AMHuntFerry

The ginger beer has been the no-alcohol version in my experience. Also beware of the cider - Angry Orchard is the sweet kind with added sugar.

The current sales disappear soon after I spot them (~within a day), unlike the preview to the Extraordinary Sale last year when the prices would be static for weeks; in fact, I just checked and this one is already gone. I won't share my TA since it is against the CC rules, but it is just a local, family run business who belongs to the Signature consortium (I've been told by a mod that consortia can be named), so find a TA that belongs to Signature and one that belongs to Virtuoso who have searchable websites. Keeping up with jaw-droppers is a full time job, so I'll just wait and see...if no cruise, then there is a lot of Wilderness to get lost in when the temps get too high (which for me is usually May-Sep 😉 ).

Today there is a Marina veranda, July 10 night in the Baltics for $1600. The only jaw-dropper in today's search.

Speaking of sales, there are a few (just a few!) fantastic sales showing up today for spring/summer (weren't there last time I did an overall check, not just my targets, which may have been 2-7 days ago...days all run together 😉 ) on my TA's site that aren't on O's site, so I assume silent-sale. Example: Inside $2499 on O, $1485 on TA for 11 days Regatta (Mexico); $4549 O, B-cat $1600 TA for 10 days Marina (Norway). Also saw some Riviera, but I am avoiding tasks that I will kick myself for not doing, so enjoy bargain hunting!

This is additional info for those reading who may be new to O. Please note that the sales listed are those available directly from O. There are other sales that are only available via TAs. For example, the Extraordinary Sale was available in February 2023 via a TA (I booked an ESS cruise for September on March 10, 2023). It pays (literally) to have access to at least one TA's sale opportunities. Those wishing for the most opportunities probably use more than one TA...probably one from each consortium as well as a well-connected O TA (more effort than I'm willing to expend though...sometimes saving $ just isn't worth the hassle).

As ORV stated, the OBC is usually (not always) higher for booking onboard than for FCC; otherwise the benefits are the same (same deposit, same discount, same one-time-itinerary change, etc.). However, a potential benefit of a FCC is that, if unused, it is fully refundable within a year, while a cancelled cruise is $150 per person before the higher penalty period starts.

Some brands may be more active in managing their CC presence for marketing purposes; I don't believe O is one of those brands (I posted a longer version of this but it has been "flagged for approval before posting", possibly because I used an AI triggering-word).

It is a new program (October 2023) so people are just starting to find out how it works on actual cruises. So far the demand for shorex has been too great on some cruises. On others, a shorex/port has been cancelled and the "refund" then needs to be used for another shorex before the cruise is over (which may not be possible). The SM kinks are still being worked out, but booking as early as you can and choosing shorex in ports that are near the beginning of the cruise (avoiding tender ports) seems to be the current strategy.

Some brands have dedicated moderators as evidenced by pinned topics. As far as I can tell, the O board is only moderated by the generic CC moderators who remove offending posts (and possibly only if reported by users). I don't know who pays for the active-moderators but I'm guessing it is the cruise brands. Also remember that there are paid brand-influencers (both positive "brand cheerleaders" and negative "brand bashers") as well as the unpaid complainers/trolls (the latter can often be ID'd by going and looking at their recent posts). I spent a year or so lurking before joining and posting; personalities of frequent posters are easily identified if observed over time so I know whose info to believe and whose might be suspect. Some of the most crusty posters are also the most reliable, while some of the nicer posters can post inaccurate info. I actually am entertained when one of the chronic-complainers states that they will never sail O again; after the tenth time it brings a giggle.

Look on the back of your card to ID the network (e.g., Cirrus). Go to that network's website and use their find-an-in-network-ATM locator. Assuming you have one of the large networks, there will be ATMs all over the place if you are in Tokyo or other tourist cities (it gets harder as you go to more remote or Japanese-tourism-centric areas).

A childhood friend's dad ran the Swensens in Palo Alto when I was a kid...always a treat to go there!

Meh, level 2. No worse than Belgium or Italy.

On our most recent cruise my spouse needed to check in daily with a client due to the client's staffing issues (we usually unplug). It was literally impossible during the day/evening since he had to jump techinical-hurdles accessing the client's servers. He just woke up in the wee hours, checked in, took care of any issues, logged off, and went back to bed.

The chicken kefta and pork entrees look yummy, and the shrimp would make a good salad. @GlitterFemme ...there are salad items (lettuce, onions, etc) and condiments to perk up the basic veg-burger.

You are correct. Correct, but they are in the general access area on O-ships, and the access controlled area (spa deck) and the A-ships. None on R-ships if I recall.

Yes, everyone has access to the sauna/steam room.

As a follow up to mountain grandma's excellent tips, I believe contacting special services needs to be done at least 60 days before embarkation to be assured everything goes smoothly.

Until recent cruisers chime in, here are a couple of past threads:

It's Eastern Time (ET) so GMT(-5) right now but we're switching to GMT(-4) on March 10th.

If the small weights aren't available on your cruise and you don't want to pack them, you can use things like soda cans from your frig and the electrolyte drinks in the gym as substitutes. Out of curiosity I weighed the refillable metal bottle that is in the room...it is about 5 ounces empty. Filled about 1/3 (maybe a bit more) with water, it was about 1 pound.

You can write a letter to the appropriate exec: https://www.oceaniacruises.com/corporate I don't know if it will get counted with the survey beans, but it's a method of feedback.

No, it has worked fine for us, but the Original certificate must be mailed to O (keep a copy). When my TA tried to just give her O-rep the certificate's number, they told her that it has to be mailed.

OMG I was making a joke. Lighten up! (and yes, I am quite familiar with tracking methods of many kinds)

Princess ships are too big, so no. Easy door fix...remove from cage, unlock door, replace in cage; repeat whenever needed.

It seems to have worked. The only cabins available this morning on the full-version (starting in Dubai) were some verandas. There was a large variety (Inside, OV, suites) two days ago.