ORV

4 hours ago, Kay S said:

What is the cost for non-free laundry?

It depends . 

9 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

ORC…..in all my following on Oceania, you are truly one of the masters of figuring out the sales…. So please help me here in understanding…..

I will say that there is savings compared to the most recent ‘sale’ for the itinerary we are finally considering…..I didn’t screenshot wave season pricing but memory says it was more attractive. Memorial Day, etc coming up….understanding no crystal ball ….jist not understanding historically Oceania pricing. 

I don't know about being any master of figuring it out, but, it all comes down to how popular an itinerary is. If a cruise is selling well then, it's not going to be on sale. Also as you noted, the previous price was better. It's a pretty common marketing tactic, increase the price, then put it on sale, but in many cases the sale price is higher than it was 6 months ago. 

We tend to book in two scenarios, A. bucket list places that work into our schedule, generally you have to just bite the bullet and pay the going rate, B. bargain and sale cruises that also appeal to us. 

Just keep watching for sales and checking prices. Every once and awhile a truly good deal comes along like the Extraordinary Savings sale last year. 

50 minutes ago, carefreebee said:

I had a rep call me too after a visit to the website last week. I took the call but was not in a position to talk though I did tell him my TA had just retired and I would be booking directly with Oceania. I asked the rep to email me his contact info and I would get back to him. The next day I sent him a list of two cruises I wanted to book with all of our requests. I asked if they qualify for any promos and what the "final cost" would be. He emailed back he could not provide pricing but I should visit the website for prices and he listed links to the two cruises I requested quotes for. Apparently, after I do this he can assist me "in any way".

Wouldn't it be easier to just find a new TA? If you are going to need to input your info on a website there are multiple companies that will give you extras for doing it yourself, more or less. 

6 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

In looking at a screenshot from April, this really isn’t much of a sale on the itineraries we were considering. 

DING DING DING. 

8 minutes ago, machotspur said:

Hi - only cruised with Oceania a couple of times and trying to work out the pro's & con's for the Premium Beverage Package.

I understand that the Premium Package - as with the included basic package, includes the gratuity charge.

 

However - the cruise I am booking today states that the rate includes Free Gratuities.

Is that likely to include the gratuity for drinks ordered on 'pay as you go' basis ?  

Pretty sure the answer is no. The free gratuity that you are seeing is for wait staff and room stewards and behind the scenes staff. 

12 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Thanks for your post on Regatta..  We will be taking our first Oceania cruise on Regatta in September. 

 

Curious if they upgraded the internet to Starlink?  Also interested if you could identify what type of TV's they have and if the HDMI ports are available.   

 

Thanks in advance?

 

 

 

The internet is not Starlink, I’m not sure when it’s supposed to be updated. I did not look at the inputs on the TV, sorry. I think they were Insignia or maybe Hisense brand. 
 

Sorry I’m not more help on this. 

12 hours ago, slw207693 said:

Orv ~ those bags are much better than the old blue nylon ones.   While it doesn’t have zipper, it does have snap.   I use it for groceries, beach tote, laundry bag when traveling, bringing multiple bottles of wines to events, they are very tough and hold quite a bit.   If you would like one or two, email me at junkandspam.delete@Gmail.com   

 

We were on Regatta last July to Alaska with our family of 9 and had a fantastic time, so much so we are taking them all on Riviera this July from Athens to Barcelona.   We were again on Regatta in Jan/Feb 2024 from Bali to Sydney  and then Sydey to Sydney via New Zealand our 60th and 61st with O) and we rated our cruise poor.   We were stunned by the difference.   We loved the ports, the Captain was terrific but the senior staff and food were mediocre.   It was different staff from the July trip ~ felt like a completely different cruise line.   
 

I’ve enjoyed your musings.   

Thanks for the offer on the bag, but I have plenty of others. Good to hear first hand reports on them.  Obviously something has been wrong with Regatta as you as a very experienced Oceania cruiser rated it poor. I felt they were getting more on track as the cruise went along. All in all, we had a great time on the Mexican Riviera cruise and really saw nothing that would make us rethink booking future cruises with Oceania. Well, I might lean toward the bigger ships for future cruises, as that bathroom is sure small and I'm not getting any smaller. 

