Hambagahle

I just had an email from someone in the Cipriani Hotels today telling me that the Locanda is shutting for renovations and might not be open on May 2 when we want to eat there... that would be very sad. I asked her to keep me in the loop. At worst we will still go to Torcello and eat somewhere else. At best - they will have re-opened... Transfer is getting to be a nightmare. Our TA can get us on an Oceania bus to the airport where we can get the Hyatt boat to the hotel. For $89. Or on an Oceania private car transfer to the airport - $449. Problem is I have to figure out a fictious flight number to put on the reservation for either! We are not flying from Venice. We are taking the train home to Switzerland... It will get sorted. A private limo transfer is around €270. But there is always the ? as to whether they show up.

We have been to Torcello maybe 10 or more times, starting 40 years ago... it is indeed a lovely place to walk around (and quiet too compared to Venice itself!). it is always the highlight of our stay in Venice. (well - the year we were invited to view the Regatta Storica from the roof of a palazzo on the Grand Canal it had competition!!) The only reason we are going to Venice after our cruise is to eat at the Locanda, walk around the island and see the mosaics. Happily we plan to be there on a Thursday!

I do not think I would trust the ship's hairdressers to do colour. Probably not something they do often and they won't know you. IF your home hairdresser will write the "formula" down for you and IF they use the same brand of colour then you are probably safer...

That is exactly what we were told when docked overnight in Venice. Baggage will be moved onshore overnight and ready for you first thing in the am. Or you can take your own bags if you choose.

Personally I rather like the story about the Dom "seeing stars" !! And I love a good Brut champagne. My favourite is Vincent Joudart but you won't get that in any shops. You have to buy it from Vincent directly. And sadly now 6 hours drive is too much for me. So I settle for Veuve Clicquot. (At twice the price).

Because they want to be able to say that champagne is served. Sparkling wine is not champagne. (Though some sparkling wines are better than champage!). The AOC law in the EU is vigourously enforced. (and here is a story: In Switzerland not far from Lausanne there is a small village called Champagne. Has been called that since sometime in the 9th century or so, way before the monk "discovered" champagne near Reims in France. They make wine. And their local wine was - understandably - called "Champagne". The French government brought all its force to bear to get the wine called something else. (It wasn't even a sparkling wine so no mistakes could be made!). And they won. The villagers had to re-name a wine that had existed for far longer than the French fizzy stuff!! So if you want to say it is champagne - it has to be Appelation Contrôlée Champagne!

That is SUPER good news. Since Embers is a dead cinder (apparently) and the Aquamar Kitchen or whatever it is called doesn't appeal to us and we don't like Toscana, at least there is one great place (plus of course Red Ginger, Polo and the MDR.). What sort of things do they have at Baristas for breakfast? I suppose nothing cooked. But fresh croissants ? Bagels ?

I would go to Baristas for my tea...and make it some sort of coffee. On Vista they bake things there as well. (Can't wait to smell that!)

We are - so to speak - in the same boat. Cruise ends in Trieste. Yes we could spend a couple of nights in Trieste but it still leaves us a long long day to get home. (Train Trieste/Milano C/Brig/Martigny - almost 9 hours). I do not want to do that. I DO want to have lunch at the Locanda Cipriani on Torcello. So - we have set up a private transfer via our TA and Oceania to the Piazzale Roma in Venice. Water taxi to the hotel (Hyatt on Murano). Yes expensive but I do not want to take an Allilaguna bus from the airport with 2 suitcases and 2 carry ons... No grazie! Hyatt apparently has a boat from the airport several times a day but I also do not want to wait an hour for a boat. I know - First world problems! It is what it is and we will enjoy the ride and the watertaxi too. What I don't understand is why Oceania has to end the cruise in Trieste ? Why not Mestre ? Or somewhere nearer to Venice? Trieste is over 2 hours by car... and we dock on May 1 which is a huge public holiday so limited (Sunday service) trains etc...

depends what you are looking for I suppose. In my case - it happened to be market day. I love markets and especially Italian ones for the colourful fruit and veg. We also really liked the town. But we weren't looking for the Colosseum or the Vatican. "Been there, done that" sort of thing.

