globevest

Thanks. I thought he was very relaxed, funny and approachable. I'm hoping he will be there in October.

I asked him last week and he said he expected to be on Riviera through the end of the year......however things can change. His fiancée Emmanuelle put on a great one night show. She recounted the life of French singer Edith Piaf and sang about 10 of her songs. Emmanuelle was very very good.....the best show of the week.

In response to the questions from "deus" - We had very nice weather during the cruise and the seas were pretty smooth and we never noticed much motion. The most vibration I felt was when the ship was using thrusters while docking. We never noticed bread pudding, but it wasn't something we were looking for. The wide variety of ice cream and sorbets got my attention and the creme brulee as well as key lime pie were tasty.

Hello LJ, let me help you with the bread pudding question....my favorite 'desert'. I only found it once in the week. However I have been on 'O' cruises where it was available about every other day.

My wife and I enjoyed talking with you and your wife in line at the airport and onboard in premium economy.....we were next to you in 4D & F.

Thank you for the report. I pretty much agree with all of your review. Hope to see you both again on another 'O' cruise.

Our first cruise with Oceania is on the Venice to Barcelona cruise at the end of the month.We embark on the 28th and then overnight in Venice leaving on the 29th. We have cruised once before with celebrity but left on the same day we embarked . We will be flying on the day and assuming our flight is on time should be at the port by one. We want to see as much of Venice as possible are we able once we have checked in ,got rid of our luggage and got our sea pass cards get straight off the boat again and spend the day/ evening in Venice only returning later in the evening or can you only get off after a certain time?

We are from the uk so it is only a short flight so we won't be jet lagged and want to make the most of the time in Venice.

Also how does muster drill work as we are sailing at 11 pm the day after embarkation".

 

Our experience this past week was slightly different than that related by JimandStan and suggests that there is more than one set of circumstances that dictate the actual events in different ports or with different ships.

 

Our ship, the Riviera docked in Monte Carlo on the 25th July for an 'overnight' before disembarking passengers on the morning 26th. New passengers (for the new cruise) embarked from 11 am 26th July. My wife and I checked in, got our sea cards etc.,had lunch in the Terrace Café, visited our cabin and then went ashore about 1.30 pm to explore Monte Carlo. A notice in our cabin and at exit from the ship directed that we return to the ship for a Mandatory Guest Lifeboat Drill at 5.15 pm......even though we were not scheduled to sail until 11 pm that evening. The Muster drill was over by 5.45 pm when we returned to shore to continue our exploring. I believe 'all aboard' was 10 pm.....we were back early at 9 pm.

 

Hope this helps.

This entire topic reminds how often people book something and find out about the rules later and complain about them. Same holds true when folks buy homes with an HOA

 

Every cruise line has protocols. Guests need to find out what these are BEFORE they book. If you don't like the Oceania protocols book a line where you like the way they do things

 

If you like what Oceania has to offer otherwise then don't complain about no hot breakfast or boarding times or other protocols. It is THEIR business model. We vote with our wallets.

+1

Agree

Thank you for posting. We are looking at an Alaska cruise for 2017. Glad to be along with you.

Thank you for your review. We are considering an Alaska family cruise and your comments helped.

Thank you for your comments.

cruisingxpert......thank you I will call today.

My TA advises that Oceania confirm that my wife and I should have received the letter informing us that we are entitled to the 25% future Riviera Caribbean cruise discount. They apologized to my TA for missing us with a letter. I am advised that one has now been sent to us. We await and when received we intend to book a cruise in late 2017 which James R advised were covered in his recent Cruise Critic posting.

Yes. We were on that cruise and received the offer.

Thank you for letting me know. I am now following up with my TA.

Does anyone know if the Riviera TA ....BCN to MIA last Nov ending in MIA on 2 Dec 2015 was included in the 25% discount offer. This was the cruise where last seasons NORO started and apart from the usual discomfort onboard we missed 2 days in Bermuda because of the NURO.

Thank you for any input.

I've booked 14 Oceania "included" excursions for 3 cruises this year. The highest cost posted on the excursion list for the "included" class has been $199 per person. Any excursion over $200 has been OE, OC or executive classes and as stated these are not "free."

Earlier this week I booked 3 included excursions and they averaged $179 each with 1 at the 'max' $199 Oceania listed price.

