AMHuntFerry

Go down to the bottom of the website. There is a link to FAQs (I didn't find it for quite a while). Use caution though...some of the FAQs are outdated, so be especially wary of pre-pandemic info.

Thanks. I was wondering the same thing the other day. Please say "hi" if you know her in real life.

Additional reservations (after embarking) seem to mostly depend on length of cruise; a 7 night cruise has a low probability of extra specialty dining, while a 20 night cruise almost guarantees extra nights. Other factors are number of empty cabins (if any), number of sea days, whether a segment is part of a longer itinerary, etc.

None of these are unique to O (or NCLH). In other words, they are common even if the general public is unaware of the existence.

The veal used in the Toscana menu may be adaptable depending on the cut.

Workarounds that I or others have used are: Open the two shower doors into the shower when it's not in use, effectively making the sink/toilet area larger. Open the two shower doors into the sink/toilet area when using the shower if it's too confining; there is a floor drain in the sink/toilet area (probably want to shut the door to the room though). Use the much nicer showers/locker room in the spa (all cabin-levels have access so don't need concierge); if you like to use the sauna/pool/hot tub, this can be part of the routine. Before you write off the bathrooms, search YouTube for "Oceania Regatta Veranda Stateroom". A top result will show you a person of your height in one of the showers. (Can't post link due to CC rules) Oh, and the shower wand is removable which helps when rinsing hair.

I wonder if it is possible to order off-menu since it's an O-recipe (I've done this on land when a restaurant's menu changes and one of my favorites disappears). It might be worth asking a day or more in advance, and if they have the ingredients you may be pleasantly surprised.

The Victoria whale watching tends to be orca-centric. If I were a whale, I'd prefer nice, quiet Klawock to Victoria, but in reality it probably depends on current migration patterns over noisy ships/boats. 😉

Yes, which is why I'm "paying attention" and alerting people to sales prices that are not on O's site. November to just before for Christmas is most definitely off-season. If you watch prices, they are usually cheaper than similar cruises before/after and also usually go on sale in a predictable manner. Nope - been retired since I was 43 and the school year hasn't mattered since grad school. Face it, you and I have very different ways of saving money. I am willing to shop places other than the O-website while you won't budge. Can we drop the bickering and just provide sale info?

Those were all off-season Caribbean, Mediterranean, and maybe a Sirena repositioning. Even at regular price, they are O's value-cruises. As you mentioned earlier, the Baltics are not value-priced as evidenced by the quoted sale prices; however, if a Baltic cruise is a goal, saving ~$1000 per person via a TA's sale price makes the current way-higher airfares less painful.

If you can't get prices from O, I found a June Seabourn cruise going to Klawock. They have three example activities: https://www.seabourn.com/en/us/find-a-cruise/a4n10a/4437 Klawock Highlights Starting At $ 140 Taste of Klawock and Totem Park Starting At $ 190 Prince of Wales Whale and Marine Mammal Quest Starting At $ 200 I'm keeping an eye on May/June cruises (waiting for a potential conflict to be scheduled before selecting dates...sigh) and the Wrangell->Klawock switch affects at least one. Thanks for bringing this up!

I'm going from memory so please excuse any mistakes (I may have an old brochure...maybe later)...Klawock was supposed to be a new port in 2023 for some of the itineraries, and O was going to be its first cruise ship. Obviously that didn't happen and a different port was subbed for Klawock. It looks like they may now be ready for customers, but I would expect services to be very limited. Edit: Hmm...Klawock instead of Wrangell. I like Wrangell, may like Klawock too...hmmm.

Definite possibility! I did catch a different type of error on the same website a few weeks ago; after I asked my TA about what the sale meant (some sort of "BOGO" but it was appearing on various unrelated brands), it disappeared. Are you seeing the prices in post 57? I'm interested to see if they are legit but don't want to bug my TA. Like I said...just paying attention to see if my cruises go on sale, plus it's a fun distraction 🍸

Just checked O vs TA again for this itinerary. While the $1600 fare is gone, veranda starts at $3849 and suite $5099 (O $6299). I can't see levels (B4, B3, etc.) without bugging my TA.

