One of the the questions I get more than any other from first time cruisers, or people just thinking about taking their first cruise is what about “that virus thing?” That virus thing, known as Norovirus is on the television news as I type this post, in fact, as Cunard’s Queen Mary II has apparently been stricken with a higher than average number of sick passengers. My friend, The Weekly Flyer, over at Points, Miles, and Martini’s sent me this article and I thought it was worth a blog. I also think it’s worth noting that in the case of the Queen Mary II, approximately 200 passengers and crew have contracted Norovirus, but the total number of passengers and crew on board is 3,868 (2,613 passengers, and 1,255 crew) according to the article. In other words, a lot of cruisers are enjoying themselves and hardly experiencing a “Christmas disaster” as described in the article.
Let’s talk about what this really is for a minute. According to the United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC) “Noroviruses are a group of related viruses. Infection with these viruses affects the stomach and intestines and causes an illness called gastroenteritis (GAS-tro-en-ter-I-tis; inflammation of the stomach and intestines).” You can read the rest of CDC’s take on Noroviruses by clicking here. You can contract Norovirus anywhere, not just on cruise ships.
I’ve been on 30 cruises, and have yet to have the “dis” pleasure of Norovirus. In fact, the only person I have ever known to contract Norovirus caught it in his college dorm. That said, it obviously can impact a cruise, so what do I do to ensure that I am doing my best to not contract Norovirus? First, I wash my hands regularly and take advantage of opportunities to use anti-bacterial hand sanitizer when appropriate. Hint: If a member of the ship’s crew is offering you the opportunity to sanitize your hands and you haven’t washed them recently, it’s probably a good idea to take the hand sanitizer.
Cruise ships make a big effort at keeping things clean. One thing you will notice on your cruise is that a member of the crew is always polishing the hand rails. That’s not just to keep them shiny, it’s to kill germs that your fellow cruisers might be spreading. Sometimes, the illness breaks through and grows to a certain number and then the cruise lines are required to report it. That is why you don’t often hear about Norovirus outside of the cruise industry even though it may be running rampant at a local hotel right now. The reporting requirements are different for ships than they are for hotels, or college dorms. Further, for an eager reporter, the thought of 200 people having a bad stomach bug while on vacation just sounds like a better story than 200 college kids getting sick in their dorm. (Obviously, that is just my opinion, but I stand by it.) You can read about Norovirus reporting for the cruise industry here (the Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP)), and everyone else here.
The bottom line is that Norovirus could impact your cruise, but cruise lines do take steps to make sure it doesn’t happen. You can do things to make sure it doesn’t happen to you as well. Primarily, wash your hands with warm soapy water at every opportunity. And oh yeah…please don’t stick your nasty used water bottle on the water dispenser to refill it in the buffet line. (Sorry, had to get that in there.)
I have been told that some viruses are not destroyed by alcohol. I believe many hand sanitisers are alcohol-based.
Must agree fully with you, therefore, on the wisdom of using soapy water and rinsing plus a clean towel.
We were on a cruise in April 2011 from Acapulco to Miami via the Panama Canal and there were a fair amount of people sick. Not sure how many but enough so that the crew served people at the buffet until the last 2 days of the cruise. It turned out to be Montezuma’s Revenge, not noro and most people got it in Acapulco. Oddly enough, my husband and I had spent 3 nights between Mexico City and Acapulco and never got sick. We do use the hand sanitizers on board before and after each meal but I think we… Read more »
Tara,
Thanks for commenting. I rarely see anything from the cruise line cards that is decent. I have seen a couple of 15,000 point bonuses from the RCL Visa, that’s about it. Their standard seems to be 10,000. RCL did run some point bonuses for current card holders during December. 3x per dollar for RCL purchases and some 2x on other things. I still think the Sapphire Preferred card is the best deal going for cruise spending.
Hey Dan….most of those dispensers I’ve seen on board are branded Purrell, which is why I think its best to just wash your hands frequently. I suppose Purrell is better than nothing….at least it might keep you from getting a sniffle. Would love to hear from others on this. I read a blurb somewhere that Purrell for purchase outside the USA is better than within, but I do not know that for certain.
One thing many people don’t know is that the hand cleaner, purell isn’t very effective against norovirus, Germ-x they say will as it has to have benzalkonium chloride in it. I’m no expert but that’s what I’ve learned from research. I assume the dispensers onboard have the right stuff but then again they tell you it’s safe to drink the tap water on the ships also 🙂
Did not intend to imply that it was a small thing. The reporting threshold is 2 percent, and they’ve obviously blown through that by a good margin. Nonetheless, with 194 sick passengers, that still leaves 2,419 passengers who are not. I’ve been on a couple of “red alert” cruises, and managed not to get sick. I just wanted to add some perspective for those who may be interested.
Thanks for this. I always think of just how many people, and little ones, have pushed the elevator buttons. Another reason to take the steps (and work off all the nummy food too)! 🙂
5% of the ppl on the ship experiencing sickness is huge. Not a small thing at all