In case it's helpful for anyone interested in health on the Riviera, we are on day 5 of the transatlantic and are not aware if any reports or rumors of noro. (knock on wood --- with well-washed hands!) Lovely cruise, so far.

Thank you for your report We will be joining Riviera in the Med.

Thank you for the reviews....very informative.

emma chisit--and the darn kids are sick for about 3 minutes and we adults remain ill for 2 weeks...and yet, we keep wanting them to come stay with us....what is wrong with us?

 

Mr Wonderful called our munchkin a "domestic terrorist" for bringing home bio-weapons from the madrassa (aka pre school)!!!

cbb.....I look at the sick kids issue as the Lords way of keeping the world from becoming over populated. Kids stay with grand parents for a couple of nights or grand parents pick up a sick kid from school because quite often both parents are working. Grand parents end up with the flu and other things....their immune systems are in bad shape in their 70s and 80's and there you have it.......population control.:D

Love your blog.....thank you very much.

On the Nov/Dec Riviera TA (the start of this noro phase) the Bermuda heath authority banned us from docking.....and that was a scheduled two day stop. Passengers were pretty upset. Nassau was substituted.

Thank you for your report. We will be aboard again in a couple of months.

In my opinion eating in Blu is worth a lot more than $100 pp.

We have sailed with "O" many times and have never experienced any situation like the above. We would have gotten up and left and spoke with the Maitre'd about our dissatisfaction and told him or her that we will be back the following night to enjoy our dinner. My voice would have been low enough so that many of the other diners would have heard me. Trusting some would follow our lead and left as well. It would gotten the attention of the GM.

Exactly what I would have done.....

Heather.....thank you for the report. I can understand your feelings for the staff. We were on the TA in late Nov when the Noro surfaced and we had some of the same sympathy feelings. A tough job.....

cbb.....27 years ago I visited Agra and the Taj. Many times I have described that first sight of the Taj to my wife and friends. It is one of my 5 places in the world that I describe as "wow! places". By that I mean they bring out an automatic gasp at first sight.

I have just read your stunning first sight description to my wife and I feel as though my visit to the Taj Mahal was yesterday.

Thank you very much.

Barry

Paulchilli.....+1

Ask for the table for two over by the post. Away from the window, by the back bench. Perfect spot, no close tables.

I agree. We have just come off Reflection which has a Blu table layout same as the ship you are sailing on. Also timing has a big impact on how crowded you will find Blu. If you like eating late for dinner, say 8 pm you will likely get a table towards the back of Blu completely on your own.

cbb.....lovely report. You brought back to us an 8 year ago memory. We were on a Kenya/Tanzania safari trip in the first two weeks of March.

I remember the thrill I had when we flew close to Mt.K.

Thank you.

"At least 200 students at a central Ohio public university have reported symptoms of the highly contagious norovirus, school officials said on Wednesday. Reports of the outbreak at Miami University started last Tuesday when five students came into a school health center at the Oxford, Ohio, main campus, located about 35 miles (56 km) north of Cincinnati, complaining of stomach pain, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting, a university spokeswoman said.

Since the initial reports, a number of students have tested positive for norovirus, said the spokeswoman, Carole Johnson.

"We have been very diligent in our cleaning and are using products that combat the virus in our residential and dining halls," she said. A small number of the students have gone to a local hospital since the outbreak for dehydration symptoms, she said.

Norovirus is the most common cause of food-borne disease outbreaks in the United States. Infections usually occur in places such as hospitals, cruise ships and universities, where people eat and live in close quarters.

The university, which has a population of nearly 20,000 students, faculty and staff, has not been able to identify the initial source of the virus. Communications from the university recommend students wash their hands with soap and water as antiseptic gels and wipes are ineffective in killing the virus.

Norovirus is the most common cause of food-borne disease outbreaks in the United States. Infections usually occur in places such as hospitals, cruise ships and universities, where people eat and live in close quarters.

The university, which has a population of nearly 20,000 students, faculty and staff, has not been able to identify the initial source of the virus. Communications from the university recommend students wash their hands with soap and water as antiseptic gels and wipes are ineffective in killing the virus.

During the last several months, outbreaks of norovirus have been reported at restaurants in Kansas and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc restaurants across the United States. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reported a norovirus outbreak affecting more than 100 students at the University of Michigan last week.

Norovirus affects about 19 million to 21 million people in the United States each year, causing between 570 to 800 related deaths, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Editing by Ben Klayman and Matthew Lewis)"