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New Covid Infections on Trip
Over 10 percent of the people on a Switzerland trip during June, 2022 came down with Covid and had to go into quarantine. This is about the same as the Greek cruise I took last month. It’s too high. There was insufficient effort to prevent Covid infection. The pandemic is not over. I’m glad I’m not traveling on another tour anytime soon.
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I agree with you, and I find it very annoying when Tauck gets us to sign the pledge and then people don’t adhere. Our next tour in a couple of weeks, we will be wearing masks and for a lot of the tour it is mandatory, National Parks and I think the cruise ship now asks for masks If people don’t take care, they risk Covid and missing the tour, they probably won’t feel too sick but that doesn’t matter, if you find yourself in a country that has Covid rules and you get stuck, mask wearing won’t seem such a pain to prevent it.
I just received the pledge for my upcoming Week in Scotland and ESW. I says in part: “I agree to take personal responsibility for my health and well-being, to follow Covid-19 protocols – such as wearing a mask and social distancing – when required by our supplier partners and local authorities.” Since the local authorities are frequently not requiring masks, those who remain unmasked are not necessarily failing to adhere to the pledge. That’s not to say we shouldn’t be masking more; just that we’re not violating the pledge.
I’ve only taken one tour with Tauck during Covid and multiple people who should have been wearing masks were not, despite the TD reminding them and it being a requirement of where we were. The pledge is useless.
A pledge is only as good as the enforcement. The purpose of the "pledge" may not necessarily be what people think it is. As a skeptic, I think, among other reasons, it provides a CYA- allows Tauck to remove a traveler for not complying (seriously, will that ever happen unless the violator becomes belligerent, etc.?), place the blame (probably where it belongs), deflect lawsuits from removed violators or the infected who must be quarantined, etc. etc,. One of our resident lawyers will need to educate us.
Oh yes, the pledge is definitely just to protect Tauck, no question.
Tauck's Travel Pledge is not a legally binding contract insofar as it does not contain the essential elements of offer, acceptance and consideration. It is nothing more than a one-sided agreement to abide by certain COVID-19 protocols. It has nothing to do with the protection of Tauck.
That does not mean it is a meaningless document (this is where the legal theory ends and my opinion begins.) I believe its intent is to offer assurance to travelers that we have, in good faith, agreed to abide by certain healthcare measures to protect ourselves and others. I freely sign it from a moral perspective, not a legal one.
We are leaving on July 22 for a small group tour of Switzerland these posts have made me very apprehensive And nervous in regard to Covid
sunny,
Some apprehension can be beneficial as it will, hopefully, remind you to take the necessary precautions to help keep you safe from the virus...hand washing, social distancing, mask wearing (N95 being the most effective). You can't control the behavior of others, only your own. Being on a small group tour will afford you more opportunities to social distance. Enjoy yourself. Switzerland is a beautiful and charming country.
Sunny, We took as many precautions as we could, but still got Covid toward the end of our trip. We basically missed two days of touring. Fortunately we only had mild symptoms. The testing requirement to return to the US was still in place when we traveled so our trip was extended a few days. But I don't regret taking our tour. We've missed traveling and as I look through my pictures, I realize how much we saw and did. I think about 15% of our group got Covid - so it is not inevitable. I was also nervous before leaving, but once on tour I relaxed and enjoyed the tour.
Finished Norwegian fjords cruise a week ago. Wife came down with Covid symptoms that day, I start having symptoms the following morning. Of the 70+ Tauck guests on our ship, I would estimate 10% came down with Covid. Some were quarantined in their cabins, one couple was removed from the ship and flown to Bergen at Tauck expense. Captain of the ship also succumbed. These cases despite Covid test of all Tauck passengers the day before boarding ship.
In my opinion, international air travel put all of us (on the trip) at risk of Covid exposure. Long, crowded flights, then long lines for Immigration after landing at Schipol with no distancing. Some were infected enroute, then passed on the virus after boarding the ship. This is the reality right now. We had been cautious and never got Covid until this big trip, my wife's 70th birthday present which had been delayed two years because of Covid.
BTW, most Tauck passengers wore masks on our land tours and while moving about on the ship. But not in the dining areas and lounges. The ship's captain had urged us all to do so.
We had a good time, but I wish we had delayed yet another year.
