robbie21

We have been on both sides of this issue - as members of a wine group and as independents on board with a wine group. From our experience wine group sizes are generally in the 50-100 passenger size.  Like other groups they will be using part of Horizons for receptions and will take one specialty restaurant for a wine paring dinner one night. Unlike alumni groups in particular and also professional education groups they will mostly be strangers to each other and will not be crowding the bars or running up and down the halls in funny hats 🙄.  

On several occasions I have had crew members tell me that complementing them by name on the mid cruise and end of cruise surveys is the very best thing that can be done for them.  Those survey comments are a significant factor in promotion decisions. 

Back in 2017 we chartered a 35 passenger boat out of Cairns. 

In researching this trip I found many adverse comment on the cruise line excursions to the pontoons.  We also later heard similar comments later from fellow passengers. Crowded, dead coral, bad food, etc. We did not want to take a ship excursion to the reef.  Our situation was a late arrival in Cairns, around 10AM.  The small boats normally leave around 8 AM so we were unable to take a regular excursion on our own.  The ship excursion was the only option or so we thought.

Anyway, I contacted the Seastar and arranged a charter of the whole boat.  We were a group of 8 and I filled the rest of the slots via the roll call without difficulty.  It was a 2 or 3 block walk down the waterfront to the boat slips.  We were underway by 10:45.  Wonderful day. Spectacular weather and we anchored about 10 feet from the reef. They had a glass bottom boat for some of the non-swimmers. The reef was spectacular. Good food too. We got back in around 5:30 PM. We had 4+ hours on the reef which was ample given that we could just step off the stern and we were there.  All in all a terrific day.

I started this process about 6 months prior to the cruise. I made the charter on faith that I could fill the boat from the roll call.  Turned out to be easy.  There was a fair amount of "administration" in collecting checks and making payments. Because of a fluctuating exchange rate determining the price was a bit tricky.  I ended up $75 ahead.  By consensus of the group I spent it on a bottle of wine that night.

For android users consider Google Fi.   International calls 0.20/min.  texts are free world wide.  Data is $10 a Gig anywhere.  Seamless to use - just use your phone as you would at home.  At sea use wifi calling.

thanks for the tip on checking for YouTube videos of the excursions. 

We have found that some Regent excursions are wildly mislabeled as "Moderate".  Last year on one of our "Moderate" level excursions we started out with a very steep 4 block climb.  One member with a heart condition could not make it.  He said he could walk fine on level ground but did not have the cardiovascular capacity for heavy exertion. There was a delay while he recovered enough to settle into a sidewalk cafe and we went on to find that there was essentially no level ground on this excursion - all up and down some on steep streets and some on stairs.  We were all exhausted by the time we caught up with the gentleman waiting in the cafe.  This excursion should have been labeled heavy or at least noted as very hilly.  There were several other excursions that we felt were not properly described both in level of exertion and in the sights we were to see.  We were not at all happy with the Regent descriptions of some of the tours we took. 

I don't quite understand how a wait list can be "full".  That seems to contradict the definition of a wail list.  Nevertheless, if that's the way they do it I will follow your suggestions.

Thanks, cwn

We recently booked the June 20, 2024 cruise on Mariner. When trying to book excursions we saw that there were some excursions shown as full with no option to wait-list and others full but offered a wait-list option.  The 3 tours we wait-listed on cleared within 5 days. 

The questions are, why do some excursions list as full with no option to waitlist?  And, is there any way to get on a waitlist for those excursions?

We were is Israel in June of the Vista.  3 days of private tours with a group of 6.  We paid and tipped our guide and driver in dollars.  We used credit cards everywhere else including fast food restaurants and more formal restaurants, supermarkets and for souvenirs.  CC's had a provision for tips in restaurants.  Our guide would have found an ATM but advised against it.  He was right.

The machines were easy to operate.  The liquid soap dispenser on the wall kept overflowing.  It keeps running and dribbling for a long time after you release the button.  Hopefully someone will have put up a sign by now.

To answer the question of evening on deck temps and wind -Its the tropics evening temps are generally in the 70's, sometimes low 80's.  Usually the ship is under sail in the evenings hence you are going mostly downwind with negligible apparent wind.  We always take a stroll around the deck after dinner often with a drink in hand.  Note also that the bar, although covered, is open to the elements on both sides.

Enjoy

Getting back to tipping (or not) in the specialties - I have had the Maitre d' refuse a tip in one of the specialties a long time ago. She had twice worked us in without a reservation. She said she was not permitted to accept tips although some did it under the table she did not.  She suggested I recognize her by name on my mid cruise or final review. She said that promotions and bonuses on Oceania are heavily influenced by passenger reviews.  We have subsequently seen her several more times, each time in a higher position.  Last time we saw her she was food and beverage manager. 

