hawkesbaynz

Am also a local. You can eat Italian and the usual Shopping Mall type stuff at home. Wetherspoons……. 🤭only if I am dining alone and have something to read😳. 
 

There is a great Indian Restaurant between the Holiday Inn and the Ferry Terminal. Kutis. Excellent Indian food that I have never come across in the USA. Have a beer in the Dancing Man across the road. The food is good too if you are not into the spice.

We are currently trying Oceania (cruises Nov 22 & Feb 23) and have been reading up on the Oceania Forum and other social media sites. There has been a fair amount of grumbling about the quality of the vaunted best cuisine at sea and service. We found the food great but service no better than Xs.  Less personal. Very different entertainment (zzzz). The CC Forum has  hardcore O groupies who will be on every thread whilst the other site has a wider group of respondents.

Oceania's alleged new trick is to sail slowly to save fuel (claiming good for the environment). This has limited time ashore for trips. Oceania is well known for great itineraries but it is frustrating when you only get six hours in Port xxx when you need eight hours because the sites are two hours by road. 

The 'sailors' on the Virgin Voyages topics page seem a happy bunch. Just wish Virgin did longer more interesting cruises. 

I have three more X cruises (and am trying Princess too). Fingers crossed. 

NCL are now offering 10% discount to US military/retired which is great news. Apparently need to verify details via ID Me. There has been a thread on the NCL Board.

https://www.ncl.com/uk/en/newsroom/norwegian-cruise-line-launches-new-military-appreciation-program-in-advance-of-us-veterans-day

However they are yet to offer discount to British Military, and no doubt other NATO countries. That I am aware. I have raised this with the Defense Discount Service which I use to gain 10% with Celebrity. Am keen to try NCL and the 10% will help. 

Anyone know any different?

I feel like I have been ‘ambushed’! Was not even aware there was raisin oatmeal cookies available. Been on several X cruises. 
 

I enjoy lobster but cannot understand the obsession on these boards. 
 

We have a light lunch so MDR choice fine.

I wish X would spend a bit more on the electricity in the gym and turn the A/C up. It’s not a pleasant temperature for a work out. 
 

Agree with the concerning deterioration with sundries.
 

Never occurred to me to order off MDR menu in Blu. Have done in Luminae only as it was offered. Why pay extra? Just book Verandah and pay for speciality dining. 
 

Living in Southampton the exorbitant increase in Apex pricing in comparison with Silhouette will certainly turn me to other lines. We are trying Oceania - food and itineraries great but relaxed evening vibe (I am being kind). 

OMG are they serious! For that price I could fly from the UK to the Maldives for a  Weeks AI and have a better personal sand bar in front of my beach bungalow😮! 
 

I will check my tours tomorrow😀

Oops wrong date. I often get ideas for excursions by reviewing other Roll Calls. There were slim picking for 2020, 21 & 22 though.

The Nautica is doing a similar itinerary too. After the movement of the Sirena in the Caribbean in November I am glad we are on the bigger ship....and I am a small yacht sailor.

We took the OBC for the cruise (I know now we could have had a price reduction but O can confuse a newbie). We will put it against the gratuities and corkage for the bottles of wine we will bring on board and buy at vineyards. I barely drink but DW enjoys a glass and a daily G&T. Fortunately virgin cocktails and soft drinks are free. Annoyingly alcohol free beer is not.

Terry, Take a look at our Marina 3 February 23 Roll Call for ideas for excursions. We are using ToursByLocals for some.  Initially it was difficult to find anything. Must be averaging about $120 each for small group tours. The following cruise has many ideas too. O’s tours were ridiculous. 
 

Will decide after the cruise if O is for us. Definitively not the R ships. 

I would say give it a go too. We usually sail X in Aqua but occasionally MDR or Sky Suite. Really enjoyed the Oceania Sirena last month although found the entertainment mediocre. Ship had been refurbished and very good. Food was great and we ate in the buffet for dinner a couple of times which we never do elsewhere as a great experience. 

