Just got my documents from Oceania…

[Thought2go]

Just spoke with a friend who I believe is on Sirena out of NYC. Ask him if he had gotten his packet- he said no. His TA told him that Oceania no longer does the packets-everything comes out on computer a month before the cruise and he has to print it out. Told him about everyone here getting their Oceania packet. He is not a happy camper as he runs a highly corporate booked life. He is in the middle of a heavy negotiation and even his Secretary is up against the wall -lots of overtime.

I suggested he contact Oceania directly and see about getting the packet of documents then when he gets back find a new TA.

Shame on his TA.

Edited Monday at 10:14 PM by Thought2go

[AMHuntFerry]

38 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

Another question, in the MDR are there some evenings that are "Gala" or special?  When we cruise elsewhere, I try not to book specialty restaurants on the formal or gala nights, as I don't want to miss the better than usual food there.

The GDR menu will be different each night, but that's all that changes...no special nights except the rare holiday meal. The Terrace will likely have 2 adjacent nights of a "chef's dinner" with a local theme; those are sometimes worth skipping the GDR (depends on the competing menu though).

[Stockjock]

2 hours ago, Thought2go said:

Just spoke with a friend who I believe is on Sirena out of NYC. Ask him if he had gotten his packet- he said no. His TA told him that Oceania no longer does the packets-everything comes out on computer a month before the cruise and he has to print it out. Told him about everyone here getting their Oceania packet. He is not a happy camper as he runs a highly corporate booked life. He is in the middle of a heavy negotiation and even his Secretary is up against the wall -lots of overtime.

I suggested he contact Oceania directly and see about getting the packet of documents then when he gets back find a new TA.

Shame on his TA.

When is his sail date?  Maybe they haven't sent it to him just yet.  I'm roughy 50 days out and got it this past Friday.  Nothing yet for the GF, but I did call and they said they'll get back to me, as that department was closed for the day.

Sounds like the TA doesn't do a lot of business with Oceania and didn't know how they roll, in that regard.  Possibly a forgivable sin, as most lines now do everything by computer and e-mail, as you likely know.
 

Edited Tuesday at 12:36 AM by Stockjock

[Stockjock]

33 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

When is his sail date?  Maybe they haven't sent it to him just yet.  I'm roughy 50 days out and got it this past Friday.  Nothing yet for the GF, but I did call and they said they'll get back to me, as that department was closed for the day.

Sounds like the TA doesn't do a lot of business with Oceania and didn't know how they roll, in that regard.  Possibly a forgivable sin, as most lines now do everything by computer and e-mail, as you likely know.
 

Since he mentioned travel agents, a minor gripe of my own.

Sometimes I use TAs, sometimes I don't.  I needed to use one on this sailing to get the Amex Platinum Cruise Privileges perks, which was $300 OBC, a bottle of wine, and an invite to a wine tasting event.  The TA can work for any company, but they must have that Amex approval.  This TA gave me $150 additional OBC, which helped, although Oceania still doesn't see it, as of this afternoon.  It was a relatively inexpensive sailing, fwiw.

In early March, I noticed a sale that seemed to be more attractive (it included drinks w/meals and a $400 credit for excursions, mine included none of that.)  I called Oceania but they wouldn't discuss it with me, as I was booked through a TA.  I e-mailed the TA, asking about it, but never heard back.  I got busy and went on to other things and the sale ended without a reply.

At the end of June, they did another sale and it appeared that prices had dropped again.  E-mailed the TA, reminding them about my March message, and received a reply that they were traveling and would call me on Tuesday (2 days after this message).  By Thursday, I had not heard back, so I put in a phone call.  I was concerned that the sale was ending and also, Amex had another promotion that was about to expire, not to mention more cabin for the money, or maybe I'd even upgrade further.

I got a call back on Friday with some numbers.  I knew that the sale was about to end, and I think we could have gotten that done if I gave her a "yes" on the spot, but there was now no way to trigger the Amex offer, which was 10 Amex Rewards points for each dollar spent.

Because of the late response, at least in part, I didn't do the deal.  Part of that is definitely on me, but had I heard back from the TA a bit earlier, or been able to work with Oceania myself, I probably would have gotten a somewhat better deal, coupled with 10 x Amex points on the upgrade.

Oh well, this agent seems very experienced and has been more good than not, but I was a bit bothered by this.

