Live from Oceania Marina South Pacific

[mringenoldus]

For those of you with upcoming Marina cruises, you are in for a treat! We are half way through our trip from Papeete to Lima, so I wanted to pass along a few observations. This itinerary has a number of sea days. The amount of activities held during the day is rather light, so you need to be a person that can amuse yourself or enjoys the rest and relaxation. I am always amazed at how fast a sea day flies by!

 

Pros

The PH level cabin is incredibly comfortable and the walk in closet is a luxury.

Our butler and room attendant are unfailingly professional and friendly.

David Shemet is the cruise director. I have had David before so was glad to see him back (not a huge fan of David Peterson).

Our midship cabin is perfectly placed by the elevators/stairs and the executive lounge. I am surprised so many people sit in there to read and watch TV! The library has some wonderful leather chairs and ottomans.

The laundry room is never very busy and has a TV and water bottles )also used to refill the steam irons) Still $2 token to wash and the same to dry.

Tea time is really lovely and a great opportunity for a small bite before dinner. They have had themes like cupcake tea and cheesecake tea.

 

Not quite as fond of....

The boat drill was held the morning after embarkation. This was a port day so delayed everyone from their tour plans. As several hundred of us arrived at 7:30 pm it is curious that this wasn't a planned sea day.

The casino is the weakest feature on the ship. The games are few, old and tired. The seats are like very uncomfortable stools. The manager told me he is working on getting more updated slots.

There is no duty free liquor sold onboard.

The food is a little lack luster - but that has not stopped us from eating our fair share of it!

The late night trivia staff seems challenged to pronounce even well-known terms (bocce and The Louvre come to mind)

One of our friends has the all access drink card - I think it is ridiculous that they want to charge him additionally for the various tastings. It makes no sense since he can order all the items individually for free. I also mentioned on a survey that we would have purchased a beer and wine card for my husband if it was good throughout the day.

Due to the size of the crowd playing trivia, it is held in the Marina lounge. The row seating is not ideal. Horizons is not available due to tea time.

Sorry to say, although the sea appeared calm, we didn't make it on to Pitcairn. Is it coincidental that this saved the cruise line $50 per person to enter the island?

 

Nothing on the "cons" list could take away from the wonderful time we are having traveling with friends on this cruise! The Marina is a smooth daily comfortable ship with a great staff!

 

 

 

 

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[Mura]

I'm only addressing a few of your comments since we haven't done this itinerary although we HAVE been on Marina twice, and have two upcoming Marina itineraries.

 

[i cut the "pros" since I totally agreed with you]

 

 

Not quite as fond of....

 

The boat drill was held the morning after embarkation. This was a port day so delayed everyone from their tour plans. As several hundred of us arrived at 7:30 pm it is curious that this wasn't a planned sea day.

 

Your itinerary has some particular problems due to arrival and boarding times. (In Europe, my experience recently has been that the drill is held 5-5:15 pm.) It wasn't planned on a sea day because since the Concordia disaster they do the drill BEFORE departure. Yes, it's more convenient on a sea day but they just don't do that anymore. We have had cruises (pre-Concordia) where they did so.

 

 

[sNIP]

The food is a little lack luster - but that has not stopped us from eating our fair share of it!

 

Lackluster on any Oceania ship? I know that not everyone is the fan of the O food that many of us are, but I've never had what I would call "lackluster food" on Marina. Different strokes ...

 

[sNIP]

 

 

Due to the size of the crowd playing trivia, it is held in the Marina lounge. The row seating is not ideal. Horizons is not available due to tea time.

 

This is a standard complaint about Trivia on the "O" ships ... as I just posted elsewhere, we aren't Trivia people but I know I'd make the same complaint. It's much easier on the "R" ships to have Trivia groups in the "theater" since you can gather around each other. That's hard to do in the "O" theaters.

 

 

Sorry to say, although the sea appeared calm, we didn't make it on to Pitcairn. Is it coincidental that this saved the cruise line $50 per person to enter the island?

 

Nope, I don't think so. Other cruises have managed it. We missed a most desired Caribbean port years ago because of weather (San Blas). That was the luck of the draw. I think that's what happened to you as well.

 

I understand your unhappiness ... I would be unhappy as well in that situation. Pitcairn must have been a highlight on your itinerary.

 

Nothing on the "cons" list could take away from the wonderful time we are having traveling with friends on this cruise! The Marina is a smooth daily comfortable ship with a great staff!

I certainly agree with you there!

 

Mura

[TKS]

Thanks for your update, Maureen. Wish we were there with you, but it was not to be.

 

Please continue posting your experiences, so we can experience the great cruise through your eyes.

 

Kay & Tarmo

[hypercafe]

Thanks for taking the time to share your trip with us. I always enjoy other peoples view of the Oceania experience and compare it to mine. Gives you food for thought.

[avalong]

Interesting review! Could you please expand a bit on what you mean by "lackluster" food?

[mringenoldus]

Kay and Tarmo - you have to promise yourselves to do this itinerary soon! Wish you were here.

