juanpablo Posted April 8, 2012 #1 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Hello I'm new to the world of cruising. My husband and I are going on the Oceania Riviera in August and I was wondering if anyone can give me hints on dress code drinks packages and ports of call. We are doing Venice, Dubrovnik, Kotor, Corfu,Taomina, Amalfi, Orbia, Livorno, Monte Carlo. Would it be advisable to book trips or potter around these places ourselves. All help gratefully received , Thankyou.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted April 8, 2012 #2 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Welcome to the Oceania forum These have all been discussed recently so there is a "search " feature (top right) just put one of the items in there EG: dress Code you will get many threads on the subject Failing that just scroll down the page Enjoy the cruise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoHoHo Posted April 8, 2012 #3 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Hello I'm new to the world of cruising. My husband and I are going on the Oceania Riviera in August and I was wondering if anyone can give me hints on dress code drinks packages and ports of call. We are doing Venice, Dubrovnik, Kotor, Corfu,Taomina, Amalfi, Orbia, Livorno, Monte Carlo. Would it be advisable to book trips or potter around these places ourselves. All help gratefully received , Thankyou.:) As LHT28 points out a search here, on the little toolbar just above the top of this forum, will search this forum for topics you are asking about. That said on the main page right now there's a pretty good discussion of the drink packages and one on dress. As for visiting ports whether you choose to take a tour or venture out on your own really depends on your own style. Many people do like to take tours and many who are on Cruise Critic seem to enjoy arranging private tours versus taking ships excursions. You can meet up with other passengers on the same cruise in the Rollcall section of Cruise Critic. They will be a great source of information on your specific cruise and happy to have to join in the discussion. A thread is been started for your cruise here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1553261 If you want to research individual ports the Ports of Call section of CC is also very good for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capecodder2 Posted April 8, 2012 #4 Share Posted April 8, 2012 There have been a few book on ports of call in the Mediterranean which might be helpful - I would look at it before buying one because sometimes half the book is about ship, etc., which you don't need since you have decided on Oceania. Venice, we enjoyed buying a vaporetto day ticket and had picked out what we wanted to see and did our own. Kotor and Dubrovnik, if this is your first time in either place, the old walled cities are great to just wander around in. Cruising up the "fjord" into Kotor is amazing. If you haven't been to Florence, Pisa, or other sightseeing greats near Livorno, I would opt for a ship excursion (it is a long drive and you want to be sure to get back before sailing time). We enjoyed walking around Monte Carlo, and had seen the area around it before. Amalfi has lots to see, you should do some research and decide what is best and must-see for you. Many will tell you to do independent tours rather than ship tours but there are cons as well as pros for doing that. I, personally, don't think Oceania's ship excursions are any higher priced than other cruise lines. We have been on some wonderful ones, and not so wonderul, but that is true of independent tours with a group of people you don't know as well. Think about what you would prefer for your first cruise. You will have a fabulous time I'm sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbwex Posted April 8, 2012 #5 Share Posted April 8, 2012 As for the dress code, it is very simple on Oceania. Country club casual for dinner in the Main Dining Room (MDR) and all specialty dining venues. There are no formal nights. Men need to wear slacks (dockers or better) and a collared shirt for dinner. Please don't ask me to give a useful description of the equivalent clothing for women! We have not availed ourselves of the drink packages, so you will have to wait for someone else to answer on that one. As for the tours, we prefer private tours in most cases -- we have used a ship's tour in places where you only needed a half-day tour, but generally we have either done a private tour, or just done a do-it-yourself walking tour. I think the most efficient thing is to go to the Ports of Call section, and then the European ports section. Start by reading mostly and once you start to get the drift of what to do where, then start asking questions. In simply reading, you will get to know who the good tour operators are, and then you can ask specific questions to compare a couple of operators if need be. Private tours end up being cheaper if there are at least four or more people (meet up and get together with people via the Roll Call), they are more nimble in traffic than large buses, you get a more intimate tour with the guide since there are so few people (8 - 10 is a good upper range), you will do things they won't on the big tours, and you can find things on the Ports of Call section and add them to the tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJH123 Posted April 8, 2012 #6 Share Posted April 8, 2012 The previous posters have given you excellent advice. As many have suggested, we too prefer the private tours because of the increased interaction with the guide; it's like traveling with a long lost cousin. We have often paid more for what we perceive to be a quality experience. You will find suggestions and recommendations for private guides on this board and also on Trip Advisor, just be careful as there are some that self-promote. In addition to Guide Books, CC, and TA, I also look on the Oceania website for the tours offered on our itinerary or another earlier cruise with the same ports to see what they consider to be the highlights. Have fun planning, you will love the Oceania experience! