"Complimentary" wines with dinner on Oceania??

Based on what I'd read on these boards, and on looking at the wine list, I expected to pay for wine with dinner while onboard. However, I just re-read the (2007) cruise brochure, and on p.8 it says "Whatever the choice, our sommliers will offer the perfect complimentary wine from the more than 120 labels in our cellar."

Now, I'm assuming this is a simple copywriting error, and complimentary has the meaning "compliments the food" as opposed to "free" - but, :) can a past guest clarify this for us?

Great example of an unfortunate piece of copywriting (I used to be in the biz)? Or excellent cruise bonus! Anyone want to start a "mass compliant" (sic) <g,d,r>

Fantasizing about our upcoming embarkation,

I don't have the brochure in front of me, but it should read "complementary" , not complimentary. I thus assume it is a typo. The website talks about wines that are a complement to the meal.

Complementary means to complete.

Complimentary can mean free.

Your thread's title spells "complementary" as the brochure does. "Complementary" means to complete, make perfect, blah, blah, blah. The word "complimentary" which you use in the body of your thread, means among other things, as a courtesy, favor or free of charge.

So the wines poured on Oceania are complementary but not complimentary.

Bill

Our catalog also has "complementary" wine. Either you got an odd catalog with an odd typo or perhaps were just reading what you were hoping for?

What the difference a letter can make!;);)

The brochure reads correctly as "complementary" wines - i.e. wines chosen to complement the dinner. There was no "typo" or "proofreader" error. Perhaps "Waxer" was doing some wishful thinking, thinking he was going to avoid paying for wine.....

Nice try - - - but read your brochure again, carefully!

Wow! We have been on three O cruises and have booked our 4th. Never had any "complimentary" wine. They also charge for attendng a wine tasting. Some cruise lines will refund your wine tasting charges if you order "x" number of bottles to be served in the dining room. We think it is a big booboo copyright error but are interested in knowing if O makes a correction or .....

Could we have a case of intentional ambiguity in the brochure? If so, my compliments to the copy writers.

I believe that dinner wine is complimentary on Silver Seas. Till we book a more expensive cruise....yes, it's possible to do so...:rolleyes:, we'll have to be satisfied with paying for a bottle that complements our dinner.

Now, if there are any cruisers here who volunteer to diagram/parse the previous sentence, I will personally recommend that the Oceania management gives them a cabin upgrade and some complementary wine.

One little-known way to enjoy complimentary glass of wine? Hint: ask a member of the ship's staff over dinner.

How do you get to the point of asking a member of the O staff "over dinner"? I.e., how do you ask him/her over TO dinner? What level of staff does this include? Do you just say words to the effect, "I'd like to invite you to dinner"? Do you call and ask? Do you have to make a real effort to become a buddy? I guess a staff member would take this as the kind of "compliment" that would deserve a "complement"?

It's not about the complementary wine, but it sounds like some interesting company -- and no corkage fee either!

BeBe

How do you get to the point of asking a member of the O staff "over dinner"? I.e., how do you ask him/her over TO dinner? What level of staff does this include? Do you just say words to the effect, "I'd like to invite you to dinner"? Do you call and ask? Do you have to make a real effort to become a buddy? I guess a staff member would take this as the kind of "compliment" that would deserve a "complement"?

 

It's not about the complementary wine, but it sounds like some interesting company -- and no corkage fee either!

 

BeBe

Ha! Clever use of homonyms! You can invite them to be a dinner companion by simply asking. You'll interact with the Cruise Director and his assistants all over the ship - conducting games, hosting the captain's reception, and providing the evening's entertainment on some nights. Just ask one of them if they're free for dinner on a night they're not performing. They're allowed to join you in the Grand Dining Room (the specialty dining rooms are usually limited to passengers), and it saves them from having to eat your previous night's leftovers in the crew mess below decks.

Which reminds me of what the CD told us they do with all the extra food that doesn't get served to the passengers that night in the GDR. The next night, they serve it to the ship's executive staff, the next night they serve it in the crew's dining room, and after that night, they box it up and send it to a certain rival cruise line. We laughed so hard, we nearly spit out our wine!!! :D

They're allowed to join you in the Grand Dining Room (the specialty dining rooms are usually limited to passengers), and it saves them from having to eat your previous night's leftovers in the crew mess below decks.

Past Nautica Cruise Director Shani Reay invited DW and me to dinner in Toscana, and we shared a wonderful evening. Lots of complimentary wine accompanied a great meal and wonderful conversation.

BTW, has anyone heard from Shani? She is a very special person and a real credit to Oceania.

Mike

Our experience is that the crew can invite passengers to the specialty dining rooms. Maia Tunoa (2nd Purser) and her husband invited us to a lovely dinner in Toscana on the Insignia. I believe they are now on the Nautica.

Past Nautica Cruise Director Shani Reay invited DW and me to dinner in Toscana, and we shared a wonderful evening. Lots of complimentary wine accompanied a great meal and wonderful conversation.

 

BTW, has anyone heard from Shani? She is a very special person and a real credit to Oceania.

 

Mike

That's nice! The captain and the CD can dine anywhere on the ship, anytime. Access for the assistant CDs, however, was somewhat more limited - they could dine in Tapas anytime, they could dine in the GDR if invited by a guest, and in the specialty dining rooms if invited by a guest and only during off-peak (i.e., late-evening) hours. Since the Asst CDs were expected to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed starting at 6 am, 9 pm wasn't an attractive meal time for some of them.

We got to know Shani on a previous cruise and fell in love with her. I asked David about her (she was supposed to be on our sailing, according to one schedule), and he politely thanked me for my concern. He said that she's ashore and Andrea is recovering from his stroke, but that it's going to be a slow process and it didn't look like Andrea would be back onboard anytime soon. Judging from his short responses and body language, David didn't seem willing to provide much more information than that, so I didn't press him for Shani's email address.

Just returned from our fourth cruise on the Regatta, and we were fortunate to be invited to dine with Captain Rye. Yes, we were served both a red and a white wine, with the compliments of the Captain. Also complimentary drinks are served at the Captain's Reception, and the Member's Reception.

Cheers!:)