Flatbush Flyer

3 hours ago, samiam0403 said:

We've absolutely loved the Country Fairs O does on transatlantic crossings, so I'm curious as to whether or not they're only on transatlantics, or also on longer cruises. We're sailing on a Cape Town to Paris (Le Havre) 34-day cruise on Nautica later this month, and was wondering if anyone knows - will we have a Country Fair or no? 

Actually, the only cruises where Country Fair is as close as you’ll get to “guaranteed” is in full Pacific crossings where there are always plenty of sea days. Add to that the ceremony day for crossing the International Date Line and the always fun boatbuilding contest.

On 4/30/2024 at 11:52 AM, pinotlover said:

As I reported from my recent cruise, once aboard many found plenty of availability for ship tours that had been waitlisted and even closed to new bookings. Best to wait until aboard and talk to Destination Services. DS didn’t understand why a waitlist existed, but was glad to sign people up for the tours.

One caveat: MANY DS personnel are relatively new and mostly clueless when it comes to “under the hood” of their operations.

Thus, I recommend to get on the waitlist precruise and ASAP. It doesn’t negatively impact anything but still can prove that you were (and should be) further in the front of the queue for a tour spot.

I had this situation recently on Riviera with one pre-cruise waitlisted tour (for which I had a senior O phone rep email detailing my addition to the wait list months prior). Onboard, a neophyte DS staffer said she had no knowledge of any precruise waitlist but had started one onboard. I showed her my O email and asked nicely to speak immediately with the DS manager (explaining first [also nicely] that I really didn’t want to have to escalate the issue as far as the GM). She left to the back office and several minutes later returned with two tix for the tour. 

6 hours ago, Mareblu said:

Yes, I agree.  The starchy pasta water and cheese are sufficient to coat and bind.  Cream is rarely, if ever, used in genuine Italian cuisine.  It is absolutely forbidden in carbonara, but people still insist “a little is okay”.  It is not.

Well let’s set the record straight.

Roma Sparita is ground zero in Roma for Cacio y Pepe (at least, according to Anthony Bourdain), and here’s the ingredients (which is how we make it at home):

 The dish only calls for the following four ingredients (five if you count the pasta water): spaghetti, a tablespoon of freshly grated black pepper, butter, and 1 3/4 cups of grated Pecorino Romano cheese.
And don’t forget the bowl made out of Parmigiano Reggiano (which calling it Parmesan is an insult).

11 hours ago, ATWCruiser said:

Hope this link helps on your question.  It looks like you can take your free cruise together but your husband won't be able to double dip once he reaches his milestone as they have his info on record that a free cruise was already used.

What link? And what’s with bother get the freebie although only one earned it. Either something new or fake news.

14 minutes ago, Mareblu said:

There’s actually one HS ice cream aboard named “Elvis the Fat Years”🤷🏻‍♀️

IMO, the best of the HS bunch.

8 minutes ago, ORV said:

 

Yes guys, but Clelford is John. The Peter that’s not Roberts is on Vista right now I think. 
 

I’ve also cruised with Clelford and commented on the Mid Cruise cards on his announcements being entirely too loud. Of course he called and left a message when he knew I was at dinner explaining how he’s right, I’m wrong. Perhaps these folks should listen to what the guests have to say instead of letting their arrogance rule their response. 
 

FWIW I like Peter Roberts, but he’s an acquired taste, and you have to get past the tone of his voice. 

If he’s the “socks” guy, I’ll pass. Zero personality.

2 hours ago, Tr1v1alCru1ser said:

Our TA told us to book our 20th, (so we could select the cabin we wanted) and 6 months out from the cruise date, she’d tell O that we wanted to take it as our freebie. Had no issues with them saying OK, and adjust the invoice accordingly. 

You’re not answering both parts of OP’s question. Only one of them is near cruise credit number 20. So, that partner is SOL for the comp cruise.

That said, they can identify the cruise on which OP will earn CC #20 and inform O Club of the preference. O Club will let them know what the balance due is once the combo platinum and regular cruise fares are figured out.

9 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Yep, forget about Cleford that I haven’t met. I should have known since the Shoe only works Marina. 

Trust me on this: Clelford is the absolutely worst CD ever employed by O. He was on some mass market line previously and the bottom-of-the-barrel mentality and attitude shoes through in all that he does.

and it wasn’t just one time. We’ve had him at least twice and the badness just blends together. 
I even went so far as to write management at O (and NCLH) and recommend that they require him and all newly hired CDs to intern for at least part of a contract with Ray Carr.

