Air deviations on Oceania--easy to obtain?

[Droopy_Sails]

Just wondering if it's possible or easy to get air deviations of several days with Oceania's free air promotions.

 

Would love to spend a couple of days each before and after the cruise in our starting and ending ports. Will they let us tack on that much time? And, if so, can someone who's done this on Oceania ballpark the added cost?

 

Many thanks for your help.

[Andee]

There is a $75 per person deviation fee. We used it and selected our own flights, coming in three days pre-cruise and staying two days post-cruise. There was an additional $50 per person cost because the flights I picked were more expensive than the Oceania ones.

[hondorner]

We paid the $75 per person fee, which is an administrative fee to cover the cost of individual attention for the air booking, because we wanted to arrive in Barcelona 4 days early. However, we did not specify the flights, but left it up to Oceania to book whatever flights they wanted. They picked the fastest flights with the least stops, the same flights we would have picked for ourselves, but because they picked them, we did not have to pay any additional airfare. If we had booked these flights for ourselves, it would have been more than 3 times more expensive than Oceania's air allowance credit.

[Droopy_Sails]

Thanks much for your helpful replies. $75 seems very reasonable, especially if we simply specify the arrival and departure dates and let Oceania choose the flights. We're in a major gateway, so I suspect all will go well.

[hondorner]

There is one additional, although minor, consideration that I forgot to mention. If I understand correctly, once you take a deviation, the transfers that Oceania might usually offer are not available. Of course, they are always optional if available, and are separately billed on your invoice, and are often more expensive than transfers you might arrange on your own, so this is a minor consideration. This is because your destination when you arrive early is bound to be different than transferring from the airport to the ship, and vice versa if you are staying a few days after the cruise.

 

There is a slightly interesting question is this that I haven't asked my travel agent, yet. In our case, we are deviating from Miami to Barcelona, but we will be leaving Rio on the same flight as everyone else going to Miami. Therefore, I'm willing to bet that my agent could have Oceania arrange the transfer from Rio to the airport the same as everyone else who opts for this service. We'll see, when it gets closer to the date.

[tak2]

If I let them pick the flights, will I still have the opportunity to decline right away their choice and then pay extra for my own selection?

Has anyone heard of a very significant amount being charged for picking own flights? I feel that the additional $50 Andee paid was very reasonable if that's all I have to pay for a huge open jaw Calgary-( Western Canada)Lisbon-Rio-Calgary.

[potterhill]

When we did the Lisbon to Rio in Nov, our agent arbitrarily declined flights that Oceania sent with an extra charge of $150. I was upset at first because I was afraid that we would end up paying a lot more. When I priced flights on my own, the best I could get was over $3000 per person for economy.

We went back and forth, trying to get a direct flight to Toronto from Sao Paulo. They gave it to us, but no flight Rio -Sao Paulo. I guess we were supposed to hitch hike that segment! So we sent it back to them and then they gave us the original flights through Miami for no extra charge above the devaition fee. Only problem was that on that day only, our flight from Miami - Toronto did not exist. We managed to get home at a decent time via Chicago so it wasn't too bad.

I think you get 48 hours to decline the flights or they are deemed to be yours.

 

Mo

[LHT28]

There is one additional, although minor, consideration that I forgot to mention. If I understand correctly, once you take a deviation, the transfers that Oceania might usually offer are not available.

 

As far as I know the only time Oceania gives free transfers is when you do their hotel package all other transfer are fee based.

Someone can correct me if that is not the case

[merryecho]

One other thing, if you want to upgrade with miles, the flights you get through Oceania will probably not qualify- you will need to pay extra to get an upgradeable fare.

[hondorner]

As far as I know the only time Oceania gives free transfers is when you do their hotel package all other transfer are fee based.

Someone can correct me if that is not the case

Sorry if I gave the impression that the transfers are free -- they are not. I thought I said something about how they are often more expensive than something you arrange on your own.

 

What I was saying is that when you use the (non-deviation) Oceania flights, they offer you the opportunity to purchase transfers they have arranged. When you choose the deviation, that opportunity goes away.

[LHT28]

What I was saying is that when you use the (non-deviation) Oceania flights, they offer you the opportunity to purchase transfers they have arranged. When you choose the deviation, that opportunity goes away.

 

You can still purchase them from the ship to airport but not sure if you arrive early.

Yes they are more $$ than doing private transfer or taxis

[Droopy_Sails]

Thanks again for all the helpful info, everyone.

