dincus Posted November 2, 2011 #1 Share Posted November 2, 2011 My wife and I are sailing on the Marina 2/16/12. Final payment is not due until 11/8/11. I tried for the heck of it to go on Oceania's website to book dinner reservations knowing full well I couldn't. I did find that if you go to "Manage My Cruise", I was able to book Le Reserve. I also saw that I could book Privee for 2 for $250.00. Having read other posts, I was under the assumption that you had to have 8 people and the price was $1000.00 for the room. Has anyone booked Privee for 2 and if they don't get 8 will they still honor the reservation? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted November 2, 2011 #2 Share Posted November 2, 2011 My wife and I are sailing on the Marina 2/16/12. Final payment is not due until 11/8/11. I tried for the heck of it to go on Oceania's website to book dinner reservations knowing full well I couldn't. I did find that if you go to "Manage My Cruise", I was able to book Le Reserve. I also saw that I could book Privee for 2 for $250.00. Having read other posts, I was under the assumption that you had to have 8 people and the price was $1000.00 for the room. Has anyone booked Privee for 2 and if they don't get 8 will they still honor the reservation? Thanks. I think you can book La Reserve & Privee anytime you are paying a fee for the privilege... unlike the other specialty restaurants Privee changed from $1000 per booking to $250 per booking not too long ago ( I do not think it went well) You can have up to 8 so I imagine you could book for 2, 5 or 7 if you wanted to ...same fee I think you can order from the menus from Toscana and/or Polo so no big draw unless you want privacy ... Just guessing enjoy Lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPR Posted November 3, 2011 #3 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Privee is the reverse of La Reserve, of course: You pay the $125 for the food but must pay extra for wine. We enjoyed La Reserve and ate their twice; we merely looked at Privee (it was $1000 minimum at that time). Stark white, shiny, and very 60s. I expected Dr. No or Goldfinger to appear at any moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
potterhill Posted November 3, 2011 #4 Share Posted November 3, 2011 We ate at La Reserve in Sept. We paid $125 each for the wine that accompanied our dinner. No charge for the food. At least that is what we understood. The food was exquisite and the wine was very good, and an excellent match to the food. :p Thank goodness noone was driving as the pours were quite generous. I will defintely do again when next on Marina. Sadly, that is not for a year. :( Mo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dincus Posted November 3, 2011 Author #5 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Thanks Lyn, I hadn't heard or read of the change at Privee. We were hoping for the type of experience we read about on these boards when the Marina first started sailing. Potterhill, we just paid $95 plus 18% gratuity ($112 total) for La Reserve. I believe we are actually paying for the whole experience (the food and the wine pairings) and not just the wine. I like JPR's idea, eat At La Reserve twice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted November 3, 2011 #6 Share Posted November 3, 2011 We ate at La Reserve in Sept. We paid $125 each for the wine that accompanied our dinner. Mo You overpaid if that was the case ;) It is only $75 pp Starting Jan 2012 the price goes up to $95. plus gratuties of course Lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted November 3, 2011 #7 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Thanks Lyn, Potterhill, we just paid $95 plus 18% gratuity ($112 total) for La Reserve. I believe we are actually paying for the whole experience (the food and the wine pairings) and not just the wine. I like JPR's idea, eat At La Reserve twice! Be sure to check that you are getting the 2 different menus in La Reserve I understand they alternate them Lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted November 3, 2011 #8 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Good point, Lyn. I'll just say that we wined and dined at La Reserve last Sunday evening (Oct 30th) and two couples there that evening had already been at La Reserve on the cruise. They didn't mention a problem with having the same menu but I can certainly see where the venue can't have a totally different menu each time. It was well worth the $75 plus gratuity that we paid. Mura Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimandStan Posted November 3, 2011 #9 Share Posted November 3, 2011 You overpaid if that was the case ;)It is only $75 pp Starting Jan 2012 the price goes up to $95. plus gratuties of course Lyn There are also (occasionally) more deluxe wines on offer in La Reserve. I believe that we also dined there when the wine pairing cost $125, but felt that the additional quality of the wines were worth the upcharge. The wine tastings are also priced on a similar basis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted