect the reception here has much more to do with the odd way you teased the story a few weeks ago, which was off-putting to me, at least.

Wishing you swift healing.

mtierney,

My husband and I took the same cruise as you on the Escape, 2 weeks before you. I just want to extend my sympathy to you for the ordeal you went through. 

A few years ago, he had a painful attack on a cruise. I was already out on a shore excursion. The medics on board were anxious to get him off the ship, so they sent him off in a taxi to a local hospital, where they proceeded to do an MRI, amongst other tests. Since it turned out to be severe indigestion, they sent him back in a taxi. This could have been a $$$$$ nightmare, but he had the good fortune to get sick in St. Thomas. That meant we were in the US and Medicare would cover him. 

However, the ship wouldn’t let him get onboard with a note of health clearance, so two taxi rides later, it was finally over. 

Since none of us can schedule our accidents in convenient locales, this story is just meant to show how in even in the best of circumstances, any illness during a cruise is an enormous PITA. 

mtierney, what you went thru was much more painful AND terrifying. My best wishes for you are that you recover completely from your injury and that the emotional trauma of it recedes as time passes. 

One question and two comments:

> If you had had insurance coverage, how would the scenario have played out? Would you have been airlifted from Jamaica to New Jersey? Seems unlikely.

> I believe there is one Medigap policy (policy N, I think it is) that does cover medical care outside the US.

> A pleasant alternative to ocean cruising is river cruising, and depending which river, passengers may have easier access to local medical care should they need it.

susan1014 said:
Mtierney, I sympathize with your horrible experience, and wish you well on all future travels.


I suspect the reception here has much more to do with the odd way you teased the story a few weeks ago, which was off-putting to me, at least.


Wishing you swift healing.

 Thanks for the kind words.

One month ago, I was still traumatized, ashamed, and embarrassed over the accident. I knew I took a risk “owning” the experience on MOL — which has demonstrated a lot of enmity toward me due to my religious and political beliefs. I joined MOL back in 2001. I lived in Maplewood for 47 years. Still, I hesitated coming to my town for understanding and, to some extent, I was correct.

One month ago, I still had considerable pain and was cared for at home by health aides and my wonderful family. Currently, I am receiving occupational therapy treatments.  I felt like a foolish old woman for thinking I could take control of my life. The accident was proof, right?

I have since learned my decision to write the story down and offer alerts to travelers was correct. It has lifted me out of my depression and misgivings, and get back to living life my way.

mtierney - I think you are very brave. That was a terrible experience to go rhrough. Thank you for relaying the story as you are helping many a single traveler..Being a senior citizen myself I do think we elders are sometimes taken advantage of.

unicorn33 said:
One question and two comments:
> If you had had insurance coverage, how would the scenario have played out? Would you have been airlifted from Jamaica to New Jersey? Seems unlikely.
> I believe there is one Medigap policy (policy N, I think it is) that does cover medical care outside the US.
> A pleasant alternative to ocean cruising is river cruising, and depending which river, passengers may have easier access to local medical care should they need it.

Yes, you should have been airlifted out of Jamaica, possibly not to NJ but to FL or perhaps another island with better health facilities.  On the other hand, my daughter, who is a nurse, knows someone who was airlifted to NJ from the Bahamas using inusurance.

It is very unfortaunate that anyone is treated harshly when ill.   But travel will bring you to places without the level of health care you either desire or need.

Please review travel insurance.  The website www.insuremytrip.com where you have major vendors such as AIG, AXA, C&F, etc.   Below is a summary of C&F coverage that I often purchase;  note my insurance through work covers medical expenses worldwide, so the Medivac was more important to me than the medical expenses.  In addition, both my husband and I have pre-existing conditions, so I always buy far enough in advance that the look-back period is exhausted.  And, there is a phone number you call and they are highly responsive to get you care.  

Note that going without this type of insurance leaves you at the mercy of your hotel, or the airline, or the cruise ship, or your credit card, which may also provide travel services if you use the card.  

Having used this three times, once for an auto accident in Spain, once for illness in Mexico city and once to cancel a trip due to illness, I can say that given helping travelers is their business, I have had only good experiences, and for the modest fees, you get peace of mind as well as potential future services.  

This would have helped here.

