Shortened time in port

[travelingJimmy]

I know there has been alot of discussion around missed ports on Oceania, but I have a question around shortened port calls.  The last 2 Oceania cruises we were on (Venice to Rome and Lisbon to Amsterdam) just about every port of call was shortened either shortly before departure or right after departure.  It was very frustrating not being able to spend the time we wanted to in port and we were constantly having to update private tour operators as to port time changes.  That to us is more frustrating than the missed ports.  Anyone recently off Oceania that has any feedback?  Has it improved?  Are you seeing about the same?   We are deciding between a Viking and Oceania cruise, both with similar itineraries.   We love Oceania and they are normally our first choice but we would prefer to cruise another cruise lines while Oceania figures out their port issues.  Thanks in advance.

[MEFIowa]

1 minute ago, travelingJimmy said:

... I have a question around shortened port calls.  The last 2 Oceania cruises we were on (Venice to Rome and Lisbon to Amsterdam) just about every port of call was shortened either shortly before departure or right after departure.  It was very frustrating not being able to spend the time we wanted to in port and we were constantly having to update private tour operators as to port time changes....

We did 20-night B2B on Riviera as Trieste to Athens and Athens to Barcelona (10-11/2023). We did NOT experience this. Port after port was fine. Very port intensive cruises. We did miss Livorno but diverted to La Spezia due to weather. Our private tour operator cancelled our trip without charge, for they knew the day before it was changed, as did we. (And there was even a national transportation strike that Friday AM. Had fun marching in the parade in downtown La Spezia. Saw the one communist flag and had to "join" him briefly, since we beat them in the Cold War. I was USAF & SAC, and they've never come back to their former glory years in Italy!)

 

We've got a 22-night B2B on Sirena starting 8/28, so hope our luck holds!

[travelingJimmy]

good feedback.   Thank you.

[Thought2go]

3 hours ago, travelingJimmy said:

Are you seeing about the same

Yes. One of my port calls was already arriving late in the AM, plus was a tender. They have shortened an already short day by an hour. Moved up the departure time.

[babysteps]

Our June 2024 Istanbul - Trieste on Vista had no port time changes. Of course we didn't book until December 2023 so ymmv

[no fuss travel]

I don't think it matters which cruise line you sail with, you can run into this problem.  We had it happen to us on HAL this past year as well as on Oceania on the ATW.  Port authorities, tide changes, storms can make the changes necessary.  Go with the flow.

[travelingJimmy]

49 minutes ago, no fuss travel said:

I don't think it matters which cruise line you sail with, you can run into this problem.  We had it happen to us on HAL this past year as well as on Oceania on the ATW.  Port authorities, tide changes, storms can make the changes necessary.  Go with the flow.

i agree with that to a point.   I have no problem with it happening periodically, but when it is happening on almost every port on almost every cruise, then there is an issue.  It sounds like it has improved, but if you go back a year or so ago, we were seeing it, as were other people seeing it quite a bit, far more than a just a nuisance or a tide or storm or port authority.  

[scvgirl]

On 7/23/2024 at 12:39 PM, MEFIowa said:

We did 20-night B2B on Riviera as Trieste to Athens and Athens to Barcelona (10-11/2023). We did NOT experience this. Port after port was fine. Very port intensive cruises. We did miss Livorno but diverted to La Spezia due to weather. Our private tour operator cancelled our trip without charge, for they knew the day before it was changed, as did we. (And there was even a national transportation strike that Friday AM. Had fun marching in the parade in downtown La Spezia. Saw the one communist flag and had to "join" him briefly, since we beat them in the Cold War. I was USAF & SAC, and they've never come back to their former glory years in Italy!)

 

We've got a 22-night B2B on Sirena starting 8/28, so hope our luck holds!

Hello, following this thread and your B2B comments on the Riviera.  We booked a 28 day B2B and would appreciate any feedback on your experience.  We have sailed on the Marina and Sirena previously, but this will be our first 28 day cruise.  Thank you.

[ronrick1943]

Unless you know the reason for the change--it most likely the Port Authorities not "O".  Ask why next time on the ship.

[MEFIowa]

16 hours ago, scvgirl said:

Hello, following this thread and your B2B comments on the Riviera.  We booked a 28 day B2B and would appreciate any feedback on your experience.  We have sailed on the Marina and Sirena previously, but this will be our first 28 day cruise.

I assume you know Marina is Riviera's sister ship (O class) and that Sirena is one of the four smaller R-class ships.

 

If you are in an A cabin or higher you get free unlimited access to the big therapy pool on Riviera in the forward spa pool area. Neither Marina nor Sirena have one. Great place to relax after a hard day. Big "T-shaped therapy pool. (You can pay for access daily if you're in a G-B Cabin.)

 

We've got our upcoming 22-night B2B on Sirena in the Baltic starting August 28th.

