Jim_Iain

The beauty on Oceania is you are not locked into eating in the MDR. Definitely would not say it is stuffy in any way. The staff are very rushed and have little time to chit chat but are very efficient and will do anything you wish if possible. If not into a sit down with white table cloths (another difference fro Celebrity) you can choose to eat at the Buffet that have many of the items on the MDR menu. I've chatted with some that eat most of their meals in the buffet. I'll have to take a wander down there. We enjoy really nice relaxed slow service. I know others would be put off by that.

You say that perfectly. That is what is so fun in doing a comparison. Sometime it the little thing that make a difference that you would never think of. Example: In our room they have an alarm clock next to the bed. Nice touch, but the little touch is that last night we turned our clocks back and when I returned to our room our Butler even adjusted the clock BTW it is a nice little Brass and Crystal clock.

We have mentioned that a number of time. We go to Tuscana tonight for our first time. BTW - Specialty dining is unlimited and included for all passengers regardless of room. The only difference is the upper suites get earlier reservation access and 4 pre-cruise reservations. Regular rooms get 2 pre-cruise reservations. Once on the ship you can add more dependent on availability. In both MDR and Specialty you can choose to dine at 2 Tops or shared Tables. I understand shared tables in specialty are easy to obtain last minute while none shared are limited.

I have so much to learn about the various ships. The shower in our suite is huge. Could probably fit 4 men your size. It has both a Rain Shower and Hand held. It also has a nice marble bench for the ladies to sit down and shave their legs. I guess a guy could also sit down but not sure for what. I use it as a bench step to wash my feet.

As usual you expressed your feelings perfectly. I try to never tear down a cruise line nor other passenger. We each experience a cruise differently. We really don't use much of the Entertainment offerings. Just because we don't that can be a very important to other guests. Speaking of that - We may not attend any of the shows because they are at 8PM and we go to cocktails at 7:30 and dinner about 8:45. I may run down one night and just take a look. One thing I can report is they have a 4 piece quartet and we have listened to a number of their sets.... really good. As fare as stage shows - They don't have an orchestra so most of the music is piped in. As for the entertainment staff they have about 4 dancers / singers and I believe they shop for multiple skills. Due to the small entertainment staff there is only so much they can do. I also noticed last night that the Entertainment staff that play piano etc also do things like trivia, shuffle board etc.

I have to agree. For us we thought giving up the Double Zenith perks would certainly be missed. We initially decided because as an Upper Suite passenger we had lost all of our Zenith Benefits because we already had them with our room. As a result of a discussion I had with Laura as well I am sure from other Zenith's they now have a discounted Zenith fare - I think on our last booking it was on something like $500. As I said to Iain. Loyalty can only go so far then after you have an affair and taste the good life it may be time to end the separation and get a divorce. Loyalty seems to be a one way street.

That's good to hear. I've been told that in the Grills they always serve clotted cream. If not I will surely ask. One thought that just came back to my mind was living In Dublin, Ireland. They had a Clotted Cream Ice Cream.... Talking about clogged arteries.

I may hold off posting pictures until we are back at sea and have ships internet.

Last night around 10PM we lost internet completely. This morning possibly because we are in port the internet is beyond slow. I was unable to to even retrieve messages or bring up an internet page. I put my iPhone in Hotspot mode and moved it close to the window. At least now I have decent speeds and can do my mail and other things. I know many say they love to disconnect but I first of all live in a connected world and on top of that I'm the President of a large HOA and we are in the midst of 6.5 Million dollar project.

Arrived this morning at 7:00 AM in Ketchikan Alaska. Now for one difference on the negative side for Oceania. At 8:00 on the dot the cruise director came on the PA in the staterooms with a 1 minute Welcome to Ketchikan, weather rainy and 55 F. We are parked at Wards Harbor which is about a 20 minute shuttle to the city. Remember this shuttle is operated by the port so Oceania has no responsibility if they change their schedule so make sure you have planned plenty of time to get back to ship. One of the nice things about Celebrity is they rarely make announcements in the rooms.

@Lastdance I checked this morning with the Barista. She said she did as well as skim milk, oat milk and soy milk.

We then slipped up to Deck 11

Had breakfast at buffet. After breakfast we set out for tour of the ship. Started on deck 10 Forward This is unusual an inside smoking lounge

What a beautiful day. About mid 50’s and windy

Sounds great. Hopefully they will have it on Vista for our next Oceania cruise

Times have definitely changed. We usually only get to SF once or twice a year. We have friends that have a Thanksgiving a Christmas year part. Been attending for over 20 years.

Thanks. I was thinking that having butlers to meet all the Penthouse would be difficult. When we checked in, I noticed the agent paging someone. So far love Regatta.

Yea I was disappointed they did not have it v

That tree guy is a legend.

In MDR Oceania puts Luminae to shame First Dinnerware. By guess who? Also instead of twinkle candles and silver plated s/p now this is amazing. - Space between tables. When we first arrived the area we were seated in was full but noise level was low.

First dinner I would give a 9 - everything was served hot and well seasoned.

I posted day one in message 150 on Oceania Live.

I think all the suites on Vista are larger. The Owners suite is about 2x that of Regatta.

On Millennium SS is 251 sq ft and 57 sq ft balcony. In Regatta Penthouse is 260 sq ft and 62 sq ft balcony. This is per cruise deck plans. On Vista Penthouse is 420 square ft. n 39 sq ft balcony. On S-Class SS 300/79. E-Class 299/63.