In a follow-up to the initial report on the Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Sunshine norovirus outbreak earlier this week, CDC Vessel Sanitation Program officials put the case count up to 178 as the cruise ship docks in Port Canaveral, FL today.
Of the 3001 passengers on board, 173 have been taken ill by the contagious gastrointestinal virus (5.76%). The number of crew affected remains at five.
In 2016, five cruise ship voyages have been investigated by the CDC VSP, three with confirmed norovirus and two with a still unknown etiology.
Although cruise ship outbreaks, particularly with norovirus, the so-called “cruise ship virus”, receive much media attention, the fact is, it accounts for a small number of total cases.
In January, a study was published by the CDC and they found from 2008 to 2014, among 73,599,005 passengers on cruise ships during 2008–2014, a total of 129,678 (0.18%) cases of acute gastroenteritis were reported during outbreak and nonoutbreak voyages; among 28,281,361 crew members, 43,132 (0.15%) cases were reported. Only a small proportion of those cases were part of a norovirus outbreak.
Norovirus, the most common causative agent of outbreaks, accounted for 14,911 cases among passengers and crew members during 2008–2014, 0.01% of the estimated number of norovirus cases in the United States during the study period.
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I was on that cruise. I had norovirus symptoms and my wife also, My wife was bed ridden with the norovirus for 2 days. The triage nurse refused to list us as norovirus victims and even to confirm that was what my wife had or treat my wife for her fever that she had. We are not in that count listed by the CDC.
We were on that cruise also. There was also a respiratory illness going around the ship too. People coughing all over everyone.
My husband started 4 days before we arrived back to port Canaveral . He went to walk in clinic once we came home that day 101 fever and a upper respiratory illness. On antibiotics now.
We were on the ship as well. Completely odd about Carnival “not” reporting it. When you walked into the infirmary there was a CDC form that was mandatory to fill out regardless if you had stomach or respiratory illness. My husband had it, we spent an hour in the infirmary and each and every passenger and crew member was given the CDC form to fill out. I do believe the CDC count is low as we witnessed one passenger actually leave who had symptoms because he did not want to wait to be seen. Hence, the count could be low because people chose not to self report to the infirmary. My husband was quarantined to his room, rightfully so, but that gentleman we can only assume went about his normal activities spreading germs about the ship. I was fortunate and did not catch the norovirus. However, I agree with Diana about the respiratory illness, when we arrived home yesterday I went to a pharmacy clinic with what I thought was a sinus infection but apparently I had an ear infection and my husband is calling the DR today as he has been hacking and coughing for the last few days now. It happens in close quarters and the only precaution is good hand washing and being aware of the ease of spreading. For example, do not touch the handrails on the steps, sanitize after pushing an elevator button, wash your hands before you literally eat off your plate if you use say the salt shaker or tongs someone else was exposed to. This is common sense regardless if it is on a cruise ship. We were recently at a BBQ place which had 5 different BBQ sauces on our table to use – think about it. How many people that day touched those bottles before I touched it to put sauce on my plate and then ate my food? Urgh. We love to cruise, we all need to be more courteous and aware of the importance of hand washing to minimize the transmittal of such illnesses. Hope all of our fellow cruisers are feeling better!
Seriously, there is a mandatory form from the CDC regardless of whether or not it is a stomach or respiratory illness? I’ve heard it all now. It must be so they can over inflate their bogus statistics. I recently read that they tally over-the-counter pharmacy products too. Probably for the same reason. Does anybody stop to think about why these same CDC officials then go work for the drug companies? No conflict of interest there. Such a lucrative business.
Just got off the sailing after that we left 3-5-2016 over 100 cases noro again and upper respiratory illnesses as well.
Called the health dept in Brevard hopefully they will get the ship thoroughly cleaned as it should have been before they released it.
I was conflicted about writing a review this negative. I stopped and deleted it many times, only to be dissappointed in a new ways. Let’s start at the beginning, shall we?
Upon arrival at the carnival port, a gentleman whisked away my luggage but only after asking if I planned on tipping him I did, of course. Security was not very effective, which was a little scary. They were too concerned with the gatorade bottle I tossed in my purse for the uber trip to check my carry on bags. Security was just as weak getting on from Mexico. I spent the rest of trip in a fog of marijuana. The hallways reeked. Check in was simple; no problems there. Boarding the boat was a little more difficult. I can only liken it cattle being herded. At every turn someone stopped us to take pictures, whether we wu untilanted them or not. It’s in your best interest to pose because they post those photos on the walls of the 9th floor. They don’t let you take your own without a fee and they charge outrageous fees for the photos.