Oceania offer better itineraries than X. We are on a three week South America with Antarctica & Falklands on the larger Marina and really excited.
 

The O-Life is confusing. We had the beverage pack on the Sirena and the wine flowed during meals. The upgrade to AI is $20 a day. We have booked all our own tours as Os are expensive. We use air miles.

We are trying Princess in June for the Med. Open for other lines too. Can not really afford Oceania for all our cruising needs.

Following too as we do a similar cruise in February on Oceania (adding Antarctica & Falklands). We usually sail X and are looking forward to our first M class next year (The Millenium).
 

Who did you book the Iguaza Falls for the day with? 
 

All our tours are private with mainly Toursbylocals. The O tours were really expensive. 

We are on the April 9th Millenium sailing too. Our third, or is it fourth attempt! Japan is open so must be a Celebrity thing. Just hope they make a decision and tell us in the next few months as I will need to book flights end April to catch the airmiles Business seats. Would be happy enough changing to April 2025 but certainly not a Caribbean alternative.

Celebrity are offering Japan year round now. However does the climate suit this? Very hot in Summer and cyclones in Fall. Most cruise lines sail there in the Spring for a reason.

@ptcflyer you are living the dream! You will love the Maldives too. Have been there several times😀. 
 

Sometimes I wish I was a gambler but too many stories from my mother of her feckless gambling father who kept them in the poor house. Two of his sons did the same to their families.  I went to Vegas and gambled $5. Am sure I could be tempted not to squander my pension but there is a family gene! 🤨
 

Am enjoying @Ken the cruiser NCL report Athen to Cape Town. 
 

Currently our longest cruise is 14 days but am looking forward to a South America & Antarctica cruise over three weeks with add-ons. Wondering if I will be bored on sea days. Not a crafter but enjoy reading and could manage a couple of hours daily in the gym & walking track. This is on Oceania which has great itineraries but less entertainment than O.

Having a dog and limited funds do limit us though. Labrador has a great holiday when we are away as her dog walker stays and she gets to go on all the dog walks and adventure trips at weekends. 
 

Unfortunately we cannot reprice the cruises in the UK. Always find it strange that US TAs keep an eye on the prices and reprice with X behalf of their clients. Always found UK TAs less than useless (another subject).

However I found a Caribbean cruise I had booked on the Silhouette in March 2022 much cheaper on the US X site several months before. The new price on the UK site was a bit better too. I called X and they refused to reprice. However transferred the £300 deposit as FCC for another cruise and rebooked the cruise on the US X site (with the bigger deposit and the anxiety about currency markets). 

When onboard purchase a future cruise certificate too. You will receive reduced deposit, OBCc and the ability to use it on a cruise that you wish. You can transfer bookings to a TA and recite e further OBC too. 

That cruise on 7 days is comparable in price to a 12 night on Celebritys new Ascent in 2024 All included with 400 dollar OBC in Sunset Verandah I have booked. Gratuities included which will not be on Oceania.

The Sirena is a small ship and benefits from being able to port where X ships cannot. The shows and music is very low key/boring. The pool is better (no loud music or competitions). 

Personally I would look at a larger O ship. I like O for itineraries but my wife not keen as the demographic is to old for her (she is 62).

Great prices. I believe the issue is with passengers having to change once or twice to get there. From the UK I would need to change in New York. However the cruise is more port-rich than the FLL departures. Something for the future! We were in San Juan on an Oceania cruise in November and really enjoyed our day there.

