Riviera Update - any further news?

[TomOG]

Any further news as to upgrades/changes made to Riviera while she was in Barcelona recently. I know she is sailing again right now and we board on May 15. Thanks.

[LHT28]

maybe you can post some photos once you are onboard

[rhohea]

A long time crew member friend on board Riviera said the ship looks beautiful.   He was very impressed with the end results.

 

And he is someone who normally does not make comment about things like that.  He said "you will love it".

 

Not embarking until late August so will have to wait and see.

[Jeffxx]

Vessel Finder shows Riviera at port in Ibiza City.

[T&T]

Hey TomOG, if you have time to post some photos that would be awesome!  We had our first cruise on Marina last year and were so hooked that we booked the Riviera for later this year and are already looking for one in 2020.  Although we think Marina and Riviera look amazing as is we're super excited to see the upgrades.  Have an amazing cruise!

[kitty9]

We boarded this morning.  All I can say is, we can’t see much in terms of updating.  Nothing in Martinis, the Casino Bar, the Grand Bar.   There are new chairs in the Terrace cafe, but nothing else.  The carpets remain the same everywhere except in the Owners Suites where they did major updating.  We are in the Vista, and nothing new here.  The biggest change is in Baristas.  They moved the computer room to a much smaller area next to the library, and turned the computer room into a Barista cafe with lots of tables and chairs. It really is quite nice.  I think the major thing they did was technology related.  The interactive TV’s now have everything you might need.  The daily activities, menus for all restaurants, passenger accounts and more.  The movie selections are smaller if you’re used to what they offered the suites, but better if you’re in non-suite rooms.  

[T&T]

Hi Kitty9, thank you so much for the update.  Looking forward to seeing the new Terrace Cafe chairs and Baristas area on Riviera and also a full NEXT refurb if we go on Sirena in 2020.  Have a wonderful cruise!

[LHT28]

thanks for the update Kitty

any photos of the new Barristas area ?

[kitty9]

Upon further review, I now see that there are new mattresses and bedspreads in all the rooms.  They say they replaced all the carpeting throughout, but there are areas where the carpets look old and stained.  

 

I will  post photos of Baristas, but I already see a major design flaw.  Across from where they make the various coffees, along the window overlooking the pool, instead of just having the shelf where one would stand to have their coffee, they added chairs, so  if anyone is sitting on those chairs, there is no room to get by.  You have to walk all the way around to the other side in order to get to the counter.  And if people are sitting in all the chairs, you won’t be able to access the counter at all.  Putting in the chairs is really a big mistake. 

Edited May 16, 2019 by kitty9

[StanandJim]

There have  always been chairs along that counter.  

[kitty9]

Yes, there have been chairs but they expanded the the coffee making area, bumping it out towards the chairs, making the aisle narrower  

[Rob the Cruiser]

Are there additional items besides cakes and cookies being offered in the expanded area?

[LHT28]

2 hours ago, kitty9 said:

Yes, there have been chairs but they expanded the the coffee making area, bumping it out towards the chairs, making the aisle narrower  

 

Thanks  for the photo 

[pna]

Everyone consistently complains about the internet.   With the Interactive TVs being updated, Will be curious if internet was upgraded.  

[kitty9]

pna, I have been trying to post all day, including new photos, and I can tell you, internet sucks.  All day long you’d get a connection for a minute or two, then off it goes for 20 minutes.  This has been going on for hours.  And when you just want to look at any website all you get are messages like “Internet connection lost.  Please contact the local administrator.”  This has nothing to do with not enough bandwidth, because when I tried to get on line all morning, when a vast majority of passengers were off on tours (it was a tender port today, so I couldn’t leave the ship), I was unable to connect at all.  Couldn’t find the computer guy because he apparently was off visiting Sorrento.  

 

In in addition to the above, when you did get a connection, it took 3 to 7 minutes to get what you wanted to fully download. 

[pna]

Bummer on the internet.   No wonder it is free!

 

[LHT28]

3 hours ago, pna said:

Bummer on the internet.   No wonder it is free!

 

it  has been free  for a couple of years  & no problem in most areas

 

[WNcruiser]

Thanks for the updates Kitty. The other thread said that the specialty restaurants were all being updated. Can you provide any information on what, if anything was done? 

 

Thanks! 

[wongri]

May I ask if there is sports channel like tsn available on the tv?

Last year when we were onboard I had to find bars near the ship so my dad could watch hockey  Stanley cup playoffs 

Thank you. 

[Ken the cruiser]

On 5/17/2019 at 6:52 AM, kitty9 said:

pna, I have been trying to post all day, including new photos, and I can tell you, internet sucks.  All day long you’d get a connection for a minute or two, then off it goes for 20 minutes.  This has been going on for hours.  And when you just want to look at any website all you get are messages like “Internet connection lost.  Please contact the local administrator.”  This has nothing to do with not enough bandwidth, because when I tried to get on line all morning, when a vast majority of passengers were off on tours (it was a tender port today, so I couldn’t leave the ship), I was unable to connect at all.  Couldn’t find the computer guy because he apparently was off visiting Sorrento.  

