We loved our first cruise last year and despite the reputation cruises have for being floating germ-spreaders none of us got so much as a sniffle. Cleanliness on the ship was impressive. Handwashing and sanitising was heavily encouraged on our ship and most of the food was served with tongs, even in the buffet.
Our second cruise this year (with my husband, mum and her partner) with the same line was equally impressive, hygiene-wise so when I first started coughing I first thought I was allergic to something in our cabin. I was also frequently hot, drank gallons of the lovely iced water in the restaurant and carried my little paper fan everywhere but I am a woman of a certain age and being overheated is not unusual.
Turns out (I found out later) I had contracted Flu A. I have no idea where. Maybe before we boarded, maybe on the ship, maybe in the one of the shops, buses or cafes I went in and on during our trip. Luckily as I am diabetic my illness although unpleasant, was not life-threatening, possibly because I always get my annual Flu Vaccine.
Of course I didn't realise I had flu, possibly because life with Fibromyalgia is a little bit like permanently having flu. I just thought my Fibro was flaring because of a change to my routine.When the antihistamines I'd packed in my basic first aid kit didn't help the cough I bought some cough medicine during a port day from a lovely German pharmacist who asked if my cough had "slime". Lovely!
On the penultimate day of our holiday we decided to have an extra special lunch. Mum's partner had been a bit off colour but to be honest I think as we had been trying to pack in as much as we could into our holiday we thought we'd worn him out. We were more concerned when he said he couldn't finish his food or the lovely wine and went back to his stateroom for a nap while we waited for dessert. NB He is still a little bitter about missing out on a truly spectacular Rum Baba.
Checking on him after lunch mum became concerned about his health and came along to our cabin and asked us to come and give a second opinion. By the time we got back to their room it was clear he'd rapidly become very unwell.
We called 999 from the phone in the stateroom and almost immediately heard an announcement over the ship's speakers calling for medical assistance. Very shortly afterwards a team of medics and assistants bustled in and efficiently transferred our ill friend to the onboard "hospital" where after some intensive treatment and care we were told he was really very, very sick.
I won't go into details but it seemed he'd also caught Flu A which triggered some nasty complications. I'm happy to report he's now home and well on the mend. He doesn't seem to be blaming me for potentially being Patient Zero in our party.
But I thought it would be useful to share how efficient and impressive the medical team on our ship was. I am almost certain that if he had not been on the ship and had to wait for an ambulance in the UK, even when they are at their most efficient, he would have died. The ships' medical team were so good, fast moving, communicative and honest but reassuring. We truly felt they were doing everything they could to help him. The doctor even accompanied him to the hospital in Southampton when we docked early the next morning.
Of course, onboard a cruise if taken ill and need medical assistance you are basically going private. There's no access to NHS services of course and your UK Global Health Insurance Card is as much use as your supermarket loyalty card on a cruise ship. You need travel insurance. Really good travel insurance. Thankfully our friend, an experienced traveller, did.
The cruise line we favour insists on voyagers having travel insurance and you have to upload details of your policy number and provider. Of course they have to take it on trust that you have been truthful with your insurance provider.
Whatever you do, don't be tempted to lie to your travel insurance provider, even by omission unless you have a small, medium or even large fortune knocking around to cover any medical bill. Even if they don't ask the "right" questions and you omit a past incident, admission, diagnosis or treatment it might mean your policy is worthless.
We were lucky - our friend was transferred to an NHS hospital by ambulance. If he'd needed assistance when we were cruising round the Baltic sea, or even worse, needed to be airlifted off the ship and didn't have good, valid insurance he might have needed a lottery win type amount of money to cover the cost.
If like me you have medical conditions which mean standard insurance isn't going to cover everything there are medical specialists and companies aimed at older travellers. Yes, the price will be significantly more than your supermarket policy but you may be able to get an annual policy which works out more economical if you plan more than one trip. Some companies offer the option to spread the cost through the year too.
Hopefully you will never need to claim and will never see the medical zone on your ship. Although I did appreciate that the offered cuppas were served with all the flair of the main restaurant.
It's not a bad idea to make up a kit of basic supplies which can be bought cheaply in the UK but may cost much more overseas and on the ship. While in the medical area we did see people asking for basic meds which would have been cheaper bought before the trip and not too heavy or cumbersome to pack.
Those little first aid kits with gauze and tweezers are OK but add things like painkillers, sea sickness tablets, plasters, antihistamines, meds for dodgy tummies and indigestion remedies. Pack antiseptic cream, lozenges for sore throats and maybe cough medicine! And of course make sure you have more than enough of your usual prescribed medication in case of delays or unexpected medical emergencies.
Make sure you have a list of your medications and health conditions easily accessible and if possible share that information or the location of it with your travelling companion if you have one. Here's how to Set up Medical ID on your iphone or you can search online for your phone brand - I believe they all have something similar which allows first responders to find out your health information even from a locked phone- on an iphone they can do this by pressing the side and volume up button together.
Please don't let my story put you off cruising. We have already booked again for 2027 and cannot wait to sail to the Arctic Circle with the same historic cruise line.