I came down with Covid on my recent cruise😢. I went to the med center and tested positive. I was placed in isolation in my room. Because it was Covid, the medical costs were free. So was room service, the internet, and movies. Guest services checked on me twice a day and kept me informed about disembarking procedures. I was bummed, but Royal did their best to make things easier.

Liquid IV or propel packets are an amazing help for so many health related issues- GI track problem, motion sickness, sunburns, hang overs. Just being able to stay hydrated and keeping your electrolytes replenished will make a world of difference and possibly keep your from spending hundreds at the ship clinic! One of my favorite hacks from my paramedic days.

Another tip for US travelers: Let the State Department know you're traveling outside the country through the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). Why would you want to formally inform the government about your travel plans? You receive important information from the Embassy about safety conditions in your destination countries. It helps the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency in the event of natural disasters, civil unrest, or family emergencies and it helps family and friends get in touch with you in an emergency.

My wife and I were going on our first cruise 3 weeks ago on RC but 3 days prior to departure we both came down with Covid! Luckily, we bought insurance through the travel agency. It was fully refunded. We’ll try again in the future

One minor point: Don't bring your passport to private island ports like Coco Cay or Labadee.

I have AT&T and I accidentally turned my phone off airplane mode last cruise for 5 minutes. Had a $50 roaming charge. I called and claimed stupidity and they took it off my bill.

I had to go to the doctor at the medical center once on Freedom of the Seas and they were fabulous! I needed an antibiotic and the doctor prescribed it and had it on the ship. It was worth the payment to feel better and enjoy the cruise.

Bad advice to take your passport with you on shore. I have a friend who lost their passport while they were on the shore excursion, and it was a disaster as they were not sailing on a closed loop cruise. The best thing to do is to take a photocopy of your passport with you on shore, and leave the actual passport on board the ship, preferably in the safe, which most cabins have.

Great tips, thanks 👍

Thanks for all of the Icon footage during this. I MISS HER!!!

I had an RC excursion that ended right at the all-aboard time, and RC started calling other people in our party about 20 minutes before then, because we hadn't gotten on the ship yet. Apparently they don't always coordinate with the Shore Excursion desk, because they said they didn't know where we were, even though we were on one of their excursions!

Great tips!!

Really good topic!

I don't recommend bringing your passport off the ship in most circumstances. The likelihood that it gets lost or stolen is usually greater than you missing the ship. I take photos of my passport on my phone and bring my license.

I take a picture of my passport, my drivers license, MC card, supplement ins card , & leave the originals in the safe. No way would I take the chance of the originals being stolen or lost.

We were late coming back from Chechen Itza and we were so thankful we booked the tour through royal so they waited on us

Great video - it's my worst nightmare to fall ill on a cruise ship, especially when sailing close to countries with questionable healthcare systems. Thankfully, I've never experienced it first-hand, and hope never to!

I got sick with a stomach bug, probably norovirus, on my honeymoon cruise (2017). It was awful, not to mention scary, but luckily, it only lasted about half a day. I just put up the privacy tag and hid in my cabin until my symptoms eased. That’s probably illegal, but I didn’t want to risk being quarantined or debarked. Another time, when I was 12 years old, my parents were off in port, my sister was in the kids club, and I was wandering around the ship doing this, that, and the other. Being a preteen, I enjoyed having this time to myself. Well, I went back to the cabin to get something, and I inadvertently locked my cruise card inside. Keep in mind, I’m twelve years old. I have no idea what to do in a situation like this. My first thought was to see if the cabin stewards could open the door for me, but wouldn’t you know it, they were nowhere around. So I went to guest services. I didn’t know what, if anything, they could do, but I held out the hope that they could at least direct me to the right place. They printed me a new card. But I was so ashamed of it, I wrapped the old card in toilet paper before I threw it out so my parents wouldn’t see it. They were none the wiser, and I didn’t tell them until years later. I don’t know why.

i recently had a sort of worst case scenario we brought the wrong passports for our 14 nights anthem cruise in the summer and we had to miss 3 days and fly to gibraltar to board the ship, we have learnt from that and our christmas break cruise went well

Love the video. On RCCL, I always buy the wifi package and then turn my phone settings to allow WiFi calling while my phone is in airplane mode. It does not work with Carnival as they block the ability to do wifi calling. Thanks for the video Matt.

As a physician I was always curious about how those facilities worked. Seemed like it might even be fun to be the ship's doctor, but it's really not like Love Boat. You're not just "Doc" walking around the ship all the time as they stay rather busy when they're on shift.

Matt is out here doing the Lord’s work, being everyone’s responsible friend.

Matt, THE BEST remedy for sunburn, is get a tea bag with black tea. Put it in hot water. Let the tea cool, and soak a wash cloth in it, then place it on the burned areas. The tea draws out the heat, and lessens the redness. It works twice as fast as aloe, and you won't peel nearly as much.