 

In in addition to the above, when you did get a connection, it took 3 to 7 minutes to get what you wanted to fully download. 

Very sorry to hear this about the Internet on the Riviera. We were on the Riviera for 45 days in Oct/Nov and my DW couldn’t stay connected for longer than 2-3 minutes without getting bumped off the router connection which meant she couldn’t send an email with a large attachment as she would get knocked off before it sent. We were hoping during the next dry dock this issue would have been resolved, but I guess not. 

 

When O let every cabin have a free internet connection starting in May 2018, that’s when the issue started. We were on the Sirena in May and the Nautica in July and didn’t run into any issues on the smaller R class ships. However when we were on the Riviera in the fall where all 660+ cabins were allow one account, that’s when the router connectivity issues started to happen. Until they realize they need to upgrade their router connectivity issues in the cabin areas, these issues will continue. 

 

To further support this theory, we are currently on a 30 day SE Asia cruise on the Crystal Symphony (770 pax) and EVERY person has an account that can handle up to 4 devices each and we have yet to have one connectivity issue let along bandwidth issue. BTW I’m on our B1 balcony sending and subsequently editing this post. 

 

Hopefully one day they’ll wake up and solve this issue as the Internet for most folks like us has become part of their daily routine and these router connectivity issues, which is purely a hardware issue, can be easily solved. In our case the Riviera and Marina are nonstarters until they do. 

Edited May 19, 2019 by Ken the cruiser

[ChapalaDave]

Pictures of the refurbishment changes would be most appreciated. Have a wonderful journey.

[RJB]

Sounds like no big deal.  If most of the updates  are in the owners suites who cares.  How many of us will ever sail in them?  Just more useless PR. 

[Paulchili]

On 5/19/2019 at 6:58 PM, Ken the cruiser said:

To further support this theory, we are currently on a 30 day SE Asia cruise on the Crystal Symphony (770 pax) and EVERY person has an account that can handle up to 4 devices each and we have yet to have one connectivity issue let along bandwidth issue.

Along those lines, we are currently on Viking Orion and have 2 accounts per cabin which are continuously signed in - i.e. no need to sign in each time. The ship has around 900 passengers who seem to be on all the time as I see fellow passengers with their devices all around the ship..

Wifi is flawless to the point where I actually streamed 2 full Warriors games (although could not stream the last two); was able to book flights online without any problems. Incidentally, I also watched (streamed) some programs that my Comcast DVR recorded at home as we had many sea days.

Never had any connection or speed problems.
I am a big Oceania fan but if Viking can do this with internet why can’t Oceania? Oceania does so many things better than Viking - I am sure they could do this as well as Viking.

Edited May 22, 2019 by Paulchili

[Hokapontas]

Huh, last September on Marina we had no problems, Skyped the kids several times with no issues. I don't mind logging in, its a non issue. Having modern internet is a requirement though these days, if the ships aren't keeping up, they will lose business till they do.

 

 

[kitty9]

Rob the cruiser, yes, there are a lot more food items in Baristas.  They now have a toaster for bagels and whole wheat toast. In the afternoon they have a larger assortment of small sandwiches.  There’s also a nice selection of fruit. 

 

Wongri, sorry, no sports other than Sky Sports News.  In all honesty, this supposedly new and wonderful technology really stinks.  No more CNN, or any semblance of North American sports.  They have a menu for TV, but it’s nothing but constant repeats of shows like 2 Broke Girls, Will and Grace, NCIS-New Orleans and stuff like that on the TV section. The movie selections leave a lot to be desired.  They have choices like Activities and Entertainment, Bars and Lounges, Explore Ashore and Destinations, but when you click on any of those tabs, there’s nothing other than “Look at your Currents for more information.”  And remember how they used to have a channel that described all the shore excursions?  Well, instead of what there used to be, when you click on “Shore Excursions”, all it tells you is to go to the Destinations Desk or go to the Destinations Channel.  But when you go to the Destinations Channel, there’s nothing.  Now, I thought this interactive TV would list everything so you wouldn’t need Currents,but it’s just badly put together. Another thing is that if you click on Grand Dining Room, you’d expect to see the menu posted.  But there’s nothing but a blurb saying the GDR is an open seating venue. The only upside of these changes is that you can now see your on board account on the TV.  

 

RJB, I was really expecting some WOW upgrades, but other than Baristas, and new carpet, I just don’t see what all the bragging was about. To be honest, there are other areas on board that need updating, including Riviera Lounge.  That venue is looking shabby and very worn.   And knowing they were in dry dock, why is the crew replacing railings and painting the ship when passengers are on board?  The paint is very noxious and has been making passengers ill.  We all know ships need upkeeping, but all this painting has been really, really bad.  I mean, who wants to smell that stuff in the restaurants, but it’s there all day long.

 

I will attempt to post more photos, but they’re not making it easy.

 

And if anyone was wondering who chartered the ship the previous 2 weeks, it was French McDonalds franchise owners and some IT company from the Left Coast.