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Just a question for those that have traveled with SS w air or even on your own/thru TA. we just received our booking and our SS agent booked 2 one ways , so 2 separate PRN#s,both with same Airline . We have always done open jaw ( I.e 1 PRN) is there anything we should be aware of when it comes time to travel since our outbound ticket will not show us returning to US since the return is on a diff ticket ? We are traveling to Lisbon and returning from London thanks in advance

I’m glad to hear others experienced the same notification. I’ve noticed it for about a week. I’ll check again thanks for sharing

Thanks. I agree, I don’t necessarily take 1 in each port, it all depends on the port, but the excursion prices I saw for O would have yielded probably no more than 3 decent excursions for an entire cruise, so any cruise longer than 10 days, that would result in more out of pocket expenses.

Thanks AK , yes I remember why we stopped sailing on the R ships. The Marina rooms were larger, but don’t believe they were as big as SS smaller ships, definitely not as big as the Dawn. Either way, I will definitely calculate the value before any further bookings. I used to think O was cheaper than SS, but the few times I compared similar itineraries, the price was almost equal, but more was included with SS. The BC air alone, knocked SS out of the running, SS total price w air almost a ways beat O. I also don’t like that O doesn’t book until 75days out, unless I believe you pay deviation fee upfront. If no overseas flights are required, SS and O become more competitive.

Good luck to you. We left Regatta in LA where your journey to Japan began. Just now, passageweather.com indicates rough waters approaching Alaska . So I am wondering if the captain is cancelling those ports to keep you all safe and avoid having you thrown about. safe journeys and hopefully smooth sailing…🙏 p.s regatta looks like a tugboat next to Bliss. 😳

Thanks for the info. Well that may throw Oceania out of the running vs SS, depending on the itinerary and pricing. If overall price is similar to SS, SS will have the edge most likely, since I won’t have to worry about what is included. Especially since gratuities would not be included with O, as well as drinks outside of lunch and dinner times and O only offers excursion credit, not 1 excursion per day.

Just got back from a week long cruise on Oceania regatta and wanted to share my opinions/ experience of the ship/cruise line vs Silversea for those that are interested in seeing a comparison. It was 19 years ago when we last cruised on the Regatta which was our first Oceania ship. I would have to say that Oceania did a wonderful job refurbishing this ship, so if all the other R size ships received similar overhauls over last few years I would consider them as well , but only for short cruises like the one we just took. The reason? The staterooms, bathrooms especially , are very small. With that said, here is my reviews and comparison between the 2 lines and the ships. Rooms: as stated , Oceania’s standard balcony rooms are at least 100+ sq ft smaller than both SS smaller (whisper/shadow) and larger (Muse style ships) . It’s a noticeable difference and although as small as Oceania R class rooms are, O.’s rooms actually have very good storage space except for possibly longer voyages since the closet space is limited . Beds on both lines I felt were quite comfortable, but hands down, SS staterooms are nicer due to overall size including walk in closet and much larger bathrooms with both shower and bath. Service: I would say SS has the edge on this overall. Although I really don’t find it necessary to have a butler ( which all SS staterooms have) I would say that the stateroom staff on both O and SS were equally good. on regatta, they always had our room cleaned before we got back from breakfast and always greeted us with a smile as did most of our SS attendants. This regatta cruise they really stood out vs maybe 1 or 2 of our 5 SS cruises. .The service in the restaurants was a step above on SS, especially at the buffet. I found the regatta staff at the waves grill and the buffets rather hit or miss, the Waves grill service was probably their weakest staff, some did seem inattentive or inexperienced, others were average to very good. SS restaurant staff was better IMO, some more outstanding than others, some average, but overall better than O. Where Oceania far exceeded expectations was providing distilled water to our room for my husband’s medical needs ( he flushes his sinuses daily to avoid sinus infections) O provided him a gallon of distilled water that was sealed and labeled as such, versus relying on our SS butler to provide us with refills of our in room carafe that was deemed to be distilled water. All I know is the last 2 times on SS , my husband suffered some of his sinus infection symptoms and all we could do was hope that the water that was replenished was in fact distilled from SS. We had no issues with the labeled water from O. Food: I would say the food was better on SS. The menu selection and presentation seemed better on SS, the buffet items on O were sometimes cold/Luke warm , but overall O was fine, I only had one meal I was disappointed with. However, Oceania beats SS on the variety of Included dining (dinner) venues. On this smaller R ships, there are 4 options and they are all indoors in case of inclement weather. The GDR and buffet where no reservations are required and the reservation required toscana and Polo grill (Steak /seafood) . The only downside to the O reservation required restaurants, you can only reserve 1 night in each prior to sailing, with higher $ suites getting first priority booking . On a 7 day cruise, this made no difference, on longer cruises may be a potential problem. For SS , the included dinner venue options increase based on the size of the ship, but for the equivalent size vessels to the Regatta (whisper and Shadow) only 3 included restaurants and one of them is an outside venue which is not ideal in colder climates. Also there is no casual buffet, when you feel like something quick. The larger Muse class ships (the dawn) have the Salt and Blue note(?) restaurants and arts cafe for quick bites and Scannapoli(sp?) for pizza, but that is outside. Overall design and public spaces: Os regatta is a step above the smaller SS ships , but the Dawn has Dolce vita which is very nice. The SS ships have a much more muted decor versus stylish / colorful O decor. Although the track on O regatta beats SS since there is very little wind (due to physical design) that blocks the wind that whips around the front of the SS ship while at sea. Overall value: On this particular Regatta price we received a great deal which included their Olife package which allows you to select the extras options you prefer. We took the OBC which covered our gratuities and occasional drinks and we still did not spend it all, so made some nice purchases on board. On this particular cruise (CA coast) this was all we needed. SS includes, gratuities, all drinks, all shore excursions (1 a day) , Wi-Fi ( which included 1 device per person, while O only included 1 device at a time per cabin which was inconvenient) and they offer , so far, a very reasonable BC air add on . We are not big drinkers so included drinks is not necessary, but is nice not to have to worry about being charged . There was also a good selection of included excursions on SS, but depending on the itinerary, we may not take advantage. O is now offering a ‘Simply More’ package ( that replaces the OLife) that you can opt out of , I believe, but does not seem as comprehensive as SS included package. That may be where O loses its value for me. In the end I would travel on either line , but I would consider the itinerary and overall value when making my decision . Any questions, I will do my best to answer.

