CruisingWalter

41 minutes ago, RLM77 said:

Does it sound right that there would be no early dining slots left on any night at Extra Virgin and Gunbae less than 8 hours after reservations opened?  Will the app eventually allow second reservations at the other venues?  Please share your experiences with this

Yes absolutely. Many folks stay up or get up at midnight on the East Coast specifically to make their dining reservations. 8 hours later, it's no surprise the early slots are gone. I believe the second reservation at each venue is only allowed for 7 nights or longer.  We've not sailed the 6 night itinerary so I'm not entirely certain on that one. We're on an 8-night in November and we do have the option to book a venue twice.

There will be additional dining slots that are held back from the app to be booked onboard. My suggestion is to go directly to the restaurant of choice when you board to see what availability they have. There will also be walk-up stand by lines as well each evening. Your luck with those will dependin on how popular that particular restaurant is that evening. 

52 minutes ago, MarkWiltonM said:

How about if you're a non-drinker and a vegetarian? 

There are vegetarian selections at every restaurant onboard. With the at table cooking, they will cook all the non-fish and non-meat items first.

Thank you @aviators99 for the kind words!

On 9/24/2023 at 6:32 AM, AmoMondo said:

When making the booking, they said you would get an option to spread the cost in instalments. I never saw that option, so paid the 20%. can I make monthly payments myself rather than wait until the balance is due? Am I better doing that on the website or is that possible on the app?

You had to go through the Uplift qualification process before booking. Basically Uplift pays for your entire cruise with a loan and you pay back the loan. If you simply went through the process of booking and paying, you bypassed that process. You should be able to set custom payment amounts anything through the app to make smaller payments before final payment. Travel agents do this all the time and they can also apply the 10% Pay In Full discount for you if you're ready to pay in full at least 180 days prior to sail date. 

Everyone else has given you great advice on your main questions. I'll add a few of my tips. 

When you get onboard, drop off your bags in your room and head down to the The Dock at the very back of Deck 7. Great tapas and beautiful space to start your vacation.

The pool area is generally full on sea days, and even sometimes on port days later in the day. One of my favorite places to chill is what I call the 'porches' on either side of Deck 7 midship, right outside the Roundabout. Big open patios with varied seating down near the waterline.  One of side of the ship will be in full sun and the other side will offer shade. 

If you want to partake in some of the fun group exercise classes like 80's Workout and 90' Boy Band Dance Class, register for those as soon as you're on the ship WiFi, they sell out fast. But even if they sell out, there may be additional space or some people won't show up. Just show up at the appointed time and place and they might let you in. 

If you're sensitive to really loud music, like outdoor concert loud, bring earplugs for the Scarlet Night pool party. It's a fantastic party that gets crazier as it goes, but it's basically the volume of an outdoor concert. Earplugs makes that evening much more enjoyable for me. 

Here's a food tour I created from our first trip on Scarlet Lady. It might help with some of your dinner planning. The Poke Bowl on Deck 16 is not here because it has irregular hours and we didn't catch it on this cruise. But it's a great alternative when it's open.

https://youtu.be/pBolzKvXjMU

It's not a large part of the experience, just the drinking game at the beginning. Ask for shots of water instead of sojou.  Fortunately the game is a pretty quick one. 🙂 

Yes you can pick a cabin by working with a travel advisor. They have full access to the deck plans and can place you in any specific available cabin. Gold Certified VV First Mates can offer additional sailor loot for Sea Terrace and above. 

Alternatively you can call Sailor Services yourself and work with them to get a cabin. On the website, it will automatically assign you a cabin, usually starting on Deck 14. 

32 minutes ago, Croooser said:

Trying Seabourn for the first time next year. Cruise line of choice is definitely a first world problem.

That should be lovely. They're on our list along with Hurtigruten Expeditions. 

38 minutes ago, Croooser said:

Regarding the surf and turf sandwich...I have been able to request either double surf/no turf or double turf/no surf.