 

Mura - we left Papeete at 11:00pm. The next morning at 8:30 am, the ship held the compulsory drill. (They have 24 hours after sailing to do so). Unfortunately, many people had excursions which had to be delayed until the drill was over. Given we have so many sea days, we wondered why the didn't make the day after embarkation a sea day so people didn't have to get up early and there would be no conflict with the drill. Certainly wasn't a big deal - just a bit curious.

 

Mura and Avalong - the food is delicious - and I have eaten plenty of it to attest to that. However, I think the difference I see in presentation and "that little extra something" is due to the larger passenger population which is almost double the R-7 ships. Last night the 72-hour slow cooked short rib entree was fantastic! I also love the creme brûlée. Dinner in Privee is from the Toscana and Polo menus but the experience is really special!

 

Speaking of lifeboat drills - we have to go to another one this morning as it is required after 14 days.

 

More later :)

Maureen

[wripro]

Wbat I don't understand is that even if you left Papeete at 11PM weren't passengers on board by 4 or 5PM? Why not hold the muster drill then?

[mringenoldus]

Because the charter flight did not land until 7:30 pm. about 25% of the passengers weren't onboard until almost 9:00pm.

 

We are spending the next two days at Easter Island. We have been advised that the tendering will be slower than typical because only one tender can pass through the channel at a time. I know the guide I have arranged for about 40 of us is very familiar with our landing process, so no problem there.

 

Following Easter Island, there are quite a few activities planned for our final four days at sea including the country fair. This is always a lot of fun and each ship department runs a little game based on what they do. The fair is held around the pool deck.

 

Speaking of the staff - can't say enough about their cheerfulness and attentiveness. A skeptic might say they are paid to do this - but if so - they do it so well and so naturally it makes the passengers feel very special and incredibly well cared for.

[Acrusa]

When you arrive in Lima,are you doing a post to Machu Picchu?We where on the Marina in Feb Papeete to Sydney.The ship food and staff where fantastic.We are booked next January on the Regatta Miami to Lima.We booked Oceanias Deluxe tour to Machu Picchu.Just curious.

[mringenoldus]

A small group of us from the ship are booked with Kuoda Travel to Machu Picchu. I have been very impressed with how highly professional they have been in the per planning stages. They will meet us at the ship and eventually deliver us to the Lima airport a few days later..

[Floridiana]

Pitcairn Island - I have been reading losts of trip reports and none of the ships tendered at Pitcairn. If weather permits, ships stop and have the locals come out on their longboat.

[vlthom]

According to the gal from Pitcairn who came on board and spoke in the Lounge, only one ship out of the last 14, has been able to bring passengers ashore.

 

 

 

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[Mumofnine]

I am sure that safety of passengers and crew are number 1 priority; on previous cruise, "Tahitian Pearls", sea swells at Rarotonga increased dramatically as day progressed making the return to ship quite an experience! The tender and tender platform crews did a fantastic job ensuring we were all safely back on Marina.

[Paulchili]

Pitcairn Island - I have been reading losts of trip reports and none of the ships tendered at Pitcairn. If weather permits, ships stop and have the locals come out on their longboat.

 

Very true - this is indeed the case, at least until they finish their new harbor for cruise ships.

[mringenoldus]

We had very calm seas but still didn't get to go ashore. The islanders did come out with their market supplies. It was rather ironic that our tender couldn't make it but their very basic boat had no problem.

 

The residents are waiting for UK help to pay for the concrete road to the new pier. They believe then more will be able to land. Only 81 people landed this year.

[rallydave]

We had very calm seas but still didn't get to go ashore. The islanders did come out with their market supplies. It was rather ironic that our tender couldn't make it but their very basic boat had no problem.

 

The residents are waiting for UK help to pay for the concrete road to the new pier. They believe then more will be able to land. Only 81 people landed this year.

 

More than likely it is New Zealand they are waiting to pay for the road but, even if we were able to land, no infrastructure there and not easy to move ships passengers anywhere as believe they only have motorcycles and 4-wheelers on the Island and with only 47 people living there, how would or could they take care of 1200 people coming off a cruise ship.

 

Went there last year and did cruise around the Island and go a running commentary but, the Islanders couldn't come on board as they had many people sick with the Flu. Didn't see anything that could support a medium or large cruise ship and most of the houses were up on the hillsides with gravel roads and walking paths. Not a car to be seen let alone a bus or minivan.

[TERRIER1]

Same with Hiva Oa. The island was on our port of call and then cancelled due to "lack of infrastructure". However, Oceania still had it as a port of call for all the cruise the following year. I don't believe the ship ever made it there so why leave it on the agenda?

[mringenoldus]

Jacqui Christian explained during her talk that the UK sends $100,000 per person on the island to support the infrastructure annually. At this time they don't have sufficient funds to finish concreting the road to the new pier. The pier itself is anticipated to cost quite a bit less than the road.

 

New Zealand is not involved in the financial support of the island but does provide the single police officer assigned there. They also have a doctor and teacher on annual contracts.

