vlthom

I celebrated a birthday in November onboard Regatta.  My husband checked ahead of time with the Executive Concierge who said that they'd already noted the occasion.  That evening we ate in Toscana and I was presented with a small cake with a candle at the end of the meal.  Waiters sang Happy Birthday.  It was very nice and the cake was delicious.  Later in the evening when we returned to our cabin, it was decorated with balloons and a banner saying, "Happy Birthday".  

We've also celebrated anniversaries onboard.  These have typically gone unnoticed except on the occasion when my husband again talked to the Executive Concierge a day or two ahead of time and they presented us with a cake at the conclusion of our dinner.  We ate in a specialty restaurant on those occasions.  

Oceania may not surprise one with a celebration if the occasion is not brought to their attention but they will certainly do something to mark an occasion if asked to do so.

21 hours ago, SATaxman said:

Was your 20th bottle marked in a way for you to not pay the $25 corkage fee?

We received a bottle of Veuve Cliquot for our 20th as well.  We took it to a specialty -- no corkage was charged.  We also tend to take the included bottle of Heidsieck  Monopole to either the GDR or a specialty.  We've never been charged a corkage in those instances either.  

3 hours ago, Mrs f. said:

I'm planning an excursion.  Tender port. Ship leaves at 5pm.   I know we always have to be back a half hour before. But when might the last tender be?

I believe that the last tender is typically an hour before the scheduled departure time.

14 minutes ago, Snaefell3 said:

Missed that. 🙂   In lieu of coleslaw, though 😞  

Perhaps it's still available.  They've always had some salad offerings available that are not mentioned on the menu.

1 minute ago, clo said:

So were these 'ground' salmon? 

It was a salmon patty as opposed to a piece of salmon.  

I do see that they are now offering sweet potato fries as a side.....finally.

It's no longer optional for bookings made after October of last year.  You either have Simply More with airfare or not with airfare included, but everyone booking after last October will be on the Simply More plan.  The new program includes beer, wine and champagne at mealtime and also provides a credit to be used towards excursions but not other onboard expenses.  With the implementation of this plan, prices went up across the board for the most part.

We were recently in a PH cabin on Regatta and I was surprised to find that a blue light was on in the bathroom at night.  We had no control over this -- no switch to operate, but it was nice that this feature exists because it meant that no one needed to switch on the bathroom light during the night if they needed to use the facilities, particularly since the switch is located outside the door.  

2 minutes ago, roberts2005 said:

What cabin were you in?

We were in 8049, which was a great cabin aside from the problem with the temperature.  

On 12/29/2023 at 2:16 AM, 2552phxcrzr said:

Have noticed that some parts of the ship are warmer than others, though I have not been anywhere where it felt uncomfortable.  Have overheard people complaining to the front desk staff about A/C in the cabins being insufficient/not working.  We are in a deck 4 cabin and have no complaints.  We do keep the drapes closed when the sun is on the port side of the ship.

 

Someone mentioned in another thread that there was a refrigerated container on deck 11.  We saw it being taken off in Sydney.  So whatever the reason was for having it onboard, it no longer applies.

On recent (Oct 4-Dec 22) Regatta sailing, we found the climate control onboard the ship to be lacking.  Temperatures were quite variable.  We were sailing in high temps and high humidity but the ship's system did not seem capable of handling it.  Our cabin was on deck 8 and was miserable for a very lengthy stretch of the cruise.  Forget about the in-room thermostat controlling anything.  There was no relationship to its settings and the temperatures in our cabin.  We were instructed to keep the curtains closed in the cabin, which we did.  It helped and the moment we'd open the drapes, the cabin got noticeably hotter.  We wound up feeling as if we were sailing in an inside cabin at the price of a PH.  We had the drapes closed from Okinawa to South Australia.  I requested that they see if they could do anything to fix the situation but nothing ever really changed.  I was told that "everyone is complaining" as if that was an answer to the problem.  Earlier, I'd asked them to look at it and was told "no one is complaining" and thus my concern was invalid.  I wound up frustrated with "Guest Services" to say the least.  I do believe that our cabin was negatively impacted by the heat due to its location -- which was only a door away from the elevator area.  Heat and humidity were pouring down the stairs from deck 9 where the Terrace and Waves are located.  And guests were coming in/out of the pool deck area, heating things up.  That said, I'd sailed on Regatta numerous times previously and never felt this problem to this degree.  Some parts of the ship (like the lounge in particular) felt like they were refrigerated.  Other areas (especially the fitness center and spa) were extraordinarily hot and only usable to the most heat-tolerant guests.  The GDR varied but was usually okay.  Same with the specialties on 10.  Lots of people were complaining about the temperatures in their cabins.

As for the refrigeration unit up top, that was brought on board during our cruise.  We were told that there was a problem with the "refrigeration system" onboard when we reached Vancouver which in turn caused a full day's delay there.  The captain told us that 2 spare units were brought onboard because we were sailing into a remote area (Alaska and then over to Japan) and would not have access to spare parts, if needed.  

Yes, definitely lots of variables that are impactful.  My point was that it's possible in the right circumstances.  

