Just booked 1st Oceania Cruise- 18 days on Nautica and have questions

We are not new to cruising with over 400 days but we are new to Oceania.

Looks like people are not pleased with upcoming Loyalty changes and some feel the food has gone down but coming from "mass market" cruise lines we are looking forward to the change. We will try 1 cruise on O and then decide if we should look at the other cruise lines mentioned here on the O board.

Several questions:

On R class ships

1) With 6 sea days and 12 port days what kind of activities should we expect to see during the day?

2) What type of medical facilities do these ships have? Do they have a doctor on board?

3) What time does the dining room open for dinner and should we expect a wait to be seated in the Grand Dining- room?

We booked a Concierge level Veranda and hope this was a good decision?

Does O have something similar to Princess where booking on board or getting a Future cruise deposit yields a reduced deposit for a cruise and OBC (SBC)?

Am I reading correctly that prices for future cruises are lower when they are booked on board?

Any suggestions are most welcome to help us learn more about O than the little we can find here on CC and certainly more than is available on O's web site.

Thank you for responding.

Understand we have not cruised as much as you have. However, we are tending to move more and more towards planning cruises on Oceania rather than the "mass market" lines as in our past.

Our first Oceania trip on the Marina in a concierge stateroom was great; loved the convenience of the concierge lounge for drinks, snacks, daily newspapers, and the concierge service; this lounge is not found on the R ships, though. I enjoyed the food very much, the service was excellent in all the dining locations, but the down side was that the 'free' specialty restaurants seemed more like 'little' MDRs - noisy, crowded, and understaffed compared to other specialty restaurants we have experienced at sea (for a fee), IMHO.

I thought the guest speakers were excellent, loved the various nooks and crannies about the ship to sit and read, plan, think, or just relax. We tend to keep busy, mostly by ourselves, during sea days, and enjoyed the various lounges in the evenings.

We are scheduled later this year for our first cruise on an Oceania R ship, the Insignia. I look forward to that experience...

We are not new to cruising with over 400 days but we are new to Oceania.

 

Looks like people are not pleased with upcoming Loyalty changes and some feel the food has gone down but coming from "mass market" cruise lines we are looking forward to the change. We will try 1 cruise on O and then decide if we should look at the other cruise lines mentioned here on the O board.

 

Several questions:

On R class ships

1) With 6 sea days and 12 port days what kind of activities should we expect to see during the day?

 

There are guest lecturers (not tons), daily trivia, lounging around the pool or reading in the wonderful library. We find it a good mix but it does depend on much you want for yourselves in terms of organized activities. On port days there probably won't be much doing in terms of organized activities on board. There are more activities on the larger ships -- cooking classes, art classes, for example.

 

Some cruises have bridge experts on board ...

 

 

2) What type of medical facilities do these ships have? Do they have a doctor on board?

 

Yes, there is a doctor on board. They have reasonable facilities but are EXPENSIVE. I was very pleased with the help I received for a torn meniscus many years ago but haven't used the doctor since then.

 

3) What time does the dining room open for dinner and should we expect a wait to be seated in the Grand Dining- room?

 

Someone who just left Riviera said dinners in the specialty restaurants were starting at 6pm, but in the past it has been 6:30-9:00. You might have a slight wait for the GDR if you want to share a table. You shouldn't (in our experience) if you want a table for two. If you go in early or late, you shouldn't have to wait.

 

We booked a Concierge level Veranda and hope this was a good decision?

 

I'm the wrong person to ask since I am usually in a suite! You will find differing opinions as to whether the extra cost is worth it. For me, it would be. The concierge lounge can be a benefit but you won't have one on Nautica.

 

Does O have something similar to Princess where booking on board or getting a Future cruise deposit yields a reduced deposit for a cruise and OBC (SBC)?

 

 

Yes, but we haven't done this so I'm not sure of the details.

 

 

Am I reading correctly that prices for future cruises are lower when they are booked on board?

 

Yes, but I don't think it's a big difference.

 

Any suggestions are most welcome to help us learn more about O than the little we can find here on CC and certainly more than is available on O's web site.

Thank you for responding.

Have a good cruise! Mura

see this thread on booking on board- just a few threads down from your post:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2577671

I've sailed on the Nautica and the Insignia, and am planning another trip on Nautica for next spring. I've also sailed Holland America and Princess. The announced changes to the loyalty program don't bother me. In general those types of program are a moving target. Mom is currently on her 13th or 14th cruise with Oceania (on the Sirena).