We were in a tender port on Riviera in the Caribbean (can't remember which one). We hadn't planned to go ashore so hadn't booked any excursion (O or otherwise). Our butler (the unforgettable Churchill) told us that the port was worth seeing, could be explored on foot and we had to go. Those who have had the fortune to have Churchill as their butler will know when he says go - you go! So we went. But had no tender ticket. So went back to the suite. Churchill asked what we were doing there. We said - no tender ticket. He said - show them your key card and that will work. We did. it did. All of which to say is that I think if you are in a suite you can "jump the line". And just get on a tender. Otherwise you wait until all tours are gone.

Still Ember or s doesn't sound like a place I want to eat in. I hate noise. And I love Jacques. Bring back Jacques!! (et pourquoi pas ? )

We had a Vista Suite on Riviera and I agree - that mini gym is a waste of space. So it is great it has been eliminated. Our steward used it to store cushions from outside when it was going to rain or be windy. Best use of space I could see! we have had an Oceania Suite, Owners Suite as well as the Vista - all on Riviera. Owners was great for a trans-Atlantic crossing and the Vista was great with the port-intensive cruise. I liked the Oceania suite but found the balcony way too narrow.

My husband loves food but has never been seen in a kitchen (if I didn't have an electric kettle he couldn't boil water...or won't?). Anyway he is happy for me to toddle off to a cooking class as long as he can have his cocktails and dinner on time! So I have to leave. Chef Noëlle Barillo (I think that is her name) was very decent about this and when the "witching hour" was about to sound - I left.

"English muffins" are definitely an American invention. The English have "muffins" but they are very different. Corn beef hash is absolutely delicious and normally served with a poached egg on top. And ketchup. In fact it is the only thing I use ketchup with! It is a breakfast dish...like the English muffins. We cannot get either here and importing meat is illegal. I can (and do) import Thomas' English muffins but it costs me a lot !!

I think they care - a lot - that you pay for the class. and show up. But I have never been told I could not leave...

I hope you are right. I lived in the US for a long time (20+ years) - unfortunately not in your part of the country which I like a lot! And I do know that there are some excellent restaurants etc there. It is just that here we can't get English muffins and corned beef hash and I love them both! "Swiss" food - ours is a country of four linguistic and cultural regions with four very different cuisines and lots - hundreds - of regional dishes. Like all countries some things are better than others! the Italian speaking region (and the north of Italy) has far better food than what we experienced in Toscana. And one evening there we were with the GM so presumably they did their best. Portions were far too big (though we asked for small) and the tastes just weren't there either. So we crossed it off the list. We make the reservations and then tell the butler they are his. (Which usually makes him happy!). We love Red Ginger and Polo and have had some excellent meals in the MDR. So I am crossing fingers that in another 9 months Vista's chefs will have "found their way" !!

I am very concerned to read that Toscana was the best of the restaurants. We really dislike Toscana - portions are too large and food too "Italian American" for us. Hopefully the overall standards will improve as time goes on. If not - well as long as they have English muffins and corned beef hash for breakfast I will survive. (Those two things are my favourite American foods and we can't get them in Europe!).

What I normally do is to tell the teacher I am not going to eat what I cook and that I will leave once the cooking instruction is over. I don't eat dinner before 1930 at the earliest and I don't eat between meals as a rule. Plus husband is not at all interested in cooking. IF there is a course in Greek or Turkish cooking I will sign up for it but so far - nothing.

Of course. if they don't have it on board they can't supply it... At least not on that cruise.

I just looked at the opening hours for Waves Grill (Pool grill). They are 0700/1100, 1130/1600, 1830/2100. So since they do say "Lunch 1130/1600" I think you will be in luck! Santé.

They are quite specific - "at lunch or dinner" means when seated in one of the restaurants and being served lunch or dinner. Unfortunately it doesn't work if you are in one of the bars. It would work at the Pool self service restaurant though but has to be lunch time. I don't think 1500 is lunch time. Perhaps that is stretching things too much? Anyway why not get the full drinks package? if you are on the "Simply More" programme you can upgrade from the wine etc at meals to the complete package for something like $30/pp/day. Since a Bloody Mary costs about $18 PLUS 20% service each two drinks in one day and you are home free so to speak!

You can always ask the butler or steward when you arrive on the ship.

Many thanks for these hints. I have taken cooking classes on prior O. cruises but since we haven't cruised since 2020 I had forgotten the details! Will look under "other options" and see if they are there.

I thought the "six bottles" was a reference to the 6 bottles that people in the suites can choose from the list...