This is where the rat race begins. Lunch on the boat was nothing to brag about. Actually, the food in general was just okay. This was the most disappointing aspect of the trip. The marketing fluff set the bar high and they didn’t come close to a delivery. If you want to eat copious amounts of mediocre, buffet food, this cruise is for you. Were talkiing hamburgers, hot dogs, and cold fries. The buffets don’t change much from day to day and offer no more flavor than hospital cafeteria food. I feel it necessary to note that the food service employees are incredible on all but the last morning. Truly, the staff was the only saving grace on this entire trip. Dinners weren’t much better with no seafood options on the general menu. The closest we got to seafood were 4 dime sized scallops served on a tablespoon of risotto. The highlight of the food will be the brunch menu in the Elation dinning room. Ps… they dont advertise it. The steak and eggs is better than the dinner steak. Limited sugar free dessert options. By limited, I mean one. I was, often, concerned about the numerous health code violations. The worst being a semi saran wrapped log of ham being dropped on the floor and then immediately tossed on the slicer for service. I accidentally caught this in the background of my snapchat. The less offensive were people grabbing the food with their hands when serving utensils were unavailable. Nothing seemed to be holding at a safe temperature.
Next up, the safety demonstration. Finding your assigned location is like a treasure hunt without a map or treasure. Upon arrival you will be asked to discard the $8 drink you purchased walking in. My advice, chug it! You will thank me later. The safety demonstration was a joke. You are told how to put on a Life jacket, with lots of cutsey but annoying commentary. Then pushed, with 1000 (literally 1000) people up 2 flights of stairs to a life boat where you will stand for 10 minutes before a bell sounds to release you. Let’s just hope you don’t need this information later as this is merely them going through the motions. At this point you are allowed in your cabins. Carry everything you need on your person because your luggage probably won’t arrive until after dinner. There appears to be no service elevators for staff and they shut some down for luggage. They also transport room service using these through out the trip.
The staterooms, ugh! They were actually not as small as I thought. However, ours smelled like a locker room/ urinal combo. The boogers on the headboard and dingy sheets and smelly pillows sent me over the edge. I messaged Carnival on facebook and to my surprise they responded immediately to rectify the situation. The housekeeping staff were incredible from that point on. Thanks, Edwin! The halls had constant floor fans from leaks and often smelled badly. Room service is just okay, if they answer. Good luck with that. The menu is very limited and they charge for items that are free at the buffet. There is a dress code for dinner and it’s not casual, so plan ahead. Especially if your luggage hasn’t arrived.
Prior to booking and again before arrival on the ship, an email was sent with photos and ship activities. The zip line was something we looked forward to. Sadly, it was a general marketing photo and didn’t exist on this ship. There is only one pool on the entire boat. It stayed rather packed. The deck is slippery and while they work hard to combat it with squeegees, I watched people fall several times a day. The photos of multiple pools and slides must also be general marketing photos. The DJ, cruise director, and musicians we quite talented. Don’t expect that advertised celebratory boarding champagne as It’s also appears to be marketing fluff. The hasbro game show is on the first night. Unfortunately, it was to chaotic that night and it is not repeated.
The bingo game should be examined by the gaming comission. My math is pretty solid and it didn’t seem to add up. The casino is nice though we were charged 2x for a transaction.
There is a deck for 21 and up. We attempted to take advantage on the last night. After checking out towels, we disrobed and climbed into the hot tub. Side note, they charge for the towels if not returned to that location. So, bring one or prepare to walk back in soggy swim attire . There are no changing rooms. One sip of wine and mere seconds later, at 8:38pm, we were told they were closing in 10 minutes. Probably would have been good information prior to getting in.
The camp carnival is fantastic for the kids and the fees are reasonable. They do some great things with the kids.
As shore came into view on the last morning, I would have happliy jumped and swam the last 2 miles, just to be off the boat. This was by far the worst vacation I have ever taken. I will never travel with Carnival again. My in laws traveled with us and have been on many cruises; they were also gravely disappointed. Any of these complaints on their own would not have constitued this seething review, the combination, however, made for a very miserable trip.