Would have been great, BUT Covid

Radiance of the Seas Cruise Review to Alaska - Inside Passage

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Reviews: 2
Helpful Votes: 42

Overall rating:

4.4 out of 5
Verified Review
Radiance of the Seas

7 Night Southbound Alaska & Hubbard Glacier (Seward To Vancouver)

Sail date: May 27, 2022

Ship: Radiance of the Seas

Cabin number: 4548

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 2 years ago

Review summary

The experiences on the ship and at port calls were great. BUT!!!!! The CDC rates cruises as a risky activity with respect to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. An important factor in our decision to take this cruise was the fact that there was a requirement to wear masks at all times on board, except when in one's own cabin, seated at restaurants and bars, or in the pool. We are not happy that this requirement was dropped literally two days before we were to embark on the cruise. At this point, we had already sunk a lot of money into this vacation, so decided to go ahead with the cruise. When masks are made optional, most people do not choose to wear them, so the protection offered by masks is greatly decreased. While my husband and I continued to wear our masks on the ship, our son did not wear his diligently because no one he was socializing with wore theirs, making him feel awkward to wear his. As a result, he did contract Covid. Even though my husband and I remained Covid free, we had to remain isolated along with our son since we shared a cabin. Please reconsider the decision to make masks optional. Too many people caught Covid on this cruise. Eighteen of us were in our Covid disembarkation group; some of them were saying that there were over 100 affected by Covid. (Others who had tested negative, but whose travel companions were positive were also affected.)

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5

Entertainment

4 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5
Three of us were in the cabin, which is smaller than a typical hotel room. However, it is larger than a sleeper car on a train. We didn't take a cruise for the cabin, so the size was not a big deal until our last day of sailing, when we ended up stuck in the cabin because our son got Covid.

Ship tip

Wear your mask. Always. Masks work. Our son did not wear his mask diligently and got Covid. Husband and I wore our masks at all times except for when we were seated at a bar or restaurant and did not catch Covid.

Ports of call

Seward (Anchorage), Alaska

5 out of 5

Cruise Hubbard Glacier

4 out of 5
There was too much ice in front of the glacier, so we did not get the up-close look

Juneau, Alaska

5 out of 5

Skagway, Alaska

5 out of 5

Haines, Alaska

5 out of 5

Icy Strait Point (Hoonah), Alaska

5 out of 5

Ketchikan, Alaska

5 out of 5

Cruise Inside Passage, Alaska

1 out of 5
We did not get to experience any activities during the inside passage. Our son's pre-flight Covid test came up positive, and we were all confined to our cabin as a result.

Vancouver (Canada Place), British Columbia

1 out of 5
We spent days isolating for Covid in a hotel in Vancouver. Not the best experience.

Disembarkation

1 out of 5
Since we were isolating in our cabin, we did not disembark with our disembarkation group. We were given very little information on the disembarkation process for those who contract Covid. We could not get room service, so did not have a meal since lunchtime the day before. We recognize that there were a lot of Covid cases on board and that staff had their hands full, but it would have been nice to know what to expect. The information sheet provided to people affected by Covid was not very helpful. Adding a section on what to expect--for instance, telling guests to NOT place luggage outside the night before, specifying that we would be personally escorted off the ship once general disembarkation was complete, stuff like that would be **immensely** helpful. I'm sure it did not help that I kept calling guest services every hour or so for updates, since they were no doubt busy just trying to coordinate our departure.
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7 Comments

byhisgrace    2 years ago

Appreciate your feedback

javawoody    2 years ago

Thanks for the review

Gwbigdog    2 years ago

Oops 😬

Live2TravelNow    2 years ago

I'm confused, your sail date is May 27. That is today?

cyndybeard    2 years ago

Was your son vaccinated? Just curious.

AuntPinkie    2 years ago

Appreciate your feedback. Sorry about your son catching Covid.

pensnr1fan    2 years ago

I understand your frustrations, but, it would be nice to say something nice about the ports since you gave them all 5 ✨. Those people work hard to help you have a great time there too!

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