I just got off the Regatta and I was shocked how little I heard from either one of the adjoining rooms. I heard no voices, no toilet flushing or tv sound. So either those neighbors were very quiet or the construction of the staterooms was well insulated. I have been on other cruises where we hear TVs , loud conversations and toilets flushing, so I thought sound insulation was very good, except in the hallway, where it sounded like people were literally in our room. Luckily we did not have people having conversations in the hallway at night , so no issue with sleep. My husband noticed that there was no gasket around the door, and believe it was only our door that was missing that.

I hope Astro you enjoy your cruise with Oceania. We always enjoyed Oceania and were excited to get an opportunity to cruise with them again. I hope we can connect to hear your opinion of the ship and the service. At least I hope it’s like I remember! and for the Upgrade to PH2 for $ 3099 pp, sorry, that would not be worth it for me especially For 7 days ? we are flying in the day before and hoping traveling from Marina del ray on Wednesday will not be too horrible at 11am. Let me know if I am in for a rude awakening 😳

Wow I thought this cruise was booked solid, surprised to see they have rooms available to allow for upgrades. Glad you got a free upgrade. Enjoy! See you and Victory on board on the 27th! p.s thanks to the others about the spa terrace access with the concierge level. I’ll have to check it out!

Hey Lois are u going early to LIS and spending the night? If so, Are u staying with SS hotel or are u doing on your own ? We are heading there next year on the dawn and will arrange our own hotel and transfers. Doing some research . Walking distance to Avenue Liberdrade(sp?) is where I am focusing for now. Interested to on your transfer experience to and from LIS airport , hotel and cruise if willing to share I’ll see if I can send private msg to you vs hijacking this thread. TIA

Thanks @Astroflyer see you and @techteach soon (I think I recognize your name also from our roll call) let’s hope Feta and the other passengers current and future have smooth sailing !

Hi Feta Thanks again for sharing your experience with us. I’ve been following passageweather.com and see some heavier wave activity in the area around Alaska, looks to be heading down the coast. Not sure where you are now, but wondering how Regatta is riding since she is a smaller ship, I’ll be boarding her along with Astroflyer in less than 2 weeks, hoping we have no rough seas to contend with sailing the Pacific this time of year. I’m assuming all is well. Continue to enjoy.