I had bad oysters on a stop at Puerto Vallarta. Oh the terror 😂

Definitely get travel insurance we were just on Independence, my sister had severe pain and we were at port they sent her to that port hospital of course not the greatest facility they ran several tests and found nothing. Got clearance to go back on ship but she ended up having to give them $4500 which we know is super inflated for tourists being there. And the bill for the ship med bay was 1000 since she visited them twice. She still has a lot of pain and will go to the doctors at home to figure it out.

I once lost my Sea Pass walking onto the gangway to get on the ship, right before the check in machines!

Hi Matt there's a work around to putting your phone in airplane mode get prepaid phone service like Metro by T-Mobile or Total by Verizon because then your paying one fixed price and if a service isn't included ie: international calls then the phone won't make them it will be blocked problem solved as there's no fear of a high bill

7:25 Pro tip: If you’re on the ship in time to get a drink and a good spot to watch pier runners you’ll never miss the ship. 👍

Awesome

On the Icon inaugural, RC obtained a police escort for an excursion which was late to return to the ship.

I took a spill while playing lazer tag in Mexico, and cut my elbow. The guide put band-aids on it, and I kept playing. Upon return to the ship, I went to the medical facility, and a nurse washed it and bandaged it up. She gave me more wrappings and antibiotic. There was no charge for the service. A few weeks later, it was bothering me, so I went to my doctor, and I had actually fractured it, but it had healed.

0:11: "Up next!"

After years of cruising on RC as my husband was unloading the luggage from the truck (before parking the vehicle) he was talking to the luggage handler and didn’t see an orange cone and tripped over it. He broke his wrist, skinned his face along with his knee and cracked a couple ribs but since it wasn’t a bad break we boarded the ship and went to the medical center. Had X-rays and said it was a break. They gave him a brace and sling. We made it through the cruise but no one told us to contact the travel insurance company, which we always take out. Thanks for that information. We’re trying to get our health insurance to reimburse us for the payment to RC. Good information Matt-Thank you!

If you buy travel insurance from the cruise line, the onboard medical care is covered without cash payment.

Hey Matt. In a lot of your videos you mention that now you consider Travelers Insurance as a necessity. Could you make a video about the different types of insurance (i understand there are a bunch of different options), the one's you've used in the past, the one's you'd suggest avoiding, etc. If you already did that, then im sorry. I need to check all your videos again 😂

Waittt....Not ALL closed loop cruises you can use your DL and birth certificate. You NEED to edit this video and clarify. If you visit Panama, Colombia or Martinique a passport is REQUIRED!

I think Titanic when I think worst case scenario

I went to the med center once...my heart rate was out of control, and I simply wanted to get my blood pressure checked to see what on earth was going on. The staff stuck his head out the door, looking like he was incredibly irritated that I dared to bother him, and then when I asked to get my blood pressure checked, he barked "THAT'S $250". I told him I'd rather die on the ship that pay that to check my blood pressure. They were so rude, it was incredible.

My folks had Covid during a cruise!! What a waste of time and money. They had to stay in their cabin. When we were on a family vacation to FL, I cut my heel on the bottom of a ladder in the motel swimming pool. I needed stitches.

I've just booked my first ever cruise, and I chose a European itinerary which visits two cities I've already travelled through in the past by rail. One of the main reasons - Given I've never cruised before and could easily have a first time slip-up 🍌 - Is so that if I do miss the boat at any point, I already know how to get to the next port or back home via the European rail network. 🚄🇪🇺💨 Compared to most _missed departure_ situations, all mine might require is a credit card and five minutes on the Eurostar website. Route home: Sorted. Drama: Averted! 🇬🇧🚄💨👍 (Let's not mention the _extremely long_ queues I'll have to deal with thanks to my blue passport, though... 😉)

RC perdio mi equipaje en mi crucero a Alaska, fue una tortura, me querian dar 100 dlls para que me comprara ropa arriba del barco. Tuve que alzar la voz para que despues de 2 días me dieran 300 dlls y 25% para mi próximo crucero. Creo que le falto empatía al personal de servicio al cliente y dar respuesta rapida y oportuna a la situación.

WRT being late, the cruise compass always lists the phone number of the local Royal port agent. Take a picture of that before you leave.

just went on freedom with my girlfriend and some friends, got sick right after visiting nassau on the third day, ruined the entire 4th day at sea for me, really bad sinus infection, i was pissed, then drove from miami to michigan with said sinus infection. think i might have swallowed too much seawater on cococay lol

It is my understanding that crew will enter the stateroom of any passenger who fails to return by sailing time, and they'll look for passport, wallet, medication, etc. to deliver to the cruise line's port agent so that, upon return of that passenger, they have what they need to get to the next port, or the home port, depending upon circumstances

Why bring your passport to port? I thought they will go to your cabin and get your passport (especially if it’s in the safe) and bring to the port authority if they know you have not boarded the ship. I’d rather bank on that than bringing my passport and dealing with the possibility of losing it or having it stolen.

