sunlover12

We moved the table and 2 chairs away from the wall towards the center. We did this in a PH on Regatta and there was plenty of room. I recall the butler being a little surprised that we moved the furniture ourselves but he was pleased we did it because it made his job easier.

There is no disadvantage because it does not count towards the allotted number of reservations you are allowed in the specialty restaurants. I don't know how commonly used it is. We always book PH and we've done it one time. It's a nice benefit if you'd had a long excursion day and still wish to have the nice dinner in your stateroom. The one thing I would recommend is that you notify your butler that morning so that he has a heads up that you are planning on doing this. You can talk to him later in the day with your order and the time you would like to have it delivered.

I have lived in an undeveloped country in West Africa where the only milk available was UHT milk. No fresh milk at all. I would have it with my morning cereal and it had a very unpleasant taste. This was back in the 90's so unless they have improved the taste, it is a very noticeable difference between that and fresh. When I have my morning cereal on an Oceania cruise it tastes like fresh milk to me, thank goodness.

I'm sorry this happened. It sounds like the problem started because too many buses arrived at the pier at the same time. How much time was there between when this happened and when the last tender was scheduled? I agree with @cruiserchuck when he said he would have found a spot to sit. Perhaps they would have allowed you to get back on the bus and wait there. Also, the video shows a building in the background. If there was enough time before the last tender, I would have probably got out of line, sit down somewhere, wait for the line to clear and then get on that tender. There are only so many tenders and they were doing the best they could. Sorry if this sounds harsh but I try to look for solutions when I'm in an uncomfortable situation.

Red Ginger is my favorite specialty restaurant. I'll be on Nautica in 2 weeks but if they have some menu items from there in the Terrace, I'll be happy with that. Polo is my least favorite. We could have booked 2 dinners there but only booked 1. Thank you ORV for posting while on Nautica. Looking forward to boarding soon.

@sanger727 I am the same way. When we are on a cruise we eat at 6:30-7:00. The body needs a couple of hours to digest dinner. Eating at 8:30 would mean I'd be going to bed on a full stomach. No thanks. Sometimes at home our schedule will get busy and we may not have been able to eat dinner by 7:30. If that happens, I'll just skip dinner and have a small snack. It's easier to sleep.

I agree with you. Oceania should have priced in some form of included perks in the fare. In my opinion, going back to Cruise Only no longer classifies them as a premium cruise line. They're getting to be more like the megaship cruise lines where everything is ala carte. I don't understand what management was thinking. As a customer who does drink wine with meals and goes on ship excursions, this new offering is not in my best interest. I've been fairly loyal to Oceania over the years but now I'll have to look at other lines.

I’ll wait until the prices are released in October but for now I’ll assume they will not be going down. Same price, fewer inclusions. SM was a good match for me because I drink wine with meals and I go on ship excursions. O Life was a good deal too. Now the customers who want cruise only fare have gotten their way. For anyone looking for an alternative cruise line or perhaps land based travel, haha, good luck with that. Everything is expensive because the demand is there.

I did the online check-in process today and almost had a similar experience. I skipped the photo because it's not necessary. They always take a photo at the terminal anyway. I watched the video and got down to "save or print boarding pass". It wouldn't let me do it. I called Oceania and she told me I have to wait 24 hours, then I can print the boarding pass. I questioned that because that has never been a requirement but she insisted it has always been that way. ?? When my husband checked in a little later, we were then able to print both boarding passes. So if you're traveling with someone both have to check in before you can get the boarding passes. It's always interesting when you call Oceania. You never know who you're going to talk to. The stuff they come up with and then insist it's true......

Some cruises will have a guest band as well. A few years ago, my cruise on Marina had a guest band that did a Beatles tribute in Horizons at 10:30. There were at least 200 people up there with many on the dance floor.

The band plays in Horizons at 10:30. There is a dance floor. They may also play on the pool deck in the afternoon, weather permitting. They have not played in the lounge pre-show on my recent cruises. That may depend on the ship however.

I rarely write checks anymore. People here don't use them for everyday purchases. Target no longer accepts checks. It's getting more common now to see "cards only" in restaurant windows. In the last couple of months I've been to two restaurants who have brought hand-held payment terminals to the table. As has been mentioned already, it would be a huge project to change out all the payment systems in every retail establishment in the largest economy in the world. For reference, I live in a mid-size state in the U.S. in the Great Lakes Region.

My upcoming 11 day cruise doesn't have any sea days. The Captain's Party will be on Day 2 which is an early departure from port at 3pm so it won't conflict. It's at 5:30 and lasts about an hour.

