Sthrngary

@benel204 Thank you for the shout out. Tell your butler and it will be done. Haven is the Haven regardless of where your Haven room is located. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

A little story. It makes me upset that some products do not make it easy to clearly know the value of their upper level offerings. This first came to my attention, 7 years ago when I had just retired. I wanted to spend my summer at music festivals. The first one was, a four day festival called, "The Hangout Music Festival". It was on the beach off the coast of Mexico. The young folks get the least expensive entry and stayed on the beach all day and night. The 40 somethings has a VIP entrance which gave them beer and wine, a pool and some shelter. Now 60 plus folks had something called, Super VIP. Pool, hot tubs, full complementary bar, catered food by real chefs, golf carts to the different venues and a lot more. The problem was, the folks that went to Super VIP were not the kind of folks that do reviews. So it was extremely hard to really get the to know what was part of the program especially because it was so expensive. I took the chance then wrote the very detailed review. I then did the same for the Bonnaroo Music Festival followed by the SeaBreeze Jazz Festival. I did the same detailed review of the top entry options. I was hooked and started to do it for high-end consumer products. Now I do it for my cruises. I know I am on a Disney CruiseCritic.com board. However, I wrote one of the most popular OP-ED's on CruiseCritic.com called, "The Secrets of the NCL Haven Luxury Experience.". Now, I will be going on a Disney Cruise on the Wish. We will be in a Concierge Stateroom. I will do a real time review and compare the NCL Haven, Celebrity Retreat and the Disney Concierge Level. I also promise to do a very detailed review. Just like every single cruise and product, not to many really detailed overviews of the Disney Concierge that I could find. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

I was not recommending it. I was just establishing the food was GREAT. I don't remember that the difference in dress code was much different than Oceania. Country club casual. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

I was recently on the Riviera and booked my friends in a Guarantee PH3. The suite was assigned 6 days before the cruise. I found it on my online account before anyone told me it was assigned. FYI, the state room was upgraded to a PH2. That does not always happen. I hope this helps you. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

When making a brand decision, it is so very difficult. Especially when considering dining or food. Yet I too for the longest time was very interested in Regent Seven Seas Cruises. Reading the comments on Regent's blog, watching video's of high-end cruisers who spent a lot of time evaluating the food. What you really need is someone who actually went on both Oceania and Regent. I am NOT that person. However I can give you a different comparison. Oceania vs Crystal Cruises prior to the new owners. It is my understand from one of the most frequent Crystal Cruise whom is a good friend of mine, the food and Dining is even better today. Oceania Cruises was very good food for my group and me with a few fails. The Grand Dining room was better then most Main Dining Rooms on NCL, Royal and Celebrity. It was not as good as most specialty restaurants. Now I found Breakfast at the Grand Dining Room my favorite meal there. Where on Crystal, the Main Dining Room was a good or better then most Specialty Restaurants. The Suites only dining room on Celebrity Retreat and NCL Haven were always excellent to me knowing again all is relevant to ones tastes and experience. Base on everything I have read, viewed and heard; the Regent's food/dining is slightly better to being the same however the premium for the Regent Cruise is much higher due to the all inclusive nature. I have found out the the Ritz Carlton Yacht Collection is crushing it on the food/dining category. Again, ultra-luxury vs. Premium Plus. You pay for the privilege. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