Oh man you're killing me. I will have to test out these variations, all in the name of science of course. 🙂 

On 9/20/2023 at 4:07 PM, flyer79 said:

Thanks for everything!

Thanks so much for a great overview! We've sailed 9 cruise lines so far over almost 20 years and will be sailing Oceania for the first time in December. Your observations and notes are really useful, I really appreciate the time you took to share. Have an awesome day!

11 hours ago, Croooser said:

We find the O specialties to be as good or better than X with the possible exception of Murano and the definite exception of Eden. On balance we prefer the food on O.

Murano has been sporadic for us. We've had a few really good meals but our last experience was 'meh.' The restaurant we really miss is the original QSine concept with the tapas. That was an amazing culinary experience. We have not even tried the Le Petit Chef that replaced it, I really don't need an animated chef 'preparing my dinner.' I'll watch Ratatouille for that. 🙂 

Of the 9 cruise lines we've sailed so far, Virgin Voyages and Disney have had the best overall food by far so we're excited to finally be trying Oceania in December. We've heard so many awesome things about the food and that surf and turf sandwich has been calling my name since we booked... 

9 hours ago, YourWorldWithBill said:

If you just enter Warm Penguin on Google it will pull up his website. There is an email address there to write to him. His name is David McLaughlin.

Just found the website. This is awesome sauce. Thank you so much for that tip!

20 hours ago, SATaxman said:

I have read that the evening entertainment is sometimes not so great. I would pay to have you present this in the theater with AV slides and handouts! Thank you

Maybe with a little jazz trio in the background performed in William Shatner style? Dark stage, bar stool and one light from above, one spotlight. This could be comedy gold. Especially if we can see a re-enactment of the YouTube video complete with the vodka..... 🙂 

5 hours ago, basor said:

we never snap fingers and/or holler "hey" to request any type of service.

Oh my word, do people still do this? I have not seen that on a cruise in I don't know how long... 🙂

10 hours ago, Woofa said:

Not a typical buffet as they serve you at the stations instead of people touching the food. 

That alone will make me so happy to be sailing Oceania for the first time in December. I hate the self serve buffet on every other cruise line. So excited, we will be sailing Serena on a 12 day Miami round trip to the southern Caribbean. 

5 hours ago, DisabledSeawoman said:

This is my first time cruising and I’m hoping for some help before I know I’m doing the right thing. 

Welcome to the cruise family! My biggest advice is for you to find a local, trusted travel advisor. We cannot recommend TAs in these forums because that violates the rules. A good TA will help you navigate the ship, the cruise itself and help ensure you have the necessary accessible cabin to meet your needs. There are very few fully accessible cabins on any cruise ship, usually less than 10% of the cabins on any given ship. You generally have to book far in advance to get them. 

I have heard there are some TAs who can work with and sell VV globally, even in native currencies, no matter where their offices are located.  

As for the points conversion, I think @jon81uk gave a great example of points scenario. Good luck with everything and I really hope you're able to make this cruise work! 🙂

10 hours ago, chrisa2711 said:

Room service is another breakfast option... 

Room service is an excellent suggestion. And I noticed whatever coffee they bring to the rooms is better than the coffee they serve in The Galley. I have no idea what the difference is but that room service coffee is so much better. And they way they bring the food and drinks to your room is outstanding. Everything stays cold or hot. 

Diner and Dash is your 24 hour breakfast option in The Galley. Your basic eggs, bacon, sausages and more. 

If you're going early to The Wake or Razzle Dazzle, say 7 to 7:30 ish or when the Wake opens at 8, you will most likely be able to walk up. Prime time is usually around 9:30 - Noon for The Wake and around 8:30 - 11 for Razzle Dazzle. Both are great breakfast/brunch options in addition to the many offerings up in The Galley.  And don't forget the Sun Cafe up on Deck 16 for a poke bowl if you're closer to lunch time. It has irregular hours but makes a decent poke bowl when it's open. 

