Mura

Lyn, I never thought of asking our TA to get us off the list.  Worth a try!

We are being deluged with cruise brochures ... and emails as well from lines that we haven't used in more than 20 years ... Generally I just toss them.

On 7/27/2022 at 7:28 PM, CruisingIGo said:

Rick Steve’s recommends Hotel Continental and Hotel Continental Palacete.  We have stayed at both and enjoyed both. 

We have stayed at both of these as well.  They are modest but enjoyable.  Palacete is a 4* I think, the Continental is a 3*  It's a long time since we stayed at either one but the Continental did have more of a "back packer" clientele.  Also, the 24 hour buffet was more modest but if you were hungry it did suffice.

Both are on the Ramblas, one below the plaza, the other shortly above.

Our information is may years ago, however.  But we had no problem with either hotel.

On 7/3/2022 at 4:18 PM, Hanoverian said:

We are on Sirena, "Vintages of Royalty", this fall, and would love to have friends from Yorkshire come aboard when we are in Portsmouth on October 11.  The plan would be to have breakfast, and take a quick ship tour. and then head off for the day's adventures.  FAQs on the Oceania web site says that visitors are not allowed.  Regardless of FAQs, has anyone ever successfully asked for permission to bring guests aboard any Oceania ship?     

We have, but that was before 9/11.  Since then, I don't think it's possible.  (And our experience was probably on Renaissance, but early Oceania really wasn't all that different from REN.)  Our friend had to surrender her driver's license and a credit card and she was allowed on board but she didn't STAY on board.  The next day we found that she COULD have stayed on board ... but she had a hotel in town. This was in Copenhagen.

But even then I think it was up to the captain to say yes or no.

But it couldn't hurt for you to ask the question of TPTB!  It never hurts to ask.  All they can say is no ...

Mura

I have to admit that as long as we weren't sure that we'd have a room at all -- which we now do, thanks Bast -- I haven't considered dinner reservations. I DID think we had a lot of time, especially when we didn't know IF we'd  be on board (!🙂)  But it does seem like there is plenty of time for these considerations.

Yes, we will still miss Jacques ... But time moves on. We usually book one dinner in La Reserve but that will remain to be seen as well.

For breakfast, on tour days we've always ordered into our room (except for the time when we were in a B1 as the result of a downsell) ... and on port days, we go to the GDR.

Mura

That's an upgrade!  When we were first cruising with Renaissance and then with Oceania when it started up, we were always on an "R" ship.  And my recollection was 3 washers and dryers, although it might have been four.  This is more than 20 years ago so I guess it's okay for my not being sure ...

But there was only one laundry room on the "R" ships whereas the "O" ships (and I assume the new Vista ships) have laundry rooms on several passenger decks.

Not to mention the more recent bonuses for Concierge and above passengers for the three bags of laundry.  There is a time limit with these, but it's do-able.

We were surprised on our first Renaissance cruise in 1999 when another passenger hit the laundry rooms upon boarding.  I don't recall if they'd been doing land travel prior to the cruise, but most likely they were.

Mura

I usually like the club sandwich available on the room service menu ... I go up to Waves to get a smoothie and bring it back to the room  ...

Mura

When we were first cruising about 1000 years ago, the standard advice was NEVER to take the ship's insurance.  And we never have.

When Renaissance went bankrupt as a result of 9/11 people who used ship insurance had problems.  So did a friend of mine from the message board who'd used Discover to pay for his insurance policy and they would not honor it.  OTOH, we'd booked our insurance through AMEX and they even refunded our premium.  We were booked on a cruise that had final payment scheduled for about a week after the attack on the WTC which may have been a factor in what we got back ... Or perhaps because DH asked for it!

We usually go to an internet site that shows quotes from many companies once they have our personal info (ages, dates of travel, cost of the cruise and the like), and we pick a company as a result of what we see.  We've never had to really use the insurance, but you never know.  (Such as when the cruiseline goes bankrupt ...)   We have booked insurance with several different companies that gave us the coverage we wanted for a reasonable amount. 

Of course, those costs DO go up as YOU age ... What we paid when we were in our 50s is far different from what we pay NOW.

Mura

Probably because I use my real name here and I was on board at the time.

To answer your question:  no.  The problem we encountered was while we were on board the ship.  I doubt they'd have followed up if I were complaining about a problem from a previous cruise.  They certainly couldn't call me in for a personal meeting in that case!

I'm not talking about these issues BUT on an earlier cruise I posted something at Cruise Critic on the message aboard about a problem we had encountered.  I don't recall specifically what it was about, but the result was that the staff asked me to meet with them to discuss the issue.  This MAY have been when Noro was on board ... but I had a pleasant discussion with two staff members and had no fear that they were going to throw me overboard ...

So just be aware that staff DOES monitor what you say at CC when you are on a cruise ...

This isn't necessarily bad!!

Mura

Yep!  There are plenty of people sailing together who don't really want to sleep together!