Thank you to everyone on this stream. I took the advice, and did my due diligence. For me and others, Disney is a odd choose. I love to cruise but tend to attempt to find a true value proposition. Usually in a VIP area of a ship like the NCL Haven or Celebrity Retreat. Disney simply does not compare favorably price and amenities wise to those other choices. As my Travel Agent says, Disney is the Gucci of Cruising. You might think that is a put down. It is the opposite. It makes me want to book it that much more. To see why other want to cruise the brand as adults so much. The Disney Magic (not the ship) if you will. So the question is, pay more for a Concierge Level Suite on Disney for four days for four adults or 10 days in on one of the other brands VIP areas. Is it worth the difference? My gut and research is telling me at age 66, this might be my last chance. So, after writing this comment on this post, I will be booking our Disney Cruise on the Wish in the Concierge Level. CruiseCritic.com for me is a place I can go, ask questions, learn from others and book a different cruise than what I am used too. Thanks for the help everyone. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@MEFIowa Your examples are very valid. I have literally watch you gain some unbelievable deals. Strategically you approach and quest for the best of local Wine/Spirits is a Graduate School venture and you do it the best I have ever scene. For those that have the same goal as you do, you are the "Yoda" of this approach. The force is strong with you. Many others goals are different. For them, they need an equally strong approach. For some but obviously not for all, the value is in a Penthouse or above. Their strategy starts there. Others myself included will ONLY do the Prestige Drink Package and still go searching for wine and spirits in the more interesting ports. We know that does not provide the best value. We just like it so we pay for it. There is an old saying I remember from my first job at 20. "If the value of the product or service exceeds the guest expectations by one penny; then and only then will the guest purchase." Reading into to that quote, only the guest can establish what value is to them and every guest is different. The deal outlined by @FredZiffle is something that really interest me but I can not leverage it. My wife will not allow more than one serious cruise for a maximum of 10 days every other year. So I see the value but will not take advantage of it. Value is relative but it is lots of funny being surprised if you are already booked on a cruise. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@mauibabes Wow, and thank you. I take my research and post seriously and hope those that read them, will receive some benefit. Posts like yours, make me feel good about investing the time because you are indeed a "Graduate Student in Oceania Cruises". Everything I attempt to learn about with regards to cruise brands tie back to "Four Day Music Festivals". Many years ago, I was on the road away from home for 48 weeks a year. I was home every week from late Friday Night to mid-day Sunday getting right back on a flight out. I would wave to my wife and friends in my pool drinking Long Island Ice Teas as I drove to the airport on Sunday. I did this for 3+ decades. One weekend at home over a wonderful Meat Loaf and Mashed Potato dinner, I had an acute stroke. That will wake you up to reality real quickly. BTW, I am fine now with a bit of memory loss over and above just being in my 60's. I was a professional musician from my early teens to going to college. Music was important to me. After the Stoke, I retired and created the "Summer of Music". It started with a four day music festival called "The Hangout Music Festival". It was located on the beach, off the gulf shore of Alabama. It's tickets went from Standard, VIP, to Super VIP. The young people did the standard staying on the beach with no real shelter for four days. The 30 somethings did the VIP that has some amentias, shelter and a pool on the beach. Then the 55+ crowd did the Super VIP. Shelter, full bar, catered food, hot tubs and everything that ever one else had. The problem was no reviews for Super VIP's, only marketing information and the price was really high. Hard to make a decision not knowing all the details and amenities. I did it anyway and then wrote the book on how to squeeze ever once of value from the "Super VIP ticket". I went for the next four years and bought my tickets last minute on Craigslist for sometimes half price. That was the origin of my approach I now use for cruising. I used the same approach for the Bonnaroo Music Festive (with Artist Wrist Band Access), Sea Breeze Jazz Festiva (VIP Access), and many more. Then I did the same approach for the NCL Haven, Celebrity Retreat and Crystal Cruises (Luxury Cruise Test Drive). When I choose Oceania Cruises, all that experience was leveraged. I share this to again thank you for your kind words. Also, to emphasize we as consumers need this kind of information to help us to make good business decisions. Marketing departments "Over Promise and Under Deliver". This cruise brand approach of Over Promise leads to some guest expecting perfection causing posted topics that start with, "I will never cruise that brand again!!" Oceania is obviously not perfect. Nor was the NCL Haven, Celebrity Retreat, or Crystal Cruises. However if you knew the good, bad and ugly prior to making the decision, you would have "Realistic Expectations" and your over all experience was much better. So I am on to the "Oceania Cruises Graduate School". Happy to pay the tuition and to be mentored by kind folks like you. Thanks again. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@Shmoo here Thank you, doing it right now. Thanks again. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@SATaxman Boy did you open up Pandora's Box on the 7-10%, LMAO. That is on you. The bigger agencies offer this. What surprised me was, when I booked onboard, they asked if I wanted to book with my current Travel Agency. I said YES. It was automatic but I had to choose. AMX perks or Gratuities. Can't have both. I did the math and did the Gratuities. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

