shank63

The OBC is from Azamara, not the TA. It is from an onboard booking. The Azamara agent referred to it as “promotional” and not available to use until full payment is made. But isn’t ALL OBC promotional?

We are also sailing in January with $900 in OBC which does not show on the website but was confirmed by Azamara customer service. I proceeded to book excursions on the website but could not apply the OBC. My TA contacted Azamara on a conference call with me and the ruling from the Azamara rep was that my OBC was not eligible to be used until after final payment had been made. I questioned that policy in light of others reporting to use OCE, and was told that my OBC was “promotional” and their by not eligible to used before final payment. They suggested that I pay fro the excursions now with a credit card and after boarding request applying the OBC and refunding the credit card payment. Made absolutely no sense to me.

The website is a disaster but I have found that customer service has correct records on OBC, and recently are very responsive.. However, I am still trying to book excursions with payment by OBC with no success.

We did the ship tour and were very fortunate to get possibly the best guide available. He is an 84 year old retired military veteran who grew up in thr area and remembers hearing the cannon as a kid. He knows the cannon inside and out. It’s the best ship tour that I have ever experienced.

We just returned from the June 24 - July 10 Norwegian Fjords on Pursuit. We particularly were thrilled to make it to the North Cape, We used Blue Puffin for tours in Tromso and Honningsvag (North Cape) and give them highest recommendation. Some other tours that were notable include in Hartstad was Adolf Cannon, in Loften was the Sea Eagle Safari. With 11 ports of call, we chose some to relax and DIY walks around town and shop. We never tired of the beautiful scenery, especially as we traveled north to the Midnight Sun. This cruise was one of our favorites, we recommend it for anyone fortunate to get the opportunity.

We flew in to LHR and spent 2 nights in London sightseeing and then did the London to Southampton via Stonehenge. I would think a LHR to Southampton via Stonehenge would be a long day following an overnight flight.

The last time we used Oceania Air, we were routed through YYZ on Air Canada. Our AC connection in YYZ was late and we missed the overseas flight to Edinburgh. AC customer service was almost nonexistent and O’s air customer service as of no help either, same for about TA. We were forced to reschedule our flight ourselves and we’re able to arrive in Edinburgh 30 hours late. We had followed the Cardinal Rule and planned an extra day in Edinburgh, so we made the ship. We did learn 3 things: avoid YYZ, Air Canada, and Oceania Air by booking your own flights.

As a general rule of thumb, noon is the earliest flight I would book. Time and distance to the airport from the port will also be a factor to consider. The unknown and unpredictable is the time to checkin at the airport, clear security and make it to the gate.

We have done a couple of HAL cruises before O. For sure, the food and superior specialty restaurants, is far better on O. There is nothing like the BB King lounge on O, but the overall entertainment is fairly good. Of course, there are none of the pesky photographers on O, and the largest O ship at 1,250 passengers is smaller than the smallest HAL ship. We will not likely to sail on HAL or Celebrity again, Give O a chance and see if it’s a good fit for you.

I used the online booking with HAL previously, albeit very slow, and found the flexibility far superior to Oceania. No deviation fees, choice of fare classes, and the ability to make changes for lower fares or better connections. However, O is just as bad as Viking.

We are using Travel Compendium which is booked through the London Toolkit site, from our central London hotel to the Southampton cruise port.

We were in Lima foe 3 gays prior to our cruise. We used a local tour guide company called Haku Tours for each day. We give them our highest recommendation. We did the Shanty Town Tour, the Caral The First Civilization in America tour, and the Lima City Tour, and saw no signs of political unrest.

No additional charge for the specialty restaurants regardless of the number of times booked. Enjoy!

We have made specialty reservations requested sharing and I been seated at a 2 top. I recommend reserving the desired time, even if it requires sharing and check with the specialty concierge once on board for a two place reservation.

We are Marriott loyalists and are staying at the Renaissance Amsterdam for a different cruise.

We had a cruise already booked when the Ultimate OLife offer was announced. The difference in the fare was $600 but added $800 in OBC. No brainer for me, our TA had the Ultimate package added with no other changes to our original booking. It all depends on each individual situation.

Our preferences for a fast breakfast are: 1 Waves 2 Room Service The Terrace is a zoo and the Grand Dining Room, our non fast favorite, is too slow.

Last cruise was March 2023 on Marina, 18 days on Marina from Lima to Miami Next cruise: Azamara Pursuit in June 2023 Norwegian fjords, 16 days

The last time we used Oceania Air (which included the deviation fee) we missed the connection in both directions. The only help Oceania Air provided was suggesting flights to rebook, but would not provide the rebooking service which had us holding for 2 hours to speak to the airline reservation department. We lost a day in each direction in addition to the stress and frustration.

I am able to access my existing booking as of yesterday. My account is not correct, OBC is incorrect and an existing booked excursion is overcharged. So far, that’s all I can see. Hopefully it will all be fixed before our June 24 sailing.

We flew internationally Air Canada with a connection in YYZ which we missed. The Air Canada customer service at YYZ would not assist in rebooking our flights, so we spent 3 hours on the phone rebooking. This was an Oceania booked flight and sadly their support was non existent as well. Fortunately we built in a 2 day buffer for flight delays otherwise we would have missed the ship. Never again will we fly to a cruise without a 2 or 3 day pre arrival buffer, and will avoid Air Canada and YYZ if at all possible.

We highly recommend pre booking a guided tour. Taxi from the ship.

It appears to be an improvement if one is not particular about multiple stops, tight connections, or seat assignments. Obviously, O uses the least costly carrier and routings.

Penthouse

We have used O in the past, but no longer find it to be acceptable. Do the math and make your own decisions remembering that booking your own provides much more control in selection of flights and seat assignments in all classes.