Yep, these sales are extremely temporary at the moment. I keep my eye on "my" cruises since this type of activity about this time last year is what ended up being the ESS which I was able to book many weeks before it was on the O site. The have-my-TA-on-speed-dial sales are only of interest to me if they lead to a more stable sale (I already avoid tedious tasks too much checking updates 😉 ). However, for people like my uncle, they were his favorite travel game (he was king of luxury travel for quarters on the dollar).

I'm going to kick myself later for chasing squirrels, but I can see Insignia's May reroute (due to Suez)...May 13 for 20 nights Dubai to Capetown starting at $2599 for inside and suites starting at $8299. Ports listed are Mahe, Mombasa, Zanzibar, Mayotte, Maputo, Durban. The June 2nd 22 night Cape Town to Lisbon is at a higher price point...Starting prices: Inside $5599, Suite $10,399 The June 24th 18 night Lisbon to NYC Inside $4799 Suite $10,099. These are not routes that I've watched at all in the past (we hate summer travel), but they are not listed on the O site, so I'm posting here for people who may be interested. I don't know if they are bookable...I can see them though so call a TA or O if they are of interest.

I don't think hot tubs have been mentioned...the pool and hot tubs/spa close at 10 pm.

O's website is not the easiest to navigate. There is a page with the concierge-level description which includes links to some of the amenities (like expanded dining, lounge, spa terrace): https://www.oceaniacruises.com/concierge-veranda Note that O can be slow to update info, such as "Aboard Marina and Riviera, exclusive card-only access to private Concierge Lounge...". Vista and Allura also have these lounges.

The ginger beer has been the no-alcohol version in my experience. Also beware of the cider - Angry Orchard is the sweet kind with added sugar.

The current sales disappear soon after I spot them (~within a day), unlike the preview to the Extraordinary Sale last year when the prices would be static for weeks; in fact, I just checked and this one is already gone. I won't share my TA since it is against the CC rules, but it is just a local, family run business who belongs to the Signature consortium (I've been told by a mod that consortia can be named), so find a TA that belongs to Signature and one that belongs to Virtuoso who have searchable websites. Keeping up with jaw-droppers is a full time job, so I'll just wait and see...if no cruise, then there is a lot of Wilderness to get lost in when the temps get too high (which for me is usually May-Sep 😉 ).

Today there is a Marina veranda, July 10 night in the Baltics for $1600. The only jaw-dropper in today's search.

Speaking of sales, there are a few (just a few!) fantastic sales showing up today for spring/summer (weren't there last time I did an overall check, not just my targets, which may have been 2-7 days ago...days all run together 😉 ) on my TA's site that aren't on O's site, so I assume silent-sale. Example: Inside $2499 on O, $1485 on TA for 11 days Regatta (Mexico); $4549 O, B-cat $1600 TA for 10 days Marina (Norway). Also saw some Riviera, but I am avoiding tasks that I will kick myself for not doing, so enjoy bargain hunting!

This is additional info for those reading who may be new to O. Please note that the sales listed are those available directly from O. There are other sales that are only available via TAs. For example, the Extraordinary Sale was available in February 2023 via a TA (I booked an ESS cruise for September on March 10, 2023). It pays (literally) to have access to at least one TA's sale opportunities. Those wishing for the most opportunities probably use more than one TA...probably one from each consortium as well as a well-connected O TA (more effort than I'm willing to expend though...sometimes saving $ just isn't worth the hassle).

As ORV stated, the OBC is usually (not always) higher for booking onboard than for FCC; otherwise the benefits are the same (same deposit, same discount, same one-time-itinerary change, etc.). However, a potential benefit of a FCC is that, if unused, it is fully refundable within a year, while a cancelled cruise is $150 per person before the higher penalty period starts.

Some brands may be more active in managing their CC presence for marketing purposes; I don't believe O is one of those brands (I posted a longer version of this but it has been "flagged for approval before posting", possibly because I used an AI triggering-word).