I am 66, my wife is 64, Daughter is 32 and her partner is 30. I went on Disney when my children were very young. When you get to 66, you can't remember that far back. My cruise history is 44 years, 30+ cruises mostly on NCL in the Haven Area, Celebrity in the Retreat and Oceania in a Suite. I share this because I would prefer to book the "Concierge Level" on a Disney Ship. I do an enormous amount of due diligence prior to making any decisions especially one that would be as expensive as the "Concierge Level" on a Disney Ship. In my attempt to look up the "Concierge Level", all I could find is 3-4 days cruises and I prefer a 7 day cruise. I would like to go out of a port in the United States. Any support or assistance to help me find "Concierge Level" accommodations would be very much appreciate. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@ec6393 I have no idea. Ask Oceania. If you just booked it, have Travel Agent take over the booking. Sorry, I just don't know the exact answer. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@FetaCheese Hello friend. Let me say first, LOL. Yes, I paid every penny but I do understand your reference. On to your question. Allow me to explain below: 5% Off Fare for Booking It So Long In Advance: This benefit changed at the first of the year. That said, when I went from A4 to PH2, I got the 5% off as I would have if I booked it originally on the ship. I was thrilled. On-Board-Credit(OBC): It was $250.00 per stateroom. When I upgraded, it was still $250.00 per stateroom. Extra Money Off: They gave $400.00 off the fare on-board for booking an A4. It was $600.00 for a PH2. They honored the extra money off. $800.00 OBC for Excursions for SimplyMore: If you booked the same cruise today, it would be $600. Yet they honored $800.00. I was again thrilled. Changing to A Different Cruise: I have a one time exception if I want to book another different cruise on Oceania. Going from A4 to PH2 did not effect this in the future. The opinion is still there. Gratuities Complementary from my Travel Agent: My gratuities when up because it cost more when in a PH category due to the butler. No issue and I was credited for the PH gratuities. Now if Oceania has an upcoming sale, it many NOT be compatible with the deal I got. If that happens, the math will win. Hope this answers your questions. Thank you for asking. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

I have a cruise already booked for the Oceania Vista, October 13, 2025, for 10-days in the Mediterranean. I booked it on my last cruise on the Oceania Riviera during our cruise on November 2023. Fun to watch how things happen, and although in life, there are NO guarantees, it seem on some level predictable. I am NO expert but it sure seems like the Oceania Sales happen in a certain way/pattern. We guest simply book a cruise, hang back and wait for a sale that might or might not happen. I personally have lots of time before my next cruise happens so this is a long-term study for me. What I Was Interested In Seeing: Similar Itinerary, Ship, Days and Time of the Year: I noticed, if I were doing a similar Itinerary, on the Vista, for 10 days in, a similar time period October 2024; I could save some money. This is important to me because I could assume, we all know what assuming means, that as my October 2025 cruise comes closer, a Oceania Sale could positively effect me. Ships and Fares: No secret here. I like Ocean Vessels like the Riviera, Marina and the Vista. All will have a few years on them before I cruised them or will cruise them. When ever a Cruise Brand has a brand new ship which the Vista was last year, the prices are always higher. Now, the Vista is higher the the gap is much less. The Riviera which I cruised after the Refurbishment was really lovely. The Marina will be Refurbished soon and I would expect the same quality. The Vista will go back for warranty work as I understand it after the cruise I am booked on in October 2025. The best deals NOW is the Riviera and Marina. SimplyMore Program: As most of us know already, the Exclusive Excursion On-Board-Credit (OBC) came down as of the first of the year. For my cruise we got, $800.00. The similar cruise for this year and in the future are currently $600.00. I can see in the future, fares staying the same and perks like OBC/OBC for Excursions becoming the playing card of choice for Oceania. I have not inside information but seems like that strategy cost the brand less then reducing fare. I hope I am wrong on this. Effect of Upgrading My Stateroom Early: I booked with some benefits while on my last cruise. I booked two Concierge (A4). At the time, my concern was my friends joining us for the second time and their budget. What I really wanted was a Penthouse (PH2). Recently I had my Cruise Travel Agent take me from a (A4) to a (PH2). I wanted to see if I lost my perks, amenities, and or discount for early booking now. I did not. I got the all. I was happy and impressed that it was a seamless process with my agent. For me, this is good information for the future. We will see if and when Oceania has some decent sales, this holds true in the future. My fingers are crossed. Timing Seems to be Everything: With my first sailing in November 2023, it seemed clear. If you booked a Mediterranean Cruise in November over October, you got a better fare. That made since to me because the weather is colder in November than October so October would be more desirable. Sales were better in November then October for my first cruise also. My issue this upcoming cruise was we like the Itinerary better in October. We will let the cards fall as they will. We have "Realistic Expectations". Effect on my Air Fare: I have already taken the Oceania Air off my booking. The reduction was $1,400.00 per person plus an addition $99.00 each way to leave from my Home Base, Birmingham, AL. That is a total of $1,598.00. As I did for my first cruise, so far, I shows I can book Fully Refundable Coach fairs on Delta Airlines for less then $1,598.00. I have four (4) very valuable Global Upgrade Certificates in waiting for when my airfares become available. My fares become available, 330 days before the return flight. I am now studying everything I can learn about how to upgrade my "Fully Refundable Coach Fare" to "Delta One Business Class" with those upgrade certificates. If you think cruise fares are confusing, air fare with upgrade certificates if far more unsettling. Wish me luck. PointGuy, I am reading everything you ever wrote on the subject. My Conclusion: Sale or NO sale. We would never have booked the cruise we did if the itinerary was not right or we could not afford the fare we booked at. If and when any sale happens or does not happen, we know the rules and can live with them. "Realistic Expectations" is my mantra. It applies to sales, food/dining, port cancelations, personalized service, bar service and everything else on any cruise with any brand. Just my two cents and I am sticking with it. "Cruise well and enjoy every moment."