 

The 81 people who were able to land this season came from a small ship in military zodiacs. Had we been able to land, we would have been able to walk up the Hill of Difficulty (or wait for the $2 quad ride) to visit the housing settlement and see other areas of interest. We were glad to have the opportunity to meet the islanders and many of us had time to eat lunch and chat with them before they left at 2:00pm. The captain also took the ship around the island while a resident narrated what we were seeing. It was a really fun day despite the inability to land.

 

FYI - Pitcairn charges the cruise line $50pp if the passengers are able to come ashore.

[ceba]

We are booked for this trip next April. We have also booked the deluxe MP tour after with Oceania, but am curious about your private tour. I hope you will share your review of it also.

[Floridiana]

It was rather ironic that our tender couldn't make it but their very basic boat had no problem.

 

 

The islanders are obviously a hardier lot than cruiseship passengers.

 

A true story: We were on a tender in a harmless swell to the San Blas islands in Panama. One woman kept repeating over and over and over: I can't believe they are taking us there in rough weather. I don't think she realized that she was in a lifeboat built for really rough seas. While she was repeating her mantra, the locals were out in small boats, some of them hollowed tree trunks.

 

Thank you for your information on Pitcairn!

Hiva Oa's infrastructure is much better than Pitcairn's, but some islands are too much of a contrast to the environment of luxury ships. I was on Hiva Oa twice with 10 years in between and they still had the same rickety schoolbus with wooden benches.

[mringenoldus]

Ceba - I will be glad to post about the extension tour. Kuoda customized a tour for us. We will quickly leave Cuzco to minimize the effects of the altitude for the Sumaq hotel in the Sacred Valley. During the past year, we have received several emails from the company highlighting its community outreach efforts, which impressed me.

 

Last night was busy with the Captain's party for returning guests and dinner at Red Ginger followed by late night trivia. Red Ginger is the most unique of the specialty dining venues and shouldn't be missed. We must have dulled our senses with the Captain's free drinks because for the first time since sailing, we didn't place in the trivia quiz :(

 

Today is the first of a two-day tour with James of Easter Island Spirit. James wrote the most note able book about the island. Forty-four of us from the roll call will be divided into small groups. The next two days are the reason many of the passengers selected this itinerary

[TKS]

Have a spectacular time, Maureen! Kay

[mringenoldus]

We are now beginning our final four sea days into Lima. We had spectacular weather for our two days at Easter Island. Anyone going to this port needs to be aware that the tender process will be lengthy....very lengthy. Only one tender could enter the port area channel at a time. We left for our 9:00 tour at 11:00. On the second day, some people showed up in the lounge waiting area at 6am to be on the first tender leaving at 7:30.

 

The guides are well aware of the tendering issue and simply waited. They were still able to get us to the major sites. Also be aware that some of the sights have rather steep uphill climbs to reach the artifacts. We have some beautiful photos because the sky was so blue as a background. There is a lovely little beach near some moai, but unfortunately no time to swim. We also didn't get to go into the town itself when we returned from the tour for fear of missing the last tender.

 

Today is the popular country fair on the pool deck. I am a bit disappointed not to be able to participate as it conflicts with the culinary class. I'm not sure why they scheduled two very sought after events at exactly the same time?? Oh, well........

 

Tomorrow, our roll call has scheduled a slot pull and roulette wheel spin. Many thanks to our roll call organizer for her work in keeping the list and delivering invitations while on board!

 

 

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[Snowcold14]

• We are just finishing up the Oceania cruise from Tahiti to Lima. As usual the food has been absolutely wonderful. But we have been very disappointed with the ship's ability to tender passengers off the ship. They cancelled (as always) the Pitcairn Island stop and forced passengers who had not booked the Oceania shore excursions for Easter Island to wait in line for one hour and then it was two more hours before we were tendered ashore. It took the entire morning just to get off the ship and by then our private tour had left! Last cruise Oceania also cancelled two tender ports. Is this a trend with Oceania?
  

[Paulchili]

• We are just finishing up the Oceania cruise from Tahiti to Lima. As usual the food has been absolutely wonderful. But we have been very disappointed with the ship's ability to tender passengers off the ship. They cancelled (as always) the Pitcairn Island stop and forced passengers who had not booked the Oceania shore excursions for Easter Island to wait in line for one hour and then it was two more hours before we were tendered ashore. It took the entire morning just to get off the ship and by then our private tour had left! Last cruise Oceania also cancelled two tender ports. Is this a trend with Oceania?
  

 

Tendering to Easter Island is a unique situation as only 1 tender can enter the port at a time - thus significantly slowing down the tendering process.

Those who are regulars here and have been informed about this are better prepared. One must be in the lounge very early and thus one (or one's group) can actually tender even before the first Oceania group leaves - that is what happened on our cruise with one private group. Otherwise there will be a lengthy wait. I am surprised your private guide/tour did not wait for you - they are aware of the problem of tendering (unless you showed up in the lounge much later than others in your group). :confused:

mringenoldus' guide waited for them even though they were 2 hours later than scheduled; our guide waited for us even though we were delayed quite a bit.

I am sorry that you missed your tour and thus had a poor experience there.

Edited May 3, 2014 by Paulchili