I got neurovirus on our honeymoon cruise. They took such amazing care of us

My parents booked their dream B2B cruises a couple of years ago. They spent thousands of dollars on a loft suite for both cruises, and the first one was perfect! The second cruise, though, my mom tested positive for COVID on Day 1… Unfortunately, she went down to medical to get tested, then when she tested positive they made her quarantine there in the medical area. They checked on her twice a day, but they didn’t give her any medication beyond Tylenol (the reason she went down was hoping to get one of the medications they can prescribe if you go in right away), so she was literally stuck in a tiny room, I don’t think it even had a window, alone, barely checked on, while my dad sat in their beautiful suite feeling guilty and not going on any of their excursions for the entire second cruise. I wish they would have at least let her quarantine in her room! I wonder if they would still force you to stay there in medical if you test positive, or if they let you go to your room now?

I'm looking forward to going on my first cruise this year, so I've been watching videos about all the what to and not to do. One thing everyone brings you and you did in this video as well is travel insurance. Where do you buy that from? Thanks

On every cruise, I've always, ALWAYS see at least 1 person who is severely sun burned on the 1st day. And I'm talking RED! XD Just because they didn't put on their sunscreen.

My son lost his sea pass card. We had taken our passports, so he showed that, they looked him up and let him on board, and he got a new card from Guest Services.

I have been on 4 cruises in the last 16 months. I got COVID after 3 of them. Last one I got off 2 weeks ago and came down with COVID 3 days later. I am still coughing and sniffling.

What about taking a pic of your passport on your phone and a paper copy and leaving the hard copy of passport in your stateroom

I'm surprised Royal Caribbean hasn't adopted the waterproof RFID wristband version of the seapass...but continue to use a physical card.

Something they don’t tell you about being late for your cruise is that if you book with a reputable tour company, they say they guarantee to get you back on your ship in time or will make arrangements to get you to the next port, or back home. I’ve never tested that nor have I heard anyone else but most, if not all of the shore excursions I’ve looked at on my own have made that promise. I’d like to assume they would hold up their end on that. Thoughts?

My medical care on a cruise was covered by my medical insurance. FYI.

Don’t agree about taking your passport with you when you leave the ship. It’s not necessary, even in a foreign country. A photo copy will suffice as proof (and is the recommendation of the State Department). Keeping it locked in the cabin safe prevents the chance of theft or losing it.

@12:15 In that video you see some inconsiderate travelers bringing their rolling luggage on to an escalator. Then a young man wants to get by them walking up the escalator but their luggage is blocking the stairs. Please don't block the escalators, just take the elevator if you'll be blocking walkways. This also goes for any city where youre taking a subway from the airport. Be considerate!

i have been out by the pool and fallen asleep for hours. I had *palm sized* blisters on my back and shoulders. Ended up with Vitamin D poisoning. This is not unheard of! If you are fair skinned, and even if you are not, SPF 30-50 applied every hour will save you all kinds of pain. Quite literally.

Are you still recommended to bring your passport to Ports when Royal Caribbean is stating to leave it on the ship? They said if you miss the boat they will make sure the get the passport to you so why risk it?

UP NEXT!

What if the cruise sinks

What if I use my birth certificate to board and something happens where I lose it or the cruise ends up returning to a different port in the US?

Concerning sunscreen: ALWAYS use reef-safe products!

What about if you miss the ship. Does cruise insurance cover that?

How do friends and family communicate with each other if the phones are on airplane mode? Bring a few Walkie Talkies?

6:20 lol

Mojo Nixon just died on his cruise. Can’t get much worse than that.

Passport card. I'm not bringing my passport outside my room unless I need to

Old life guard sunburn treatment is plain aspirin. Not any other pain reliever as tylenol. Just cheap plain aspirin. Seriously!

2 days tell carnival panorama!

If the "up next" and "real soon" isn't pronounced the exact same way each video....

You: "Worst case scenarios include not putting your phone into airplane mode or getting sunburned." Me: "Worst case scenarios include the infamous Poop Cruise from Hell or the ship sinking like the Titanic."

I'm so tired of channels like yours where your telling us stuff we can find ourselves, then making lots of money off it and rubbing all your vacations in our face and calling it work. Matt go chop wood or mine coal for the whole year. Then come back here and tell us how this wasn't up to par for you for the only 7 days you don't have to do manual labor out of the entire year. Get a real job, stop grifting folks. People just do the work yourself, you don't. need to watch him. It's all general info you can find yourself, or call the cruise line and speak to an employee who is actually doing a job, and not pretending cruising is like Matts does. Don't help people like this take nice vacations and fulfill his life dreams, all while you work your life away actually doing something important like a skill or profession.