sandasavi

Getting my Mani/Pedi tonight before my Mediterranean Cruise in 3 days. Going for a sheer light pink with a bit of sparkles on my fingers and a bright Pinkish Red for my toes. But, that always changes when I go look at the color wall. SO we will see what I end up with. My first Cruise. Excited. this is the last thing to do expect for Pack!!

We decided to rent an apartment for 3 days this June for our stay in Rome. The cost is way better than a Hotel and more room. Our Rental contact answers all our questions within 12 hours. Easy for payments also. Just make sure to read the reviews, they say more than what the renter offers in the description. The pictures and reviews confirm the bed size and space shown on the page. Our apartment is larger than we need but for half the cost of a hotel room. We found it through Home Away. We did the same when we went to Paris 3 years ago, only 3 nights and rented an apartment. Super easy and way better than a Hotel, more room and privacy. Just an idea!!

I plan to be on the Riviera in December (fingers crossed plans don't change) for my birthday. Was wondering what to wear, until I realized there are no formal nights. So a nice dress, but nothing sparkling?

 

The last time we went on a cruise with formal nights, we packed so many clothes between my mom and me, I think the baggage handlers at the airport put a curse on us to not set foot on another ship for the rest of our lives. Thus the crossed fingers.

I saw wear what you like, if you want to bring a special dress for your birthday Do it!! I'm celebrating my birthday on Riviera in a couple weeks. I have a special dress to wear for dinner that night. I'm traveling in the summer so be have packed a few summer sun dresses with a light sweater if it's chilly at night. I'm planning with in the dress code but also bringing what I want to wear. So, at times I maybe more dressed up than others but that what I want so I'm not worried. I have a pair of sparkly flats for evening when my feet a tired and I don't want to wear my heals or wedges. Enjoy!!

OMG! Those are Amazing but not really for me. I'm taking my first Cruise in a week on Oceania's Riviera and I think that will be big enough for me.

Try doing a 10 day cruise over Christmas with no luggage (lost at airport due to severe cross country snow storm). I only had clothes I flew in (shirt and pants) and winter boots. I had to buy crocs on board and wear them to dinner. Everyone knew our circumstance and were great. We were encouraged to go to the main dining room and were even told that we were expected at the cocktail parties. Islands we stopped at had shops closed for the holidays! It made for an interesting trip and all the staff were great. No luggage till we were home for two weeks! Nicole

OMG! :eek: I'm so sorry this happened to you!! That is my one of my travel nightmares. Yes, I plan to take a few changes of clothes and my dress shoes with me in my carryon. That way we can check less bags. I'm still worried about our luggage getting lost.

Down to single digits!! 9 days!! We leave in 7 days. Packing this weekend.

Go through the gate to Old Town..at the top of the street turn left walk a little way down and its on the right hand side..I hope you love them as much as I..Be sure and tell her I took her on Regatta..I havent seen her for a LONG time

 

Jancruz1

Thank you. I will try to get there and I will say Hi if I see the owner. Can't wait to go shopping.

Yes, Oceania's Insignia has a casino.

Oceania suggest that you can bring a couple bottles on board per stateroom. However, I have read on these boards that they don't limit it to that much.

You should also post this to the Oceania Board.

There is the most fabulous purse store in Ibiza called Lucky one..I know the owner quite well beautiful things at great prices..dont miss it...

If you see her tell Her Jan says hi (I was the one who took her on Regatta to see it)

Jancruz1

I will look for the shop! Love bags!! Thanks for the suggestion!! :D

I agree with Paul just call Oceania you should be able to get a table for your group in the Specialties (maybe not on your Birthday ) but they have tables for 6 & 8

 

 

If you want a private party for your Birthday maybe book Privee

We did call to make our dining reservations because we have two rooms for our entire party. We called the first day that was available for us to make reservation. They didn't have any 6 top tables in any of the Specialties. Privee is booked too. But, I'm ok with all of this. We have Privee booked for two days before. We will do my special Birthday dinner that night and just go to the MDR on my actual birthday. I was disappointed at first but my Parents assured me that my birthday dinner in the MDR would be special as well. They celebrated their 50th Anniversary in the MDR two years ago. I'm excited for Privee.

