rbtan

Sorry about the jam. We really liked the scones last week.

Just surprising to see pax dressing nicer than I've seen it the past. In the past it was always pax with a nice sense of style.

"Wine People" as you call them are called Sommeliers. I'm a bit surprised you did not know this.This has never happened to us in our 4 cruises on Riviera. You can choose wine by the glass or the bottle. The Sommelier is supposed to always take your "drink" order. The waiters will take soft drink orders, but normally can't take alcohol orders.Lines such as Princess do not have Sommeliers. The waiters take the wine order. They are not good a recommending proper wines with your food. A Sommelier is a trained expert in this. Just grabbing "two reds". Is not how you choose the proper wine. I do recommend trying Le Reserve on board(it's pricey) to see what a proper wine & food tasting meal is all about. It's not just food, it's an event.

This was our 11(really 10 day) cruise.Embarkation was mostly smooth.A 15 min.computer crash annoyed us, but no big deal. Upon boarding we noticed a lot of furniture & carpeting has been replaced with new. Eventually, we got to our cabin 8009. We like the new redo. The bathroom was totally redone with a new walk in shower where the tub once was & a new storage where the small auxiliary shower was. We very much liked the new shower overall. I have to admit I liked the "rainfall shower" that was in the small shower. It used to really drench you. The colors were a nice neutral tone. The bed was nice(though, I really like firm beds)we were able to exchange out some of the down pillows as Keith is somewhat allergic to feather pillows. Now for the downside...Due to being at the front, you are in for a lot of noise from waves hitting the bow. It sets up a harmonic vibration that can be really loud & noisy in rough seas. We had a nice first dinner in the GDR. I had the Salmon which I loved in past voyages.The next day was a typical, grab a nice breakfast downstairs, wander about, watch some TV. Go up on deck & do pook time. We enjoy the salt water pool a lot. For dinner we had a nice meal again in the Dining room. This time Keith had the Sea Bream(type of Bass) had the Wiener Schnitzel, which was very tough & gristly. A real surprise. Caesar Salad was enjoyed by me most nights.Feb. 3 we landed in St. Kitts & did a nice Beach day. As usual Keith came out from snorkeling with a large starfish, but otherwise saw little but small fish. A few years back there was tons of life under the water. They must have seen Keith coming.LOL! For that night we dined in Jacques & enjoyed the Sea bass in Puff Pastry. It was the best we've had since being on Oceania. Day 4 was St.Vincent.We've not been there but hired a cab to take us & another couple for an island tour.We went up & saw some of the sites used for Pirates of the Caribbean.After a few more stops we ventured back to the ship. This tour was much cheaper than a ship excursion, which is what we choose on some islands.That night we dined in Red Ginger, one of our favorites. They had a new Spring roll offering & the usual favorites. You DO have to get the Miso Glazed Sea bass Its outstanding(as always) Feb. 5 was Dominica. We were last there in 2019. It was a mess as the island had not still recovered from Hurricane Maria. This is a place we always do River Tubing. This time we did the Emerald Pool as well. Trafalgar falls is a nice fall to explore, but you can't swim in it as you can the Emerald pool. The tubing was great. Last time the tubes were too small for keith & not too comfy. This time they were new & had sort of a seat back on some that supported larger guys better. The Wacky riders were as usual a fun group.They did a great job of guiding us. The river was fairly high & you had some decent rapids.. From there we went to Emerald pool. This time there was a proper trail that led you right to the pool.Those with mobility issues would have a hard time here, as it was quite steep.The water was more chalky due to runoff. They do have fresh water crabs in the pool, you might feel some, but they don't bother people. This night we dined in Polo Grill. Overall we were not impressed. Keith had the worst Oysters Rockefeller he ever had. Just dry, no real Oyster. It was like they had no clue how to prepare it. The Filet mignon was quite good, but he's had better. Feb 6 in St. Barts. It wa really rough tendering to the island. This is the only island we tendered to. All others we docked. We just window shop in the expensive store but buy little. We had lunch in Joe Robichaud's bistro. It was excellent, but pricey. Diner was in the GDR with the best Dover Sole we ever had on Oceania. Truly outstanding. Feb. 7 Was San Juan Puerto Rico. We did an excursion to the Fort guarding the port of the city. It goes back over 400 years. It's been very well preserved & is a very educational trip to take.We saw some of the beaches. Some were nice. There was one that is managed by the city gvt. that's the one to go to, as the city maintains it & keeps it safe.We did a nice walk through some sites. Do see the row of US presidents. It shows the ones who visited while they were in office.Only those who visited get a statue. We stopped at a nice cafe & Keith had a huge Caribbean Lobster(not like our New England types) but still very good. I had an excellent Seafood Paella. It was huge! Feb. 8 was a letdown. The Captain skipped Puerto Plata(Dominican Republic) He said the sea was too rough. Most of didn't buy it. For over half the stops we arrived at 10:30-11:30. This eliminates half your day. They used the excuse of protecting the seas. We feel it was really to rush the cruise. The next 2 days were typical sea Days. We packed early & did a lot of pool time. Entertainment was decent. (the real entertainment is the food)Generally a mixed bag of cute rather "green" Singers & Dancers. They seem to get better as the cruise progresses, but they've been on board since late fall. The Panche String Quartet was good, but not as good as the Quartet from last year.Gary Casey, the Irish Comedian was outstanding. Extremely funny. The Magician was good but I've seen better. The last night we ate in Toscana. They really seem to do steak better than Polo & Dover Sole better then Jacques. Again, Keith had the Dover Sole & again it was outstanding. We enjoyed Tea time most days, but had to cut back a bit as not to spoil dinner time. As a side note we have found that food portion sizes have gotten smaller, but in all cases they will always give you extra if you ask. Food quality as always was mostly outstanding.With the exception of the Oysters Rockefeller & my Wiener Schnitzel, the food met our standards. We have booked another cruise next year on the new Vista.

