Rainbow3fe

On 6/16/2023 at 12:22 PM, Sthrngary said:

I have seen this happen on other brands in the past.  Specifically change.  The post here represent the exact same posts from the past.  The question is why?  Change is difficult for MOST of us.  MOST of us like knowing the rules to the game and accepting them.  Human nature really.

 

I have been on this board now since I booked my first Oceania Cruise mid-2022.  I read, learn, post and appreciate most of the quality of members.  The tone that Oceania had to change some of their policies have been discussed, rehashed and debated. The general consensus was, clean up your act Oceania, you are confusing some folks especially the new folks. For me, it took a bit to get the program but after some thought, I got it.  That was with the help of some loyal long time guests so thank you.

 

Now my personal opinion which I don't expect for anyone to agree with or take as important.  Oceania is now attempting to establish themselves with things that would me more like the "All-Inclusive" luxury brands. Reading the notes above, it is more like All Inclusive Lite. If you look at the drink program, nothing much really changes per the notes.  The only real change is you get it and there for pay for the wine and beer program.  If you don't drink, you still have it.  that will make a certain group upset.  On the excursions, many folks don't like the cost of the brands excursions so they do it on their own.  Now they have to use some of what they believe is over price excursions with the credit provided.  Those that so often claim "The only way to go is Cruise-Only" lose that opportunity and feel upset about that. 

 

The reaction is we won't use Oceania again or we will think twice.  From Oceania standpoint, their future if they want truly grow are the converts from Main Stream Brands that want to lift their experience.  This was a business decision to create a much better competitor to brands like Viking. 

 

Change is hard only for those that remember the way it used to be.  The future growth often looks at those that have no frame of reference.  Just my two cents.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

 Everyone is speculating about what will be. Can't we wait until July 1st and make more  informed decision?

Hi,

     On our 10th Oceania cruise we booked a PH on Vista. We would like to know what the Butler does to help. I don't want anyone unpacking my suitcases because then I won't know where to find everything.

     Thanks 🌻🌊😎

38 minutes ago, Redtravel said:

On Marina now.  In December, we thought that the cookies were bad.  Now they are even worse.  One bite and done.  They aren’t tasteless. They taste BAD. Baristas has nice sweets and excellent 

     ☕️ Enjoy Baristas and don't bother with those other cookies.🍪

      Hopefully the sticky buns at Terrace Cafe were great.  Someone mentioned they weren't sticky enough last time. 😎

11 minutes ago, Clutj said:

Maybe they intentionally mix them so the texture is horrible, knowing they have to check the box and supply cookies or else people will complain, but they make terrible ones to keep consumption low and thus save costs.  They do have to make a lot of most of the other baked goods (croissants etc…), resulting in higher costs in that area…

It's strange because the croissants and other baked items are always fresh and delicious. They're wonderful and high quality. 😍 

5 minutes ago, AMHuntFerry said:

Some people find speculation fun while others find it nerve racking. Those in the latter camp should probably unfollow this and similar topics. Let us have out fun since we don't win O points for guessing correctly.

Well said. I'm sorry 😎

1 hour ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

Can Oceania unilaterally change the terms of a contract with a passenger?

 

It would have been nice if they (O) announced all of it sooner and as "complete information", rather than having the information (or lack thereof) dribble out slowly, and possible not accurately.

There will without a doubt be some who are not happy about the new program, no matter what it turns out to be.  Why add any upset that turns out not to have been needed in the first place because of mixed messaging!?

 

IF this "is it or isn't it" is so O can figure out what is liked or especially disliked, shouldn't that have been part of the research/planning before any changes were actually decided?

 

GC

All of the details are going to be disclosed on July 1. Too much guessing without facts folks. 😢

2 hours ago, CoolChile said:

Wondering if there's something out there about this.  Some time ago, we booked an April 2025 Tokyo-Vancouver with OLife (shorex).

 

The phrase "until mid 2024" caught my eye.  Is there an end date for already-booked cruises with OLife?  As ours is not until 2025, will we be required to switch to simply MORE?  (Um, and of course, pay more.)

 

Linda

I have no idea but am wondering as well.  We are booked Japan for 2025 Tokyo-Tokyo. 

11 minutes ago, lake person said:

As a first time Oceania cruiser(August 2023 cruise) made the mistake in booking OLife with Air. Just recieved the ticketing No direct flights and an extra charge of $998 for a stay over in the UK-needless to say we are cancelling the Air portion of the cruise--others experiances? (Note. Canadian cruiser)

 

Sorry.  We always book our own air. We choose our own seats and often use miles for flights. We remove the air from Oceania and get credit. That reduces our total fare.

16 minutes ago, chloemonkey said:

I totally agree!  And I have been asking my husband (who has Type 2 Diabetes) why he insists on going into the Concierge Lounge on our way back to our suite....to grab these TASTELESS cookies!  I mean for Pete's sake.....there are other ways to misbehave and blow your diet!