Sorry to hear this…. Seems to be a realty on every trip ..we did Alaska land and sea in late June…which was rescheduled from 2 years ago. 30% did not make the sea part due to covid, us included. We were all left behind in Fairbanks. I have been reading comments from a poster who is on the trip in Alaska now and nearly 40%. Have come down with it during the 15 days. Our guests wore masks whenever they could but buffet dinners, lines, flying etc. get you. Tauck and the insurance company are overwhelmed with claims. We just booked Iceland small ship for next year hoping things get better. We avoided covid all these years, but Alaska was rampant with it and now it seems everywhere is. Thankfully we had very mild symptoms as did most people around us. There will be no cruising on big ships for me in my future…
Go to Africa. On our K&T no one got sick, and no one was tested, and everyone went home on time. Some of us may have had covid, but if you are not “sick”, what are we worrying about? If you have to be tested to know if you are ‘ill’, where is the pandemic?
TEF. All the Covid infections came from within our group. There were two people who had it at the start of the tour. They were the ones not wearing masks. Other occasional mask wearers then followed. We wore our masks in the airport, the plane and all the time apart from our meals where we tried our best to separately from everyone else. Our strategy was to see who was wearing masks at the Welcome reception and hang out with them. The original guy who tested positive sat right next to me before being diagnosed. Two nights ago, the partner of someone who had Covid on the Covid floor who had just tested negative for the third time and allowed to rejoin us sat opposite us for dinner. Next day, they tested positive. So last night when another wife who had a hubby on the Covid floor and tested negative four times came onto our table, we sat at the other end of the table she seemed quite offended. She had already mentioned her husband had felt ill for three days before he got tested and despite her saying they had both been wearing masks that was not true. They were not wearing them on land very much and he even less. Now she is complaining because they have to quarantine in Canada for ten days and they won’t pay her separate room price. Note, day one of your quarantining begins at diagnosis, not when you start feeling ill but but say nothing.
So far, we remain well, who knows how we will fare in the next few days
Good point Sealord. We all could have been asymptomatic 10 times and not even have known it, and then passed it along to someone else. Who the heck knows. But what I do know is, don’t put off what you dream of doing today until another time in the future. Who knows what next year or the year after will bring with one’s heath or the world affairs. Of course, there will be concerns about traveling; there always are but travel and make memories and spend your very hard earned money and have a wonderful experience while you can. It’s that simple.
British, I am glad you made it through and stayed healthy. I agree you can test negative many times and then all of a sudden be positive as i did. Some on our tour who tested positive said they had absolutely no symptoms. Who know for sure. I wondered what would happen in Vancouver if you got off the ship and were positive.. did everyone have to be tested prior to disembarkation, or only those that reported they were ill? 10 day quarantine, wow.. Our NU county board of health actually got hubby’s results weeks after we were back home. They told us their guidelines are 5 days quarantine and then 5 days ok to go out wearing a mask. Guess USA guidelines are different from Canada which are more strict. Hope the people that have to stay for 10 days have travel insurance, I think it should pay them back….I enjoyed your posts and all of your pictures, look forward to more in the future.. I can see you are a very seasoned traveler. Hope you stay healthy.
Oh. A little more on our K&T. The only people who wore masks were a couple of the young children who sometimes wore masks, some of the drivers wore masks, and the food service people in the hotels and lodges wore masks. I never saw any of the adults in our group wearing masks, and we occasionally all ate at the same table. We rotated in the safari vehicles except for the “Aloha Six”, None of the crew, and few of the passengers on KLM wore masks, and very few people at Schiphol were wearing masks. So if you believe masks will protect you from covid, you probably need to wear two … one for yourself and one for the other person you are looking at. Actually, the one place we did have to wear masks was going through immigration in Naranga at the border with Kenya.
We are going to Australia/NZ the end of September. This will be our first trip with Tauck. We just spent time in Portugal and did a Viking cruise down the Douro in May. We were tested daily. Twenty people didn't get to join the tour because they tested positive for covid. No one got sick on the trip...but knowing you were going to be tested daily made you watch your step more (in my opinion).
My opinion...
I think, out of the many tours... Tauck has run so far... since traveling has partially started to come back, not even a 5% of them have had Covid issues.. and those that had it , have been mostly on cruises..
If everyone takes care of them self and wear their masks the exposure would be less and changes of getting sick are lower.. but people Covid is here to stay... so learn how to live with it.-
Also, check put the #'s here in U.S daily... we are in greater danger to get it here, just by going to the grocery store...