If you are unlucky enough to ever get stuck with Clelford, do be proactive and voice your legitimate concerns with O management (both on and off the ship). He is a monstrous zero and major O embarassment. 

2 hours ago, ruthnlarry said:

The problem is fixed now.  I am using Safari.

Have a great day!

 

I was getting a blank screen on my iPhone using Safari. Also reported it and all is back to normal. I could, ar least, see posts via the Australian website (which is where I saw your post).

Kind of reminds me of cable outage where I call my neighbor and am relieved when he has the same issue 😎

1 hour ago, pinotlover said:

Only as long as you don’t forget to pack the backpack like I did for Japan, then it really came in handy. Very cool mornings so sweaters or windbreaker. Then off later into the bag. What to do with the water bottles and telephoto lenses? Into the bag. It was a saving backup!

Agreed. Don’t forget the backpack.

That said, I trust that you’ll agree that the O “messenger bags” provided at each O Club milestone level aren’t exactly top quality gear. The single Velcro fastener on the big flap cover, the shoulder strap et al. are at the low end of the performance spectrum for regular use.

9 minutes ago, lorimay said:

I didn't bother to research because I ASSUMED the website would be right! Clearly that's not the case and will know from now on. I'm always a little skeptical when I read on Cruise Critic that the website doesn't work correctly because there are quite a few posters here who are uncomfortable with technology (hence the posts  "why do I need a smartphone" or "why would I ever need an app for that?"). 

 

I have the correct pdf now and everything is fine, there was never an issue with being charged the wrong amount either. I'm just still baffled at the idea that the cruise line even has the option to do this online when clearly the software is so broken even their reps can't figure it out.

Only the tip of the iceberg. There are other O software glitches - particularly with O invoices - e.g., specifically dealing with any mix of OCAPP $ passed to you via a TA which then conflict with “in lieu” O Club gratuities $ coverage on multisegment cruises. The “good” news is that it all works out before embarkation (usually). But, many TAs and passengers are clueless about O idiosyncrasies.

Another glitch involves tour availability on some multi-segment cruises which requires O to be notified of the problem in order to fix it. 

All that said, I’m ROTFL everytime someone suggests that O should have an app!

16 hours ago, WESTEAST said:

Congratulations! Interesting as we had same experience on Riviera last month - after asking the FCC, Iwona Goodman when we would receive our hats and bags, both appeared that night when we returned from dinner! Hats are nice but not so sure about the bags.

Bags are useless.

On 4/24/2024 at 9:27 PM, lorimay said:

After reading this thread, I went back and looked at my confirmation email for the shore excursions. What a mess. It did show the regular price and the 25% discount price and my SM credits. However, the math simply didn’t add up. I booked the minimum number (5) for the discount and I knew how much in excess of the SM credit I had been charged, but the email and my online account made no sense. Some excursions showed $0 as a discount. Nothing matched what my credit card was charged. I finally called and a very friendly representative helped me. He asked me to email him what I had received and was flabbergasted because it made no sense. Then he emailed me what he saw in his system and everything was correct. 
 

Oceania should be embarrassed that their software doesn’t work any better than this. 

I can only assume you haven’t perused this forum and haven’t seen/read any of my zillion posts saying NEVER use the O web cart to buy excursions. It is extremely glitchy!!!

Always call O (or have an O knowledgeable TA do it) to buy tours and make sure you get a copy of the “prepurchased” shore excursions PDF which shows all the math. It’s important to have on the ship if there’s ever any disagreement about your tours/refunds/etc!!!

On 4/24/2024 at 12:04 PM, Astro Flyer said:

 

Greatly appreciate sharing your experiences…with about 90% of our cruises on Princess we’re still learning more about O & we greatly enjoy their cruising experience.

 

Wish they’d reinstate Standard fares which for our style of cruising works best. We use everything in the Standard fares however we do not use the SM options & thus we’re not sure if after our November cruise we’ll book another O cruise.

 

The only SM “option” is with/without air. As for Princess- once you cruise on an O ship, you’ll say goodbye to Princess.

34 minutes ago, osandomir said:

If you book a minimum of 5 excursions as listed for your cruise you are eligible for the 25% discount no matter whether you have or don’t have Simply More. Sometimes the discount won’t be applied when you book your excursions online. In this case you’d need to call Oceania and they will apply the discount for you. And you don’t need to have a TA to do that.