HIGHLIGHTED COVERAGES

Trip Cancellation
Trip Cost

Trip Interruption
Trip Cost + 50%

Baggage Loss
$1,000 (secondary)

Baggage Delay
12+ hours 
$300 max. (secondary)

Medical Limit
$100,000 (secondary) 

Pre-Existing Condition Waiver
If insurance purchased within 21 days of Initial Trip Payment and certain conditions are met

Pre-Existing Condition Lookback Period
60 Days

Medical Evacuation
$1,000,000

why would you need to be “airlifted” from Jamaica for a broken hand? That’s ridiculous. What could have been done was to get on the next flight to FL from Jamaica if she didn’t like the medical care options there. The right plane/helicopter (with that kind of distance capacity) to air lift you from Jamaica to FL probably would have cost at least $100k. Maybe more. This was not a life-threatening emergency. 

I agree that it doesn’t sound like it was handled well by the cruise line. But it also sounds like you weren’t too knowledgeable about how to handle a medical emergency or advocate for yourself.  Your complaint to them should be more around the way you were treated, communicated with, put at risk not about missed cruise days. 

mtierney said:
One month ago, I was still traumatized, ashamed, and embarrassed over the accident. I knew I took a risk “owning” the experience on MOL — which has demonstrated a lot of enmity toward me due to my religious and political beliefs. I joined MOL back in 2001. I lived in Maplewood for 47 years. Still, I hesitated coming to my town for understanding and, to some extent, I was correct.

 I think most of us can and have set aside our revulsion at your politics to express sympathy for your pain.  You keep on trotting out this tired straw horse but I have seen nothing other than compassion for your suffering and sound advice on how to avoid making the same mistake twice.

you keep dwelling on this but I honestly have no idea what you’ve posted about religion or politics. I don’t pay enough attention to user names to remember who said what, when.

A cruise ship is a giant petri dish.  I've never been on one and don't plan to either.

The largest cruise ships hold approximately 6,700 passengers plus another 2,200 crew.

Nearly 9,000 people on one ship.  It's insane.

yahooyahoo said:
A cruise ship is a giant petri dish.  I've never been on one and don't plan to either.
The largest cruise ships hold approximately 6,700 passengers plus another 2,200 crew.
Nearly 9,000 people on one ship.  It's insane.

 You may be going a little overboard with the petri dish comment (pun intended). Cruise ships are rightfully called "floating hotels," which is accurate. But "petri dish" could more appropriately be applied to the NY subways, with their 6 million daily riders, or to various stadium events.

I've been on a couple ocean cruises, and while I do prefer the much, much smaller river cruises, I did have enjoyable experiences. There are pros and cons to both. To each his/her own.

If decks awash with human waste and ships adrift without power were not enough to deter you from booking that suite on the poop deck, there's this.

CNN:Two Carnival cruise ships collided in Cozumel, Mexico

Klinker said:

If decks awash with human waste and ships adrift without power were not enough to deter you from booking that suite on the poop deck, there's this.

CNN:Two Carnival cruise ships collided in Cozumel, Mexico

 I'm going to assume your tongue is firmly in your cheek with this comment. 

(Note, too, that "collided" is rather strong. Suggests two vehicles crashing head-on, which is not what happened. In automotive language, perhaps "fender bender" would be more appropriate. But CNN loves drama.)

unicorn33 said:

 I'm going to assume your tongue is firmly in your cheek with this comment. 

 Not really. Cruises have always struck me as cruel and unusual punishment. Faux luxury for the ugly Americans. 

Sort of the Florida of means of conveyance.  

Klinker said:

 Not really. Cruises have always struck me as cruel and unusual punishment. Faux luxury for the ugly Americans. 

Have you actually ever been on a cruise? 
I've been on a number of cruises, both ocean and river, operated by various lines, and I've always had a good time. Cruises are not for everyone, and they have pros and cons, but the same can be said of any kind of venture, from inclusive resort to airbnb to organized tour.

unicorn33 said:

Have you actually ever been on a cruise? 
I've been on a number of cruises, both ocean and river, operated by various lines, and I've always had a good time. Cruises are not for everyone, and they have pros and cons, but the same can be said of any kind of venture, from inclusive resort to airbnb to organized tour.

 To each their own. 

So I take it as a no - you've never been on a cruise?  Seems like most people who don't like cruises - haven't been on one.  And from the news - I can understand why.  I took a cruise from here to Bermuda when I was young and when I was older - both were memorable.

