pinotlover

Hank; While I tend to agree with you, I’m just explaining the way it is. Oceania ships have a set bar menu for that ship/sailing that includes certain wines by the glass, specific beers, and liquors. Anything not listed on that ship wide menu is extra. The answer to your larger question is revenue. A perfect example is in the Terrace ( Buffet). Nearly daily, Oceania displays and is promoting beers and wines to accompany one’s meal. Those items are rarely significantly of better quality or higher in cost than the entrees on the bar menu included in the packages. They do come with an additional cost to the cruiser. Ask before you order.

1. There is no set menu for Embarkment Day in the GDR. The menu typically rolls on about a 14 day schedule, while cruise lengths may be 7,10,12,14, etc. One never knows where they are on the food rotation on Embarkment Day. 2. Their recommendations for food pairings listed on the nightly menus are hit and miss. They are definitely not professionally done.

Wine by the bottle is not included in any package. The Specialties often have dedicated beverages that are not included. Examples are Japanese beer and sake in Red Ginger. Likewise, in Toscana they frequently offer a limoncello that isn’t included on any package. Even in the Terrace they often feature daily special beers or wine that aren’t on any package. They typically never inform you that it’s not included until they bring you the bill. The ONLY wine, beer, or spirits included in the Premium Package are those listed on the drinks menu as “ by the glass “. Everything else, you pay. If you don’t see it listed on the drinks menu( not the food menu) always ask. Chances are you’re paying otherwise.

My current personal view is, I’m just waiting until October when we’re allowed to sail again. At this point, I don’t believe what they DID pre Covid matters much anymore. I likewise don’t believe what they did ( and are doing) on low capacity sailings matters one iota as to future full capacity sailings. Our October Sirena is completely full and still waitlisted. The ship will have been sailing six months by then. Plenty of time to get any kinks worked out. With a completely full ship and crew, We expect to see the new Oceania product, whatever that may be.

We are looking for Bizz Class. May consider dropping down to PE. Their BC tickets are currently a bit steep. Might wait and watch.

Fully aware of that, thanks. If I go AA/BA, this is the only one stop available out of BNA. Everything else is a two stop still requiring LHR. Turkish Airlines is the only other 1 stop, but oh so pricey or with undoable connections.

I need a bit of crystal balling. Looking at BA flight , for next June, through LHR. Specifically BNA-LHR-IST. The advertised flight has a 2 hour 15 minute layover at LHR. If current conditions continue, will that be sufficient layover time?

Therefore, if you are participating in an organized tour, be it ship or private, you need a mobility pass. We got the pass last year. It requires full vaccination.

I’ve spoken with Patrick Watts and he’s pretty confident that the Falklands will reopen this year. Tour operators in Argentina, Uruguay, and Chile are likewise fairly confident. All say you will be vaccinated and probably even tested before entry. One did say, without defining the term significant “ if a significant outbreak occurs aboard ship, expect the ship to be turned away”. Therein lies our greatest risk due to the continuing stream of variants hitting us. We’re booked for Feb into March. We’ve had cruises there cancelled two years in a row. If this year doesn’t go, we’re walking away. It’ll just be a cruise we never take. I just don’t have the energy or excitement to do all the extensive planning and prep anymore. I’ve worked with some of these tour operators for three years, it’s 2023 or never. We have a couple traveling with us in the same situation with the same frame of mind.

Without quoting all the previous posts, a couple of comments. 1. I certainly know adamant antivaxers that earlier canceled all their cruises, and that will now sign up again. 2. My greatest fear is how the entire ship may be treated just because it has unvaccinated guests aboard. Like Sunlover, we are on the October Sirena cruise scheduled for Morocco. Those countries may well say that not only can the unvaccinated not come ashore, but the ship can’t even dock!! Oceania will then claim “ it’s just a missed port”. To us, it’s much bigger than a missed port. It’s a missed port only because of the policy changes.We don’t want missed ports for the sole purpose of facilitating the unvaccinated.

Very tight schedule, probably too much so. Your larger issue is whether everything goes to schedule in the canal and locks entering Amsterdam. Being 15-30 minutes off schedule is not unusual.

One of the areas missed is South America. To enter Argentina or Chile one must be vaccinated. We’re on a B. A. -Lima cruise in February. Doesn’t sound like the unvaccinated will even be allowed on the plane to get there. Oceania’s policy means squat. Same goes for the Santiago-BA cruise preceding ours. Once Japan opens back up, does anyone here believe the unvaccinated will be let in? I’m doubtful anyone will get into Australia or NZ unvaccinated either. This new policy has put off information on all of these ports.