With concierge booking, there is no problem.  People who are in a top suite (Oceania and above on the "O" and Vista ships) have king beds and my understanding is that these cannot be separated.

Mura

Back to the TV question!!  Oceania has plenty of channels in various categories for viewing in your room.

There are a number of news channels as has been said:  they used to have CNN but these days I think the US channels are MSNBC and Fox (although we haven't been on board since before Covid erupted so don't hold me to this).  BBC, european sports channels, a number of others.

Movies every night on at least two channels, maybe more.

Other viewings like Jacques Pepin cooking demos, national geographic programs ... there are LOTS.

Unless, as I said earlier, they have changed.  But I would not expect that they have since these options have been available for a number of years.

When we started cruising we disliked sea days ... and then something switched and now we love them ...

If you are in an Oceania Suite or above, there are more options. At least, as I said before, there were in the past.  Again, I doubt that has changed.

Mura

Thanks for the beautiful photos!  We've been to Wales, but not this part.

Mura

Likewise.  While we never stayed in this location we've never heard noise from either the laundry or elevators. And while we don't use the lounges very often, doors opening and closing seemed very quiet when we used them.

I've mentioned this often, but our first cruise on Renaissance's R2 (now Regatta) our room was opposite the laundry room, as was our next cruise when we were in the cabin just next door.

We never heard ANY noise from the laundry room.  One day I opened our door and discovered a ton of people in the hallway chatting away as they waited for their laundry to be done (or to be done, I suppose).  We heard nothing at all from the people in the hallway until I opened the door

And bear in mind that on the "O" ships, there is a separation from the corridor to the laundry room so it would be extremely difficult to hear noise.  On the "R" ships (at least back then, I assume it is still the same) the door into the laundry room opened from the hallway.

I would NOT worry about this.

On 8/12/2021 at 10:58 AM, shank63 said:

Sorry to see Jacques disappearing, it was my favorite of the 4 specialty restaurants.  I hope it remains on Riviera and Marina for my next cruises.

 

You are not alone.  Jacques has been our favorite specialty restaurant on the "O" ships since the beginning ... and for us, Red GInger is the LEAST popular.

I know that many will disagree, but we have a right to our opinion, no?  We would probably feel differently if we into Asian Fusion rather than Szechuan.

Mura

20 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

 But, if the “poop hits the fan” with airline issues like delays/cancellations/rebooking (so common these days), you’re stuck with needing to contact your “middleman” while DIYers are on the phone with the airline directly. This is particularly important if you have high FF status with your preferred carrier, have a dedicated call number and understand “how to’s” for options like “ticket assignment” (which can save your whole vacation).  

I'm going back many years ago but on the ship I ran into a high school classmate.  (We had graduated MANY years earlier.)  They had used O's air from Santa Ana, CA, but the flight was cancelled -- due, I think to weather problems, but I no longer remember the "why". 

They contacted Oceania and got NO help whatsoever.  They finally got a flight out but could only join the ship in Oslo, several days after we departed from Dover.  Oceania gave them a bottle of champagne as an apology, but this wasn't satisfactory for two recovering alcoholics!  And back then Oceania wouldn't make a non-alcoholic substitution.  As a result, they have not sailed with Oceania since then. I would like to think this situation would not occur these days.

20 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Whether it’s hotels land packages or travel insurance, anyone considering using O’s arrangements needs to realize that the pricing is PER PERSON. 
And, yes, we’ve often stayed pre-Cruise at O’s chosen hotels for at least 50% less due to rates “per room” rather than “per person.” 

Perhaps I wasn't clear that this is the case (I mean the "per person" part). Of course, that is a BIG part of the calculation. As to our fellow passenger booking into a London Marriott a few years ago, I don't recall if the "package" was per person or not.  On a few rare occasions I have seen offers for those hotel packages that were NOT per person.  But that's awfully rare. 

We need to read the details of the "offer" very carefully. I always assume that O is offering a per person rate.  Given that I've been able to book a room at the same hotel for two people that was LESS than half of what O was offering "per person", it was an easy decision.  Then again, O usually offers a few perks to these passengers which might be worth it if you're only booking for one night.  Free transfers?  Maybe a free tour of the city?  We need to do the calculation for ourselves.  In general, I always think that booking on your own -- especially if you are using an O hotel -- is the better bet.

Whatever, this fellow passenger would have done better booking on his own given his relationship with Marriott. Do we blame him for not figuring this out on his own???  I don't think so ...Then again, I think he learned his lesson!

Mura

On 6/23/2022 at 9:40 AM, Flatbush Flyer said:

Folsom Mike:

Take it from an old East Sac resident: NEVER ever use O bizclass air. If you call their air dept., the right person will say the same thing. O’s biz class quote is on top of the economy fare you already pay (in order to get the biz class upgrade. 
The O routings/contract carriers often leave much to be desired. Take the “air credit” (From O Life with air and SBC option: choose “no air” on the O web when you do a mock booking. From that number (next page), subtract the value of the O Life SBC from that cruise. The remaining difference is the “air credit.”