 

I agree.  There are so many different exciting desserts on Oceania.  I don't choose to waste my daily allotment of calories on those awful cookies. 🍪😎

9 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

I believe that $30 pp pd is for the full alcohol package anytime, as in the current prestige package.  But the included wines are the same for both packages at this time.

Thanks. Then it's definitely not worth it for us.

12 minutes ago, Hambagahle said:

No one knows for sure yet precisely what the new "Simply MORE" programme will include.  Supposedly all will be revealed on 1 July.   But if things are as expected then if you have the Simply MORE programme wines at meals will be included and you can upgrade to the full programme for $30.   

That's a crazy amount $60x16= $960 for dinner wine drinkers like us. I buy great wines in port and pay $25 corkage.  There are also a number of parties where they serve alcohol.

On 6/4/2023 at 1:31 PM, temerarious said:

 

This thread is the perfect illustration of how subjective so many things are...  I've taken two Viking Ocean cruises, and I thought they had the worst cookies I've ever had on a cruise ship. (And NO variety.)  So funny!  (I'm so glad someone likes them, though!)

 

I'll be sailing on Oceania for the first time on July 17th.  I've now lowered my cookie expectations... but maybe your husband and I have opposite taste in cookies, so there might be hope.  🍪

      I used to think they overbaked them. Then I realized that they served the same awful cookies on every Oceania ship.

      Did anyone ever tell you why they are awful? It's really OK with me. I love the cheesecakes, keylime pies, sticky buns and those awesome mini cakes in Baristas.  🎂☕️⚰️ It's better for me not to be tempted by delicious cookies.🍪

2 hours ago, tropicalkerry2002 said:

Jan, please let Oceania know that I will never say a bad word about the cookies again, if they keep "cruise only" as it is!

      I used to think they overbaked them. Then I realized that they served the same awful cookies on every Oceania ship.

      Did anyone ever tell you why they are awful? It's really OK with me. I love the cheesecakes, keylime pies, sticky buns and those tiny cakes at Barista's. 🎂I really don't need wonderful cookies.🍪

As an Oceania cruiser we tried Celebrity Edge Aquaclass and will never cruise with them again.  Price was low but it wasn't worth anything because the dining wasn't special. Wines were not good and the upgraded wines were just as bad. The  food was of a poor quality, poorly prepared and there weren't enough waitstaff in restaurants, aside from Blu. Even Luminae was poorly run. 

21 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

With only occasional exceptions, the wine-by-the-glass menu for the basic (and same for the upgrade) program is composed of quite mediocre wines that would retail for about $10/bottle in the U.S. (think about the bottom row in the supermarket wine section). And when there is addition of a decent inexpensive wine (e.g., Arboleda Carmenere or a Donnafugata white blend appear occasionally), news travels fast and the supply is quickly depleted. Same is true for the sparkling wine: usually low end European stuff but, once in a rare while, a NorCal sparkler like Schramsberg Mirabelle shows up (but will be gone within a few days if it’s arrival on the ship).

  Hi,

      I'm happy to know our plans for before our Vista Panama Canal cruise aren't ruined. We always look forward to buying some great wines to bring aboard. We already booked some California winery visits for October. We are looking forward to buying some really nice ones to enjoy on the ship.

      Glad to hear the wines will be the same basic low end ones they have offered in the past.  We never choose a package because it doesn't suit our taste. 

     Everyone looks for different things when traveling. That's why Carnival is still in business 😜

7 minutes ago, zalusky said:

Is ordering a drink in the Terrace Cafe at noon/7PM considered lunch or dinner or does it have to be in the main/specialty dining rooms?

Let's add Lunch at Waves or at the new Aquamar kitchen!

16 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

If they are truly saying alcoholic AND non-alcoholic choices, I don't think it would be hard to get up to 30 without including liquor:  a couple of sparkling wines, several reds, several whites, a rose, 6-7 beers, 6-7 sodas, sparking or still waters, etc....

Not an accurate assessment.  The water, sparkling water and sodas are always included on Oceania.  They have added new non-alcoholic drinks to the bar menus.  I read it as "The 30 are in addition to  the beer, champagne,  reds and whites. "

13 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

Sure you can  you will be paying for it anyway  it is not included in the Beer/wine  deal

The initial paperwork says beer, wine and a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. My question remains, "will we be able to take it with us?"

38 minutes ago, zalusky said:

I am trying to understand the drink enhancements if you want to call them that.  It says "with lunch and dinner".  Does that mean you pay for basic cocktails in a lounge outside of the lunch/dinner venues?

Yes. I believe it has the same rules as the old alcohol package. 

I have a question. Does anyone think you could order a Pina Colada "at lunch" and take it to the pool deck? That's really the only place where I indulge in a daytime beverage. 😄

     Hi,

     It's interesting. So many of us are worried and are speculating about how to handle the upcoming changes.  Let's wait the 2 weeks and see how it plays out. 

