Woofa

Just an fyi for those who have not cruised O previously. When we were going ashore when docked we pretty much just walked down to 4 and walked off. Currents will show you the basics each day. Tendering on the other hand was not nearly as quick. Luckily it was only one port and we were not in any real rush. Seas not like glass made it more difficult but everyone got there eventually.

Yes, a plastic but solid, not going to easily rip off but as others have said we did not put ours on until we got to Miami. Howdy neighbor. Here to help in any way I can.

We got four each. Kept for souvenirs.

From those pics it looks like Embers has table cloths. Mock up pics we saw previously it looked like bare tables. A little nicer in my opinion. And I believe I recognize the guy from Barristas. On our Riviera cruise in January I think k he was in Baristas and we also had him as a bus boy (maybe) in Toscana. Don't remember his name but if he is the same, really good guy. Americano's in Barristas at least once a day, one of my favorite spots or enjoy it sitting in the library. Edit, actually both guys were on our cruise, my wife just confirmed.

Congratulations and have a great cruise. Enjoy yourselves and enjoy that beautiful new ship. When you get done I have no doubt that many of us are interested in the Embers and Aquamar dining experiences. No rush to post while on your cruise. Enjoy.

Agreed. I do think that we are in the midst of a unique time coming off of covid. From our experience people are not running up huge amounts of OBC by taking the onboard certificate for a future cruise. A few hundred more certainly but not thousands. We took the onboard future cruise certificate, within a month or six weeks we had signed up for another cruise in 2024 and had it all transferred and done with our TA. Easy, O holds a minimum of our money until final payment and we got some OBC which we had none on our first cruise so we may splurge and do a la reserve or something similar. And lets all remember that we, at least, assume and hope that in the future there will not be any more major sales like the one that has gotten such great deals for many on these threads. Not that we don't want to get great fares but we do want the O product to remain strong and for them to basically fill all their ships all the time. I don't think anything overly negative about this sale at this time but if there is another one next year, and the year after, I think it would then be time to be concerned. Finally, lets remember that cost is not the single biggest factor for all O cruisers. In fact I would guess for many it is of some importance but only within reason compared to itinerary, food quality, etc. But once again, as I always try and say, what works for one does not have to work for all. These threads are great to point out options for people like me who came here looking for knowledge. However, everyone needs to understand, regardless of what side they fall on any particular issue, that those who disagree are not wrong, only of a differing view. Except of course when it comes to taking the olife OBC, that's just plain wrong. Kidding, do what makes you happy.

From the daily currents on our 10 day Riviera cruise in January. Apologies these did not come out in order. Generally discounts went up as the cruise went on.

When we were on Riviera in January it has shops selling, jewelry, purses, watches, some clothing and a few specialty items like chocolate. Many days they had sales outside of the store for purses and jewelry. I believe I may have read that they were expanding the purse sales? Don't quote me on that. Of course with the Dom dinner and some nice spa hours the credit can go fast.

From the pics we have seen terrace still there but outside is now covered.

Time will tell but I am hoping that last sentence does not mean that cruise only fare will be going away. As we don't really drink and are generally not interested in most shore excursions (at least at this time,) cruise only kept Oceania within reach financially for us as opposed to the more all inclusive luxury lines. As we all know, usually included does not mean free but rather that you paid for it up front. Still, as long as prices remain mostly similar, we might enjoy trying a few glasses of wine here or there. Prefer excursions stay separate.

I just signed up and it said I would get an email later in the week to watch the recording.

Coke zero is my preferred soft drink but I can and do drink diet coke when it is not available which is most of the time eating out in Dallas. In January on the Riviera I asked for coke zero in our fridge and had a plentiful supply. However coke zero was not readily available in any of the venues throughout the week. Once or twice they found me one but I ended up drinking water most of the time, which is of course better for me anyway.

My impression, which may be wrong, is that this was the last cabin available in its categorie. And that further OP was assigned this by Oceania as such. Agree with your thoughts here. Look, in a perfect world I would like it if every cabin was Handicap Accessible. I would also like every bathroom on land to be handicap accessible individual restrooms for one. Maybe some day we will get there but for now we can just keep working towards that.