Were those passengers notified of testing requirements before hand? I checked Australias Covid testing requirements and I didn’t initially see any requirements to be tested. I checked the LA port site and I don’t see any requirement currently nor LA county. I don’t see anything on Oceania site other than “if required “ . Hoping someone leaving San Pedro with one stop.in Mexico and coast of California stops can comment on recent requirements. Thanks again

Thanks techteach. yes I saw that and assume it is not required for our sailing, however, the other “check in” section of the document does not specifically state “if required” . I’m going to assume it’s not required since I have not seen one post recently mentioning Covid tests required at check in. Thanks

Feta you are off to a great start! That 1min connection at LAX , what are the chances?! Enjoy! I know you are embarking in CA, but curious if you have to present a negative Covid test. I was looking at our boarding pass for the 9/27 cruise out of LA and it mentions that on the boarding pass. I’m going to assume it just covers them if any regulations change.

I just received my boarding pass from Oceania and I assume it is just a standard format for any embarkation/ destination port, but it mentions you need to bring a Covid negative test result. In one section of the document it says “if applicable”, another section simply references must be presented with other required documents , I assume it is not needed to board in CA nor to visit Mexico since that would be the only stop outside of the US. Anyone recently traveled out of San Pedro with a similar itinerary that would be able to confirm a negative test is no longer needed? tia

Not sure if you are using an independent TA or SS agent/consultants, but we submitted a request to our SS agent for the flights and days we preferred to travel since the original outbound flight they booked us on was undesirable. About a week later my SS agent came back with the desired flights, dates and times, and the airline booking # (it will not be in MySilversea) I received instead an email itinerary from SSair with the info and the seat assignments.. However, it depends on the airline. I could not change the seats on AA ,that SS air had reserved , until it is ticketed. However, on BA they allowed the seat changes which shocked me since they usually charge for seat requests when booking direct with BA . good luck Randy and see if you could put your seat request in when you go back to them with your request.

Thanks Feta for starting this thread and your willingness to share your experience with us all. We are on the 2nd LA to LA itinerary and this is our 2nd cruise on the regatta, with the first time being 2004. I’m looking forward to seeing the changes in person and hearing your opinions. I see you are also flying out of PHL to LAX on AA, although you are only connecting , would like to hear how that goes for you. hope connections go smoothly. safe travels and enjoy!

Hi Lois thanks again, as always, for sharing your day to day cruise experience with us all. I’ll be sailing her next May and can not wait. I was curious if Raphael (he’s one of the waiters and you will know him, he is super friendly, greets everyone with a big smile and remembers your name ) he works in La Terraza for breakfast and lunch and in SALT for dinner. Someone mentioned him on a recent thread. It would be so nice to see a familiar face again next year. continue to enjoy your cruise! Safe travels Liz

Ditto what Luv2cruise said. It is usually 60 days out that they ticket your flight.

We are staying at Renaissance hotel. Haven’t been, but reviews appeared ok and they have a shuttle.

Interesting recent comments. My SS agent/consultant told me that they are upgrading their air reservations system and that he would eventually be trained and allowed to make air reservations for his clients. He said this would allow a more seamless experience, which it clearly would. Now I’m not sure if only certain consultants would be able to access the system based on seniority/ experience or all, but I guess we will know more once it is official. in the meantime, my recent experience has been very good (crossing my fingers that it stays that way) .all the flights SS has booked for me were ideal. Although 2 I never took due to Covid , the last one was 2 nonstops on BA , no issues. The one for next year , the original flight was a terrible connection, but they were able to change it to the flights I requested, both nonstops, however I have to pay more as a result of the deviation . The additional cost , however, still keeps me well below the cost if I paid myself as well as removes the risk of paying in advance for my flights. I agree that a lot depends on your departure and destination airport as well as the dates, but I have yet to find airfare on my own that comes close to what SS can do. Coupled with the reduced risk to me by not having to pay in advance is an extra benefit. I’m crossing my fingers that next years trip goes well, anything could happen, but so far I am satisfied w SS air

Carmel was great . I would recommend. They picked us up in Delaware and PA to Manhattan.

I’m glad to hear Raphael was still there. He stood out over all others staff( they were all great, he just stood out, always remembered our names and always greeted us with a big smile. It would be great if he stays on for our May cruise. Glad you had a wonderful trip with your in-laws . I hope your MIL gets at least one more cruise out of her, if not more. Thanks for sharing your experience with us all