 

We went from an A3 to a B3 on Riviera and are going F to C1 on Sirena. Switching cabins mid-cruise.

[scvgirl]

3 hours ago, MEFIowa said:

I assume you know Marina is Riviera's sister ship (O class) and that Sirena is one of the four smaller R-class ships.

 

If you are in an A cabin or higher you get free unlimited access to the big therapy pool on Riviera in the forward spa pool area. Neither Marina nor Sirena have one. Great place to relax after a hard day. Big "T-shaped therapy pool. (You can pay for access daily if you're in a G-B Cabin.)

 

We've got our upcoming 22-night B2B on Sirena in the Baltic starting August 28th.

 

We went from an A3 to a B3 on Riviera and are going F to C1 on Sirena. Switching cabins mid-cruise.

Yes, we prefer the Marina and Vista class (we sail on Vista in October for the first time after booking it 2-1/2 years ago).  We have sailed Sirena and Nautica, but prefer the larger spaces for a long trip.  We will be sailing from New Zealand to Bali B2B on the Riviera in a B-4 category.  I head that the B-4's on Riviera still have the tub/shower combo and separate shower, but the B-4 category has the extra large shower only.  Is that your experience?  I won't bother you with any more questions and thank you so much for your kind information.

[MEFIowa]

28 minutes ago, scvgirl said:

... We will be sailing from New Zealand to Bali B2B on the Riviera in a B-4 category.  I heard that the B-4's on Riviera still have the tub/shower combo and separate shower, but the B-4 category has the extra large shower only.  Is that your experience?....

We sailed on Riviera 12/2021 pre-fit in an A4 and 10-11/2023, post re-fit, in a B3 & an A3. Our pre-refit A4 was combo shower and tub (wife loves a bathtub) and both the B3 & A3 post re-fit were the extra-large shower.

 

IF you search the threads here you'll see some OPs on the topic. Which lists the specific cabins that remain tub-shower combo. And yes, I do believe that is B4 and A4.

 

Riveria Bathtub Updates - Oceania Cruises - Cruise Critic Community

 

"The Oceania, Vista, and Owner’s Suites will all retain their current shower and bathtub, albeit in spectacularly re-inspired bathrooms.

Penthouse Suites and Staterooms with the bathtub and shower:

PH3: 9138, 9145, 10002, 10003, 10004, 10005, 10008, 10009, 10010, 10011

A4: 9002, 9003, 9004, 9005, 9006, 9007, 9008, 9009, 9010, 9011, 9012, 9019, 9126, 9128, 9130, 9132, 9133, 9134, 9135, 9136, 9137, 9139, 9141, 9143

B4: 7010, 7011, 7012, 7014, 7015, 7016, 7017, 7018, 7019, 7020, 7021, 7022, 7023, 7024, 7025, 7026, 7027, 7028, 7029, 7031, 7102, 7104, 7105, 7106, 7107, 7109"

[Redtravel]

Usually the itinerary times are listed and observed. I have skipped some ports on Oceania. Never got refund of port charges. We got statements stating the reason. Some were true. Some were ridiculous. Some were lies.  Bad weather, strike, rough seas, broken dock, etc. When we were on Sirena in March 2020, we skipped all but 2 ports.  It was the last cruise before cruising was stopped due to Covid. Ship never acknowledged Covid prevented us from docking. After first day, ship was in norovirus mode.  We were on the cruise to nowhere.  We got info from tv and internet. That cruise should’ve been canceled. 

[all2me]

Redtravel, this sounds horrible! I would have cried alot! Have you cruised since? Oceania?

[MEFIowa]

2 hours ago, Redtravel said:

... When we were on Sirena in March 2020, we skipped all but 2 ports.  It was the last cruise before cruising was stopped due to Covid. Ship never acknowledged Covid prevented us from docking. After first day, ship was in norovirus mode.  We were on the cruise to nowhere.  We got info from tv and internet. That cruise should’ve been canceled. 

 

15 minutes ago, all2me said:

Redtravel, this sounds horrible! I would have cried a lot! Have you cruised since? Oceania?

Reminder of how much COVID weirdness there was in 2020 & 2021 into early 2022.

 

Booked our very first cruise ever in 01/2021 for a 12/2021 cruise. O was trying to restart in May but cancelled May, then June, etc. Then it finally restarted around Oct. And we did our cruise. They did the mandatory COVID testing for free in a tent by Terminal J. We had just 719 passengers on Riviera and were treated like royalty. An amazing cruise in the W. Caribbean. Hit all the itineraries there. And the locals welcomed us like saviors, for their tourist industries. Whether playing with sloths or swimming with dolphins & manatees or just walking all over Belize City. We didn't mask or socially distance. No one seemed sick. BUT then we came back on 12/23/21 and the new strain was out around the world undoing everything. Read how miserable, different, the next cruise was on Riveria.