 

 

Absolutely.  If you want biz class, book your own.

There was one flight some years ago where it WAS worth using O's biz air ... but that was the only time we ever encountered that as a viable option.

And if you book your own air, you have more flexibility regarding dates.  If you are one who wants to fly in on the day of the cruise (we aren't), that this wouldn't matter.  But it does for us since we generally fly in a few days early and leave a few days late.

On another note, we arrived in London post-cruise several years ago and stayed at a Marriott in central London.  We booked our own rooms there although this was a hotel that O used for it's post-cruise packages.

When we checked in we met a gentleman who was most upset to discover that as a member of Marriott's program he was paying twice as much for his room using O's package than we would have paid if he'd booked on his own ...

Mura

We haven't tried that but I agree with Jan.  I'm wondering if it was just that particular butler who wouldn't do it ...

Mura

On 7/17/2022 at 2:44 PM, roberts2005 said:

 

I was told only on the larger ships. On Insignia, right now and was told the only energy drinks are through your butler or in the main dining room.

We haven't been sailing since Covid struck, but there were always smoothies for breakfast in the GDR (although I admit the descriptions were such that I never tried one there).  But I'm enamored of the smoothies served at Waves, and make it a point at least several times in a cruise to go to Waves during the afternoon mealtimes if ONLY to get one of their smoothies.

Good suggestions about asking them to add fresh fruit ... I never found it necessary for my favorites, but fresh fruit WOULD be a welcome addition.

And as has been said, no charge.

Mura

I skipped ahead so haven't read most of the posts here.  But if you are concerned about not knowing enough people in advance to take advantage of Privee, I suggest you join your roll call.  Admittedly, since Oceania introduced the "free" ship's tour fewer people have been on roll calls, but in the past that was how I met people for private tours I was setting up as well as arranging for private dinners in advance.

It can't hurt to join the roll call.  If there aren't many people, or at least not many you think you'd want to be stuck with for a meal (!), it can't hurt!

Also, many of us set up Meet & Greets the first or second night of the cruise.  That's another way to meet people.

Mura

Since we are classical music people, that's what we like.  But we're also open to jazz, Broadway tunes, etc.  Definitely won't attend a rock performance, but they do need to please everyone at some time.

However, I don't think it's accurate to say that classical music is supreme on the ship.  Yes, there's the string quartet for pre-dinner music but there always were (not sure if it's true) the band performing outside of Waves at meal times. And from our experience the string quartet tends to do their own arrangements of more popular music.  We never found a Mozart string quartet on the program!  That's not to say they don't play classical music ... but they do NOT play ONLY classical music.

It seems to me that everyone can find music to their taste at some time during the day.  Yes, these are smaller ships so they cannot compete with the mega-ships in terms of entertainment.

MUra

On 5/16/2022 at 7:14 AM, RetiredandTravel said:

Great information thank you.  I really should have just checked the Oceania deck plans, sorry for asking.  Great to know on the executive lounge tho.

 

This is always hard to sort out and I know it will upset the Oceania faithful 😡 (I'll put on a football helmet) but I've read some complaints about the MDR food & service.  Sounds like you guys have a lot of experience on Oceania what is your experience on the MDR?  We like our food and its important to us. 

 

I just saw this comment and I don't have the time to go through two more pages of comments, so I'll just briefly (I hope) join in here.  We, too, have seen complaints about food/service in the Grand Dining Room but personally haven't experienced such problems.  The food has always been good (especially for breakfast in our opinion, but equally good for lunch and dinner).

We always check the menus in advance.  Many of the courses offered in the GDR will be available as well in Terrace (the buffet restaurant).  You can also make special requests in the various restaurants with advance notice.  Like if you have dietary restrictions or even special requests for a preferred dish.  They will accommodate you if  they can.

You can use your butler for many things, especially for extra specialty restaurants if you want them. When we couldn't get extra reservations pre-cruise, the butler almost always could.  A few times when we boarded we discovered that our butler had already booked us for specialty reservations just about every evening ... many of which we cancelled.

If you want to dine in your suite the butler will bring you your dinner course by course if you wish, or more often we got the first two courses when he arrived, then called him to bring dessert.

Do you want to spring for a cocktail party in your suite? The butler will take care of it.

When in doubt, ask him if he can take care of a problem for you.

Mura

Again, it can come down to:  do you need to get home immediately OR can you spend at least an overnight in a local hotel before flying home.  If you have time to spare then I always recommend staying on ... as I said before, if it's a port you've often visited or for which you have no interest, then you would probably want to leave asap. Otherwise, I recommend spending at least a day there.

Usually we plan on 3 days pre- and post-cruise but we've always had that kind of time available.  Not everyone does.

We did have one of our last cruises which ended in Venice and we opted to go home that morning.  Ordered a cab (I forget what our departure time for the flight was) and got to the airport in plenty of time. There were long lines but they weren't a problem.  Then again, this was a few years ago, pre-Covid.

August 8th this year????  I'm guessing are asking about a soon-to-be cruise but cannot be sure.