ORV

20 minutes ago, ORV said:

I didn't click the link but I do think Bristol is the birthplace of Bluegrass. I'll go check the link now to see. 

I had that wrong, it's considered the birthplace of country music.

Bluegrass is the little town in KY where Bill Monroe is from, but, I guess it's not as simple as that. It's roots are England, Scotland, Italy, Ireland, Africa and I'm sure other places, that melded together in the Appalachian Mountains. I've always enjoyed the energy of it live, but not really something I'd sit around and listen to at home. 

1 hour ago, Iamthesea said:

 

We were pleasantly surprised with this show on our cruise last March.  Agree that the singers were good, especially the female singer that we had.  Another surprise was that our small hometown of Kingsport, TN, was mentioned in the commentary, as was Bristol, TN and VA.

I suggest that you read the following article about Bluegrass. LINK

 

I didn't click the link but I do think Bristol is the birthplace of Bluegrass. I'll go check the link now to see. 

I'm sure they made Franck's Mashed potatoes for years and surely they still have the recipe. Is it against the law to make them the same and just simply call them mashed potatoes? Or is more a Professional Courtesy thing?

As has been pointed out, these are not really hot tubs, the water is filled and drained after each use. They are more an outdoor whirlpool bathtub. 

12 hours ago, jonthomas said:

Thank you for having the courage to say how you feel and saying it much better than I have been able to.

Actually what you've been saying and what she said are not the same. 

I've never had the Swedish pancakes, they're not very good. 🤪

Lorimay, thanks for your review and insights. I would have to say, with all due respect, that I would have a hard time highly recommending a tour company that took me to a high pressure rug seller. We also had a private tour there and they didn't take us to any stores, just to Ephesus, with the Terrace Houses and back to the ship. 

31 minutes ago, edgee said:

The architect who designed the Vista lounge should be thrown out of the profession for malpractice (along with the idiot who set specifications for the (non existent) soundproofing between cabins, the slippery floors in the Terrace and the aft stairway that does not go below deck six.)

Theatre site lines are awful and many rows off to the side have only one entrance/exit side, meaning lots of guests must be bothered to stand to let others in and out of rows.

Since you've been there obviously you have a point of view on it. I haven't been on Vista, but enough people have complained that it's a problem. It would seem there would be CAD program for that when it was being designed. It's probably a matter of the space above and below being needed for other things they felt were more important. If you notice most theaters on larger cruise ships take up 3 to 4 decks. On a ship the size of Oceania's they don't have that luxury. Soundproofing and slippery floors have no excuse, or reason why, other than poor workmanship or cost cutting. The elevator issue has been explained as that is where one of the kitchens is. 

I haven't been on Vista, so I have no opinion on it. 

Is this what's called a Red Herring argument?

I learned a long time ago, some people get it, some don't. It appears all the talking in the world won't change that for some people. Some minds are like cement, all mixed up and permanently set. 

Here is why they ask us to wait until your room is ready. The crew is busting their butts cleaning and preparing rooms for those of us coming on. There are also a dedicated bunch that are bringing on the luggage and taking it up and down the hallway to the proper room. If everyone was allowed to drop off their carry ons and extra purchases, whatever they may be, then the hallways would be full of people that really don't know where they are going or what they are doing. All that would do is just slow down the whole process. It doesn't take a smart person to figure that out. You know why it doesn't? I can figure it out and I'm not that bright. 

14 minutes ago, jonthomas said:

you were right, I found one more that is speaking freely....

 

it is from the topic of Vista july 23, topic #86

84...

 

"The downside of this trip was the 130 kids onboard.  We were stunned Oceania is now allowing kids.  

There were babies, in the pool and hot tubs with diapers. This is allowed in the concierge hot tubs too.  This was not a ship for kids.  Not enough to do.  They had a little room for them to play in.  Kids will be kids and some do not behave. It's the parents obligation to make sure they do. "

 

would not liked to have been on that one...

 

And like some others they are misinformed, they were under the impression that Oceania hasn't allowed kids in the past. The other boards you speak of have so much misinformation that it would be impossible for me to be a member there. I have a low threshold for that. 

2 hours ago, Sojourner02 said:

The downside of this trip was the 130 kids onboard.  We were stunned Oceania is now allowing kids.  

FYI, in my experience in the last 15 years they've always allowed kids, it's just very few people bring them, and rightly so. 

I think this is the new application of “at lunch and dinner”. In my experience it’s always been hard to get a drink in the Morning before 10am, unless it’s at a brunch and it’s an extra charge. 

1 hour ago, Kay S said:

Did this happen on an Oceania ship?  More than one voyage?

No, she’s reported it before and it was Celebrity. 

1 hour ago, SbbquilterUT said:

Did get an answer from O - be on board no later than 3 hours before sailing so 1600 seems to be the cut off .

I might be missing something but it would appear that 1700 is three hours. Of course I realize you need to leave some padding time. 

I would definitely ask your TA or a CSR at Oceania if you booked directly with them. 

