tanny18

As a cruiser on Oceania (24 wonderful ones), I decided to try Silversea - more expensive, but more perks.  That being said, the service was impeccable, the wine wonderful, but the food left very much to be desired.  I expected 5 star dining and got a mediocre 3 star.  I had Oceania to compare it too, and there was no comparison whatsoever!!!  😞 On a 10-day cruise, I sent back 4 dinner meals!!  I guess every cruise line is suffering some sort of post-covid aftereffects.  I am going back on Oceania in January, and hopefully the food will be as it was in 2019 when last I sailed.  Arlene

You're not missing anything!  But after November, my spa treatments won't be perks any longer and if I want one I'll have to ue OBC for them!!

2 hours ago, LHT28 said:

 

People can book other things  ahead of time  with the OBC  eg: cooking classes, spa treatments, La Reserve

 

Yes they can, BUT excursions are to be booked in advance with OBC after May 19 cruises and it is very nice; however, they took away  my spa treatments and if I want them, I have to use OBC for them instead of OBC for something else like wine and drinks!!

47 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

 

Aren't  the free spa treatments a  perk of Oceania Club benefits?

 

Not really the same thing as being able to use OBC  ahead of the cruise

soon we will have less OBC to worry about  anyway 🙁

Hi, Yes the spa treatments are a perk for OC members; however, after November  '19 they will disappear!!  That was my point - I will very much miss the spa treatments that I have enjoyed for the last 10 cruises.  The OBC to use beforehand is a perk for people who want to book excursions with their credit and not have to hope there will be room when they board.  I NEVER use their excursions and only this time because we have to!!  Oceania giveth and Oceania taketh away.  As for less OBC, instead of $600, we'll get $500 which is not a big deal.

Arlene

8 hours ago, vaitape said:

Which ship are you on Arlene?

Hi Brooke, We are on the Nautica - 18 day British Isles  "Grand Voyage."  Celebrating anniversary.

Arlene

We were able to book a tour with our OBC, even tho I don't like them, but no one wanted to go to St. Andrews with us.  Our cruise is in June and were able to take advantage of this new perk!  However, I'd much prefer if O left the spa treatments in place!

Arlene

Hi, Just wanted to let everyone know that that night I booked a tour for our June 2019 cruise with our OBC.  No problem and when it was confirmed, it told me how many OBCs I have left.  Easy, peasy!  We NEVER book excursions with the ship, but this one is to St. Andrews and I couldn't fine anyone to go, so we're going with O.  Much easier than waiting until we got on board, and then maybe nothing would be available.

Arlene

1 hour ago, DrHemlock said:

Roll calls aren't.   Just says "Under Construction.  No results."  And the "link" to the roll calls isn't a hyperlink; you have to copy and paste it onto your address bar.

I've gotten on to the  roll calls.  Try again!  My complaint is that I thought I wasn't wearing my glasses when I looked at this...so light and blurry, I'll have to bold everything.  At least I'll try.  I was very happy with the original!  But progress has to come eventually.   

Arlene

I'm looking at O's 12-14-18 cruise from Rio de Janeiro to Santiago' date=' Chile and checking on the return flights. They are AWFUL coming to Fla. east coast, arriving MIAMI at about 0430!

Then we have a two hour drive home, assuming I could even get my car service at that ungodly hour.

 

Another option would be staying in Miami and getting a few hours sleep there, then going home later in the day. :confused:

 

Does anyone out there have any suggestions? Thanks.

 

Donna[/quote']

Yes they are awful!! We took the flight that arrived at 5:30 a.m. We paid our car service extra to pick us up at that ungodly hour. However, there was no traffic and we got to Delray Beach in 40 minutes. Something to think about. Arlene

Did you enjoy the HOHO in Dubai? We're planning to use it too. Did it start/end near the port?

We also took the HOHO in Dubai and it stops right in front of the ship. You can also take a cruise on Dhow included in the price! It's a wonderful cruise - one of the best!!

Arlene

CRUISETT.COM - Has all the info you will need!! Arlene;)

Booking the cruise is easy --now the dreaded airfare. Can fly non stop from Miami --but has anyone flown BA lately and can comment on the seats--

Have to fly BA because of flt time.

 

arl

We flew round trip BA Prem. Eco in July MIA/LHR. Excellent, especially if you can fly on the A380. We were upstairs with sooooooo much room. You will not be disappointed. Arlene

Hi, Here is recipe for Caesar Salad WITHOUT mayo or mustard! Enjoy. Arlene

Original Caesar Salad

1 romaine pulled apart - 1-2" pieces

½ cup olive oil containing a crushed clove of garlic

salt and ground pepper to taste

2/3 cup parmesan cheese

3 tablespoons lemon juice

yolk of one raw egg or a yolk of coddled egg (boil for 1 minute)

croutons

anchovies

Add olive oil with garlic and lemon juice to romaine and toss.

