Sthrngary

@FetaCheese Today is the day. You waited a very long time. You asked great questions. You did everything you could to make sure this experience could be as good as it could be. Much information was not always easy to gain. But you stuck with it. Now, you get that feeling we all are addicted too. Hard to describe to those that have never cruised. Waking up on Embarkment Day: Could not sleep the night before. Excited and worried all at the same time. Breakfast: Never really great but good for passing the time until you go to the port. Port Check-In: Getting the $20.00 bill ready in your hand when you drop off your luggage. Will it be a mess, crowded or pleasant. Will you have to do what you already did online yet again. The WALK from the PORT to the Ship: This is my favorite part. I can't get enough of the feeling. My wife and friends walk fast and don't understand why I am walking slowly. Gaining Another Specialty Restaurant Reservation: You choose a restaurant and see if you can get a nice time for that evening. Your other four reservations have been in stone for a while. Muster Drill: It is quick, painless and the video is a boring as ever. Lunch on the Deck with your first Drink: How many times have you pictured this in your mind. You deserve all of this and more. Everyone does. Going on a really nice cruise is like buying a home. Not financially, just the waiting time. You buy the cruise, wait as long as 2 years and the cruise happens. You buy a home have to wait months before you can closes. I would much prefer one day to make it like buying a car. You go in at 2:00 PM and leave with your new car at 04:00 PM. However, all those months, you can find out how to make your cruise as good as it can be and there is something to be said about that. Enjoy your cruise, focus on the experience. When you come home, or when you have a moment, share the joy. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@SATaxman Blasphemy, I will eat every piece of bread onboard. That is why we have dieted and done so well. My wife told me not more cruises unless we go onboard at our lowest weight so we have ROOM to GROW. Positive motivations works for me. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@rxlowry You literally made my day. My wife and I have been on Keto losing weight and I have not had BREAD in a very long time. My cruise on Oceania is in 60 day and I am taking your lead on the Waves Grill. Thank you for responding while on your vacation. Much appreciated. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@rxlowry Well it is so nice seeing your posts. I read your enjoyment of your Surf and Turf sandwich. Also your reference to Crystal. How did your Surf and Turf compare to the grill by the pool on Crystal. Just curious. I love the Steak Sandwich at that grill. I know it is different but from a quality standpoint. Please enjoy your cruise. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@kdlonglegs Usually, you can transfer your cruise booking to a travel agent. It is called a transfer form. You have if I am not mistaken, 30 days or so to fill it in and submit it. You usually have the travel agencies information with agency number on it. The AMX Platinum perks are only given by a travel agent that participates with it. Now, you paid in full. If you have not gotten to the final payment date, you could cancel for a refund and rebook. If you paid in full because the cruise is at the full payment date, you most likely can't change. I would take this issue up a level with NCL and ask a travel agent that is an AMX Platinum Perk agent to intervein. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

What a lovely story. I love when a plan comes together, don't you. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@DMH15 Funny you should say Keto Carrot Cake. My son is 37 today. My wife is making him a Gluten Free, keto Carrot Cake. Small world. Cruise well and enjoy every moment

@DMH15 Funny story. In 2018, my wife and I went on the NCL Getaway. We were in a Haven Spa Suite outside of Haven Proper. My wife and I were 100% going to cruise on Keto. It was obvious we could do that with no issue. My wife made it two days and I made it desert the first night. They had Chocolate Cake my neighbors was having and it was all she wrote. I respect your discipline however we have agreed, this 10 days, we do what every we want. No cruise scheduled after our next though. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@SoloAlaska Thank you for the response. I have no clue. I for a while stopped flying after flying for business my entire life. When I took a flight about a year ago, I was pleasantly surprised that my luggage started to have a tracking by the airline. Love it and fee safer now. Sorry I could not answer your questions. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