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cathy Maneri Posted April 9, 2012 #7 Share Posted April 9, 2012 From a women's point of view on the dress code, I was just on the Marina for 12 nights. We ate mostly in the Terrace Cafe, except for one night in each of the specialty restaurants. Dress for the Terrace Cafe and Dining Room is nice casual. A nice pair of dress slacks and blouse is fine. I found the ship to be a little cool, so I wore nice sweaters with tops and slacks. But the Specialty restaurants I found a bit warm because of the halogen lights they use. Since it was a Caribbean cruise and I wore white dress jeans with nice tops to the Terrace Cafe. Dress for the specialty restaurants, the women seemed to be a bit more dressed. Dresses, pants suits and more jewelry. Word of advice...if you are travelling by yourselves, you could wear the same outfit to the specialty restaurants twice. Therefore, packing a bit lighter. Two dresses would take up less space, and I will do that for my next cruise instead of separates. I wore low 1-1/2" inch strappy sandals, since the ship has a tendency to rock at night when you are cruising to the next port of call. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruin Steve Posted April 9, 2012 #8 Share Posted April 9, 2012 Hello I'm new to the world of cruising. My husband and I are going on the Oceania Riviera in August and I was wondering if anyone can give me hints on dress code drinks packages and ports of call. We are doing Venice, Dubrovnik, Kotor, Corfu,Taomina, Amalfi, Orbia, Livorno, Monte Carlo. Would it be advisable to book trips or potter around these places ourselves. All help gratefully received, Thankyou.:) First of all, welcome to the world of cruising...and welcome to Cruise Critic. For a first cruise, you picked a good one--you will be spoiled... Dress Code: It is quite simple on Oceania. There are no formal nights as on some other cruise lines (where you must get dressed certain nights in Tuxedos and Gowns)...Every night is "Casual"--which, of course, does not mean TOO casual--no swimming attire, shorts, flip flops, tank tops, jeans, etc.--but nice attire--long slacks and a sports shirt for the men, a casual dress or skirt and blouse or pants and blouse for the women...FOR DINNER...During the day and in port, dress for comfort...Shorts and T-shirts if you like, swim wear for lounging on the pool deck, whatever... Drink Packages: I don't do them..."Pay as you go" works just fine for us...If you don't drink very large quantities, you just pay by the drink...order a drink and it goes onto your account...There is no need to carry cash around the ship...Everything goes on your card--which acts as charge card, room key and identification...keep it with you at all times...Of course, the only things that aren't included are alcoholic beverages, gift shop purchases and gambling...and gratuities can be added to your account as well--Custom on cruise ships, BTW, goes on the American System--so gratuities ARE expected--it's how the staff makes their wages...There is a recommended amount and I would stick to it--in the least...add to it if you want--if some crew member goes way out of his/her way for you... Ports: There are three basic ways to handle any port: 1) Ship's excursion 2) Private tour 3) "On your own" First let's talk about "On your own". This is where you just get off the ship with nothing arranged, likely either just walk around...or grab a taxi or public transportation. There are a lot of "On your own" advocates on this board. But I really do not recommend this unless you really know the port well and have thoroughly researched the logistics. In Europe, many of the "sights" are far from the docks and require some form of transportation. And this may be difficult, especially if one does not speak the local language or know the quirks of the local bus and train systems. OTOH, it does work for a limited number of ports--mostly smaller, walkable ones...But, before you rely on this as a method, research the port well and know what you want to see and how you will get there. Private tours are a great way to see many ports. The advantage is not necessarily price. In some ports, private guides are quite reasonable, in others not. Usually, they are not cost effective if you have a party of only 2 or 4...You usually need at least 6 if not 8 in your party just to bring the cost to comparable with the shore excursion prices...And realize that you are usually talking a little "apples and oranges". the shore excursions typically include all admissions charges and often lunch whereas, on most private tours, those are extra...So make sure to consider all of your costs. The real advantages to a private tour are 1) You move around in a group of 6 or 8 or 10 so you can move faster and see more than if in a large bus with 30+ people loading and unloading...and you can actually stay close to and hear your guide. Also, you can customize your tour--adding sights you want to see, cutting time in those you (or your group) find uninteresting. There are some minuses that few really understand here as well. In some European countries (Italy most notably) most of the recommended "guides" are not properly licensed as guides. This requires a special license...So, the guides one usually sees on here are really "drivers". By law in Italy, they cannot enter any of the tourist sites (Churches, museums, archaeological sites, etc such as the Vatican or Pompeii) with you. They can merely provide commentary while driving, then must drop you off at the sites to visit on your own. It works okay on some trips, not on others. If you take one of these drivers to Pompeii, for example, you must arrange for an additional paid licensed guide at Pompeii if you want commentary on the grounds. Since most of us don't usually travel in groups of 6 or 8 or more, best way to put together or to join a group is to visit the Roll Call boards here and find people with whom you share common interests and capabilities. The Ship's shore excursions (or "Shorexes") are often given a bad rap on these boards. There are actually many good features. First, they will pick you up right from the ship and make sure you get back to the ship on time. They are often very all-inclusive--Guides, admission fees, lunches. You don't have any of the logistical issues you do with a private tour--no worry as to where to meet your guide or how dependable they may be. No worry about your tour mates flaking out on you. No concern about pre-payment (though you do prepay, the payment is completely refundable if for some reason the ship skips the port or if you cancel 24 hours ahead). The major drawback, as far as I am concerned, is that often you are just in too big a group--30-40 people on a big bus...You deal with a lot of waiting for everyone to get on and get off. You tend to see a little less because of the sluggishness of moving the big group. Some of the shorexes are a bit costly for what you get...but, realize that the cruise line has some administrative costs as well...and they contract these out to local providers. Of course, often we've gotten lucky...We had a shorex with only 11 passengers (and two guides) in Rome a few years back...and one with only 19 in Livorno that same cruise...and we had one in Livorno this past summer with only 16...Of course, those are more the exception than the rule--usually because we've done some "Not the usual" shorexes--going, say, to San Gimignano and Volterra rather than to Florence... Different methods of touring work well for different people. Some people just don't deal well with structure, crave adventure and find the local culture a challenge...and they like challenges...and they like to hold to a tight budget. "On your own" works well for them. Others are perfectionists and planners who like to plan every detail and like to fit as much into their touring day as they can. Private tours are the way to go for these people. Still others just want things to be easy and uncomplicated...Whatever they can see on a shorex is still a full day and gives them enough to feel they've seen the port. Shorexes work well for them. For us, we do a combination. I check the availability of recommended local guides and the relative cost and if I can put together a good private tour, I'll go with that. In ports where private guides are difficult to find or expensive in price, I will check the offered shorexes and book one. In ports I have visited many times and know very well or in smaller, walkable ports where none of the shorexes thrill me, I will just plan on visiting on my own. Do your research and consider what works well for YOU. But don't let anyone tell you that any method you choose is "wrong". My two cents on your ports: Venice: Assuming you start here. I hope you choose to fly in early and spend a couple of extra days here. Buy a Vaporetti pass for public transportation by bus/boat all over the city and to Murano, Burano, Lido et al. This is a wonderful city just to wander around and soak it all in. Buy the AAA Spiral Guide- Venice for great maps and suggested walking tours. Dubrovnik: This is a rather small, compact town and can easily be seen “on your own”. One favorite activity is to “Walk the walls”. For a small charge, you can climb on top of the medieval city walls and walk around, enjoying the views. That said, we’ve done a couple of Shorexes here. The one that went to Cavtat was regrettable, though we really enjoyed the one we did on our last visit—the shorex to the farm/winery. Kotor: Another small medieval walled city, doable on your own. We did a shorex here that went also to Budva, another walled medieval city on the beach—and really enjoyed Budva as well. Corfu: We love Corfu...You can wander town on your own, but I would recommend a shore excursion that rides around the island and visits the Achilleion Palace... Taomina: The ship docks in Naxos, so you’ll need a tour of some kind. When we went, we found local guides priced too high, so took a shorex. Amalfi: The popular “private guide—really driver” trip here is a tour of the Amalfi Coast…nicely done with a driver BUT…the problem is in missing Pompeii…Pompeii is spectacular. The drivers don’t push it because they cannot go with you. Either take a shorex or arrange it with your driver to hire the extra licensed guide. Orbia: I haven't been there... Livorno: There are many places worth visiting from here--but most are at a distance...Florence would be the #1 attraction, but the farthest from port...San Gimignano is enchanting, Volterra, Lucca, Pisa--all worthwhile...but you'll have to choose...If you are a first-timer, go with Florence...Save the others for future visits... Monte Carlo: You can do Monte Carlo on your own, but it is not as exciting as it sounds…A shorex or tour is in order here because you might really want to go visit some nearby towns. Eze is popular…We like St. Paul de Vence even better. This summer, we did a private tour to Grasse (perfume factory), Gourdon and St. Paul de Vence—very nice. Hope this all helps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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