It's worth noting that river cruises are very, very different from ocean cruises. While an ocean liner might have several thousand passengers, a river cruise ship might have under 200. And while some ocean-going passengers might be looking to party hearty, river cruise passengers might more likely be focused on the cultural offerings of the ports they call on. One can't really generalize too much because there's a great deal of variation depending on itinerary, cruise line, demographics of the passengers and other factors.

I used to look down on cruises, until I took one. They're fun. It's just a all-inclusive resort on the water, plus you get to visit different places.

Not sure why anyone finds them objectionable.

I'm not surprised at Mtierney's anxiety about expecting a less than warm and fuzzy response from people about her trip experience, in part due to her conservative Catholic political views; but also because listservs in general, including MOL have a wide variety of people and personalities, and typical responses range from sone people frequently offering warm sympathy about difficult situations, and others  responding with tough love, as in, you should have known better, what's the matter with you, deal with it, variety (that often include helpful suggestions for next time around).  My inclination is towards the compassionate side of the spectrum generally although not always; but here in particular, despite Mtierney's politics, considering she is 82+ years of age, just lost her husband during the last year, and was bravely pushing her limit to cope positively through her unfortunate trip.  So, Mtierney, so sorry that this has happened, and wishing you a Merry Christmas and a happier New Year.

Jasmo said:

I'm not surprised at Mtierney's anxiety about expecting a less than warm and fuzzy response from people about her trip experience, in part due to her conservative Catholic political views; but also because listservs in general, including MOL have a wide variety of people and personalities, and typical responses range from a group of people frequently offering warm sympathy about difficult situations, and another group often responding with tough love, as in, you should have known better, what's the matter with you, deal with it, variety (that often include helpful suggestions for next time around).  My inclination is towards the compassionate side of the spectrum generally although not always; but here in particular, despite Mtierney's politics, considering she is 82+ years of age, just lost her husband during the last year, and was bravely pushing her limit to cope positively through her unfortunate trip.  So, Mtierney, so sorry that this has happened, and wishing you a Merry Christmas and a happier New Year.

 I am overwhelmed. You are truly kind and insightful! You understood my feelings when I booked that cruise, and the sense of failure I felt after my fall and the abrupt end of the trip. Thank you!  You made my day!

Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for a happy, healthy and holy New Year! 

CNN:Two cruise ships quarantined in Asia amid coronavirus outbreak, stranding more than 5,000

What a nightmare! The article doesn't say what the conditions are on board.  Are the passengers confined to their cabins?  And then there is this:

An important factor yet to be determined is whether the Wuhan coronavirus spreads via the fecal-oral route, like norovirus and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), according to Dr. John Nicholls, a clinical professor in pathology at the University of Hong Kong.

Norovirus is a contagious stomach bug that causes vomiting and diarrhea that is notorious for infecting cruise passengers

One is reminded of the plague ships of old.

Klinker said:

CNN:Two cruise ships quarantined in Asia amid coronavirus outbreak, stranding more than 5,000

What a nightmare! The article doesn't say what the conditions are on board.  Are the passengers confined to their cabins?  And then there is this:

An important factor yet to be determined is whether the Wuhan coronavirus spreads via the fecal-oral route, like norovirus and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), according to Dr. John Nicholls, a clinical professor in pathology at the University of Hong Kong.

Norovirus is a contagious stomach bug that causes vomiting and diarrhea that is notorious for infecting cruise passengers

One is reminded of the plague ships of old.

Two words:
Petri dish.

yahooyahoo said:

Two words:
Petri dish.

 The world is a petri dish. And getting warmer all the time.

Apparently, the passengers are confined to their cabins for the duration of the quarantine (2 weeks). 

NYT: This is what it is like to be trapped on a cruise ship during the out break.

Try flying instead of a ship.  Although the coronavirus is said to remain active and contagious for 21 days or more, and antiviral measures are basically non-existent in regular cleaning and maintenance of airplanes.

https://www.cnbc.com/video/2020/02/04/containing-the-coronavirus-preventing-the-disease-on-airplanes.html?&qsearchterm=coronavirus%20airplanes

I certainly wouldn't want to be quarantined on a plane for two weeks.

The Times is reporting that there wee 41 new cases diagnosed on the Diamond Princess yesterday.  One wonders, given common life support systems, how effective a quarantine on a cruise ship could be.