I am going to Rant a little bit here. The topic is "Limiting Beliefs". If you are new, you want to learn as much as you can to make your vacation as good as it can be. So you go to Social Media outlets like CruiseCritic.com. On all Social Media their are good and bad people. Kind and nasty people. Experts and folks that have no life and want to be considered an expert at something. Just the nature of Social Media. Always keep an open mind and when folk tell you you can't do something, it is NOT IN STONE. They just failed so it becomes a "Limited Belief" to them. I was told by some Know It All's that the cruise company did not care that they made a mistake when advising me. The Know it All, was emphatic that no one in the cruise company would help me EVER. I wrote a professional and kind letter and my situation was handled in a week. The Know It All claimed I was lying so I posted a picture of my proof. People like to feel important in live and many do it on social media. I want to be appreciated, thought of as a interesting member of social media. Just human. However always challenge when you feel you are being treated unfairly. Do it professionally and use good business judgement. Since this is my rant, I think Cruising is a wonderful vacation opportunity. I left Facebook, Twitter, and all other social media because their was so much hate and back stabbing. I would hope that CruiseCritic.com could be a kinder and gentler place especially when all you care about is the best vacation possible. Thank you for allowing me to rant. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@ORV Exactly, we all are creators of habit and know only what we know. That is why I asked the same question months ago. All I knew is what I knew. That is also why I said "Unofficially" in my post. Your post makes complete sense and it will help the OP and all new folks like myself as well. Thank you. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

This question is NOT as unclear as it might seem. It seems that Oceania has got a lot of "New" guests booking in the future. I am one of them. We are clear on how OTHER brands do their drink policies. Many have drink packages that have a $15.00 limit including tip, and have recently increased beverages to over $15.00 like Bailey's and Crown. It forced us to purchase the Upgrade to the Beverage Program which some brand make available. Just another cost cutting approach. When that is what you are used to, you ask this type of question. I asked it myself, using different words. There is no clear answer. Where the information I got simply confirms drinks by the class and wine served by the glass is included in the package, really HIGH END Cost drinks are not. Easiest Example is a very high end Whisky or Scotch. Unofficially, one unnamed source shared with me the drink cost limit was $20.00 including tip if it was purchased separately. I can not confirm or deny that as fact. Seems reasonable though. A little side note for flavor. I used to buy the upgrade to the drink program for NCL. It was called the "Premium PLUS Drink Program". It "Used" to be great and I would be drinking Tequila 1942 and French champagne for my entire cruise. Then NCL changed the rules. Part of cost cutting. My recent trip my wife could not find even a low end Chardonnay. So one of my question in the past was about wine availability and bringing wine onboard. NOTE: I have had these question answered many time and I am Crystal CLEAR. Now tie back to the OP's question. It should make more sense now. OP feel free to clarify. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@kasimir I have never gone on the Prima or the Viva. However there is a reason why all the suites are in the "Haven Section". Yes I would consider it Haven Proper. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@ORV Your right, I should have qualified it. More SF is a true value. One would have to determine if it is enough of a benefit if you take the Butler out of the equation. That is up to every guest. Sorry, sloppy writing on my part. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@kasimir You honor me by asking an opinion question. Happy to answer it from my standpoint. First it depends on the ship, Second it depends on the suite. First the ship: I only cruise the Haven on one of the larger newer or recently renovated ships. I want a full Haven with Restaurant, Bar, Courtyard and sundeck. I prefer the ships where the Sundeck has two hot tubs. Add to this the new newest ships NCL has even though they hold less guest then let's say the Encore. Second the Suite: I would prefer a suite in the Haven Proper. The size of the balcony does not matter if it is just my wife and I. I would jump on a Haven Proper Suite at $300.00 per person, per night. Flexibility on that number has everything to do with the Itinerary and or how badly I want to cruise. Some of the postings on this thread have been Amazing. One I remember reading about was for an Owners Suite on one of the brand new ships. When I saw that I was incredibly surprised and the effect it had on me was "Boy that would have been fun!" Please remember I am one "bougie", "spoiled", and "entitled". Needless to say, my $300 benchmark was NOT for a Owners Suite. I hope I answered your question. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@Sabbycat My comment is directed to the person you comment too, not you. I fully agree with you. It seems to be a thing to complain about not getting service followed by how horrible it was. In most but not all cases, the guest does not complain while on the ship. Or their complaint is a survey not a real person. Another group of people do complain and claim the leadership of that ship never took any action. When most people cruise and they pay the big premium for a Penthouse, the biggest amenity they receive is their butler. If you take the Butler out of the equation, the Penthouse is a Concierge Level which is quite nice for far less money. For the life of me, if I pay for a Butler and don't get service from them, I don't understand why folks don't take immediate action. You don't have to be mean, you just have to communicate you are unhappy and why. Why their action is to complain AFTER the fact? People in todays day try to avoid confrontation but encourage it when they are on Social Media because no one knows who they are. If something is so off that you are that disappointed, take care of it then or accept it. Don't complain when you did nothing to solve the issue. Just my two cents. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

