AtA

1 minute ago, clo said:

Which, IMO, they didn't do a darn thing.  If they had, then why not 'brag' about it?

 

May I have your permission to write them myself expressing my displeasure?  As I've mentioned I have a lot of medical background.  This is the kind of thing that should precipitate action.

Yes you of course have my permission. It was on one of their early Cuba cruises a few years ago. I can find out the exact sailing tomorrow. Message me privately

1 minute ago, clo said:

I wish I were astounded.  But I think this happens too much.  I've tried to find the original comment about this.  Was this Oceania?  If so, our upcoming cruise may be our last. Not that it happened, which was dreadful, but the fact that they never replied to you and likely never dealt with the issue.  Thanks for sharing this and I'm glad nothing worse happened.

Yes this was Oceania on the Mariner. 

Thankfully mine is just a food sensitivity where if I eat shellfish, I get very bad stomach cramps that last anywhere from a few hours to over 24 hours. My concern wasn't for me after it happened but what if someone had a true shellfish allergy. It could have killed them and yet they had a caviler attitude to the whole problem. 

Hopefully while they were less than concerned to our faces, they did take immediate steps behind the scenes so it would never happen again, but like I said, they never let us know. 

1 hour ago, clo said:

I hope you reported this to management.  Both on the ship and at the corporate level.

That's the problem. We did report it to first the teatime management, then the head concierge after we reported it to the front desk and then finally after the cruise we wrote corporate management.

We absolutely never heard back from anyone. Crickets! 

56 minutes ago, Hawaiidan said:

To add... they have lobster on every menu in ever restaurant, even Waves the pool grill, EVERY DAY

Polo will have whole steamed Maine lobster 

Too bad I have a food sensitivity to shellfish. In fact that was one of my negatives on our last cruise on O. I bit into a teatime egg salad sandwich which the waiter said was egg salad only to discover it was egg salad and shrimp. If I had a true allergy and not just a sensitivity, it could have killed me, but no one on the staff seemed to be the least bit concerned. 

Does Serina have Red Ginger on it? That actually was my favorite restaurant on our last O cruise.

8 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

Correct.... On a recent 30 day  I could get just about any day I wanted...   Too, if the ship begins to move about a bit, dozens of  cancel and no shows is  also an opportunity worthy of consideration.

LOL. So true. 

15 hours ago, ORV said:

I thought this was comparing Celebrity and Oceania? How about we get back to that. 

The OP had also mentioned Seabourn, Silversea and Regent which is why I also brought up Crystal to round out the list.

2 hours ago, LHT28 said:

I think AtA was talking about Crystal

the threads do wander 😁

Yes I was replying to someone who said they gave up the gala buffet on Crystal. 🙂 And yes, they do wander. LOL (And personally I can do without the ode to gluttony with the gala buffet.)

19 hours ago, LHT28 said:

depends on the cooks

SIRENA   & the rest of the ships all have the same  quality of food  but sometimes those in the kitchen can mess it up

 

enjoy

 

I'm sure I will enjoy.

Ok my last cruise on O was on Marina and this time we'll be sailing on Serina. Will we be disappointed in the food?

On 7/30/2019 at 3:09 PM, kitty9 said:

Crystal's food used to be good, but since Genting's takeover, I can say I feel their food has declined.  They no longer do the wonderful Grand Gala Buffet (totally outstanding), and their Asian restaurant and sushi bar has really gone downhill.  

They absolutely still do the grand gala buffet on any cruise longer than 10 days. In fact the only cruise I've been on where they didn't do it was my last one, a 7 day Alaskan cruise.

Their new Chinese/Asian restaurant I agree is a big miss. However Umi Uma (What used to be Silk), the Japanese restaurant run by Nobu is as good as ever.

On 8/7/2019 at 1:19 PM, Hawaiidan said:

 

Neither of us is wrong.. You for Crystal and Me for Oceania  

Agreed and that's why there are different cruise lines. I just wanted the OP to know there was also another cruise line to look at.

On 8/7/2019 at 12:19 AM, Paulchili said:

That is not entirely correct.

Crystal allows you 1 reservation per specialty restaurant per booking and charges “a nominal fee”  for additional ones (from Crystal’s FAQ):

 

Crystal guests are entitled to and may request for one (1) reservation in each specialty restaurant, per booking, via Crystal’s Priority Check-in and Planning Center (PCPC). Additional reservations may be requested, once on board, for a nominal $30 per person reservation fee, subject to availability at time of request.