 

PS The Artist Loft is very popular - should show up very early to get a seat as it is first come/first served

Thanks for the Artist Loft tip.

Yes, we have reservation in La Reserve. We couldn't get reservations in any of the specialty dining due to needing a large table for 5. It's my birthday that day and wanted to dine together with my parents too. So, we plan to go to the MDR or see if any cancelation happen.

I'm doing a culinary class on a Port day, there are not any offered for the Day at Sea. My husband isn't interested in more cooking classes, he could probably teach the class, but I'm not a cook (just Pastry). So, I thought it would be fun and my Mom is doing the class with me and my Son.

I know this sounds awful but since it is close to the end of our cruise and we will be spending a few extra days in Rome after, I might do one load of laundry in the morning. Easy to do when I walk to the Concierge lounge to get coffee. I usually wake up early even on vacation. Will take a nap later in the day by the pool (good way to get a tan).

Not sure how it will work out for you. I do know when my brother and sister in law lived overseas and flew back to the States to visit family, they had a little trouble in the Vancouver BC airport. My Sister in law had work in NYC and after the arrived in Vancouver they went to different flights, my brother tried to clear customs with their 2 daughters to fly to Seattle (which you clear US Customs in Vancouver before boarding a flight to Seattle). They stopped him and asked where the Mother was and if he had written permission. They had to catch her before her flight to NYC and have a Customs agent confirm with her in person that my brother has permission to bring their daughters to the US. Crazy but they were able to make it work. I would do as much as you can to make sure that there are no problems. Check with the Cruise Line about the issue of Port in Vancouver BC. Also, bring what you can in documentations for the trip about custody. Wish you luck.

We took bridge lessons. I loved it, my partners not so much.

 

We got volunteered to be on a trivia team. Note to self, study up on ice hockey.

 

Fell asleep on the lounger by the pool. People at dinner remembered seeing me and saying how relaxed I was.

 

Exercised to work up an appetite for dinner.

 

Plotted how to get more specialty reservations.

 

Loved it all.

I do hope to fall asleep on a lounger by the pool! That sounds amazing!! I'm not that into trivia but it might be fun to try. Plotting more specialty reservations. That is a must!! :D

We love sea days but I don't think it much matters what ship you are on. They should be having some enrichment lectures as well ... It's not JUST about food!

 

Mura

Lol! For us it kind of is about the Food. This trip was chosen because of the Food! My parents really wanted to take my husband (the Chef) and myself (trained as a Pastry Chef) on Oceania because of the Food. So here we are. However, I'm sure we will enjoy other activities. My husband is hoping to do the Artist Loft if something catches his eye. He loves art. But, truly we are looking forward to the idea of relaxing and exploring the ship a bit more.

Reading on our verandah. With some liquid refreshment and an occasional snack. Watching the ocean go by.

We will have a few bottles of wine from Ports by that time, so I am sure we will do the same. Can't wait to relax a bit after many Port days!!

Mid-afternoon malted milk at Waves.

Yum! I bet my Son and Dad will love that too. I will tell them!!

Hi! I'm taking my first Cruise and on Oceania's Riviera in a couple weeks. We have one Day at Sea (between Ibiza and Amalfi). I have a few idea's of how I will spend the day (sleep in, a trip to the exercise room, strength training, early lunch at Waves for the Surf and Turf Sandwich, swimming, afternoon tea, and my Birthday dinner) but What is your favorite Sea Day activities?

