Snaefell3

Uhmm... Are you sure about the extra fee? I would expect a Single Occupancy surcharge if the Final Payments had not been made, but since O *has* already been paid for the empty bed...?

If you have a TA, ask them to ask O (it's only polite, no? 😉 ) Without a TA, call O direct. ...and sooner is better.

The menus in the specialty restaurants and breakfast in the GDR are fixed and O posts "sample" copies on their website: https://www.oceaniacruises.com/culinary Lunch in the GDR is (some?) sea days only, and dinner in the GDR is a set of 14(?) menus which rotate, nevermind if a cruise starts or ends. https://www.thepreismans.com/index.html blogs about their cruises and includes menus and food pictures on O and other lines. And, of course, all the menus are subject to whether the ship can actually get the needed ingredients each supply day.

O will stock anyone's cabin fridge with sodas, etc, of their choice (not really familiar with Vitamin Zero, but sounds like it qualifies) even if it is not normally stocked in the ship's bars and lounges. The only gotchas are they have to have enough notice and that the stuff has to be actually available at your departure port.

The best way to describe the Bab al-Mandab situation is "unstable". I'm not sure even the Houthi know what they're going to do next. My 2¢: The war-risk insurance rates are doubling daily, so -- short term -- cargo ship, passenger ship, or walking the shoreline that's a good place not to be. But lots of powerful interests want the issue gone and gone very soon.

My 2¢: The on-line evaluation is for Miami. If you want to compliment (or 😞 ding) a crew member in a way that will do them some good, write a short note to the Restaurant Mgr/Chief Housekeeper/etc as appropriate. Currents should list them on Day 1. (Safety Officer for tender crew?) (Destination Services Mgr for excursions?)

"Sweet"? 🤦‍♂️ We forgot to mention the most important meal of the day… Afternoon Tea. 4-5pm, Horizon, except embarkation days. Scones, clotted cream, jam, and whatnot.

...or you never had to make do with only 7 days afloat. 😜 Don't mind us, we're just jealous. 🙂

Last March ['23] on the Regatta, the two specialties, Polo and Toscana, served from 6:00pm. We were told that was normal on 7-day voyages in order to squeeze in enough slots.

AIUI, O's standard WiFi blocks streaming, so no videos unless you pay for the upgrade.

OK. We're back to "call three times and average the answers". Sympathies. Further data for you. • Luggage shippers sub-contract the actual luggage handling • We had issues with Luggage Forward not talking to their Seattle sub-contractor in 2018 • For our next cruise, the Luggage Free website said "phone us" when we selected "ship".

Probably for the same reason that folks with questions are advised to "call three times and average the answers". Snark aside, what was the timing on Oceania's offer and India's customs crackdown?

My 2¢: Earlier this year and past our final payment date, Monterey closed itself to cruise ships. We were booked aboard Regatta and were looking forward to visiting as tourists instead of residents. We'll let any lawyers opine on force majeure, but we blamed Monterey not Oceania.

I think I captured Oceania's shoreside customer service in a reply to my TA who had untangled a botch: "Oceania could not even make the mistake correctly" I had requested one cooking class slot. Oceania booked two slots. Billed mine against my remaining SBC plus credit card for the rest. Billed hers against her remaining SBC and failed to bill for the rest.

Lessons to be learned: • It may be Oceania's fault, but it's YOUR problem. Track your bags so you can start folks fixing issues early. • "Combat load" your bags. Do not pack them "his" and "hers". Better for both of you to have ½ your stuff than one of you to have none. • Shipping bags early gives more time to get any issues fixed than does airline checking your bags. • "Traveling" is a short way of saying "there will be opportunities to solve problems".

Rube Goldberg would be proud of "Oceania free baggage shipping". Oceania "partners" with Luggage Forward, who in turn contracts with UPS/FedEx/DHL/etc to pick up your bags, transport them to your embarkation port, and deliver them to whichever port agent there that Oceania hired. The port agent holds the bags before delivering them to your your ship on embarkation day. Then the ship's crew in turn delivers the bags to your cabin. Lots of moving parts, lots of chance for missed communication, lots of chance for bags to go astray. But, IMNSHO, still more reliable than getting them there as checked airline baggage.

Strike "altruistic" and replace with "desperate for customers"? 😇

A smart phone is equipped with radios on three different frequencies ("cell phone", WiFi, and Bluetooth) and really doesn't much care which it is using. When at sea, you and your wallet do care. Verizon Travel Pass includes unlimited internet connectivity via cellphone towers (aka "cellular data") when ashore. Very likely that is what kicked in.

He's speaking of OCAPP [Oceania Cruises Amenity Partnership Program] available only to *some* TAs and "not combinable" with all fares or even all voyages.

...and your cellphone is logged onto the ship's WiFi Yeah, you, @bob brown, and I know it, but there's gonna be someone reading this who doesn't.

I've never found cabin furniture on any line really "comfy" for reading. Which might explain but not excuse the snores heard in the library. 😖

Bingo! "Crew-served buffets are an effective, but not normally worth it, disease-control measure".

• If I see hands (pax or ungloved crew) touching *food*, I'll be demanding the rest of it be discarded -- might be tempted to look for a rope and a lamppost, too! 🤧 • To put passenger-touched serving utensils in perspective, they are no worse a disease transmission vector than elevator buttons, and I don't see that many folks taking the stairs in lieu. • I prefer passenger-touched serving utensils when I want to try just a taste of something rather than full standard helping -- anyone have much success conveying that to a server? • Faced with "outbreak" levels of norovirus, I'd expect any ship to go to "Code Orange" -- maybe even a bit sooner.

Reasonable attitude. Our thought is that "gratuities" is simply disguised fare rather than being an actual gratuity since it goes to folks not performing personal service.

My point exactly. My question was do you tip them on the spot since you won't see that butler at end of voyage? Asking because we finally decided to try a cabin with a butler. (And, yes, thank you @Sthrngary for your suggestion of a hello letter for your butler)