"cruise Travel Insurance: Sailing Safely For Australians"

 "cruise Travel Insurance: Sailing Safely For Australians" - The World Dream, docked at Singapore's Marina Bay Cruise Center. Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

AT WORLD'S DREAMS, MALAKA STREET — Drinks were virgin and social distancing was in order when the Dream Boys strippers hit the stage. Masks were mandatory in the pool. Hand sanitizing stations were within easy reach of the slot machines.

"cruise Travel Insurance: Sailing Safely For Australians"

And in a glimpse into the future of the global cruise industry, passengers aboard the World Dream cruise ship carried little pink contact-tracing pods that tracked their locations and recorded the names of everyone they met.

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"Aboard the World Dream we are doing our best to keep your cruise with us healthy," the ship's captain, Robert Bodin, told his 1,400 passengers as they set sail, departing from the usual invitation to relax and enjoy the journey. .

World Dream departs Singapore two or three times a week on a cruise to nowhere, a rare glimmer of hope for an industry under mortal threat. In February, the world watched in horror as the coronavirus infected more than 200 people on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, infecting its 3,600 passengers and crew. Governments banned cruises, sent crews home and passengers canceled bookings, bringing an industry that employed more than a million people to a standstill.

Two or three times a week, the World Dream sets sail on a cruise to nowhere. Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

Captain Robert Bodin with his deck officers aboard the World Dream. Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

Cruises To Nowhere Extended As Singaporeans Seek To Go Anywhere

Singapore, along with several countries in Europe and Japan, has launched a lifeline for the cruise business. With so many ships stranded around the world, the city-state has encouraged travel in a limited and highly controlled manner.

To find out how this was possible, I booked a three-day trip on World Dream. Friends and colleagues asked why I wanted to go on what some of them called a "floating Petri dish." Their fears were not unfounded. U.S. health officials are suggesting people avoid cruise ships and say operators should put a framework in place to restart cruises. Most of the major cruise lines in the United States have announced that they will not resume service until 2021. A week before sailing, a Caribbean cruise ship from Barbados was forced to turn back after five people tested positive for the coronavirus.

"When I saw your email, I thought, 'Bad idea,'" said Dr. Edward Ryan, global director of infectious diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital. However, he and others told me that Singapore's restrictions make cruising seem safe.

Singapore has encouraged travel in a limited and highly controlled manner. However, they are a lifesaver for cruise operators. Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

Going On A Cruise

"When I look at what they're doing," Dr. Ryan said, "they're effectively creating a reasonable bubble."

The demand is still there. Genting Cruise Lines, the operator of the World Dream, said it had received 6,000 bookings within five days. Bookings for Royal Caribbean, which is preparing to sail from Singapore this month, were six times what the company would normally get in October, the cruise line said.

World Dream offers almost everything it did before the coronavirus hit, Genting said, including a zip line, two swimming pools, a casino, 11 restaurants and cafes and several shows. Only the karaoke room was closed, following Singapore government guidelines.

Singapore requires passengers to undergo a coronavirus test before boarding. Instead of Hong Kong, Okinawa or some other sunny destination, the ship wouldn't dock anywhere from Singapore. Capacity has been halved to a limit of 1,700 guests.

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World Dream still offers two swimming pools, a casino, 11 restaurants and cafes, and several shows. No karaoke, though. Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

Breakfast on the last day of a final cruise. Cruise ship buffets have discontinued self-service.Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

Following Singapore's guidelines, cruise lines upgraded air filters and enforced social distancing. Passengers were required to carry contact tracing devices, which link to Singapore's monitoring systems. They went through drills on what to do if a passenger showed symptoms: test, contact trace, isolate all infected people, tell passengers to return to their cabins and sail home.

Royal Caribbean plans to purchase Covid-19 insurance for each passenger, which will cover costs of up to $19,000 if the guest is infected, said Angie Stephen, the line's Asia-Pacific managing director.

