Jim_Iain

What you might enjoy is to do a pre or post cruise land trip. We did the one to Denali and was incredible. As an aside, you get the same number of points per day as the room you book.

I think many agree with you. In suites we have always had balconies but surprisingly they eliminated the outdoor Jacuzzi in all of the upper suites. The balcony for the Royal Suite is the standard size but they took the other half and made a sun room extension on the already huge living room. It would have been nice if they at least put an infinity window in that place instead of solid glass walls. Our remaining 2 Celebrity bookings are both in S Class so looking forward to that.

It is interesting how different lines embrace technology. Ponant has an app but nothing worked in it so was useless. I understand that Cunard doesn't have a stand alone App but have a URL web based app only available once on the ship. I have to say that I have really enjoyed the app on Celebrity. It has come a long way from when it was first released but like you I would be lost without it.

Sorry to hear. I'm hoping we get a great butler. We really don't use a butler a great deal but it is always nice to have on like our housekeeper that just knows how to surprise us and intuitively knows how to make us feel special. Regatta only has 2 Specialties and we have 4 nights pre-booked. We have a tradition of doing a Specialty on the first night of all of our cruises. Usually the first night is a mess as the wait staff and passengers get settled in and understand the process.

That is true.... but .... Via my sources I was able to get PDF's of the 14 day rotation of the MDR menus as well as the two specialty restaurants. I will be posting the on the Live thread on Oceania Board. I will say they are impressive and exciting.

I heard that same quote. It's not quite that cold but can tell you shops have a good business in Sweat Shirts for tourists. The Bay Area has so many micro-climates. We are only 30 miles south of San Francisco and in the Summers we will get in the mid 80's to 90's and San Francisco can be down int the hit 50's to low 60's. One thing nice about the micro climates is you can choose the type temperatures you want to live in and still commute to work. We are also in the High 80's today but temperatures are suppose to drop to the low 70's this weekend as the Low moves in. I believe that is the reason the temps on this cruise will shift to cooler wetter conditions.

I will report back. I do know that a number of cabins do have capability of a third. I did notice that when searching you can designate the number of guests and I believer it will show you which cabins can take 3 guests. I will confirm once on board.

I've been finding that if you check right after Final Payment many Upper Suites open up. I was just noticing for the Silhouette TA in November- last week all suites were available including a Penthouse Suite. They Penthouse has been picked up but currently there are 2 RS, 1 CS, 1 Horizon and a bunch of SS. Will be a great cruise for upgrades. I somewhat regret booking a RS but the price is now $2,500 more expensive to what we paid so I guess it all balances out.

From what I understand they also have a Newb Cocktail Reception, or is that the one listed as a perk?

Definitely - I've purchased a new iPhone on Pre-Order Date for every phone since iPhone 2. I kid Iain and say I couldn't have an old phone without being criticized. On the street adjacent to where we live there are over 20 Apple office buildings. When I get my new one I kick off the annual upgrade program. Iain get's my iPhone 15 Pro Max, Alison my daughter gets Iain's 14 Pro Max and Payton my oldest grandson gets her phone.

Hate to ask but are there any perks as a Blue Club Member? Status is really a funny thing, especially with a number of lines now doing status match. On our Ponant trip they status matched us to the highest level they have. Really pissed off our best friends who have sailed Ponant for years and had a lower status. While I understand that I was fun to flout as David one of my best friends from Australia is a braggart and was flouting his status and I casually pulled out my card.... hmmm... I'm and Admiral. I wish I had a picture of his expression.

Thanks for posting. I will have a whopping 1 point after this cruise. As I said early, at this point we have no intention be tied into a loyalty program again. Some of the perks are really nice but from now on bookings will be based on Accommodation, Price and Itinerary.

Thanks much. It helps having a younger husband (Iain is 5 years younger than me - but looks older -- shhh don't tell him I said that)

That I will try. If not I hope one of the others on the cruise will post. We are not really big on shows but will definitely be posting lots of the pictures of the interior and lido deck. I'm sure i will see lots of interesting things while doing my steps on the ship on sea days.

Great. Good to know. At his point we have no Status. LOL

Fantastic pictures. I especially like the laughing men. We should have flown in today and enjoyed the sunny weather. Just looked at the weather and looks like it will be rainy for us tomorrow.

Will really look forward to your reports on Vista. Our next Oceania cruise will be in Fall of 2025 on Vista. We will be doing Istanbul to Barcelona and will connect with Celebrity from Lisbon to Buenos Aires (with stops in Brazil). I hope that the Celebrity one actually sails as it has been cancelled the past 2 years.

Will check it out. We booked one of our "Free" Oceania for a bear tour. Off my head I can't remember which port. We currently don't have anything planned for Prince Rupert so may add on another.

The Sky Train is literately across the street from the terminal. One no longer needs to purchase a compass card and you purchase tickets from a touch-less terminal or just tap your credit card. We will be getting tickets this time. From what I've researched is they have a Concession (Senior) fare and you need to have a physical ticket to obtain the sizable discount. I'm all for saving money. I believer that also on weekend they drop the $5 surcharge for trips departing the airport. I will definitely let everyone know once we have actually done it. Last time I just used Apple Pay at the SkyTrain entrance.

Well a big happy birthday to you. I've really been happy to see all of those long time Celebrity Cruisers here on Oceania Board. These cruises will be a new chapter in our life and looking forward to building it into a book of new experiences.

I would have like to have done the B2B. We've done the Mexican Riviera a couple times and I really love the ports. It would really be nice to do it on a smaller ship like Regata. You should have fantastic weather. The weather is starting to change in the Bay Area is expecting a low to move in for the weekend giving more Autumnal temperatures. Our weather is really affected by the Alaska Coastal and when the summer Low drifts down from Seattle and Alaska it cools off our weather and in the winter gives us rain. From looking at the weather for our trip I'm planning on cool and drizzly weather. Definitely packed for a layered look. We sometimes get spoiled as we don't get rain between about May through November so have to consciously remember to pack an umbrella and rain gear.

Yes .... That is one difference I do like about Oceania. They often sell B2B's as a single booking and from what my agent told me they prices are less for the combined cruises. It also cuts down on the effort to find the same cabin for a B2B. The one thing one of our Regular Oceania experts can tell us whether for their loyalty program they count it as one cruise vs 2 cruises.

Incredible. I'm really happy that there will be a number of us CC members. Looking forward to meeting you. Just checked again and we will be arriving 11:04 in Vancouver.

LOL--- I guess you are correct. I understand that the demographics tend to be on the older side. My only problem is that even though I'm in this demographics I still fell like I'm 35. We should be easy to find as our photo icon is current. Also we will be the newbes wandering around in total awe and confusion. Really looking forward to meeting you. You definitely will be a wealth of knowledge.

Thanks yet. I was hoping to get the new iPhone 16 Pro Max for this trip. I purchased my new phone but will not ship until next Friday. I chose to pickup at T-Mobie instead - so it should be available the day I get home.