 

I agree that Oceania’s service cannot compare to Crystal’s - Oceania’s is much better IME.

Of course this is my opinion and my experience and yours is obviously different - we are both entitled to our opinions as this is a subjective rather than an objective matter.

That said, I will grant you that Crystal’s enrichment program is second to none.

PS Crystal’s internet is also superior to Oceania’s but the food is not.

 

If you decide you want to make your two reservations in only one of the restaurants you are allowed to do that. You do not have to make one in each of the restaurants. However, you can only make one reservation online before boarding and to get the second reservation in the same restaurant if you prefer to only dine in the one restaurant, you do have to wait until you're onboard.

So say you prefer to only dine in Umi Uma. You make one reservation online before boarding and once on the ship, you go and speak to the maitre'd and you'll most likely be able to book a second reservation in Umi Uma FOR NO ADDITIONAL CHARGE!

If you then decide that heck, you really should also eat in Prego, (meaning it's your third specialty reservation) then yes, you will be charged $30.

"I agree that Oceania’s service cannot compare to Crystal’s - Oceania’s is much better IME."

Well considering that during my last cruise on O, the drawers in our PH when we went to put our clothes away still had the previous occupant's handbag, drugs, and other paraphernalia and the draws when I went to put my clothes away were still full of sand and dirt, I beg to differ. (I have the pictures to prove it)

And when we went onto the balcony and it was literally caked with 1/2" of salt spray and had not been cleaned, with the cushions also filthy, I beg to differ. (I have the pictures to prove it)

Also considering when I asked at tea time what was in the sandwich and was told it was egg salad and then when I bit into it and had to spit out a shrimp (I have a food sensitivity to shellfish). I went to the manager of tea time and he was unconcerned about it and his only comment was, I'll talk to the waiter. This is especially upsetting because if someone had a severe allergy, it could have killed them, so I beg to differ.

We then went to the concierge to politely voice our concerns, especially about the allergy issue and he said he'd look into it and get back to us. That was 3 years ago and we have never heard anything further. We even wrote the company after our cruise. Crickets. 

If it had been Crystal (well first of all none of that would have happened on Crystal!) we would have heard from everyone, received cruise credit, apologies, etc, etc. So yes, I beg to differ.

Now having said that, I fully believe in giving a company (restaurant, ship, etc) that generally gets good reviews another chance so I'm taking my son on O this January and truly expect to have a wonderful time. 

"PS Crystal’s internet is also superior to Oceania’s but the food is not."

Agreed. They're equal or they were the last time I was on O.

Just now, LHT28 said:

thanks

 Some dishes have changed & some cooks should not be in the kitchen

We have had some  dishes that were not up to par  but for the most part  they are still many that are good

JMO

I'm glad to hear that as I'm going on Serina with my son in January. One thing I played up to him was how good the food is.

21 hours ago, Paulchili said:

You forgot to quote this part of my post:

 

If OP were to call someone’s cell phone he may not be charged for a wifi call but perhaps the recipient of the call might be charged as they are out of the country? I don’t have the answer

 

I suppose whether or how much they get charged may vary with what type of international plan they have or what provider or SIM card they use?

I don’t have all these answers but I do know for a fact that I was able to make free calls from the ship on my iPad and iPhone while on wifi.

Absolutely you can make free calls through wifi. However if both parties are on the ship, then both parties would need to have their wifi enabled so as not to be charged additional international charges.

20 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Can you clarify  what you are disappointed to hear ?

There are over 40+ posts  which one are you reply to?

The OP's comments plus others saying the food was not quite as good as a few years ago

7 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

Are you sure?  I was told you only get 1 specialty reservation per cruise and that the rest will be charged at like $39pp      and there are very limited specialty options  compered to O. 

 

Glad it fits you..... and your needs. .    I am sure it is wonderful for you.... Glad you found your niche. 

If you are on a 7-13 day cruise you get 2 nights in the specialty restaurants. You can use both in Nobu, or both in Prego or one in Nobu and one in Prego. If the cruise is longer than 13 days it's 4 nights in the specialty restaurants although the second two reservations need to be made once onboard the ship. The sushi bar is always first come, first served.