On 11/6/2023 at 4:51 PM, Spikehines said:

Has anyone had any experience with connectivity at sea?  I have an elderly!!!  Mom that I need to FaceTime with to check her wellbeing. 
Also any information on T-Mobile’s roaming in ports?

We recently got off a 77-day voyage aboard Regatta.  Both DH and I used zoom to connect with others on numerous occasions during the trip.  There were times that it worked great and other times less so but it was certainly usable. DH was able to participate in work meetings which was important and the quality was sufficient for this purpose.  I used it to zoom with a group that I zoom with regularly and out of the 5 times that I used it, one was a complete bust.  On the other occasions it was at least adequate.  

4 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Thanks for that info

So other reports by some were incorrect  then 

the speculation that  everyone even if they did not switch to SM got 2 accounts  was incorrect

We recently returned from a voyage on Regatta.  Our embarkation date was Oct 4.  We did not book under “Simply More”.  We had two simultaneous log-ins for the duration of our cruise of 77 days.  There was no additional fee for the second log-in.  And while I did not find the internet speed to be great, it certainly wasn’t any worse than when each cabin was only allotted one log-in.  I am amazed though that the OP only had one log-in.  That’s inconsistent with what Oceania is saying and with our personal experience.

1 minute ago, clo said:

I have never seen anyplace - granted I live on the Left Coast - where men's and women's haircuts cost the same. Never 🙂

Neither have I…good point;  however, this was also the most expensive cut of my life and not my favorite either.

Just got off 77-day cruise on Regatta.  I had one haircut priced at $129 + service charge.  The cut included wash and style.  The quality of the cut was good though he went shorter than I would have preferred.  Others said the same thing.  On the positive side, I didn’t need a second cut because he went so short.  There was only one person onboard in the salon doing cuts for both men and women.  DH also got a haircut and it is an excellent cut and priced much more reasonably than the women’s cuts at $49 which did not include washing.  I could have washed my own hair for that kind of savings!

I. Wish that they had them, but they don’t.  They offer a mat pilates class periodically, but that’s it.

13 hours ago, IWantToLiveOverTheSea said:

I've been trying unsuccessfully to find out where the Riviera may be assigned to dock in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) in February.  I know that a few of the smaller ships have docked close to the city (Hiep Phuoc, container port on Saigon River not terribly far south of HCMC).  That is what a well known tour guide thinks is correct, but I'm no so sure a ship of Riviera's size can be handled there.  Would anyone know how to find out? Or has anyone been there on a larger ship that's been there?

Did you ask Oceania?

38 minutes ago, osandomir said:

The addition of these ports in Japan looks great IMO. Personally, I wouldn’t be interested to spend time in Shanghai anyway now. Did Oceania also come up with the shore excursions for new ports?

I think that in the end, it will be far less hassle with the substituted ports; however, they only are offering a couple of tours in one of the new offerings.  

Instead of Shanghai, we’re now spending an extra day at Naha and are going to Miyakojima and Ishigaki, both of which are in the Okinawa prefecture.

4 hours ago, roberts2005 said:

We will be joining the Regatta in March.  How is the ship overall?  Have been on the other R ships, but not the Regatta

Regatta is beautiful.  If you like the R ships, you will like it.  We had the one issue that kept us in Vancouver for the extra day but no other problems since then.  I am not sure that we would have been stuck for the extra day had it not been for the fact that it was Thanksgiving in Canada.  

23 minutes ago, susiesan said:

Consider that change a win. Japan is far more preferable to visit than China.  What 2 ports in Japan were added?

It’s now the next morning and we still have not been told where we will be going for two days.  We’ve already been in Japan for 12 days so That’s already a fair amount of time.  Japan has been beautiful, though.

Captain has just informed us that we will miss our 2 days in Shanghai due to difficulties being imposed by the government.  We were to be the first cruiseship calling in Shanghai since COVID.  Details regarding what the Chinese government wanted was not disclosed.  Two additional days in Japan are being substituted but we have not been informed of the details yet.

39 minutes ago, bobolz said:

Good luck to you. We left Regatta in LA  where your journey to Japan began. Just now,  passageweather.com indicates rough waters  approaching Alaska . So I am wondering if the captain is cancelling those ports to keep you all safe and avoid having you thrown about. 
 

safe journeys and hopefully smooth sailing…🙏

 

p.s regatta looks like a tugboat next to Bliss. 😳 

I am sure that it’s safety first, though we missed some because of our unplanned extra day in Vancouver.  Seas and weather have not been especially cooperative since then.

Just now, roberts2005 said:

How is that Northern Pacific crossing?  Is it normally that rough?

Not sure.  This route over to Japan is a first for us so I have nothing to compare with.

17 minutes ago, roberts2005 said:

Why did you miss Dutch Harbor.

Motion of the ocean…..and 40 knot winds.

And now, as of this morning we are skipping Dutch Harbor, AK, which was to be the lasp port prior to the long slog to Japan.  For anyone sailing on this segment, I would imagine that they are disappointed.  So far, we missed Sitka, Hubbard Glacier, and Dutch Harbor.  Visits in Victoria and Vancouver were marred by holidays and the Marathon which shut down the port for most of the day spent in Victoria.  We’re onboard until Sydney so are hoping for improvement as we continue.