November 3, 2011 #10 Share Posted November 3, 2011 There are also (occasionally) more deluxe wines on offer in La Reserve. I believe that we also dined there when the wine pairing cost $125, but felt that the additional quality of the wines were worth the upcharge. I do hope they let people know there was an upcharge when they booked for the higher price The website states it is $75 + tip It would not be nice if you saw a charge for for $125 + :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dincus Posted November 3, 2011 Author #11 Share Posted November 3, 2011 I would assume that as they are only offering La Reserve twice on this 10 day cruise that they would offer each menu once. The problem is the offering is on consecutive nights. To do it twice I think I would want to spread it out a little. Thanks so much for the replies! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPR Posted November 3, 2011 #12 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Yes, we tried each of the two menus. The first was in effect for the first half of the voyage and second for the latter half. We thought the second one was somewhat better, but enjoyed both. Aside from the MDR, we never had less than an outstanding meal on board. Next time we're doing a PH3, so we can reserve at each specialty restaurant at least twice and skip the MDR (Where, we used to say, you never know what dish they are going to bring you; it's a tossup whether it's what you ordered. And where they tend to cook fish like bacon and the bacon like fish...). In fairness, the MDR did improve during the course of the cruise... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wripro Posted November 4, 2011 #13 Share Posted November 4, 2011 JPR, If you are on the Marina or Riviera (which I assume you are since this thread is about La Reserve and Privee) in a PH you can only reserve once in each specialty restaurant before boarding. Getting more is the most important function of the butler imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimandStan Posted November 4, 2011 #14 Share Posted November 4, 2011 I do hope they let people know there was an upcharge when they booked for the higher priceThe website states it is $75 + tip It would not be nice if you saw a charge for for $125 + :eek: As I recall, the $125 evening was supposed to have been a last minute add on, put into the schedule because of the "intense interest in the better vintages" shown by patrons of La Reserve earlier in our cruise. In other words, there will typically be several "standard price evenings" during a given voyage, with additional evenings scheduled for what otherwise would be "dark" nights in La Reserve. The additional nights may be dinners or they may be tastings. To give you an idea of the quality being offered, our $125 evening ended with Crystal.........just marvelous :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted November 4, 2011 #15 Share Posted November 4, 2011 As I recall, the $125 evening was supposed to have been a last minute add on, put into the schedule because of the "intense interest in the better vintages" shown by patrons of La Reserve earlier in our cruise. In other words, there will typically be several "standard price evenings" during a given voyage, with additional evenings scheduled for what otherwise would be "dark" nights in La Reserve. The additional nights may be dinners or they may be tastings. To give you an idea of the quality being offered, our $125 evening ended with Crystal.........just marvelous :D Wasted on me I very seldom drink :D lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnar Danneskjold Posted November 5, 2011 #16 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Then why cruise? :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dincus Posted November 5, 2011 Author #17 Share Posted November 5, 2011 WRIPRO, I thought if you were in a PH you got to book twice in each specialty restaurant. Doesn't matter much to us as we're in a B4. We always like to eat late so maybe we can get additional reservations that way. We're also hoping to get a call for an upsell. As of now there are many PH's still available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wripro Posted November 5, 2011 #18 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Dincus, On the R ships you get to book twice in each specialty restaurant but on Marina/Riviera only once. Their misguided logic is that since there are four specialty restaurants on the larger ships you are still getting the same amount of reservations. But imo paying extra for the PH and above should entitle you to reserve in each one twice thereby maintaining consistency with the rest of the fleet. When they first took bookings for the Marina they conveniently neglected to mention this until after final payment. It was very annoying even though I managed to get many extra reservations once on board. You need them as the GDR is below par. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulchili Posted November 5, 2011 #19 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Then why cruise? :rolleyes: .???? Do you mean to say "if you seldom drink there is no reason to cruise"?:confused: I hope not :mad: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dincus Posted November 5, 2011 Author #20 Share Posted November 5, 2011 Dincus, On the R ships you get to book twice in each specialty restaurant but on Marina/Riviera only once. Their misguided logic is that since there are four specialty restaurants on the larger ships you are still getting the same amount of reservations. But imo paying extra for the PH and above should entitle you to reserve in each one twice thereby maintaining consistency with the rest of the fleet. When they first took bookings for the Marina they conveniently neglected to mention this until after final payment. It was very annoying even though I managed to get many extra reservations once on board. You need them as the GDR is below par. Thanks Wripro, After clicking on the "reservation rules" and then scrolling down (which I neglected to do before) I see you are absolutely correct. There are different rules for the Marina. Too bad, I was going to use this to try to justify to my wife why we should upgrade. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bphman Posted November 6, 2011 #21 Share Posted November 6, 2011 I noticed that there are 2 menus; The Discovery and The Explorer Menu. On the Discovery menu they serve shellfish to which I am extremely allergic. I am sure they will accommodate an allergy. Do you choose between the two or is there one menu per night? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoHoHo Posted November 6, 2011 #22 Share Posted November 6, 2011 I noticed that there are 2 menus; The Discovery and The Explorer Menu. On the Discovery menu they serve shellfish to which I am extremely allergic. I am sure they will accommodate an allergy. Do you choose between the two or is there one menu per night? Thanks. One menu per night. I believe no one knows before that sailing which menu will be on which night (or at least they are not saying.) On the Maiden Voyage they had two nights bookable on-line ahead of the cruise and then added more nights throughout the cruise. The menus alternated. Depending on what nights are available to be booked ahead, in order to ensure a booking you may want to take a chance and book a later evening. Once you get on board check with the Concierge (though La Reserve bookings are actually managed through the Excursions Desk and not through the Dining Room like for the specialty restaurants) to find out if they can say at that point, while you are still in a penalty-free cancellation period, what menu will be available that night. Also depending on how extreme your allergy is, if an item you are allergic to is just on one of the many courses you may choose to simply skip it or, with suitable notice, they can accommodate it with a substitution. On a night we were enjoying La Reserve one person at our table was vegetarian and despite the mostly meat and seafood menu, was well taken care of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted November 6, 2011 #23 Share Posted November 6, 2011 I noticed that there are 2 menus; The Discovery and The Explorer Menu. On the Discovery menu they serve shellfish to which I am extremely allergic. I am sure they will accommodate an allergy. Do you choose between the two or is there one menu per night? Thanks. If your TA or yourself let Oceania know before your cruise they will make sure all your meals are allergy free. Then speak to the Maitre D' once onboard They will deliver menus each night/morning for you to check off what you want for meals daily Then just tell the waiter you have a special meal & your cabin number It will be served along with others at your table Lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bphman Posted November 6, 2011 #24 Share Posted November 6, 2011 I am sure Oceania will take excellent care of me. While on a Princess cruise a few years back, we attended the Chef's Table which was excellent. The Maitre'd contacted all parties to inquire about allergies and dislikes. I was well taken care of and felt as if they went overboard (no pun intended) to accommodate me. I have no problem with fish or mollusks but crustaceans pose a real danger. I am sure I won't starve. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted November 6, 2011 #25 Share Posted November 6, 2011 I am sure Oceania will take excellent care of me. While on a Princess cruise a few years back, we attended the Chef's Table which was excellent. The Maitre'd contacted all parties to inquire about allergies and dislikes. I was well taken care of and felt as if they went overboard (no pun intended) to accommodate me. I have no problem with fish or mollusks but crustaceans pose a real danger. I am sure I won't starve. Thank you. Yes they will take very good care of you YOU must let them know you have a problem with certain foods ;) Lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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