I have been very hesitant to post in this thread but finally... I hope that this post will not ignite anyone and that they would first read prior posts of mine and realize I try to have common sense and feelings for others. First let me say that I feel horrible that you had such an experience latitude 22. Everyone should be treated with courtesy and respect regardless of whether they have a disability. Second let me say that after 125 posts I can tell you I honestly don't know the Oceania policy regarding special cabins for those with a disability requiring a wheelchair or other similar. This is certainly Oceania's fault as they are not very good at communicating with all of us. What I seem to believe is that Oceania does provide cabins, at least on some levels which afford greater access for those in need. I also believe, at least in the OP's case that the particular cabin they reserved (through no knowledge of their own) was the last unreserved cabin in that class. Here is where I don't follow the logic of some of these posts. Certainly if you are uncomfortable staying in a Handicap Accessible cabin you can cancel. Almost certainly as well this will not ensure the cabin goes to someone with a handicap but rather to the first person on the waiting list. Here is my main question. Why does anyone feel that Oceania, or any other business should not sell a cabin, when it is the last one available in its class, and someone is ready to rent it? They have held the cabin as long as is reasonable. If a non handicap person has to make a reservation within one hour to get a cabin in a particular class on a particular cruise which is highly in demand then why should not a handicap person be required to do the same? Does everyone feel that by virtue of having a handicap you should be able to reserve this room weeks later if no other handicap person decides to reserve it first? Even while numerous non handicap people join the waitlist? And if no one needing the cabin applies should they hold it until final payment? Even leave it empty if no interest at sailing? I have to tell you that over my life of knowing people with a wide variety of handicaps, both friends and family, I don't believe that is the treatment they want or expect. What I believe I have learned they want is to even the playing field as much as possible so that they can have similar experiences to those without handicaps. Of course I believe that if someone requiring a special cabin called to reserve a room when there were multiple open rooms they should be assigned to that cabin. I would go even further and say that if a person became handicapped after making the reservation I would like to see the cruise line check and if such a cabin was reserved by someone without a verified need then they should ask if the person would switch cabins. (This deal could be sweetened by some OBC or other perk.) I don't believe that they could or should force someone to give up that cabin if they booked it in such a way as I described above. However I also believe that while a small percentage of people out there might try and get a handicap cabin because it is roomier, I honestly believe that percentage is small. It has not been my intention to prolong this thread or get people angry against me for what I consider to be a reasonable take on this situation. I hope most of you will find it so and that until we get more specific information from Oceania (maybe never,) we can each decide for ourselves if we want that cabin but not ridicule or ostracize those that disagree with us.

Glad you had a great cruise. But next time why not think of skipping olife completely. If you don't take the excursions and don't plan to drink, shipboard credit has nothing to offer as it is just you giving O your money to hold onto and if by chance you don't use it all, you lose the remainder. Remember, O confuses the issue but Olife has nothing to do with flights or the internet. Cruise only and you can keep the flights or remove that as well and lower your fare by DIY air. See what works better for you and each cruise can change what makes the most sense.

I certainly don't know the details but I wonder if the following comes into play. 1. Seems like air travel is at a extreme premium; 2. Vista and sister ship to come, pulling some bookings from older ships (expanding total cabins at sea); 3. Covid still an issue especially for O's demographic; 4. World events making some people hesitant to cruise; And at least for me I do not know exactly how many cabins this sale involved. Don't forget CC is a vocal but small minority of all cruisers. Most people probably did not know about sale/ that sale could affect what they already booked. Understanding that basically all cruise lines are having financial issues after Covid down time, I have yet to see any evidence that Oceania is cutting back on anything to save money. If anything, the fact that Vista is now about here and they are still planning to build another and redo Marina next year and add Starlink indicates to me that these sales may not be indicative of any serious financial issues. But I have no inside knowledge and could be wrong.

I just went back and checked the currents from our trip. MDR open for lunch only on sea days 12:00 to 1:30. This was Riviera in January.

Happy birthday @LHT28!!!

While we were often at the pool so just hopped in to waves, we really enjoyed lunch in the MDR. Get a window table. Try the club sandwich. Its a beautiful room during the day with the sun coming in.

Also if you don't have one already, worth looking into finding a TA. Most on these boards would agree it can be worth your time and money. We are not allowed to suggest TA's on these forums but as you were also looking at a luxury cruise, that is how we started looking for our TA. To be clear, Oceania is not always easy for all TA's to grasp but if you are able to find one of their preferred ones it can save you money. We took our first cruise in January, on the Riviera and got free gratuities and a check back for 5% of the fare. Not huge dollars on our B3 cabin but every bit helps and if you start cruising often or moving up to lengthier cruises in suites this could be some real dollars. If you can't find a good O TA before your first cruise the consensus seems to be to ask around when cruising on O and find out the good TA's for any future cruises. If you go and enjoy do sign up on board for a future cruise (which can be moved to a TA within 30 days.) Finally, big O sale right now as you will see on these boards. If you can snag one of these for sale cruises (hard to know how many are left,). You could score a big savings.

I think you may be on the wrong board if you are looking for Wind star info. Now I have heard that Oceania is very good about gluten free and food allergies. Our daughter is gluten free and while she may not cruise with us we always check it out. Plenty here will chime in for Oceania but you may need to post another thread for Windstar. Good luck.

I have read on these boards that Oceania will be installing Star Link fleet wide over the next year or so. While we obviously don't yet know how this will affect service, I think it sounds like a positive step and I can imagine the chance that it might allow for a change in the one device policy. May be worth checking back as it rolls out if internet is an important factor for you.

We met a nice couple on our January Riviera cruise. Had some meals together, met up here and there on the ship. Had breakfast with them the last day and we were discussing what a great time we had and that we had purchased a future cruise credit onboard. They let us know that while they also had a great cruise, they were probably one and done with Oceania. There just was not enough action for them. I am guessing they were slightly older than us but we at 46 and 53 are certainly in the younger demographic. We understood. Truth be told most of the people we know would probably not choose Oceania at the price. For us, the laid back, luxurious vibe was a perfect fit. I had no problems sleeping late and spending hours by the pool reading a book. My wife loved going to tea most every afternoon even mostly by herself. The key is to find what makes you happy. And we know that can change over time as well. If everyone loved Oceania, how would we ever get the cruises we want? As my father used to say "Everyone likes a different horse, that's what makes horse racing."

Thank you for your review. Sorry Oceania was not for you at this time but I think you did the right thing giving it a try. luckily there are plenty of great choices to fit everyone. I wish you luck on your other cruise lines.