We are in a SV on the Millenium in 2024 in Japan😀

https://www.timeout.com/hong-kong/travel/travelling-to-hong-kong-heres-what-you-need-to-know

https://www.discoverhongkong.com/uk/latest-travel-advisories.html

Things are slowly improving. We have a cruise which ends in Hong Kong next November. I have booked flights with points and will need to pay with real money if they change to Taiwan😐

This time last year I had to cancel a ski trip to France as Geneva Airport changed their rules the day before I travelled (PCR rather than Lat Flow). Rebooked the next day with £150 same day PCR test and flight changes. Had to complete forms to travel into France. Tests before returning to UK etc.... Showed Covid app to get on lifts etc. Today I can go to France via Geneva with just my vaccine certificate that no one will look at. Basically things can change alot in a year. Crossed fingers!

The Apex ex-Southampton cruises are ridiculous in 2024. However yesterday I booked a 12 night ex-Barcelona SV on the Ascent for £2500 ($3090). All included. Cheaper day rate than a Beyond Med. Cruise last September. Happy with that. Some patchy pricing out there.

@LGW59 the Oceania product is great but if you like shows and bands it is lacking. Older clientele too. Food is great. Fabulous itineraries. 

On our recent Sirena cruise we only tipped our room steward directly other than the included gratuities. Because of the included speciality dining and never being sat in a specific area in GDR, we never built a relationship with waiters/sommeliers thus did not tip any. I did feel bad for them! 
 

On Celebrity we tend to tip extra all these staff members. I often tip the pool guy and the chap keeping the toilets spotless in the evenings (Sirena loos were often dirty by mid-evening). 
 

On a different point found Miami to be in a tipping whirlwind. Included gratuities then demands for tips on top for generally mediocre service for mediocre food. Everyone wanted a tip! Even received emails from hotel booking sites asking me to tip the hotel staff (I do leave $$ for the cleaner).

We went for the Ascent Spain/France/Italy September 2024 in a SV all included for 12 nights for £2500 with military discount ($3093) each. Good itinerary with an overnight in La Spezia

Actually better daily rate than the 9 nighter we had booked on the Beyond in September but cancelled as our friends got Covid a few days before.

I was going to give the NCL Prima a whirl as an alternative but all the talk of small venues, booking for shows, racetracks turned me off. I like to relax on holiday not book meal times & queue.

I was looking at an Israel cruise on the Silhouette in September 2024. Available but pricey. Interestingly the Ascent cruises that month are better value IMO although shame not Israel and Egypt.

We are staying at the NH Collection Buenos Aires Historico Hotel  for two nights at the end of a cruise end February. Choose it as good reviews, they responded to me about an early book in, and walking distance to a Tango Show we booked, a bike tour and a foodie tour. Eg central location. 
 

Tours by locals is good advice. There are lots of tours on Viator too.

We were at Puerta Plata a fortnight ago on the Oceania Sirena. Only 600 onboard.. We were the only ship in the port where the shopping/restaurant/pool resort complex was. A large NCL ship was further down the coast (?at private beach). We did the canyonning with hopping off waterfalls into pools and sliding down rocks which was fantastic fun. Pleasant beach stop too with food laid on that mildly effected my b...ls.

Interested in your comparison with the OOS. We were supposed to sail on the Beyond in September but cancelled due to illness. The OOS maybe a good option for a TA or trip outside school holidays. Decent of you to arrange your holidays with us CC members in mind😁!

Can you get cans of club soda or sparkling water to keep in the cabin fridge. Wife drinks it like a fish!

I live in Southampton and give myself 4.5 hours prior to a US flight (3 hours at LHR). 
 

The exit at Southampton port is efficient. We exited from Miami at 10am with massive queues last week on a 600 person ship. Just a saunter at Southampton. 
 

The train is fine for London but not LHR. Hopefully the strikes will be over by the New Year. Get a car. 

Purchased the Premium Internet Upgrade for a 13/7 Solstice sailing for £16 for 2 devices. For a Millenium sailing 4/24 X wanted to charge me £626😬

Had a Sold Out excursion to Hamoi overnight for £678. Saw that it was £608. Called to revise the charges but advised he would need to cancel the trip and may not be able to rebook!