It's what @njhorseman has already replied to. When requesting at the dining reservation desk, you'll have a better chance if you're willing to share a table. You are limited but remember that an advantage to being in a Suite is that you can order from the Specialty restaurants and have it delivered to your cabin by your butler. Just let him know that morning.

The number of specialty restaurant reservations are not unlimited. It varies by category of cabin and length of cruise. When you board the ship, go to the dining reservation desk to request additional reservations. According to Oceania's website: Insignia, Nautica, Regatta and Sirena Concierge Level Veranda and above Cruises 7 days or less: 1 reservation at each restaurant Cruises 8-17 days: 2 reservations at each restaurant Cruises 18 days or more: 3 reservations at each restaurant Also to clarify the complimentary bags of laundry will be 3. 20 items in each bag.

Thank you for saying this. I know there are some very good O phone reps but unfortunately the last time I called to ask about a shore excursion, I got one of the not-so-helpful ones. Not only could he not answer my question, it sounded like he was eating and there was a barking dog in the background. Is it too much to ask Oceania to train their employees to be professional phone reps? It shouldn't be on the customer to have to call back in hopes of getting a knowledgeable and helpful customer service agent.

Your sons will be happy to know that there is a good chance there will be other guests their age on the ship. I was on a Mediterranean cruise on Nautica last summer and there were a lot of 40-somethings and some 30-somethings. I'm in my late 60's and was way north of the median age. Of course each cruise is different but you may be surprised. It depends on the itinerary but the Med attracts younger guests. We had a large group and the specialty restaurants were very accommodating in sitting us at 2 tables next to each other.

Anytime I am with my children and grandchildren is a holiday. We are scattered across the country and it is rare when we are all together. We will all be on a RCI cruise next year and very much looking forward to it. We'll be eating dinners in the main dining room. You don't have to settle for the buffet. Cherish the time with your family all together and don't form a preconceived notion that it won't be a holiday.

It's good to know someone else is thinking the same thing. The specialty restaurants are nice but we don't want to eat there 4 nights out of 11. We like the GDR and Terrace because of the variety. On our upcoming cruise in September we only booked 1 night each at Polo and Toscana. 2 more nights wouldn't add value for us. We'll use all of our allotted reservations on Vista next year as it will be our first cruise on it.

$600/person/day for a PH is a very good price. I'm very surprised to see it that low. Go for it if you like the itinerary. Most of my Oceania cruises have been on R ships and I don't recall the fare ever being that low. The 42-day cruise that you mentioned could be a factor. Maybe longer cruises are priced lower than shorter cruises, I don't know. Someone might be able to comment on that. Itinerary and ports are a factor too. My cruises are generally in the 10-12 day range. I'm on an 11-day New England/Canada cruise on Nautica this year. We've booked a PH at close to $900/person/day. PH on the R ships are a little smaller than the O ships. When deciding to book a veranda stateroom vs. PH, it's all personal choice depending on what you value. We book PH because we like the extra space. Veranda staterooms are too small for us but, again, it all depends on what you value. Enjoy your cruise if you do decide to book it.

A "ship within a ship" can be a very good thing. I'll use my example. We haven't been on NCL Haven but we've been on Royal Caribbean in an upper suite. They sound similar. There is a suites lounge, restaurant and sun deck and pool. It is quiet. It's a nice way to spend some time away from the crowds and noise of the rest of the ship. Next year we are going on an Alaska cruise on Royal Caribbean with our adult children, their spouses and 4 grandchildren, ages 7-13. There is something for everyone on that ship. We, the grandparents, will spend some time in the quiet suites lounge, etc and the adult children and young grandchildren can go and have fun with all the activities. We'll probably join them on the bumper cars. The entertainment on the big ships is excellent and it's something we'll all enjoy. There is no way we'd be able to do all that on an Oceania ship.

Southwest is the poster child for no classes on an airplane. Yes I have flown them and never will again. Just to save a couple of bucks, no thank you! Their IT department has serious flaws but I won't get into that here. It's a personal decision on how someone wants to spend their money and sometimes that decision is to fly business class.

I agree that it depends on where you are from and what you are used to. I live in a medium size city in the Great Lakes area. $11 for a glass of wine is not expensive and in many restaurants you will find a lot of wines that are more than that. When comparing Oceania's drink prices to other cruise lines, Oceania is not at all out of line.

They lost all credibility with me when they said a $11 glass of wine is “very expensive”.

Your daughter won't feel out of place. You don't say the length of your cruise but I was on a 7-day Mediterranean cruise last year and there were many 40-somethings on the ship. I'm in my late 60's and felt like one of the old ones, which I was. A shorter cruise will attract younger passengers while a TA, longer cruise will attract older. In any case, your daughter will feel welcomed. Enjoy your cruise with your family.