@stevesol6718 My wife and best friends just got off the Riviera on November of 2023. It was our first cruise on Oceania and our friends first cruise ever. With regards to main dining rooms, I was a fan of them 44 years ago when we first stated to cruise. Over the years, all of them in my mind have gone down. I usually travel NCL Haven and the Celebrity retreat which has "Suite Only" Dining rooms. When I have gone in a normal stateroom on NCL and Celebrity, I rarely go into the Main Dining Room because I like you tend to be disappointed. For my last experience in November, I eat in the Grand Dining Room every morning for breakfast and each and every meal exceeded my expectation. The service was also great. Now lunch we had once and it was below average. Dinner we had one and it as average at best but the service was very good. There were so many choice for food, we never went hungry nor did we lack for something very nice to eat. For us, it was all in the selection. That was my feedback which I think you were asking for. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

Installment: When Your Potential Cruise Seems to have Bad Reviews I have cruise many brands. Some are better then others but all are relative to the cruise experience you are looking to achieve. I have noticed of late, a lot of complaining and folks that are really upset with the cruise the booked, are on or have recently finished cruising. I then see new cruisers to the brand, making post like "After some of the review I read, I don't know if I want to go on Brand X". Not so fast folks, before you make that final decision look a little closer. Allow me to give you some thing to look for and some strategies to take when folks complain about a cruise brand. Look for the following: If someone posts on a cruise brand board, "I will never cruise the brand again". Read their topic and see what their issue was. It might not apply to you. What do folk do a deep complaint online when social media does not fix the issue. The answer is they want folks to be on their side and looking for Social Media Justification that the issue they had, is all the brand fault. This is rarely the fact but folk need to have that justification. Go back on the history of the poster and see if they have a habit of complaining. I think it will surprise you that some contributors especially those that really are over the top upset, are the ones that always seem to complain. Look for trends and patterns with complaints. If it is a one off, let it slide. If it has to do with let's say port cancelation where their is now a war/conflict; don't blame the cruise brand. Thank them. If a lot of the same complaints happen from different guest, have a strategy so it won't effect the quality of your vacation. See my topic below, "Have a Strategy." How to leverage blogs that are complaining: Have a Strategy: Have a strategy to avoid the issue the poster is complaining about. On my recent Oceania Cruise, lots of folk were complaining that ports were cancelled for what the poster said was no real reason. There is always a reason but we the guest might not agree with it. When I heard this was what seemed to be a frequent situation, I told my guest joining me that their was a high likely hood of a port being cancelled. I wanted to provide "realistic expectations". Sure enough, was a port cancelled? Yes, Florence, Italy. Were we disappointed, Yes. It is make our entire cruise bad, NO. We knew it cold happen so it was like "Water off a Duck". Handle Issues Immediately with Empathy: It is a cruise, things happen. Handle the issue with kindness and a smile. If you come across as a harsh primidone, you will be treated like one. My approach is to always look for something good, tell the Cruise Hotel Manager how impressed you are early in the cruise. Then is something happens, later, they are willing to assist you much better. On my cruise, I did just that. Yet some other said that the Guest Services was awful. I found them to be Steller. Leverage Different Brands: When I want a small ship, that has lots of ports, I choose brands like Oceania Cruises. When I want a lot of excitement on a cruise with stellar entertainment, I choose the NCL Haven on the larger ships. My decision is based on the experience I want. So before you cancel a reservation or choose not to use a brand, because of some unkind words you read. Do your due diligence. Be a good consumer and don't fall for the person that just want you to cry with them. Ask yourself a question, could they have planned their cruise better and did they make some mistakes. Was it all the cruise brands fault. Nothing is ever black and white. Cruise never go perfect. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