I understand people don't want to go out... they are afraid but you cannot be in reclution the rest of your life
It is up to us to ake care of ourself.
and now it comes.. Monkeypox and Polio... pretty soon will have to dress inside an air bubble... :0
British with my spike shoes... I'll be in trouble.
Yes, mil, I agree with you about how people should take care of themselves. So frequently we read complaints of how Tauck didn't do this or that, but seldomly do we read comments such as, "this is what I will do to help protect myself..."
For some it is so much easier to complain about others than to take responsibility for themselves. Happy travels.
Ok, I know SeaLord and I will never agree on this. My opinion is that why would you spend thousands of dollars on a tour to spend it in a hotel room? I call that dumb, even if the rest of the time you never wear a mask? The reason the cruises are having more positives is that they are tested before being allowed on the ship. Land tours are not testing. Our TD told us this morning that the tour behind us had 16 positive before getting on the ship and the one after that, 12 so far. The people on the ship showed symptoms and that is why they had to test. All the staff on the ship and our TD wore masks all the time
I so appreciate all of the input from British and others. Safe travels to all.
On our March Morrocoys trip 11 out of 18 got covid. 3 had to stay. the rest got out.
In June we did a long awaited cruise to Norway and Fiords . In the beginning no one was coughing, etc. a week into the trip it started and both crew and passengers were sick. It was just after they suspended the testing. No more ocean cruises. Before Covid they were floating petri dishes for a whole slew of pathogens. Now, forgetaboutit!!! Masking is not the issue, The Omicron is so easily transmitted
you would need a HazMat suit to protect you. Hand washing etc helps but just being near someone who is positive can spread the disease. If you plan on traveling anywhere, bring test kits. Have a Plan if you test positive and if you can, get the meds before hand incase you do get sick. They are readily available now. People are so ready to travel but the risk is still there. Even if you have gotten it before, you can get it again.
On our recent Israel/Jordan trip, 2 of 10 contracted Covid. It is rampant where we live in Illinois. Every day I hear of friends who have tested positive. We mask everywhere and will bring plenty of N95 masks on our forthcoming K/T tour. Fortunately, most everything on K/T is outdoors. We don’t have a cruise booked until October 2023. As for paxlovid, it’s hard to get a prescription here unless you actually have covid. I know my doctor won’t prescribe it as a precaution. We had our 2nd booster in April, so hopefully we will still be somewhat protected until the new booster becomes available.
The first person who got covid on the ship had to beg the doctor to prescribe Paxlovid on the ship which is available. He was in a very high risk group.
The second person who got Covid on the ship also very high risk the Dr utterly refused to prescribe Paxlovid He incorrectly said he could not take it because he was taking a statin…. that is untrue. It is not all statins and the one he takes is an ok statin, you must stop it and take the Paxlovid with no time needed for the statin to clear your system. To say that a doctor does not know how to correctly prescribed Paxlovid is of concern. At this point, when I see my doctor next month, I’m going to see what she says about a just in case script for our next trip.
British - Given patient confidentiality laws, how do you know all this to be true?
The spouses told us all.
Cathy. Mild symptoms can change quickly and the sooner Paxlovid is given, the better chance it has to work. For instance, Biden was given it.
Jan … what is page 511? Anyway, you have no worries about K&T in the near future. You will not be tested, and no one will be masked except you if you choose to do so. And they make it quite clear that is your choice to make. If you want to mask, mask up.
The loosening of COVID mitigation efforts during this surge combined with a return to travel will be recorded as a monumental error from a public health standpoint when this chapter is written. Many cases of COVID among travelers on tours (fortunately mostly mild) causing grief for the infected and logistical issues for tour companies. And travel insurance carriers have to be feeling the pinch. My prediction: forward looking tour companies will reinstate vaccine and testing mandates and be stricter about masking. They will, as well, moderate group activities such as meals to reduce exposure. The impetus will come from the insurers who co-market and will soon need to increase rates and, ultimately, refuse to underwrite tour companies whose policies lead to unacceptable losses. There, you read it here first.
Let's hope the tour providers and carriers stop denying people access and requiring them to quarantine, and leave ships and tours first! It is cutting off their nose to spite their face.
And now, right it the middle of increasing infection rates just a few days ago the CDC stopped requiring cruise ships to report positive cases!!
British, well said. Wow! Blew her nose into her socks! On our flight, Air Canada, it was mandatory to wear a mask except when dining. However, in business class, the food looked so awful that I skipped the meal and had a protein bar instead.