Add egg yolk and toss again. Season with sale and pepper.

Add parmesan chese. Taste and adjust oil, cheese, etc.

Add croutons and anchovies if desired ( or serve anchovies separately)

Making that tonight! Thanks for posting

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

And if you want the "original" receipt from way back, let me know. Arlene

We're on the Dec 22 Miami to LA on Regatta and were also notified that San Diego is cancelled. I would like to know why. We were given permission to disembark in SD (where we live), but now we have a sea day and disembarkation in LA at 8:00. Now an extra expense to get home from LA port.

The answer is that "there are other ships in San Diego and no room for the Regatta!" That's what I got from Oceania in response to my query about San Diego. We were going to book this cruise, but 8 days at sea is one more than we want and we did want to see San Diego. Arlene

Our ship disembarks at 8:00 a.m. in Southhampton. If we choose to return to the US the day of disembarkment, what is the earliest we should book a flight home? Will 12:00 work or wait until 2:00 p.m. (14:00)? Anything later than that we'll be overnighting in the US waiting to get home the next day. If that's the case we'd rather just do the day in London and fly home the next morning.

 

We can do either the O transfer or do a private carriage to the airport.

We just disembarked the Nautica at 9 a.m., picked up luggage, private van was waiting and was at Heathrow at 10:30 in plenty of time for our 2:05 flight to Miami. No problems with a 2 p.m. flight. Arlene

We did this 2 years ago; however, the ship arrived in Bordeaux at 5 pm. We left the ship, had a wonderful all day tour and arrived when the ship docked. In your case, perhaps you could start your tour later and arrive when the ship is docked. Just tell the ship that you will be leaving and will catch up with it in Bordeaux. You shouldn't have any problems at all. I think we had our travel agent inform Oceania. Have a great time. Arlene

How can I tell if my shorts are smart? :D :D

Oh Arlene, please don't do that on my account! For, and I quote 'Entertainment is not the focus of the line nor its repeat passengers... who enjoy each others conversation over some honkey tonk production"

 

Oops, silly me, I quite forgot that you and I are repeat passengers.

I don't think after 20+ cruises we sail for the entertainment on O -- there are so many other things!! Arlene;)

I guess I have never seen nor heard of Terry Bishop on any of my sailings with O

I have not seen any acts in Horizons after the main show

 

We have had some singers in Horizons for a special show at 6 or 8 pm on a couple of occasions

 

Frankly by 11 pm I am knackered

 

YMMV

We've sailed with Terry twice - he is a great lecturer and a very gregarious individual and we really enjoyed him. All his lectures were FULL! Also one evening he had his guitar out and sang for us. Quite good. As for the state of the entertainment on Oceania, I understand soon all the ships will have entertainment which is booked thru NCL. I've been told that NCL has some very good entertainers. We will be on Nautica on June 25th and when we get back, I will report on this topic! ;) Arlene

We are traveling with 2 other couples on the Riviera next year. Are there tables for 6 in the specialty restaurants?

Yes, in ALL the restaurants! Enjoy your cruise. Arlene

Hi, We've been on 4 holiday cruises to various places and we found that (A) there weren't enough children to make a difference - they were well disciplined and cute; (b) the ship is beautifully decorated and there is a special Christmas dinner and New Year's there are petit fours and champagne and © everyone is in a festive mood including the staff. How that being said, we have traveled once on a holiday cruise that had quite a few older teenagers who were really uncontrolled, but then again so were their parents, so I cannot blame the kids! Other times we have been on "longer" cruises and not so many children. We love the ships at holiday time (in fact we love the ships all the time). It's also interesting to see how other parts of the world celebrate the holiday season. In fact, we spent this last Xmas/NY's Eve on the Marina and am looking at Regatta for this coming holiday season. Arlene

Hi Ira, All in all, did you have a great/good/OK cruise? We are thinking about doing this cruise at the end of the year - holiday cruise. Thanks, Arlene

[quote name=ORV;49906406

On the O Ships' date=' Marina & Riviera, the inside does not have a tub, but Oceanview and up categories do, as well as a separate shower.[/quote]

You are correct as far as the O ships are concerned. Having sailed on the R ships more often than the O ships, I forgot about them, even tho sailed on Marina in December/January.:rolleyes: Arlene

The bathrooms are only shared with the person traveling with you.

They are the same size as the veranda cabins and window cabins. Only the PH and Suites have bathtubs!! Arlene