kreastman

1 hour ago, FetaCheese said:

Is queens cut boneless ? and Kings cut bone in ?

 

His was boneless.  

 

Have found that items can vary from ship to ship, and from chef to chef.

My first time on Regatta, some years ago, I ordered the King's Cut and it was boneless and as you described, about 2 inches thick, so I guess it does vary. Either way, though, it's usually tender and delicious.

36 minutes ago, FetaCheese said:

@kreastman

Just off Regatta.  1st night in PG, sharing, the husband ordered prime rib, queen cut, rare.  A huge slab, like 2+ inches thick arrived, rare.  Definitely 16 oz or more.  He really enjoyed it.

2" thick sounds like the King's Cut—perhaps they gave him that by mistake. The Queen's Cut I received was less than 1/2" thick. Maybe they thought I wasn't hungry...

8 hours ago, Sabbycat said:

 

In restaurants, shoreside or otherwise, I always order rare for medium rare. And I always get medium rare!

Just off Regatta. Ordered rare ribeye in Polo and it arrived between rare and medium rare, so I was happy. It was a pretty thin cut, though; didn't seem like it could have been the advertised 20 oz. Ordered the Queen's cut prime rib another time in Polo and it was properly medium rare, but also seemed thin and not 16 oz. as the menu indicated. I wonder whether thinner cuts is a new, economizing trend.

So many comments about the hard-to-get Medium Rare. Is it better to order Rare and hope for Medium Rare, rather than end up with Medium or Medium Well and have to send it back? Has anyone ordered Rare and had it arrive actually too rare?

Didn't know they had heaters available—hope they will have them on our Alaska trip as well. Ship will be full, so I'm sure they'll want to use the outdoor space.

Sounds like the system has been upgraded—good to know. My comments were based on our cruise on Sirena a few years ago. Looking forward to Alaska on Regatta in a few weeks (there probably won't be many outdoor Terrace opportunities on that one, though).

I wish it was a phone app, then you could pause it. No way to do that with the TV's revolving slide show.

Yes, of course, and we sometimes did that. Just saying it would have been convenient to have something printed in our cabin to refer to.

Wish there were printed menus for GDR included with each day's issue of Currents. The TV menu shows one category at a time (appetizers, main courses, desserts, etc.), but sometimes they change before you can look at all the options and you have to watch the whole cycle again. We ended up taking photos of the screens.

Similar experience on Sirena a couple of years ago (special menu, funny hats, horns, etc.), but with an unwanted "extra". We had retired early after a long day. At midnight, the captain decided that everyone needed to celebrate, so did a live countdown on the speakers in every stateroom (not just in the hallways, as usual with announcements). Woke us (and I imagine quite a few others) from a sound sleep. It was very loud, and no way to turn it off. I don't know if this is standard procedure for New Year's on O, but you might want to be aware.

Are the new, improved pizzas also

available on the R ships? We tried pizza on Regatta a few years ago and it was pretty unremarkable.

We loved having breakfast on our balcony while going through the Canal on Sirena, with the lecturer's commentary playing on the cabin TV.

We've been in a rear Concierge cabin on Regatta. We liked the extra balcony space, but didn't like the solid railing, which restricted views when sitting. Most balconies on the sides of the ship also have 180-degree unobstructed views, plus railings you can see through. 

We also did San Diego to Rio on Sirena (December 2017). Did almost all private tours since we found a fellow cruiser on our roll call who was researching and organizing them. They all were very good, we thought, and much less expensive than the equivalent O tours.

Regarding mosquitos, we came well prepared but never saw a single one.

When some of us were walking around Manaus on our own, one person had an expensive necklace ripped off and stolen right on a busy street, so best not to wear jewelry off the ship.

Why is a rear cabin better for Alaska?

Regarding the "disappearing Petrified Forest", it's a myth—please check out this article:  https://www.azcentral.com/story/travel/arizona/2016/04/10/national-parks-centennial-petrified-forest/81296198/

Thanks.

Link?

Thanks--that could have been the one we took, as well, but like you, I can't remember the guide's name.

Some friends are looking for D-Day & Normandy private excursion recommendations. We had a great D-Day tour in 2011, but I don't think the company we used is still in business, so would appreciate any ideas. 

I realize that not everyone books a PH or higher, but if you are in those categories, one of the biggest perks is that your butler can usually get you extra specialty reservations, often on short notice. I agree with Mura, though—it's nice to have dinner from a specialty or the GDR served in your cabin after a long day of touring!

Hope they don't do what they did when we were on Sirena two years ago. We don't typically stay up on New Year's Eve, so were peacefully asleep in our cabin at midnight when the captain came on the speaker in our room at top volume to do a live countdown. We're fine with folks celebrating the New Year, and had the announcement been via the normal hallway system, it would have been OK, but startling us awake the way they did was in our opinion rude and inconsiderate.

Another vote for Antiche Figure. We enjoyed several days there post-cruise a few years ago. In the afternoon, get a glass of wine from the bar, sit at a table outside and watch the crowds on their way to and from the train station. Great people watching spot. A couple of good small restaurants nearby.

Legendary announcer/commentator Verne Lundquist was a guest lecturer when we were on Marina a few years ago. His behind-the-scenes sports stories were one of the highlights of that cruise.

I am sure that every part of O's marketing budget has been carefully scrutinized and analyzed for its effectiveness (as have their budgets/expenditures for staff, maintenance, food, etc.) and adjusted as needed. Direct mail simply must work, or they would not be doing so much of it.

Personally, I often explore new cruise possibilities on the web, but I still enjoy getting O's brochures. Sure, I toss some of them immediately, but often I enjoy taking a few minutes to page through them. I may even save some of the larger, more comprehensive ones for future reference. Sometimes, it's easier to compare printed pages for different cruises than to try and do it on O's website.