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The measures raised costs by about 40 percent, Michael Goh, head of international sales at Genting Cruise Lines, told a news conference. But they make cruising "one of the safest vacations right now," he said.

Genting is making efforts for health. "Sail with confidence," says World Dream's website, which highlights the ventilation system ("100 percent fresh outside air") and food hygiene practices. ("Self-service in buffet restaurants will be suspended."

One of the two pools. World Dream also has a recreational zipline.Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

Regina Setar, 38, a part-time security guard, said she studied the precautions before her 70-year-old mother went on board. Her mother has diabetes and recently had knee surgery, but "she's been holed up at home, watching all the news about Covid." They paid about $300 for a balcony room.

How Safe Is Sailing?

"I don't take any chances," said Ms. Setar. "I wouldn't want to. My father would kill me if anything happened.'

Perhaps the biggest reason I felt safe on the cruise was that when I boarded the ship, Singapore had gone seven straight days without a case of the coronavirus.

I had to do a quick antigen test with a medical staff member gently dabbing a short piece of tissue around my nostrils. It was not as invasive as the long strips used for so-called PCR tests, the standard way to detect the coronavirus. Antigen tests are easy to administer to large groups of people, but experts warn they may not catch everyone who is infected.

So Genting takes other steps. Following Singapore's rules, it has sent 40 "cruise ambassadors" wearing dark blue polo shirts to ensure guests keep their distance from each other. You get used to hearing them say, "Please stay a meter away."

Cruise Cover. No Excess To Pay When You Make A Claim

Almost all passengers comply, "but there's always that 1 percent," said cruise ambassador Zulkifli bin Ibrahim. One passenger, Mr. Zulkifli said, yelled at the passenger after reminding him to wear a mask after swimming.

Lunch tests the limits of range. Guests were in three-foot-tall stickers, waiting in long lines at the buffet areas. They called the cooks who chose the food, used gloves and tongs as they filled the plates.

At one dinner, an elderly woman, mask pulled down under her chin, was looking at the offerings on the buffet table. An ambassador from the cruise approached her furiously: "Aunt, aunt! Your mask!”

Passengers on a "Cruise to Nowhere" in Singapore saw the "Verry Christmas" show, an acrobatic performance with a festive theme. Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

Things To Know About Cruise Insurance

The casino was the main attraction. Dozens of gray-haired passengers sat in rows of machines, even three meters apart. There were several tables for mahjong. A group of elderly women, wearing masks, shuffled the tiles.

I'm sure I wasn't the only one worried about the dangers. A cough would make me wonder if the woman two tables down from me was a germ vector.

Still, the passengers were grateful for the chance to go somewhere else for the first time since the explosion, even if the "somewhere else" was a cruise ship sailing in the middle of the water.

"It's been a long time since I traveled!" said Doris Yeo, a sales assistant and cruise enthusiast, laughing with nine other people, mostly family, spread across two restaurant tables. His relatives joined, he said, "because they really like the game."

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Members of a service team at a World Dream restaurant. Credit... Ore Huiying for The New York Times

The next day, I entered the theater for the “Very Christmas” show, a Christmas themed acrobatic show. A drag queen wearing a blonde wig, fur stole and sequined dress sang "Santa Baby" to a group of Santa Clauses. The masked audience screamed and screamed.

On the last night of the cruise, I went to the Dream Boys all-male burlesque show at a Chinese restaurant. It was billed as "a ladies' night where your fantasies will come true." The hall appeared full, although the audience sat at least three meters away at some of the tables. As the show started after 10.30pm, no alcohol was served, in accordance with Singapore's Covid-19 restrictions.

The dancers' routine - a military display with supposed fake weapons and captain's hats and not much else - was met with boos, even the masks were almost silent. At curtain call, the audience was clapping and cheering, as a woman yelled "Encore!" shouting

In Singapore, A Cruise To Nowhere On The World Dream

Fun and relaxation should be planned on a Covid-19 cruise. Shows must be booked in advance. Swimmers must do the same: the main pool allows 26

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