Yes- the “new” SM 25% deal is the “old” YWYW 25% deal.

2 hours ago, growlers said:

I am booked on the 27 day Barcelona - Cape Town under Simply More with a $600 pp excursion credit sailing on November 14, 2024..   I booked 7 excursions, all at the same time in the same "cart".  It seems to have charged me full price for all of them despite the excursion booking section offering a 25% discount on 5 or more.  They are all real excursions, not transfers or anything.  

On the confirmation, It shows the 25% off discount price for the first 3 in the "savings" column. The other 4 it shows "0" under the column "savings".   Ultimately though, the total price I paid was the non-discounted price for all 7.  It added up the full price on all 7, took off $600 for the credit pp, and then charged me the rest of the full price balance to my credit card.  

Is this a known website glitch?   I suppose I need to call Oceania to get a refund, but is there some weird rule where you have to buy 5 or more AFTER the Simply More credit is used......?    Was I supposed to click / do something else to get the discount when booking these?

Also, what happens if you book exactly 5 for the discount and then Oceania has to cancel one of the ports after sailing?  Do they take away the 25% discount? My point being, they could take away the 25% discount on all 5 and then effectively not refund you for their cancelled excursion (assuming they all were similar base prices).  TIA

 

I wish folks would use the search feature here on CC. There have been many many threads (quite a few involving my detailed responses) that highly recommend NEVER using the O web cart (originally for O Life and now, seemingly, it’s necessary for SM as well.

As for your SM package discount (formerly called Your World Your Way, different itineraries require different minimum number of purchased tours to get the 25% off.

If you qualify and the Cart’s bottom line didn’t jive with your own “correct” math, call O and the phone rep will straighten it out. And make sure that you get a copy of the “prepurchased shore excursions PDF with all the math shown for your purchase. This doc is essential to make a point with Destination Services onboard if there’s any disagreement about what is owed you if O cancels your tour(s).

You can also have your TA do this all. But, know that many (if not most) TAs are clueless about the idiosyncrasies of O’s excursion policies and practices. And when the “poop hits the fan” regarding your ship’s excursions while you’re onboard, your best resource/advocate is YOU.

BTW: Once onboard, if your total tours booked falls below your minimum for the 25% discount due to an O cancelation, you do not lose the discount on the remaining tours. However, the refunded SM tour SBC cannot be used for anything other than replacement tours.

36 minutes ago, Techno123 said:

The problem is it's only Oceania in name, same as Regent is only Regent in name the people pulling the strings and dictating what happens onboard are the bean counters at NCLH 😢 - the same for SS and SB - the parent companies dictate the offerings and they have A LOT of money to make back.

At least (until the recent FDR Sr retirement), the bulk of NCLH’s executives were previously Oceania execs (from FDR to. Bob Binder and on down the line). With FDR senior at the NCLH helm, there was little worry that “his baby” (O)  would ever get the short end of the stick. 
But, that was then and this is now. Moreover, FDR Jr (now heading up O) remains an uncertain as regards his familial devotion to the brand.

It’s not just cruise lines. Try airlines and hotels- lots of glitches.

That said, however, the one travel website (and it’s accompanying app) that I have found to be the least problematic and best maintained/updated is United Airlines. Add to that the fact that they actually answer their phones!

Just booked a multi-segment SYD-Bali-SYD (35 days on Riviera) in the newly available 2026 itineraries. 
It was supposed to be two ATW segments on Vista (based on pre-roll out segment intel). But a now-confirmed disembark in Dubai instead of Mumbai (for a cruise starting in Sydney) put an end to that plan. 
 

FWIW, not only do we like the SYD-Bali-SYD itinerary, the fare ((for pretty much the same cruise duration) on Riviera is significantly less. But, the real killer was a bizclass airfare price check (this year’s) of RT SFO-SYD vs the multi-city SFO-SYD/DXB-SFO. That multi-city for a variety of different dates and airlines was as much as twice the SYD-SYD RT.

Final decision was easy!

These fold out 3D globes come in varying sizes. Bought ours in a eclectic shop in Miami.