Personal preference. I usually tip $200. Others do less, others do more. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@Fogfog as @havoc315 said so well, The tipping situation for the butlers has always been where they have been left off the Automatic Gratuities. Some folks tip them up front, some folks tip them at the end. I personally always tip them upfront and get lots of push back on it. My approach is to develop a letter called a "butler Letter" giving the butler a heads up on my needs. In the letter I put the full gratuities upfront. WHY, I had some bad experience with NCL Butlers. I started to engage with them and found out many guest, were unaware of the gratuities for Butlers. More than half left and never tipped the butler. This changed my tipping to upfront from the last night. Since them I have had much better attention from my butlers. I hope this and what @havoc315 shared with you assists you on your first Haven cruise. Cruise well and enjoy every moment. Butler_NCL_Cruises_Template.docx

@edgee I personally would like to thank you for sharing. Many don't like when folks share things that are less then complementary. I on the other hand, really appreciate it. I am on the Vista for a 10 day Mediterranean Cruise. This issue would only bother me at night so I have on my packing list, ear plugs. There will be other things we will learn about the Vista. I look forward to learning them. Good and Bad. Thanks again. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@BornPisces This is such a great story. Thank you for sharing. Hello my lovely, I miss you. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

When I started considering Oceania some two plus years ago, I thought the sale I got was fantastic. It was a four category upgrade and I upgraded initially to a Penthouse. I in a million years never thought a future sale would be combinable with the upgrade sale. The extraordinary sale came up and I almost did not call my travel agent to check. So glad I did, it was combinable but I did lose my AMX perks. A fair trade all the way around. I am the author of this thread so allow me to now connect to the topic of "what I learned when I booked my next cruise on the ship". I am looking daily (my thing, I have a lot of time on my hands) for new sales as the come up. Way to far in advance now, but as 2024 moves forward, I am sure Oceania will have some sales especially if the itinerary is not booking quickly. However, since my cruise is in October NOT November, in 2025 for the Mediterranean, my chances to reduce the fare goes down. Less people cruise the Mediterranean in November so that is the sweet spot. I choose to go earlier due to specific places the ship was sailing. The ship I did sale on in 2023 was the newly refurbished Riviera. That added a possibility of a sale because the Vista the newest ship was getting a premium because it was new. This time, I am on the Vista. This again reduces applicable sales even though the Vista will be a couple of years old when I eventually sail her. . So now, I do not have a lot of hope I will catch a combinable sale. That for me falls into the notion of "Realist Expectations". However, if I catch one that works, It will exceed my expectations. How it combines with the benefits I have already received on the ship booking approach, is yet to be determined. If the math works, all I want to know is my options as we all do. The important part is, I would have never booked the cruise at the price I did if I would not felt the fare was acceptable. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@Sailing12Away Thank you. Would it surprise you to know that my comment was not the first time I have said the same thing. It seems some exaggerate what is provided, other suggest under promise and hopefully over deliver. If our goal is to have the best cruise possible, simply let your self be surprised, or not. Realistic Expectations change my enjoyment of cruise for the better. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@slavetoabunny One of the things that seems to be true is butlers have some flexibility. Another way of saying that is inconsistencies from one butler to another. A lot of great cruisecritic.com member have provided great feedback to your question. My whole focus when cruising myself or providing feedback to a question is, "Realistic Expectations". Expect for example no drinks delivered complementary and have your expectation exceeded if and when they are. If you would like to have an idea of how to gain the most from a butler, consider a very controversial approach. It is called a Butler letter. When I created this concept, it was because I had some below average butler experiences. Once I did it, the experiences became average to above average. Butler_Crystal_Cruises_Template.docx This link will bring up an example of the butler letter. Some love it, some hate it. I use it every time now. I have had butlers on; Crystal Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, NCL Haven Cruises and Oceania Cruises. In each case, I used the information initially gained on a search of what a butler will and will not do to develop the butler letter. The best butlers by far were on Crystal Cruises and Oceania Cruises. The main reason was they had less cabins, and therefore were always available if and when I had a requestion. My goal in responding is again, to assist in expectations. I hope in some way I did. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@GayleR I wish I could give you an exact answer but I can't. I believe every butler can do for you what you like within reason. On other ships, the butler will give you afternoon tea which NCL does not do. Even if you have a drink package, the butler has to charge you if he brings you wine or spirits. Even in the Haven. So obviously, they won't do things that are against NCL policy. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@MadisonBay My pleasure and so glad you had a good time. Thanks for the updates. Much appreciated. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.