Sailing into the future: what to expect from a cruise in 2022 – loveEXPLORING

Wondering what cruising will be like post-COVID? Nick Dalton journeys around Greece on Marella Discovery and reveals what to expect both before you depart and once onboard.

Sailing from island to island, wind in our hair, the sun on our shoulders, Im on a carefree Greek cruise just like the old days.

Courtesy of Nick Dalton

Marella Discovery is spearheading Mediterranean cruises for Brits after the pandemic pandemonium that left ships bobbing aimlessly for 18 months.

On the surface almost everything is the same but like a duck paddling furiously underwater Marella Cruises, part of the Tui travel empire, is working tirelessly to make things happen.

If the worst thing isyou cant creep in to catch the evening show finale because everyone is seated in a socially-distanced way at the start, its not really a problem.

And a daily moment at one of the thermal temperature testing gadgets scan your door card, stand close and hope for the green light isnt a trial.

Even sitting on my balcony as the sun disappears in a warm, pink glow over Turkeys distant mountains and finding in the following days programme a recommendation to tidy up as all cabins were to be fogged (using harmless chemicals sprayed from a special machine), doesnt detract from my burgundy.

The 24 Septemberdeparture from Corfu is the fourth since Marella started sailing here on 3 September 2021. There are only 880 guests out of a capacity of 1,800 but thats crept up from 600 on the first with numbers set to reach 85% in the coming months.

Everyone here (and Marellas passengers tend to be younger than the cruise norm) loves being aboard and knows its in the interest of themselves and everybody else to play by the rules.

Masks are worn, by and large, when walking around. You accept not being able to prop up the bar (the excellent all-inclusive drinks service helps with that). And you cant get your hands on the buffet in the Islands restaurant asthat comes with people to serve you.

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Of course, with travel arrangements changing all the time requirements can be confusing. We were asked to buy a tests package from a recommended company: pre-flight lateral flow/antigen test with a provided negative certificate, pre-return test and a two-day test for our return home, 125 in all.

But, having been asked to test after 9pm the day before departure, and told a certificate should arrivean hour or two after uploading a video of the test being taken, there was no response on waking at 3.30am for a 6.40am flight.

The airport check-in person shrugged and said all that was needed was a test result so, having brought a spare test, I (along with a string of other travellers) tested on the spot.

On landing the certificate was in my in-box with a reply from theproviderto my where is it? query that they shut up shop 8pm-8am.

Top tip: carry spare lateral flow tests with you.

Aside from that, it was flawless. At Corfu airport, despite a warning that extra health tests were a possibility, the immigration official simply said passport and form, the latter being the Passenger Locator which everyone has to fill in online and print for the Greek government before leaving home.

One glance and we were through and on our 15-minute transfer.

At the dock the cheery Marella official asked for boarding pass, passport, Passenger Locator and proof of double jabbing then I crossed the room for another antigen test. Within 10 minutes I was strolling along the quayside where the ships certainly werent socially distancing. Opposite Marella Discovery was Princess Cruises Crown Princess while two Holland America ships waiting to sail again snuggled at the end.

READ MORE: Latest COVID travel advice here

From that point on passengers, from couples in their 20s to those much older, lounged by the open-air pool, drank beer while chatting in the hot tub and, by and large, obeyed the Keep Me Free stickers on varied seats in the bars.

Courtesy of Nick Dalton

Signs around the ship got the message across with a light-handed touch such as Mind The Gap to keep us distanced andHold Your Horses on the floor at the back of a queue.

READ MORE: Amazing facts about cruise ships you might not know

It was a joyous affair, helped no end by Captain Chris Dodds, a blunt and amusing northerner. In his loudspeaker messages hereferred to the C word when addressing safety protocols and he let everything flow during an interview session in the Atrium.

He talked about the trials and tears of the past 18 months honestly and engagingly. He told about the time he and the crew spent just hanging around waiting for the world to get back to normal.

Marella Discovery was in Asia when Covid arrived and after all his passengers were flown home he and his team of 686 spent 83 days at sea going nowhere fast.

With the world at standstill they had to make their own entertainment.

The bands and musicians were all onboard and all the beer was going out of date so we had to dispose of that in the most environmentally-friendly way! But the time was also used productively withmore than 70 crew havinga go at steering their 12 to 14-hour shifts earning them certificates.

And even back in Britain there were months treading water, mostly off Torbay where residents arranged special events for the crew.

Both captain and crew are over the moon to be back, determined to make these cruises a celebration. In the main restaurant, 47 Degrees, waiter Jayson, from the Philippines, tells of the frustration at his forced 18-month holiday with the children while his wife went out to work and his excitement at being able to do his job again.

Hotel director Danielle Rowley, just as upbeat, manages to see the lighter side. The thermometer machines sometimes accidently test the temperature of the coffee youre carrying one day early on both she and Captain Chris were caught, leading to a shipwide alert and worried phone calls.

Should anyone register above 38C,the medical team with antigen tests and a PCR machine is automatically alerted but over the first month no one failed the test.

Courtesy of Nick Dalton

Life on board is idyllic, the weeks cruise spending days on the isles of Crete, Rhodes and Mykonos, plus the isolated mainland spot of Katakolon (pictured), where there is a charming beach, but most people opt for a coach trip to Olympia, home of the Olympics) and Piraeus, theport town at Athens.

Stamatios Manousis/Shutterstock

Port procedure was barely different to any other time Greece has never had a rule (unlike Britain for a time, and other countries) that cruise visitors must be on an organised excursion.

And, given that this was a single-country cruise, we came and went with ease. Mykonos gaveus a swift temperature test as we stepped off the transfer boat, Crete giving us one, but only as we left.

And a midweek Covid test onboard was to satisfy Athens then new rule that everyone must have just tested negative. There was a handy onboard advice session over tests and Passenger Locators the day before going home and airport check-in was a doddle.

Courtesy of Nick Dalton

Dining was mostly as normal bearing in mind that ship restaurants required hand sanitisation two decades ago when the rest of the world had barely heard of it. The Islands restaurant featured the usual breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets but with staff serving. The Snack Shack a colourful beachfront atmosphere with fish and chips and burgers served people queueing as did the Glass House, the lunchtime spot by the indoor, glass-roofed pool.

There were several late-night deck parties, mostly featuring the 4 Tunes, a curious but wonderful Philippines beat combo.At the other end of the entertainment spectrum were ballroom dancing displays by Alexandra & Adrian, apparently rated No 11 in the world.

Covid has led cruises a merry dance for too long, but Marella is showing just what can be done to sail into the new world when the time is right for you.

For more information and to book visit Marella Cruises

Main image: Courtesy of Marella Cruises

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Sailing into the future: what to expect from a cruise in 2022 - loveEXPLORING