The cruise we took last summer on Insignia, I chose because there were a lot of sea days. There are an assortment of activities - we chased "O Points" so showed up for a lot of the games: ping pong, shuffle board, corn hole (though they call it something different). We met up with the same group of cruisers from all age ranges, so it was fun to catch up on what other people had been doing. They also have bingo, lectures, cooking demonstrations, trivia. Evening entertainment is subdued compared to the mass market lines. High Tea is served daily in Horizon - and I have to watch that I don't overdo it there, especially if we are planning to eat early. I also like tucking myself in a corner in Horizon to watch the sea go by while I read, knit and/or enjoy and adult beverage.

Medical Care - even if you don't think you will have a need, make sure you get travel insurance. They do have doctors. And they have prices comparable to emergency room visits. My husband got sick on our Insignia cruise and racked up thousands in medical costs. Fortunately, we have solid insurance. I was impressed with the medical staff. I hope I never have to visit them again though.

Dining Room - depending on when you want to eat, there may be a short wait. We like to eat at shared tables, but found that our party of four, would get seated at a table for 8, and the result would be ridiculously slow service. When it was just Mom and I, a shared table worked well as we would be at tables for 4 or 6. I did not find Toscana or Polo to be overcrowded and noisy any of the times we've eaten there. I do find that it takes a long time to get through the meal. We also really enjoy the Terrace buffet.

Yes, you can book your next tour while onboard. I'm benefiting from that now. Mom just booked our Nautica cruise for next year yesterday. I'm in my office and she is on the Sirena. If you don't have a specific cruise in mind or want to wait until the next set of itineraries are released there is a deposit you can pay (forget the name). Deposits are also less if paid on board than elsewhere.

I've sailed on the Nautica and the Insignia, and am planning another trip on Nautica for next spring. I've also sailed Holland America and Princess. The announced changes to the loyalty program don't bother me. In general those types of program are a moving target. Mom is currently on her 13th or 14th cruise with Oceania (on the Sirena).

 

The cruise we took last summer on Insignia, I chose because there were a lot of sea days. There are an assortment of activities - we chased "O Points" so showed up for a lot of the games: ping pong, shuffle board, corn hole (though they call it something different). We met up with the same group of cruisers from all age ranges, so it was fun to catch up on what other people had been doing. They also have bingo, lectures, cooking demonstrations, trivia. Evening entertainment is subdued compared to the mass market lines. High Tea is served daily in Horizon - and I have to watch that I don't overdo it there, especially if we are planning to eat early. I also like tucking myself in a corner in Horizon to watch the sea go by while I read, knit and/or enjoy and adult beverage.

 

Medical Care - even if you don't think you will have a need, make sure you get travel insurance. They do have doctors. And they have prices comparable to emergency room visits. My husband got sick on our Insignia cruise and racked up thousands in medical costs. Fortunately, we have solid insurance. I was impressed with the medical staff. I hope I never have to visit them again though.

 

Dining Room - depending on when you want to eat, there may be a short wait. We like to eat at shared tables, but found that our party of four, would get seated at a table for 8, and the result would be ridiculously slow service. When it was just Mom and I, a shared table worked well as we would be at tables for 4 or 6. I did not find Toscana or Polo to be overcrowded and noisy any of the times we've eaten there. I do find that it takes a long time to get through the meal. We also really enjoy the Terrace buffet.

 

Yes, you can book your next tour while onboard. I'm benefiting from that now. Mom just booked our Nautica cruise for next year yesterday. I'm in my office and she is on the Sirena. If you don't have a specific cruise in mind or want to wait until the next set of itineraries are released there is a deposit you can pay (forget the name). Deposits are also less if paid on board than elsewhere.

Thank you so very much. Your answers were just what we had hoped to hear.

Happy cruising and maybe some day we will meet. :)

see this thread on booking on board- just a few threads down from your post:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2577671

Thank you for the link.

Have a good cruise! Mura

Thank you for all of the information.

It also sounds like the perfect mix for us.

We rarely participate in organized activities, do a great deal of reading and relaxing but do enjoy enrichment lectures and a good movie.

Port days are usually filled off the ship so we are not looking for any day activities on those days.