AMHuntFerry

@Sthrngary There appear to be the standard Bar Menus on at least two of the tables. You may need to stop by the Horizons bar to let them know you want to order something, or maybe they have some sort of alert-system in place (e.g., camera, "door bell").

And there's something really festive about having trays of canapes brought around...even better than chips and nuts!

Oh yes, I understand your pain...not the same pain as administering an estate with an uncooperative spouse, but I too get really peeved when people/companies can't do simple tasks (like provide proof of payment when they are asking me to reimburse them...I had a ~$25 expense rejected by my company once because I had misplaced a receipt, so yes, I would expect proof of a multi-thousand expense).

OK, now I'm seeing the picture more clearly...NCLH is the creditor, not the PAF. An analogous situation (that may be more familiar) is when we hire a general contractor for a home remodel. Before paying final payment the general contractor (and possibly before), I ask to see proof that subs were paid. If subs weren't paid, they can put a lien on my house. Pay an attorney to send a letter that says something to the effect of "we won't pay this bill until proof of payment is shown. You have until X date." It's amazing what a simple letter from an attorney can accomplish. Any decent contract (estate, real estate, etc. ) attorney can do this; your insurance may have an attorney that will do this for a fee.

No, I meant the invoice directly from the air force since they are the ones that may ultimately come after you for payment. Or are you saying that NCL is the creditor? Whoever is demanding payment is the one that needs to provide a "balance due" invoice. If NCLH is the creditor and has not provided a proper invoice, I agree with the advice to send a letter from an attorney. Your estate planning attorney may be able to provide one or refer you to an attorney who can. Also, you bought this insurance through a TA; your TA should also be hounding their O-rep to get resolution to this issue. (Oops, just read post #54 - so invoice is from NCLH)

Can you call the customer number and request a copy of the invoice? My spouse is PR for an estate with a less-than-cooperative spouse. We have had to obtain invoices directly from providers in order to administer the estate, and they always either have a balance due or something indicating "Paid" (like an electronic stamp). It seems to me that a current invoice from the Portuguese Air Force indicating "Paid" or a balance due would be sufficient to move forward. Good luck!

Same reason I go to a neighbor's open house...it's the polite thing to do, even if it's just a quick "thank you for inviting me", hold a drink, mingle a little, run away. We are introverts so have to be pried out of our shells, but we always seem to close down the welcome party.

Hi Jancruz! A few weeks back there was a rumor of a creperie and gelato place being added to one of the ships (Vista maybe?). Has Oceania released any information about this? I love crepes and my spouse is a huge gelato fan, so these would be great news if true. My biggest dilemma will be sweet or savory...such a trial. 🙂

Haha...those were the same looks we got in Alaska (sundresses and shorts/Ts), but they were from fellow cruisers, not Alaskans (who were dressed more like us). A photo of us standing next to the petite lady bundled head to tow in a long, down coat with fur around the hood probably made it into a bystander's social media post 😉

O has made it clear with the A-class ships that they are moving away from the Inside and Oceanview crowd, so as the R-ships are phased out, Riviera and Marina will be all that is left with I and OV availability. It turns out I love being in the bowels of the ship, and I will miss that if I ever go on one of the A-ships. For A-category cabins and below, the bathtub crowd will still have some availability although more limited on Riviera. So after I pare down cruises based on itinerary, I will choose based on ship. For me, I would probably choose Marina over Vista/Allura based on my preferences. Are there enough people like me to keep Marina filled? I don't know, but I'm guessing there are.

Yes, starting at 6:30 I think.

@Redtravel Do you remember what was on the event menu? Not important, just curious. Do they still bring tasty tidbits to nibble?

Was it $200 per person or per cabin?

I'm starting to think that I haven't paid attention to the NY sale, or are these new? On O-site, Riviera 10 night starting July 24 (Med) Veranda $2399 PH3 $3399 These seem better than I saw before, but they are mostly the Med which I haven't been tracking.

I think I noticed the following E. Med cruises last week (on O site): Riviera 10 night starting Sept 28. 2024 Verandas start at $2099, PH2 $3099 Riviera 7 night starting Oct 8, 2024 Verandas start at $2199 (OV $2549) Istanbul is either the start or end so may not appeal to some (I'm not even bothering to list the fire sale cruises through the Suez Canal).