13 hours ago, PhD-iva said:

Frankfurt airport $ucks! I have connected 2 or 3 times since COVID and it was terrible. Your airplane will likely park VERY FAR from the terminal, therefore you must walk down the plane’s stairs (no ramps) carrying all of your bulky carryon bags. I can’t believe more people don’t trip and fall while juggling heavy bags in a crush of people jostling to board the large buses with mostly standing room only. 
Then when your bus has passed by an extraordinary number of other planes parked out on the tarmac and finally gets to the terminal, it seems like they hide the elevator/escalator. It’s probably a “eco-green” thing to carry all your heavy bags up the stairs. 
Then, guess what! You get to do the whole thing in reverse when you’re boarding your connecting flight.
YUCH! AVOID!

Great, I'm there in less than a month, but I'm on vacation, so it'd be alright. 

21 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

We leave in a week for a Norway cruise that begins on August 10 out of Oslo with SM.  We have been planning to upgrade the beverage package onboard after few days, but we're wondering if we will be hit by Norwegian VAT as it's port intensive up the coast to North Cape.  We can't determine if we will be international waters anywhere along the way to avoid any tax on the package is Norway levies it.  Has anyone had experience with Norway's taxes and should we buy in advance to avoid them?

We were on a Norway cruise in 2018 and I don't remember a special tax, but I could have forgotten, and of course things could have changed since then. 

The 2 fer 1 usually doesn't apply to Single Malt Scotch, Cognacs, etc. 

35 minutes ago, lorimay said:

This is the craziest cruise I have ever been on. We just had a code Oscar- man overboard as we left Limassol. We could see the flare in the water and the lifeboat being deployed. About 30 minutes later the captain just announced they rescued the guest alive. 

Definitely not a typical Oceania cruise. 

2 minutes ago, jonthomas said:

 

Very disturbing to hear that about unruly kids, we have had very bad experiences on other lines with kids and were hoping that we have escaped that on O, but it doesnt seem like it. 

There's always Viking, unlike Oceania they actually don't allow kids. I think Virgin is adults only also. 

2 hours ago, mlmdaisy said:

Thank you.  There was no such message when I was trying.  Towards the end of the day, my booking totally disappeared and things look even wonkier today.

 

Clearly, the website is a mess.  I was going to call today with my excursion choices, but now I can't even see the options.

 

If this is related to website maintenance, I will suggest to the representative that some of us are still working and the week-ends are when we deal with travel planning.

Unfortunately it's been this way for years. Regulars pretty much know that the weekend will be a crapshoot as to whether it will work or not. I do agree that not everyone has time during the week. 

36 minutes ago, dock said:

We got back onboard , chilled at the pool.

Mexican Lunch at Terrace Cafe which imo looks impressive but lacked flavour. 
Mexican should be bold, vibrant flavours .

The fajitas were meh!

Guac - mushy.

Salsa had no oomph and the churros cold, doughy and  a watery caramel sauce. I will not call it Dulce de Leche.
Disappointing across the board. 

Absolutely agree. It's sad that Royal Caribbean has better Mexican food than Oceania. Maybe they just don't have the right chefs(cooks) for good Mexican. Any number of our local Mexican restaurants do a much better job. And I'm in the middle of the USA, but I see authentic Mexican restaurants in pretty much every place I go in the US. It's almost like they all have the same menu. 

24 minutes ago, mlmdaisy said:

Does the survey mean that improvements are being planned?  Is there any hope for an app for when we're onboard?   

No and No. 

5 hours ago, terrydtx said:

To upgrade to the Prestige Select you will have to contact Oceania or your travel agent and have them upgrade you, cannot be done online. The cost is $30 USD pp per day if your have the Simply More bev package. No discount for doing it ahead of time and can be done anytime after you board. I just added it to our Marina cruise next March and had my TA do it for me this last week. I looked at the current bar pricing for drinks on the Marina and most of the brands and drinks we prefer are in the $14-$16 range so 2 drinks a day, other than wine, pays for the drink package. My understanding is the $30pp includes gratuities in the price, but does not include and locally imposed port taxes.

 

The Marina cruise next year is our first Oceania cruise too and I have learned a lot from CC about the cruise line. 

Ok, 3 points.

1.There used to be a 10% discount for Oceania Club members at a certain level if you upgraded or purchased the package in advance. I'm not sure of the status of this anymore since SM has started. I know this doesn't apply to those that are new to Oceania, but historically there has been a discount for some when upgrading in advance. 

2. With a package there are NO additional taxes or vats charged. Those are only charged when you're buying by the drink. 

3. My experience and those of others that like to have a few is to wait a couple of days in to the cruise to purchase it. Don't forget that most of the time day 2 of a cruise has the Captain's Welcome with free drinks for about 3 hours. This is not watered down juice drinks and cheap wine, (although they do offer those to you on a tray) but usually most drinks within reason at multiple bar locations on the ship. Does not include restaurants or Waves Bar. On day one you have the beer & wine in the restaurants, then we have one in the room while unpacking and then maybe a 2-4-1 at Happy Hour. No way we spend $60 between the two of us on day one, but of course a person could. 

There is something to be said for having the full drink package from the get-go and just not worrying about it though. 

40 minutes ago, SATaxman said:

Are you saying that the Oceania Suite on Marina was not redone? Just removal of outside jacuzzi?

 

I believe they said they were in a Vista Suite.