On 9/20/2023 at 4:36 PM, cantgetin said:

A bar tab on VV can also be shared with anyone you choose...it is a "use it or lose it" situation.  So, if you make friends on the ship, you are free to buy their beverage as well.  It is easy to track the amount remaining by checking the app.

This is one of my favorite things about the Bar Tab vs any other cruise line. No 'drink package jail' if you purchase a drink for someone else. And if it's easy enough for you to take bottles with you at the end of the cruise, you can purchase bottles (inventory permitting) from the bars to use up your leftover Tab. I've never asked if I can purchase coffee beans with the Bar Tab from Coffee Grounds. I guess I'll have to ask in November when I'm on Valiant. 

13 hours ago, scottie99 said:

They said a mattress topper was absolutely essentially and, even at that only helped a little.

Beds are very firm and the mattresses are thin compared to a normal bed. We were told no mattress toppers on our last sailing on Scarlet Lady. We will ask again in November on Valiant Lady. I can sleep ok on most anything, but my wife can have a hard time with the stiffness of the beds on VV. The Suites have absolutely lovely beds, we had a Cheeky Corner Suite for our first cruise and that was heaven. 🙂 

8 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

No pics = no evidence in the event something goes wrong as a result of negligence. No thank you. 

Well except for the dozens of cameras all over the top deck of the ship, including one at both ends of the zipline. In general there are 900 - 1000+ cameras on a modern cruise ship that size. So much evidence.... 😅

16 hours ago, teamthodge said:

 

Second, how does one add a second sailor to the VV mobile app?  Or is that even a thing?

Both Sailors should appear in each other's app if there were two sailors on the original booking. I've not had to add my wife to my bookings on the app, she's been there automatically when we booked our VV cruises. 

4 hours ago, EricInMD said:

but I am concerned that my daughters or my wife and I may feel awkward if the shows are very adult oriented.  Would love to hear if anyone has traveled with adult children on Virgin and how did it go.

Really the only big 'adult oriented' show any longer are the Diva shows. But if y'all are open minded and open to fun, you guys will have an amazing time together. We've met so many families traveling together. It's such a 'freeing' experience not being surrounded by younger kids.

Think of it as Summer Camp for Adults and you get the idea of what it's like all day long on a VV ship. 🙂

5 hours ago, Yinster said:

The video was really helpful and loved the look of the afternoon tea

Afternoon Tea is AWESOME. It's worth the extra charge.

For what you described, Cheese pizza in the Pizza Place will be awesome, you have the burgers and tacos in the Galley. 

Fried Chicken Sandwich in Razzle Dazzle. 

While I don't really like the dinner all that much in The Wake, there are a bunch of side dishes that your partner could make a meal from plus a steak or something like that.

Hot Dogs and Sausages in the Social Club Diner.

The Meat wraps at The Dock are awesome as if they like shrimp, they might like the shrimp dish back there too. 

Lots of sandwich options at the Panini station in The Galley

Basic breakfast, sausage and bacon in Diner and Dash in The Galley. 

And of course there's always ice cream, that's good all day long. 🙂

13 minutes ago, kimkencruzers said:

Thanks. I made no changes and my cabin number has now actually changed to a guarantee.

Definitely contact your TA, they will be able to get that straightened out. At the very least you're due a refund because the Lock It In rates are lower than the standard rates.

It could also be a similar issue to what we have with the Miami sailings and the suites. TAs who put down the minimum deposit to hold a bunch of cabins until final payment. That's why the suites are so hard to come by with the Miami sailings. With the prices so low for that October 2024 sailing, it's possible some TAs simply bought out a bunch of the cabins with the hopes to resell them. VV makes it very easy to do this because both Sailors in the cabin can be changed on any booking. Most cruise lines require you to keep at least one of the original guests on the booking.

Now those TAs can advertise that they 'still have cabins available on a sold out cruise.'

Final Payment will be due around June 13, 2024 so if cabins are going to open up for that sailing, it'll most likely be around that time.