I keep my eyes out for "O treasures" to tempt my pocket book (in normal people words, "deals")...usually a few itineraries in different seasons. Every once in a while I do a more comprehensive scan just to see what's out there. Lately there has been nothing that wasn't also on the O site, but today...bingo! If you use a TA who sometimes gets silent sales (and no, it's not just the primo-O-connected TAs), it might be worth checking. Example I just found: Marina June 1-13, 2024 (W Med) Verandas (only-category on sale) for $2220 (the weird price caught my eye); O-site starts at $5199. Then this one is on the O-site too (notice PH3 is less than an Inside) so no TA needed if that's not your thing: Riviera July 7-17, 2024 (Greece) Veranda $2299, PH $3199; O-site (Inside $3499, OV $4249) Happy treasure hunting!!

BTW, I love O's Riviera. Our first ever cruise was on her in December 2021. We have taken 3 cruises on Regatta (smaller ship) since then and loved those too, but we are happy with the calm vibe on O and prefer to entertain ourselves or chat with fellow passengers...can't wait for Riviera to take over the Alaska runs in 2025 since it's in our "backyard"! We also looked at Azamara but they didn't go where we wanted to go (yet). Just note that the ships are older so the non-suites have much smaller bathrooms than young cruisers may be used to (see YouTube videos), and note that O's smaller ships are the same (not Riviera - very nice bathrooms). Small bathrooms don't bother us, but check out the videos to make sure they are OK with you. (Note: my TA's consortium has a $250/cabin OBC for this sailing) Seabourn has always been super pricey compared to O for itineraries that we were looking at, but it looks like it's competitive for your itinerary. Note that my TA's consortium has a $300/cabin OBC for that one (yay, more $$!). Have fun choosing and enjoy the vacation!

Hi @mrstraveler1987, I know this isn't the input you were seeking, but I can't help myself. I like to get bang for my buck and it sounds like you don't want to waste money, so here's my unsolicited recommendations: Your base fare for an A-2 on the itinerary in post #20 is $2949/person. The rest is air, hotel, etc. O air may make sense sometimes, but I find it advantageous to book my own. Check out https://matrix.itasoftware.com O's airfare + transfers are $1500/person. I found airfare MSP to Nice (closest airport, about 11 miles away from Monte Carlo) departing Sept.2 (arrive Sept. 3 although I'd recommend arriving at least a day or 2 earlier), then BCN to MSP on Sept. 11 (again, stay at least overnight if possible to reduce stress or to visit). United, Delta, American all ran about $1340/person for the basic economy fare with 1 stop. Delta had the most flights, so I would tend toward them (as back up in case of flight issues). Now, you'll probably say that that's about even with O's price (and O provides a transfer), but there are some drawbacks with O airfare (like not being able to choose your flights and having more than one stop, among others). The hotel listed in post #20 is a Hilton hotel. A room for 2 people starts at $413 so O charges more than double: https://www.hilton.com/en/book/reservation/rooms/?ctyhocn=NCECOQQ&arrivalDate=2024-09-03&departureDate=2024-09-04&room1NumAdults=2&displayCurrency=USD If booking your own air, hotel, and ground transport is daunting, just have a full service travel agent do your booking for you. I just checked my TA's site and the Signature consortium has prepaid gratuities as a perk for that cruise (Worth $18/person/day for an A2), so a TA is worth some $$ even if you end up booking everything through O (but I bet a TA can get you a much sweeter deal on a hotel). They can also help with insurance and if things go horribly wrong at some point (if full service, not a booking agency, and no I'm not a TA...only use them for cruises, no other travel products). Anyhoo...I hope this helps you save some cash to spend on fun vacationy things!

I was talking specifically about when the actual party where the Captain and other crew are present; when there were health concerns, there was still a party (in the bars) but not a Party (in the theatre/lounge).

No, Idaho, but while going to school in western NY I told my friend from Tennessee that after school I wanted to move to a place where I was the rudest person in town. At first he was confused, but then he understood. Nice (or at the very least, polite) people make life so much better!

@zteamtwo I posted the room service breakfast menu:

Can you please ID the cruise please? That is way more expensive than any A-cabin I've ever seen on O and I can't find one that expensive when I search. Oh, wait, are you quoting the price for 2 people (so $5k per person)? If so, then that makes sense, but it is one of the more expensive O cruises...probably time of year and/or locale.

I have always assumed the salmon was Atlantic since there is no descriptor. Were you able to ID it?

In the past (but post-pandemic) they still had complimentary drinks in Martinis and Horizons in lieu of a party. Did they skip that too?

Are you only looking at the Owner's Suite on Riviera? If so, this may make a difference in some of the replies. It will be easier to address your original question if the cruise(s) are listed, as well as the cabin category that you like, what you like about cruises, and what you don't want on a cruise.