First of all, you won’t have any problem getting those times at 130 days out. But if you do, make your reservations, then send a message to the pre-cruise concierge to change your time. Again, I don’t think you’re going to have any problem at all getting those times. Remember, they were 200 haven guests, and 4000 other guests. Cruise well, and enjoy every moment

@RocketMan275 I started pre-covid. I weighed 300 lbs. Not good especially since I was 5' 10". My adult son got my wife and I on Keto. I lost 70 lbs. Then stayed there for a while. My wife in an effort to be able to walk a lot on our upcoming ports of call in Europe started to walk every day. Be both went on Keto again and I walk with her ever other day. My hips and knees are great. Hers are getting better with the walking. I am 5 lbs away from my goal of 199 lbs for the cruise which is 60 days from now. I did have ice cream yesterday though. A little cheat. Thank you for asking. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@tigerfan75 "War Eagle fly down the field, ever to concur never to yield" War Eagle!!!!!

@RocketMan275 LMAO, you are killing me. I just lost 25 lbs so I can eat pastries for 10 days in November. I know for a fact, Oceania does NOT HAVE Almond Croissants. The pros/cons of choosing something other than the Haven. I have to live with my decision though. But, darn those things are so good. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@susiesan I thought you handled the post well. I found it funny because of the way your worded it in the last sentence. All you were doing was stating a fact as what you observed. Thanks for the heads up. On another note, I have told all the members of my party cruising in 60 days that the odds of having a port cancelled is high. Not because of Oceania frequent cancellations. I personally never second guess the Capitan of a ship or Aircraft. Instead to set realistic expectations. If no Cancellations happen, our expectations will be exceeded. If "SOME" do, well not as hard a situation if I had not already considered it could happen. Everything that everyone posts give new folks like myself a way to manage expectations. Why something happens like a cancellation matters not. It is simply something I can't control if I am on the cruise. Disappointed sure, seems to be the only port I really wanted to go to, it's been said. My ability to control it no, just my attitude. Once again, thank you to the Author. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@Daniel A I am SO happy for YOU both. I was on the Breakaway last year. Nice ship. M&M's and Budweiser sounds GREAT. You are welcome BUT paybacks are hell. My price for all the advice is a Hamantash and Lisnon Tart from NYC where you live. Have you ever noticed I like Pastries, LOL. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@cruiseny4life NOPE, I wish. I miss it. I really do. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@laudergayle You are GREAT and I might have over reacted. To be honest, truly thought when every ones FCC were used, the prices would come down. I was wrong. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

This is NOT meant to be a joke. I am asking for everyone who checks pricing on Haven Suites, to let us all know the deals. To make this a joke would have been cruel of me. Everyone knows I love the Haven, yet when I get the second nicest suite on a premium-plus/luxury brand for 10-day Mediterranean Cruise less then a 7 day Haven Suite, I have to consider the alternatives. Yet if there was a Haven deal which do happen, I would be considering it. Many of us feel the same way. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.