[hawkeye3d]

Air deviations are in fact $75pp and you pay extra for anything not covered by Oceania’s air fare budget.

 

That being said watch it as they can schedule some awful flights. We just returned from Athens to Toronto via Frankfurt with a 5 hour layover in Frankfurt.

 

We were scheduled to do Sydney to Auckland in Jan, we paid out $75 and they gave is the flight we wanted into Sydney but on the way back they insisted in routing us through San Francisco. Leave Auckland at around 8PM, arrive SFO at 11AM the same day and then sit there for 11 hours to catch an 11PM red eye into Toronto. No one in their right mind would accept this coupled with $400 more in air fare. What gets me going is the take it or leave it attitude. No alternates, take an earlier flight for $ x, just take it or leave it.

 

So we will leave it and say good bye to Oceania. There will be no cruise #4 and a doubt that we will ever sail with them again.

 

Considering the excellent service you get on their ships the reservations office needs some serious attention. IMHO if they ran their ships like the reservations office they would have sunk a long time ago

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Oh wow, that doesn't bode well, since we live in Toronto as well. Not planning to go to Asia any soon, however. Athens-Frankfurt-Toronto sounds entirely reasonable to me. Try Regent! ;)

[digby]

"arrive SFO at 11AM the same day and then sit there for 11 hours to catch an 11PM red eye into Toronto."

 

Were there other flights available? If so, I thought you were able to request using them. Of course, I can't think of a better place to be 'stuck' than San Francisco.

[LHT28]

So we will leave it and say good bye to Oceania. There will be no cruise #4 and a doubt that we will ever sail with them again.

 

Why not just take the air credit and book your own flights?

 

You can also choose the routing with the air deviation.

 

There is a UA/AC flight on the 24thJan dep 7:30 pm Akl arr SFO 10:45am

Dep SFO 12:10 pm arr YYZ 8:05 pm

 

 

 

 

Check http://www.kayak.com for other flight routings

[hondorner]

Considering the excellent service you get on their ships the reservations office needs some serious attention. IMHO if they ran their ships like the reservations office they would have sunk a long time ago

Were you dealing with the reservations office yourself, or through your travel agent? I have never had any reason to call Oceania directly. My agent takes care of all that, he knows who to talk to and what to say. The service has been as outstanding as that on the ships.

[newpooperdog]

Here is what happened to us. We are on the September 13 - 27 cruise out of Athens and ending in Rome. We are spending 4 days early in Greece and another week in a Villa in Tuscany until October 4. Oceania has charged us $150 each for flight deviation. As we are Canadians, only two cities fall in Oceania's sites. One is Toronto and the other is Vancouver. As we are going to be centered in Calgary we have managed to get a flight from Calgary to Frankfurt and then to Athens with very little waiting time between flights. This saves us the cost of flying to Vancouver too. We don't mind paying the difference as our TA has been very helpful in getting the best flights possible.

[lovecruisingtoo]

Why not just take the air credit and book your own flights?

 

 

Any idea how much the air credit normally is verses the normal economy fare? Looking at going on the Stockholm - London run next year and want to use miles for my air.

[LHT28]

Any idea how much the air credit normally is verses the normal economy fare? Looking at going on the Stockholm - London run next year and want to use miles for my air.

 

You can check with your TA but i think for overseas flights it is $800. credit

[Jancruz]

You can check with your TA but i think for overseas flights it is $800. credit

 

Each air credit may have a different dollar amount and could be different at different times..so check with your TA when you book.

Jan

*****

[Droopy_Sails]

Oceania has charged us $150 each for flight deviation.

 

So the $75pp deviation fee applies to each way? If I want to request different dates on both ends of the cruise, that's $150pp?

[Sharicruz]

The air deviation fee is $75.00(non-refundable) per person total, plus any air fare difference.

 

Shari

[Droopy_Sails]

Thanks for clarifying. I was confused by the previous poster mentioning she or he had been charged $150 per person for deviations, not including fare differences.

[hondorner]

Thanks for clarifying. I was confused by the previous poster mentioning she or he had been charged $150 per person for deviations, not including fare differences.

I saw that, too, and had to think for a second, then I read that the poster is using an airport (Calgary) that is not one of Oceania's portal airports in Canada (Toronto and Vancouver). So, I arrived at the conclusion that the $150 each represented $75 deviation fee and $75 for the cost of flying from Calgary.

 

Just because I read it that way does not make me right; just shows how many different ways there are to read the same thing.