I would consider myself on the younger side of the O cruisers. 41!! I haven't been on my first Cruise but will be in less than 2 weeks. Here is what I have packed. 4 dress for dinner. 4 pairs of capri pants, 1 pair of shorts, 6 tops and that modest and all but 1 with sleeves, 4 3/4 length sleeved sweaters, 2 one piece bathing suits with a cover up dress to match, 5 pair of shoes and 1 set of work out clothes. My husband plans to bring mostly long pants, button down dress shirts, 2 pair of shorts, a couple of t-shirts (no logos), workout clothes, 2 dress shoes, 1 pair of casual sneakers, running shoes, 2 pair of dress slacks, a vest and one tie. My Son (11yo) has 6 pair of button down dress shirts and 4 pair of khaki slacks, 1 pair of dress shoes, 4 pair of shorts (that go past his knees), t-shirts (no logos), 3 pair of athletic style shorts and tee, athletic shoes. I would never go on a trip to Europe and look like trash. This is how we choose to dress, not for anyone else but ourselves. This is with in our normal dress attire. My Son, attends private school and is used to a uniform. He like to look nice but also like a more casual style at home or for playing. I think its truly disrespectful not to respect the dress code, why is it an issue. But, I don't plan to scrutinize other guest attire and plan to enjoy my cruise with my family. If other choose to barely make the dress code that is their choice. But, I now I will be within dress code and be happy with my choice of dress.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Seeing the ferry schedule give me an idea of timing if we decided to go to Santa Margherita. I think the idea of walking up to Castle Brown would be nice as well. Is there any more moderately priced restaurants for lunch beyond the water front restaurants that we should consider? My husband and I are Chef/Pastry Chefs. So, we enjoy local cuisine but don't want to spend a lot of money. We will have our 11yo Son with us and he eats anything we eat.

Traveling to Portofino for a day on an Oceania Cruise in a couple of weeks. We are not planning to do a ship excursion but DIY. Here is my question. We have never been to Portofino so it it will be new to us in every way. Would we find enough to do including having lunch if we stay just in Portofino, or should we consider taking a water taxi to Santa Margherita for half a day. Thanks.

Wonderful to hear. I am taking my first ever cruise on Riviera in 2 weeks. Looking forward to this experience and seeing new cities along the way. Glad you have a wonderful trip.

Hi cruisegal we will be in Ibiza June 11th on the Riviera. Did you happen to find a nice beach? If yes how did you get there?

Hi Tsabbarese! I am on your Cruise! I believe Cruisegal is on the Riviera after us, she said her Ibiza Port day is June 16. My family opted to do the beach excursion from the ship. All I want to do is sit on the beach and play in the ocean. I will be exhausted from all the previous ports and I'm not a fan of driving around. After the beach from 10-2, we plan to walk around the Old town area. It's a Sunday Port for us. So not sure if that means establishments will be closed or not. I'm making Ibiza a lazy beach day. We did looks at the Wine Tour but opted for a different Wine Tour to Nice out of Monte Carlo.

No much advice to give but we also were planning an Alaska Cruise for this summer but ended up booking a Western Med Cruise. We leave in less than 3 weeks. We decided on a 10 day Cruise Rome to Rome and will stay in Rome for 3 days after in a rental apartment. We also will arrive a day early. We are going on Oceania mostly because my Parents love Oceania and they are taking us on this Cruise. We picked the Cruise based on many reasons, I wanted to an Eastern Med Cruise but was worried about traveling in that part of the Med due to the political climate. I didn't want a Port to be closed say Turkey and miss out and have to spend an extra sea day. I have been to the South of France and my Husband has been to Italy, we both have not been to Spain, so we thought it would be a good First Cruise for us. We do have a day at sea in our itinerary so we will get to experience ship life a little bit more than having a Port day every day. Good luck on your choice!!

18 sleeps till we leave, 20 sleeps till Cruise! My first Cruise ever!!

I don't sew but my Best Friend since I was 6 sews for me. She should be a fashion designer. But, she doesn't enjoy sewing for people that she doesn't know personally. She is making me a beautiful dress from her "Little Black Dress" book and it's on that Audrey Hepburn wore with the little bows on the shoulder straps. Mine is a Nautical Blue color. I didn't want traditional black. I get my first fitting tomorrow. I'm NO where near Audrey's figure and my best friend knows how to make designs that flatter me. So, we chose this design to work with. I'm cruising in a few weeks on Oceania's Riviera, my first Cruise. So excited. I'm also bringing two other summer dresses, she designed for me. One I wore on my 39th birthday in Paris (3 years ago) and the other I wore for our 40th Birthday's to Disneyland. So. much fun. I appreciate what it take so to sew and the time and effort. My talents are in baking but I'm so lucky to have a best friend who loves to sew for me.