We were just on Riviera (Jan.31-Feb.10) We were in cabin 8009. We kept hearing this booming noise as the ship plowed through rough seas in the Caribbean. It was very disturbing at night. We know now not to book that far forward(then again,it was a guarantee cabin) We will avoid that in the future, so if I were you I'd avoid being too far forward.

Never seen overalls(farmer type) on O & I hope to never see them. That's a clod pushing the envelope to see how low he can go.

On our recent trip(Jan.31-Feb.10) We saw a surprising amount of sport coats & more than usual full suits. We brought spot coats & Ties. I wore a bow tie on occasion. My spouse brought a coat & tie, but never felt the need to wear them. He usually wears Ralph Lauren/Tommy Bahama shirts shirts & khakie style pants. We saw one guy in a scooter dressed like an absolute slob try to get into the dining room.at dinner. He tried to use his disability as an excuse. The staff said no, you have to change. He charged off & not sure where he ended up.

Is your T/A American or British? Contact them & inquire what they can do. They get paid by the cruise line, so they should assist you. If not then try Oceania directly. If you knew this on board, you should have addressed it at that time. It's hard to get satisfaction after the fact.

Nice falls. We did the Tubing & Emerald pool around Feb.6. Nice to see a lot of vegetation coming back since last there in 2019.

We usually like staying at the National. They've done a lot of renovations as of late The Shelborne is another nice one. The Lenox is gorgeous inside. Not quite on the beach, but a very nice place.Love the villas that overlook the pool.

They open at 6:30 Your accommodations dictate when you can reserve online. If you like a table for 2 & like to eat early, this can be hard to do with anything less than Concierge level. Sharing will get you most any time. Being in a B level guarantee, it was hard to get in around 6:30. If you can't get the time you want.check in each day. We eventually got 6:30 all times except one. More times open later near the end of your voyage.

We've done Queens Grill on QM2(still our favorite ship) Outside of being able to venture "off menu" in Queens Grill, We find the food much better than Britannia/Britannia club for example. The Specialties we found were generally better than Queens Grill. GDR(Grand Dining Room) more akin to Princess Grill. Afterall Oceania spends more for food per pax than any line in the industry.

You really need to try Rivera or Marina to see what Oceania can do.

That's a joke son! Face it boy, I'm too fast for ya!(Yeah, thanks Foghorn)

Just got back from Riviera today(spent an extra night in Fl.)Really love the redo of the ship. The new shower is fantastic! I'll be doing a full review soon.

For those(my spouse included) that have CPAP, you really do NOT need the distilled water. Your humidifier tank will be fine. When you get home, just fill the tank with a good white vinegar overnight. It will remove any "scale" that might form. Not all lines have distilled. Most do. We're on the MSC Divina next year & they really don't provide much for CPAP users. As there are NO plugs at all bedside(very strange?!) we will have to bring an extension cord to reach the plugs across the room.

Not sure they will allow the hair dryer. What you may need are plug adapters. We had those with us when we did an Iceland trip last March.Best thing to do is contact Oceania. They will have the best solutions.

No real requests. We all know there will be plenty of soft drinks. Robes slippers & often a bottle of wine/cheap Champagne/ or good Champagne awaiting.

We're fine with the reimagination. Still looks like a French Bistro to us. I will say however the tables seem a little more "snug". As long as the food is as good as usual, we'll not have an issue. We do have issue with the price increase in Le Reserve. It looks to have gone up at least $40 PP since last Jan. The food & ambience are excellent, but the menu does need changes.I'm referring to La Bourgeoise, which has been by far our favorite of the tasting menus.

White & Gold night?

This is the time to wear the Patent Leather shoes. This is when you get to see what's under those kilts.

You always seem to find the coolest things! I never saw one of those before.

Well I guess if you think that it IS acceptable to dress in the MDR in shorts & a wife beater T for dinner I guess that's fine for you. I feel most other pax would rather dine with pax who at least make an effort to not look like a slob.Not talking Tux/Suit, just reasonably dressed.

Ok. Here's my take on that: Breakfast, fine. I've seen it many times on many lines. Lunch, usually a little better.(better shorts, very few wife beater t's) At dinner? Totally unacceptable, period.We will & have complained to the Maitre D about that kind of slovenly dress. In the Buffet? We don't care, as we mostly do the MDR.