2 hours ago, Hlitner said:

Today we are docked in Valencia under blue skies.  The weather on this entire segment has been terrific and we are keeping our fingers crossed for more of the same.  DW and I took a 5 hour ship excursion to Bacairent, which is a very old quaint mountain village.  Having previously been to Valencia (where there is an excellent market) we thought this was a good place to use some of our "Simply More" shore excursion credit.  Our guide was excellent, and we enjoyed visiting the small village.  There was a substantial amount of walking, and this tour was not for anyone with a mobility problem.  

 

Since the Port of Valencia (which can handle 4 cruise ships) is a few miles from the city center, O did provide free shuttle bus service to the center.  

 

Yesterday, we were docked in Barcelona (Moll Adosset Terminal B), which is the main cruise dock in that city.  Since the weather was very comfortable, DW and I did not use the free shuttle bus service, but rather walked into town (about 2 miles to the Ramblas) and later reversed the process.  We simply spent a few hours in the Ramblas/Gothic Quarter area before walking back to the ship for a late lunch.  Barcelona is a terrific port with much to see and do, but to say that we have seen that/done that would be an understatement.  Even though it is still early in the season, and we were the only cruise ship within site, the Ramblas was a busy place.  The Boqueria Market (right off the Ramblas) remains a "do not miss" place and the decent Iberian Hams are now ONLY about $250 Euros per Kg.  

 

Nothing new to add to our previous comments re the Vista.  Had dinner in Toscana, last night, and everything was great.  I do like that it is possible to order a small portion of any of the extensive pastas, which makes it a good starter or supplement to other starters.  The usual tableside oil/balsamic service is always lots of fun.

 

Somebody asked (might have been Flatbush Flyer) about the current CD and GM.  The CD is Peter (I have no clue to his last name) and the GM is Damien Lacroix.  Since DW and I have not bothered to go to any of the private parties, we have had no interaction with the GM other than to bid him a "Good Morning" when we cross paths in Barristas.  Since everything, onboard, is better than good, we have no reason to seek out the GM.  As to Peter, since we are now in the midst of our 10 straight port days, we are being rewarded by not needing to listen to as many of his announcements.  

 

Hank

Should you eventually decide to return often to Oceania, the value of certain of the GMs knowing you will become apparent in quite tangible ways.

CDs are, perhaps, less influential but knowing who will be onboard can prepare you for their style, which can vary significantly from uniquely entertaining to a bothersome PITA.

3 hours ago, CQG67 said:

Who do you use besides Uber or cab and how pricey are these services?

ExecuCar

9 minutes ago, DoulaAnn said:

Booking a big balcony usually means booking the minute the cruise opens for reservations. We've gotten them before doing that. What I don't recommend (at least in our experience) is taking one with the wrap-around balcony. It makes for a smaller room and a smaller closet (and the big closet is one of the perks I REALLY like about a PH).

The four “inside corners” extended balconies on Marina and Riviera (e.g., 7108) interior cabin size is exactly the same as the regular B cabins (recently changed to Concierge) next to them.

42 minutes ago, ORV said:

Exactly, I ran in to this situation on my most recently booked cruise. The two segments were already on sale, but the combined one wasn't. I wanted to get two credits out of it anyway, so it worked for me. I have one booking number, 2 Cruise ID numbers. I have double Oceania Club credits, $500 each segment as well as $250 SBC per segment for booking onboard. 

 

The real bonus though is that I get TWO bottles of that delicious Oceania Club wine, one for each segment. 

It’s called a “custom” cruise and, though the fare base discount of an “extended journey” (published multi-segment) will often be better than a “custom” cruise’s approx. 5% discount, the extra O Club perks may make it the better deal.

58 minutes ago, Tranquility Base said:

What if the individual cruises are on sale but the Grand Voyage cruise is not ?

A common occurrence!
With the understanding that O’s mantra is “no double dipping,” the technically correct answer is that your multisegment fare cannot be disaggregated for the purpose of a sale on one segment. It’s one of the perceived downsides of booking a published multi-segment cruise.

Of course, you could rebook under the right circumstances. But, that would be at the current prices and perks (as well as loss of the base discount you had on the multi-segment cruise you had originally booked). But, that’s seldom a better deal than the cost of an original booking done 1 year +\- prior.

All that said, there are other options worth pursuing. One that has worked for me on occasion (depending in part on your TA’s “O connectivity” (e.g., O elite level of the connoisseurs club)) is to ask for all/part of the sale savings as non-refundable SBC (so that no cash changes hands).