In addition to Prego and Nobu there is also Chiarascurro which is Brazilian and Silk which is Chinese inspired. Those two don't count towards the specialty restaurants. So in reality, in addition to the main dining room, there are 4 other venues. 

(How many are on the two smaller ships on O?)

If someone wants to go to Prego or Nobu any additional times, it is $30 a person. Considering that if you went to any of Nobu's restaurants throughout the world you'd be looking at a bill of $250-$500 a person, I consider $30 a person quite a bargain and that includes all wines, liquor, etc.

Additionally if you're in a PH or above you have no limit as to how many times you can go to Prego or Nobu, if there's room. And if you're in a PH or above if you can't get into the restaurant you're free to order from both restaurants and eat in your suite.

I'm disappointed to hear this as the one thing that I truly liked about Oceania was the food. 

On 8/3/2019 at 8:21 PM, Ken the cruiser said:

We had no WiFi issues while we were on the Sirena and Nautica, 2 of their smaller ships, last year. 

Glad to know wifi is good on Sirena since I'll be taking my son on it in January.

On 7/29/2019 at 11:49 PM, Paulchili said:

Yes - the caller has to be logged in to wifi but not the recipient of the call - hence only one login.

Actually both parties have to be logged into wifi to not get any additional charges. If you're not logged into wifi and you take a call, you will be charged additional fees from your carrier. (Ask me how I found that out!)

On 7/29/2019 at 6:12 PM, ORV said:

Seems an easy fix would have been to purchase one package. I believe on Celebrity there is no free internet. You either take it as a perk or purchase it. I don't know about the other lines. 

Crystal has free internet for all and it's really excellent.

I believe Regent has free internet after 1 or 2 cruises?

 Giving more than one account for free would reduce the speeds significantly for everyone on board.

Actually if the ships upgraded their service like Crystal ships did, it wouldn't reduce speeds for anyone. In fact since Crystal changed their service internet speed is much faster than it used to be. It can be done but the ships are reluctant to pay to do so.

On 7/30/2019 at 7:32 PM, Flatbush Flyer said:

On average, more than 70% of the folks on any particular Oceania cruise are repeat customers -many of whom had been Celebrity regulars until they tried Oceania (and never looked back).

 

I liked Oceania and will be taking my son on Regatta's sister ship but I LOVE Crystal. Especially if you do a crossing since on Crystal there are on average 3 lectures a day, plus whatever the specialty is for the cruise (the TA we're doing in November is big band and food and wine, so plus the 3 lectures a day will be wine tastings, food demos by top chefs and lectures and big band concerts ), the computer school, golf lessons, tennis, and I could go on and on. One can do as little or as much as you want. In fact most days there is too much to choose from. I didn't find the same to be true on Oceania sea days.

All drinks are included and specialty restaurants are free. That includes Nobu's restaurant onboard.

Oceania's food is excellent as is Crystal's.

I've found while Oceania's service is very good, it can't compare to Crystal's. 

FYI, before we found Crystal we mostly sailed on Regent. Excellent, but once again it can't compare to Crystal

Of course with any ship it does depend on what you are looking for.

On 7/14/2019 at 1:04 PM, Kate-AHF said:

Yeah, we've been seeing those prices.  We are struggling NOT to book Sirena on 1/6.  Our Marina cruise ends a couple of days before in Santiago, and we have to pass through Miami anyway on the way home.  So far, we've exercised restraint.

I wanted to take my son to Cuba but when that got canned, we booked this cruise. It was too good a deal. 

Frankly I wouldn't turn down a cruise on either line. LOL. However we used to cruise on Regent. Once Crystal went to all inclusive, we tried Crystal and now consider it our primary line. 

9 minutes ago, clo said:

I don't know why people are so stuck on cruises.  There's a ton of world out there that you can't see on a cruise.

This is true but cruising is so much easier with only having to pack/unpack once and the ship taking you to the destination. 

Flying nowadays is just so much more complicated.

11 hours ago, tvmovielover said:

One of the few things O could improve are the enrichment programs.  Their experts are not always that great.  Even Viking has some great lectures on each cruise.  Oh dear, I am going to have to look at Crystal again for enrichment alone!  I would miss the Trivia though.

They have trivia on all sea days.

That's one thing I did like about Regent. Trivia was after tea time everyday.