Oceania disappoints in Hong Kong

[2kiwis]

We have just got off Nautica after doing the Bangkok to Beijing cruise and were really disappointed with our stay in Hong Kong. We were anchored in the harbour and had to get on and off the boat using the local tenders which were ghastly and dangerous. Many passengers struggled to get on and off the the tenders and at times it was a miracle that someone was not seriously hurt. Many people also felt seasick sitting on the tenders waiting to be able to disembark as it was so rough, and the tenders only ran every half hour. The first day took us 2 hours to get off the ship and onto Hong Kong.

 

We gather Oceanaia were let down by the port authorities but there were many conflicting rumors going around the ship as to why we weren't docked.

 

In this instance Oceania staff did itself absolutely no favours by not telling the passengers exactly why we were anchored instead of docked as expected, and there was no recognition of the poor quality of the local service and serious inconvenience this caused the passengers.

 

We were also told by the cruise director that we would see the laser show from the ship which was not the case, and many passengers were so disappointed as they waited for ages on deck for nothing. Again the ship made no acknowledgement of this fact.

 

For days many people were really angry which could have been avoided by better PR on board.

 

This was the poorest port stay in all of our Oceania cruises.

[geologygeek]

Many people also felt seasick sitting on the tenders waiting to be able to disembark as it was so rough

 

Ah the joys of travel. If this is really the only thing that upset you on your trip then you must have had a good time.

[wripro]

Why is it that the minute anyone says anything negative you can bet your retirement plan that someone here will knock them???

[RJB]

Why is it that the minute anyone says anything negative you can bet your retirement plan that someone here will knock them???

Right on. We were in Hong Kong about 4 years ago on same trip and docked at the Ocean Terminal mall, I think it was called and just walked into the mall and down to the street. I can see how they would be very angry at O for the tenders. But at this point nothing to do but get over it. I'm sure O is aware of the passengers feelings.:)

[WesW]

Henry (wripro), good to see you posting...are u booked on the Marina yet?

[tak2]

I am absolutely sympathetic with OP. Ocean Terminal is where cruise ships are meant to be docked. It offers the utmost convenience and safety. Having to tender is a disgrace, especially when the sea condition is unsafe. HK is such a vibrant city with so much to offer, time wasted in tendering is a big loss.

[hondorner]

Right on. We were in Hong Kong about 4 years ago on same trip and docked at the Ocean Terminal mall, I think it was called and just walked into the mall and down to the street. I can see how they would be very angry at O for the tenders. But at this point nothing to do but get over it. I'm sure O is aware of the passengers feelings.:)

I just don't see why anyone would be angry at O for the tenders -- the OP admitted that it was the fault of the port, and O had nothing to do with it. The OP was angry because Oceania apparently made little effort to apologize for the port.

[wripro]

Wes,

 

Thanks for noticing! I'm just back from eight weeks on the Odyssey so have a lot of catching up to do. And yes, I am booked on the Marina for Miami-Barcelona next March 28th. You?

[WesW]

Absolutely Henry, was able to book the Marina's fall 2011 TA ( naturally)

24 hours before Summer 2011 bookings opened. Believe we already have 25 CC couples on the

roll call. Looking forward to visiting Rome again pre cruise and Morocco--esp since my last visit (1986) to Morocco was

for a month with the Moroccan Army in their Desert. Have already coordinated a private Tangier tour for 5 CC couples for this

Morroco visit. The Marina TA other ports we will have visited this Nov on our Voyager TA (i.e., Barcelona, Funchal, Hamilton)

[wripro]

Wes,

 

Sounds like you have a great itinerary planned for the Marina. I chose the Miami-Barcelona crossing because, believe it or not I have never been to Savannah, Charleston or Bermuda and two days in my home town of NY were irresistible. So, of course, was the new ship which looks terrific.

[WesW]

Henry, could not permit u to sail the Marina before us, so we are now also booked

on the Maiden voyage (albeit waitlisted)...will be happy to report how the maiden

voyage goes.

[cynalan]

My wife and I were on the same cruise as 2Kiwis. We agree with nearly everything that they've said about the stay in Hong Kong. There is no question that the ship misled everyone about the location where the ship would be docked and the visibility of the laser/light/music show. Several announcements were made that passengers would be able to see the show, however, these were never updated when the ship dropped anchor outside Victoria Bay. I cannot understate my agreement with the comments about the difficulty with the tender... it was truly the worst tendering experience I've had... the tender was bobbing by as much as 3-4 feet beside the ship. Given the demographics of the passengers, many being 70+, I am amazed that no-one was hurt.

 

The Cruise Director was nowhere to be found. We learned that he had taken some R&R time in Hong Kong. This being the case, I must give cudos to Ian Needle, the Assistant Cruise Director. As 2Kiwis mentioned, there were a lot of disgruntled passengers. Ian made himself available in all public areas and took the heat. It was not an easy couple of days for Ian but he conducted himself professionally with decorum.

 

I would like to comment on the light show issue though. It should have been obvious that the location of the ship would not allow one to see the light show. My wife and I simply extended our stay in Hong Kong to ensure that we were able to see the show and took a later tender back to the ship. Doing so, we had an enjoyable local dinner. Speaking to a few angry people, I found it shocking that many were more concerned about being back to the ship for dinner and then not being able to see to the show.