I love staying in the smaller Irish villages, hitting the pubs at night, eating a fun meal, drinking a fresh Guinness, and listening to the music in the pubs. So many charming places to stay and visit. I believe that cruises provide an excellent model to visit some regions. I just believe that Ireland and southern England are much better done by land tours. In that both speak English, that makes it even easier.

Disappointed! IMO there is zero reason to drop the vaccination requirements.

According to industry rags, pre Covid the industry book to sail rate was about 3 to 1. That is about for every 3 cruises booked/reserved only 1 actually paid and sailed. The others canceled along the way. Post Covid the number of cancellations are far higher but not yet stated. Viking is reported to have one of the highest book to sail rate. Mostly only those really interested in a cruise puts down their money up front. Oceania’s $750 deposit is chump change for many of its passengers. That’s why so many cruises are waitlisted early on and the waitlists clears. Different lines, different strategies.

A great tool that I regularly use. Still has an excessive amount of garbage that is constantly repeated and must be waded through. No I’m not going to collect my baggage, go from EWR-JFK, check in , clear security and make my flight with a 1 hour 45 minute connection time. Or No, I’m not scheduling an international flight with a 45 minute connection when the airline reports the first flight is late 40% of the time ! Again, it can be a great tool, but you must wade the garbage pile.

Oceania rates their tours by 1-3 walkers. One of the reasons I evade Oceania shore tours is the number of passengers taking 3 walker tours that can’t walk 100 yards without a break. The tour description regularly says they will walk up to 2 miles on uneven surfaces. They know up front they are physically incapable of the tour but expect to be accommodated. Why is reading a tour description difficult? Why do people show up at a bus for a tour with a wheelchair when the tour clearly says no wheelchairs? Dementia, laziness, or expectation of accommodations? Oceania arrives at some docks and the buses are parked at the gangplank. At other ports, especially those with a terminal, one must clear the terminal area to catch the buses. Sometimes that means walking the half length past your vessel but also the entire length of the vessel docking behind you. Oceania can neither project nor plan for that. Here’s another clue, with my stride, my wife and I can walk the exact same ground distance , but her phone will show she walked 30% farther than I. The phones are not set up for her stride nor people doing 6 inch shuffle steps.

2005!!! Contentinal Airlines was still in business then!! Should I talk about Delta in the 1980s?? Being serious now in 2022. Airlines are flying jammed packed. 1. Get to the airport way ahead of flight time. 3-4 hours ahead. In AMS, it was 3.5 hours from checkin/baggage drop to the gate. That was on a Thursday. 2. Never schedule a layover less than 2 hours anywhere. Three is even better. 3. Don’t fly in on the day of Embarkment or tour start. Come early. 4. Never take a buy out on a plane that’s flying. You never know when you might actually get on that next flight. 5. Avoid airports that are disasters. Amsterdam ( AMS) is a Black Hole. It’s going to take a long time for KLM to get it straightened out. There’s a reason Delta is offering cheaper fares via there. You might go in and take days to get out! In June, we had passengers join our cruise on Day 3, without luggage, that ended up taking the train to catch the ship because of flight cancellations out of AMS. Heathrow is now recommending at least three hours time for connecting flights. We had fellow ship passengers with less than 2 hour connecting times on UA out of ORD, that never saw their baggage the entire cruise. Stuck in a warehouse in Chicago. This isn’t 2017 or 18. Planning air is a task.

I may be speaking out of order for him, but I believe the miles come from using United Travel as the Travel Agency for the cruise. Where some here only want TAs that give cash rebates, others use United Travel for more ff miles. I get the offers and brochures regularly from them because they see me making payments to Oceania, Uniworld, etc. on my Explorer card. If you don’t use O Air, United will work the air for you and give you even more ff miles.

In Tahiti, we stayed at the former Meridian. Forgot the name of the group that took over but still a really nice place to stay. Conveniently located with a good store, with great wine selection, just outside the gates. Also a very good restaurant in the same complex.

We stay in an otw at the Hilton Moorea. Great place.

Both easily done via a land tour. Multiple companies offer them and I can make recommendations. Many of the great visits are not practical from ship shorex.

If itinerary is important along with maximizing the FP experience, I recommend considering Paul Gauguin. PG makes French Polynesian feel, taste, and seem like French Polynesia. Oceania is a great product, but it comes nowhere near developing the sense of place that PG does. It depends upon what’s important to you. Are you going to FP to eat in an Americanized Italian restaurant ( which is good) and worry about sheet thread count; or are you going to more throughly experience FP?

Yeah, but you’re Speeeciall. I was talking about the rest of us . 😂🥂

Captain’s party is most often on Day 2, sea day or not. Repeater’s Party bounces around, no particular day. Important to remember that depending upon the cruise, I have seen as many as three (3) repeater parties when 75+% of the ship are repeaters. You’re only invited to one of them though. Horizons can only hold so many. 🥂