     We love Oceania and never use their air.  We don't drink at lunch, actually we hardly ever eat lunch. Either we are on an excursion or I save my appetite for Horizons High Tea. A poolside drink is fun and wine with dinner is great. I definitely don't want a drink package and hope " cruise only" option will be available. If not, we'll see what happens. 

     I cannot fathom looking for a new favorite cruiseline. We experimented with Princess once, a horrible experience.  Poor quality food, noisy pool deck and common areas, too crowded in general. We experimented with Celebrity Edge last Fall. Food was horrible. Poorly prepared and restaurants were awful. We hated the class system. Couldn't dine with our new friends because we were Aquaclass and they weren't.  Nice experience otherwise because we met lovely people.  

      Hope Oceania will still be the one for us.

Felice 

4 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

As yet, no one here has posted a decent summary of the big picture of “Simply More” as it is currently understood.

Although unverifiable, what follows here is the best summary I could find, apparently written by a TA who attended a recent O webinar.

FWIW:

 

NOTICE: Oceania changes coming July 1, 2023

 

Hello members, I created the following notes from an Oceania webinar yesterday.

 

On July 1, 2023, a new program begins, and an old friend is retired. Olife is being replaced by a program called simplyMORE. Beginning July 1, 2023, all bookings sailing after Oct 1, 2023, will include simplyMORE. The program is designed to be more inclusive and much simpler to understand. Some of the highlights are noted below.

 

• All bookings include FREE champagne, wine, and more with over 30 alcoholic and non-alcoholic choices for lunch and dinner. Comparable to what you think of now as House Select Beverage Package. You will be able to upgrade the simplyMORE drink package for $30 per person per day and you will be able to upgrade prior to embarkation.

 

• All simplyMORE bookings include a shore excursion credit. There will be a group of excursions to choose from using your credit. Unlike Olife, with simplyMORE you can choose to apply your credit to any excursion. You will be responsible for the difference in cost that exceeds the credit. simplyMORE shore excursion credits are: 7-9 days $600 per stateroom, 10-13 days $800, 14-18 days $1,000, 19-24 days $1,200, 25-30 days $1,400, 31-35 days $1,600.

 

• FREE Unlimited Wi-Fi for both people booked in a stateroom! Vista is already outfitted with Starlink. Other ships will be upgrading soon.

 

• When you choose air with simplyMORE, transfers will now be included.

 

• When you choose cruise-only fare under the simplyMORE program you are excluding air only, all of the other amenity changes outlined will be included.

 

Current bookings will have the choice to stay as is or change to simplyMORE. If you change to simplyMORE, you will be subject to repricing the booking. You do not get to add simplyMORE to an existing booking at your current pricing. Please don’t try to change an existing booking now, this program is not implemented yet. Your TA and Oceania will not be able to provide you with a comparison quote yet.

 

As for me, I really appreciate FREE Unlimited Wi-Fi for 2 and being able to pick from all shore excursions using my excursion credit.

 

More details to come. Please hold your questions until there is more information with the understanding that this is preliminary. 

Thanks, Flatbush Flyer. We can always count on you for good information. 

5 hours ago, kathy9 said:

We are sailing on the Nautica on Oct 27 2023. I will be curious to see how O blends Olife passengers with Simply More passengers. Will the Simply More group get free wine and excursions? Will we be forced to pay an up charge on our paid for cruise when the program starts July 1st?

I guess time will tell...

I was told that they will not force us to change anything we booked already. It will be a choice for cruises that sail after 10/01/23.

   I plan to stay with what I booked. Thankfully all the way through April 2025.🌊💐🎉😄

5 hours ago, QuestionEverything said:

I am undertaking my first Oceania cruise this August. I am cruise only but got big $ OBC which I will use for shore excursions etc. We do not do alcohol nor purchase any items or services on any cruise.

Any attempt by O to force me to pay for items I do not want will result in O being Cancelled. 

So, we are now looking at different cruise lines already. 

Also, I am in Canada. The useless Cdn $ makes cruising much more expensive than for Americans. So I again will not be purchasing items I do not want and then have to pay in Cdn $.

 

Dont worry. Not necessary to cancel.  You will be able to keep what you booked. They are just trying to change  and maybe get different cruisers in the future. 

On 6/14/2023 at 7:19 PM, basor said:

OLife is the "what used to be" program....and Simply More is the new program rolling out 01JUL.  You can not book "cruise only", which in your case would be $400.00 pp less expensive. online - call your TA or Oceania and have them book it as cruise only.  If you wait until after 01JUL these options will no longer be avilable

Are you positive that "cruise only" will not be available?

15 hours ago, TonicTraveler said:

I was on the webinar.  What I heard was that "cruise only" was still going to be an option.  Did I mishear?  

Maybe people are guessing about not offering the "cruise only" option. Let's hope.