I have used the Bon Voyage gift in the past when I could steal Balvenie 21 for $125 a bottle when it was over $250 retail. Got away with it for a few cruises then they figured out their mistake. I'm pretty sure I wasn't the only one. 

12 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

I'm curious why you reopened a thread that has been inactive for over 7 months.

It’s like some people are on a mission of some sort. 

58 minutes ago, Cruisedreamer1 said:

Just off the Regatta and found plenty of wine to drink! Barista's has always closed for coffee drinks in the evening. We never had a problem asking for a cappuccino in the morning or lunch or dinner.

 

We were in an ocean view cabin so we felt service was the same for us. To our delight, some of the crew remembered us from the Insignia and previous Regatta cruises.

 

If Julia Diego and Abner Sanchez is still on board don't miss their performances. They are truly up and coming stars and hopefully Oceania will utilize them more on the stage.

 

Does anyone know how you can get the tote pictured in the photo above? It looks very practical.

 

I wonder if Oceania will ever schedule another west coast cruise to Mexico again? It was so nice to drive only 2 hours from home!

 

Disembarkation was a breeze. Once off the ship, go through the photo camera and collect your bags. Embarkation was easy but the gentleman calling out deck levels for check in was hard to hear. Perhaps because the ship was coming off a very long cruise prior, it seemed to take a long time to get into our cabins.

 

Try the cappuccino caramel ice cream . It's divine!

 

 

If you’re referring to the blue and white bag in the photo with the man with the big head it is for those that booked Concierge level and up. One of the few Oceania bags I don’t have. I’ve heard reports that it’s not as practical as the old ones as it doesn’t zip up. 

49 minutes ago, Cruisedreamer1 said:

Just buy it under your husband's name and give her your voucher. They don't check names when you go to the lounge to check in for an excursion. They take the voucher and give you a boarding coupon for the operator. If you go on the excursion with her, you check in.

 

By the way, we signed up for 3 excursions and found that we either buy another excursion or lose the $13 left on our $400 pp excursion credit.

This. No one is checking. Just hand the Destination Services the ticket, they give you a number. We’ve done it that way a couple of times. 

14 minutes ago, cluso said:

 No, this will be our first O cruise, so I booked directly with them by phone.     We have been on 4 "R" ships before.

The way it's written, it says "Upgrade Now".  To me that kind of means already booked can upgrade.  But, then the fine print.

You can always ask. The worst they can say is no. But I would think “new bookings only” would mean just that. 

27 minutes ago, cluso said:

I noticed today that O is having a 4 category upgrade sale on some of their cruises.  It says in small print "For new bookings only".  One of my booked cruises is in the sale--I booked directly with O.  I thought I have read on this feed some people were able to upgrade a current reservation.  Is that true? Just call O?

Did you book on board? Otherwise best price match probably won’t apply. 

One of the best things we’ve done for travel is to change to the T-Mobile Magenta max 55+  
 

Text and data in something like 215 countries, call if you need to make one at .25 a- minute, usually don’t need to, text is fine. Free internet on Delta & AA and I’m sure others. I get a bunch of other perks that’s not relevant to travel but nice to have. 

34 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

On my first cruise, I was disappointed that they no longer had skeet shooting from the stern.  It was replaced with an arcade video game of skeet.  

I remember seeing that on an episode of The Love Boat. 

3 hours ago, jondfk said:

So, a few cleanup thoughts as we approach San Pedro and a return to normal.

 

First, thanks ORV for starting this thread, it was a pleasure to meet you again at Terrace Cafe the other day.

 

Second, staff has been pretty close to excellent start to finish, I’ve never had to ask twice for anything.  Most requests are met within seconds.  When I think “who was the worst crew member” no image comes to mind.  When I think “who was the best” six or seven faces immediately appear.  Wow.

 

Third, let’s talk internet.  Stupendously unreliable.  The server seems to be rebooting many times each day.  When access is available it’s slooooow.  More infuriating though were the many hours each day when it simply wasn’t available at all.  All of this with us relatively near the equator, one wonders how much worse it will be when we sail next in Alaska.  One hopes the obvious rebooting problems might be solved by then.