Edited Tuesday at 12:59 AM by Stockjock

[FetaCheese]

@Stockjock

It's unfortunate that your TA could not respond to your important request for service on your booking.

 

The agency I use has a customer service department to handle routine service requests after booking.

 

In the event that one's personal agent is not available, when for instance, time sensitive issues such as sale re-pricing requests arise, another agent will step in to accommodate one's issue.

Edited Tuesday at 01:25 AM by FetaCheese

[Thought2go]

2 hours ago, Stockjock said:

When is his sail date?  Maybe they haven't sent it to him just yet.  I'm roughy 50 days out and got it this past Friday.  Nothing yet for the GF, but I did call and they said they'll get back to me, as that department was closed for the day.

Sounds like the TA doesn't do a lot of business with Oceania and didn't know how they roll, in that regard.  Possibly a forgivable sin, as most lines now do everything by computer and e-mail, as you likely know.
 

Next month-Nov -arriving in Miami Dec 4

[1985rz1]

15 hours ago, Stockjock said:

This TA gave me $150 additional OBC, which helped, although Oceania still doesn't see it, as of this afternoon.

TA SBC doesn’t normally appear until boarding.

[1985rz1]

15 hours ago, Stockjock said:

Since he mentioned travel agents, a minor gripe of my own.

Sometimes I use TAs, sometimes I don't.  I needed to use one on this sailing to get the Amex Platinum Cruise Privileges perks, which was $300 OBC, a bottle of wine, and an invite to a wine tasting event.  The TA can work for any company, but they must have that Amex approval.  This TA gave me $150 additional OBC, which helped, although Oceania still doesn't see it, as of this afternoon.  It was a relatively inexpensive sailing, fwiw.

In early March, I noticed a sale that seemed to be more attractive (it included drinks w/meals and a $400 credit for excursions, mine included none of that.)  I called Oceania but they wouldn't discuss it with me, as I was booked through a TA.  I e-mailed the TA, asking about it, but never heard back.  I got busy and went on to other things and the sale ended without a reply.

At the end of June, they did another sale and it appeared that prices had dropped again.  E-mailed the TA, reminding them about my March message, and received a reply that they were traveling and would call me on Tuesday (2 days after this message).  By Thursday, I had not heard back, so I put in a phone call.  I was concerned that the sale was ending and also, Amex had another promotion that was about to expire, not to mention more cabin for the money, or maybe I'd even upgrade further.

I got a call back on Friday with some numbers.  I knew that the sale was about to end, and I think we could have gotten that done if I gave her a "yes" on the spot, but there was now no way to trigger the Amex offer, which was 10 Amex Rewards points for each dollar spent.

Because of the late response, at least in part, I didn't do the deal.  Part of that is definitely on me, but had I heard back from the TA a bit earlier, or been able to work with Oceania myself, I probably would have gotten a somewhat better deal, coupled with 10 x Amex points on the upgrade.

Oh well, this agent seems very experienced and has been more good than not, but I was a bit bothered by this.

There are better TAs out there who are very responsive as well as having connections with O.  What you describe is not what I would expect, nor what I experience with ours.  

[sunlover12]

14 minutes ago, 1985rz1 said:

TA SBC doesn’t normally appear until boarding.

TA SBC shows on my Oceania invoice for my February 2025 cruise.

 

I advise @Stockjock to keep pressing his TA about it. 

[1985rz1]

3 minutes ago, sunlover12 said:

TA SBC shows on my Oceania invoice for my February 2025 cruise.

 

I advise @Stockjock to keep pressing his TA about it. 

It may make a difference if it's refundable SBC as part of the TA's commission sharing.  Or it may be a change from previous years.

Edited Tuesday at 04:22 PM by 1985rz1

[EJL2023]

We have some SBC on our upcoming cruise from our TA. It does not show up on our invoice, however it does show up on the Agents Statement from Oceania.  Our TA provides a copy of her Agent Statement to us showing it in case we have an issue with it once onboard.  

[1985rz1]

1 hour ago, sunlover12 said:

TA SBC shows on my Oceania invoice for my February 2025 cruise.

 

14 minutes ago, EJL2023 said:

We have some SBC on our upcoming cruise from our TA. It does not show up on our invoice, however it does show up on the Agents Statement from Oceania.

This may explain the difference, as we get the O invoice and not the TA's invoice.