Flatbush Flyer

I’d still write back to whoever sent you the one-liner and ask for clarification re: a) ignoring the auto letter you later received about the original port checkin and b) what should you have in place of a boarding pass for the original embark port c) should you complete the online checkin anyway. Remember: if it’s not in writing, you have zero proof when the “poop hits the fan.”

Contact the O staff who sent you the email saying OK for the new embark port and ask for direction in writing as to what do do about online check in and what to have in hand for embark in the different port.

Not so sure about that… There are some itineraries for which there is no YWYW/SM 25% discount. In fact, we’ve got a short 10 day PPT-PPT coming up in late January 2025 that does not have the discount available.

No. As was the case with O Life, the number of purchased tours required to get the 25% YWYW (now SM) discount depends tour cruise’s itinerary. You can find your number on the first page of the ShoreExcursions.pdf that accompanied your Oceania invoice (or any of its update versions over the months preceding embarkation). You should also be able to find the YWYW minimum for your cruise online in your O shore ex cart. But, as a reminder, NEVER buy your tours on the O web and its cart. Way too many glitches!

As a Siciliano-Americano who has had a lifelong love affair with Carciofi Ripieni, let me tell you that, though tasty, O’s stuffed artichokes are far from the real deal. Here’s a real stuffed artichoke (including hot Sicilian sausage).

Easiest and best? Contact your hotel concierge and have them arrange it.

Unhappy with the upcoming (Oct. 1) changes to O’s complimentary amenities? Pease consider taking the time to let key O management personnel know about your disappointment and/or anger. Here’s the contact info of several key O managers (including email). BTW, this info is readily available public info available from sources like Elliott.org

Common sense says that anyone with even just a third grade education would find continuing to pay for something that has been taken away from you (whether you use it or not) NOT attractive. Many folks here continue to miss the key issue. Again, if you are Silver Level O Club or above, you already get gratuities as a comped amenity. On top of that, taking away the other amenities but still charging you for them (in the unchanged fare) would disappoint most people.

The point is that the combined cost of a MedEvac membership (like Emergency Assistance Plus) and a basic (lower cost) comprehensive travel insurance policy that meets the medical and trip insurance needs for your insurance profile, can cost significantly less than a higher end comprehensive policy with a high MedEvac limit. Always do the math.😳

No, you are quite correct. Even Allianz’ top annual policy’s aggregated claim limit is barely enough to pay for one O cruise of several weeks duration.

It’s posted under Oceania cruise lines since there was a recent thread about a field rescue on Nautica. Good time to remind my fellow O regulars about the erroneous beliefs regarding MedEvac.

Yes - sorry i used the misnomer “insurance.” Nonetheless, I urge MedJet users to checkout Emergency Assistance Plus, particularly if you are in the mid-70s/older age range. Far better pricing with even more provided.

A lot of O regulars get great TA rebates (or nonrefundable TA OBC) AND Finders Fees for new referrals PLUS onboard welcome packages (or TA”in lieu” SBC instead), O’s pass through OCAPP funding for gratuities (directly from O or via the TA’s Consortium). I remain amazed that some folks are too lazy to do the groundwork to find a great TA. Trbd4739: the (now 10 or so) Facebook groups claiming the Oceania Cruises relationship are the collective “poster children” for misinformation. They create more angst than solace and do little more than confuse folks with baseless guesses and contradictions.

I think your TA is incorrect.

Let’s get one thing straight. I am no “cheerleader.” When any company with which I do regular business behaves in ways that are mutually beneficial with its customers, I make it known that I support the beneficial policies/practices in question. However, when one of those companies clearly screws folks, I make that known too.

Gotta ask: are you saying you’ve been paying for your own gratuities??? Even if you are not yet Silver, I think you may be the first person I’ve come across that actually hasn’t had your gratuities covered by your TA (either using OCAPP funds or via commission sharing). Now, that really is an “event.”

Reread my posts. The primary insult is to elite O Club members. The were already getting the gratuities PLUS O Life OR SM perks. And, no matter whether you are new to O or a regular, you are being charged the same fare as when there were extra perks (booze, tours, SBC). How can you not see the screw job??? No price change and perks are gone. Not exactly rocket science to understand the issue.

As we all know, CC regularly sends out brief articles on all sorts of cruise topics. One this morning https://www.cruisecritic.com/infotorial/2024/medjet-sept-2024-us/?lid=chn1r22i5rgx&crm_source=58226&crm_pos=us&crm_cid=20ab05cc-6f90-49d9-bfe3-1eac77635a5a&crm_rid=Cta8eIgBVQ1LqmSH3PoV&crm_cname=09.08.24 US Weekender - Other- 8 Things in You Must Have in Your Cruise Carry-On Bag discusses MedJet “medical evacuation” insurance. If you take the time to read this, you should quickly understand what I have often posted here on CC regarding what are MedJet and the term MedEvac. They are NOT “field rescues” (the Coast Guard helicopter that collects shipborne patients) which is what so many folks think is super costly. The reality is that, other than very rare instances (e.g., where governmental rescue assistance is unavailable), there is most often no charge to the patient for this service. It is a budgeted item in that ocean region’s Coast Guard’s operational expenses. Here’s the telling quote from the above CC article. Note that MedJet insurance is for necessary air transportation AFTER you’ve reached aid/initial treatment on land: Once you reach the nearest appropriate shoreside hospital and have been stabilized, you may require continued inpatient hospitalization. This is where Medjet would come in.

What you either seem to forget or didn’t know: That $250 “in lieu” used to be the total of your cruise’s gratuities (often four figure amounts). Then came the cut to O Club SBC and the Spa Credits. Which way we get screwed is not the issue. Rather, the issue’s the “big picture” of neglect of O’s elite O Club members. And, suggesting that taking all O Life/SM perks away without lowering the fares is somehow “no big deal” is the poster child for “insulting.”

We’ve already reminded folks that O has had kids’ programs on Alaska cruises during summer school vacation times.

Excuse me! I’m a current O Club member as I was when they first changed the “in lieu” $$$. AND, I’m not alone. Many Platinum and above O Club members have suffered these back steps on multiple occasions (e.g., the “in lieu,” the SBC, the spa credits- small but consistent bites over the years).

That is correct. What would make things acceptable to me would be to return to the original O Club “in lieu” deal of many years ago. With O now paying gratuities for all (like OCAPP via TAs), change the “in lieu” O Club SBC from the “one size fits all” $250/cabin to the original total amount of the gratuities in non-refundable SBC. That would be a small price to pay to correct the current insult to O Club members.

Frank Jr will lose O regulars over this. But, that’s probably part of the bigger picture for the future.

Forty day cruise = $1440 in tips. O Club silver and above still get only $250/cabin “in lieu” SBC. (and yes those in foreign countries who all already get tips in their will probably get nothing “in lieu” if they don’t get it now.

Crewed yacht charters and Tauck tours.