 

We have a longish, 7 hour drive home after debarking and hope for a quick and easy process.  We have throughly enjoyed this mid length voyage and look forward to our next.

 

Nice meeting you also as well as some other folks that were on our 9/22 sailing previously. I agree with everything you said. We had great room stewards and pretty much all the staff did a great job. We also really enjoyed the food. 

3 hours ago, Redtravel said:

On my first cruise many years ago in 1988, you had an assigned teak deck chair.  Your name was on it.  You picked your chair location as you checked in.  Every afternoon, they served tea on the deck. We dressed up every night. In the dining room, we were assigned to a table. You could eat all 3 meals at your table. You could also come for the midnight buffet in the dining room.  Your waiter knew what drinks you liked and had them on the table when you arrived. It was very elegant. Those were the good old days. 

Thank goodness they’re gone. 

5 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

So……do we think then that the symbol designates separate tub and shower?  If so, since Marina verandah bathrooms will not be upgraded, is this layout the same size bathrooms as those with shower in the tub?  If so, does this make for a small shower? Thanks again 

Yes, but no where as small as the R ships shower. These rooms have a tub with a shower head AND a separate shower. 

12 minutes ago, EJL2023 said:

I am now seeing it pop up with that version on some itineraries but not on others. So seems hit and miss which deck plan is coming up during the booking process. Another Oceania system glitch….seemed more prevalent on 2026 cruises but I did see it on a late 2025 cruise too. 

Probably because it was supposed to be updated by then. The Oceania website is not known for it’s accuracy. 

47 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

I was looking to see what cabins were available in a few different Verandah categories on an itinerary we are discussing. So I used the ‘booking as a guest’ feature. When I clicked on a category, the available staterooms populated. Under the category there is a link you can click onto to ‘view deck plans’.  Really helpful of you have a screenshot of cabin numbers available and simultaneously look at location. This is where I found this symbol that is not in the legend. 

Interesting, could you copy and paste the url for that page? 

2 hours ago, EJL2023 said:

That is interesting.  Not really sure though it would only show for those particular staterooms. I could see on Riveria as they updated all the veranda staterooms and left some with both tub and shower, but they are not retrofitting the veranda stateroom bathrooms on Marina so they would all still have the separate tub and shower I would think.  Unless I am totally missing something. 

 No, I don’t think you are missing anything. That’s exactly the case. I’d venture that it’s a deck plan from somewhere that was made before they decided not to update the verandas on Marina, I think those would be the B4s that were not going to originally be updated. As we know none of them are going to be now. 

47 minutes ago, EJL2023 said:

Well was my understanding that the update in the FAQ dated then was when the wording allowing non casual jeans in the evening was added. If been allowed for years then just amazing some seem  still hung up on it. I do know when we took our first Oceania cruise in 2017 it did not have the wording allowing for any type of jeans in the evening. 

Well I do know that we’ve been discussing this subject for many years. I guess 7 could be many. I do know it was discussed back when Jim & Stan were still with us, and that’s been a long time. 
 

I’ll do some searching. 

17 minutes ago, clo said:

It has to do with the fact that even though he worked in the biz he never did nor does consider them appropriate for a nice restaurant...or opera...or play....

Which once again has zero relevance to this topic. 

3 minutes ago, EJL2023 said:

Well the time could make a difference as they updated their dress code to allow non casual jeans in the evening in July, 2022. 

Not sure what you’re saying. It’s been that way for years. 
 

Bottom line is that I’m seeing no enforcement. 

1 hour ago, pinotlover said:

As a side note, I believe all but the senior staff are actually employed by Apollo. The employment contract is actually with Apollo, not Oceania, and that contract spells out compensation and benefits. As with any and every employment Agency, what the Agency is paid may not mirror what the worker is paid. The Apollo Group supplies personnel to multiple cruise lines. Fwiw, the company has a majority share holder by the initials of FDR, unless he has sold out in the very recent past. 

Yes if we’re not mistaken Apollo Holdings used to control both Oceania and Regent before NCL took over.