A by name recognition that leads to a promotion is worth way more than any tip you could give. Keep it in mind.

Stayed at the Sofia in July.  Great buffet breakfast.  Really annoying motion sensitive lights in bedside table and bathroom.   If you roll over and toss the blanket off the edge of the bed the light goes on😱. Other than that a nice hotel in a pretty nice neighborhood. Lots of little restaurants nearby if you like to walk about.

Star Clipper cruises do require a reset of expectations.  Planned port times can vary.  Also, sometimes their shore excursions can be a little different than other cruise line so ask the cruise director what to expect.  If you don't like what's on offer there will always be taxi drivers hanging about quite willing to take you wherever you want.  If you don't have a specific destination they will usually give you a general tour of the area or even suggest what is best to see. We have had some outstanding tours this way.

If you are a type A planner 😉 you can google taxi companies ahead of time.  They often have stock tours, and prices. You call them when you are ready.

Finally, you can simply walk about in the port or even stay on the ship.  In some ports they will have the water sports team put out the sailboats and kayaks.

Relax and wing it 😁

Just returned on Sunday from a Regent cruise ending in Italy. Hit four Italian ports.  Masks were "required" only on tour buses.  Compliance varied. Some guides wore masks and some did not.  No enforcement against those not wearing masks.  Observed similar variable compliance on public buses. Masks were not required on tenders. Perhaps 10-20% wore masks.  Personal preference. On board we saw a few with masks on elevators, etc.  Staff continues to wear masks.  Don't recall seeing a masked person on the street in Amalfi or Portofino despite the crowds.  Seems like the Italians have given up on enforcing mask mandates.

The direct answer is NO!  An 11:30 flight will not be "easy" to make.  It's possible with luck and perseverance. The luck part is getting off the ship and linking up with transportation.  Luck also involved in Seattle traffic snarls.  Note that this is construction season for WA roads.  Lots going on in the waterfront area as well as the freeways. Could take 30-40 minutes or 2 hours. No way to predict. Also, do you have TSA precheck?  If no, the odds go down. SeaTac airport is not the most efficient.

I have found that QR code menus are seldom convenient to use.  Generally you see only a small portion of the menu and have  to scroll up or down a lot.  Sometime you have to zoom to read it and then zoom back to scroll to the next section. You can't, for example, flip from the wine list back to the entrees without scrolling and zooming. Basically a frustrating PITA.  Waiters have told me that they get lots more questions on the menu when QR codes are used and it wastes their time.

21 hours ago, macbest said:

Wine connoisseur lunch, second to last day on ship (a sea day)

 

We tried the optional wine lunch today at our first day at sea. Menu attached. Really nice wines and one bonus wine. It was a 12:30 start and still felt like if you were part of the “elite” class of Penthouse and above (or titanium and above) who all sat in the middle. We are Gold with Regent (145 nights) and stayed in an F1 suite. And we were stuck behind a pillar. Again. Oh well as I said early on, we are going with the flow in times of Covid. 

The meal had a number of smaller portions of some of our favorite dishes like the NY steak from Pacific Rim and the scallop dish I bragged about last night from Chartreuse. The food was exceptional. But all seemed a little like repeats. Nothing was new and different for this event. And it was a wine and food event. The explanations were all about the wine and yet, Jolizza explained them somewhat. I learned some new things (we own a short term rental house in Sonoma - www.Kenwoodcottage.com, shameless plug) so we are well versed in wine). But the part I was hoping for was a comparison of why they selected the particular wine with the food pairing. They brought out all the chefs that prepared each dish in the beginning and to Introduce them personally but not their dishes, but then they were not to be seen as the dishes were unfolded. I think they could have done so much more in explaining to everyone why this wine that they selected paired so well with the food. Because they were good pairings but even I was challenged to figure out why they work so well. This would have elevated the event to another level that would have been so easy to do. They “educate” so well in the cooking school on board, that should Carry over here with the price charged. 

 

For example, first course had a lovely champagne rosé (see list for selection) served with tuna and avocado poke with a little bit of macadamia nuts and cilantro. It was a great pairing. I finally found someone that said the bubbles in the champagne cleanses your palate with the soy-sesame oil emulsion of the tuna poke. And they were right. But we didn’t hear this from the head sommelier, But from Anthony from Italy (one of the onboard sommeliers). 

It was delicious. 
 

The second course was the killer seared scallop topped with chorizo and the Pinot noir and Madeira wine sauce that we had last night. An excellent dish that would have been better served with a nice Pinot noir (of which the ship had been absent of due to the supply chain issues since the second night - ok, I’m going with the flow).  We ordered the only California Pinot noir off the reserve (paid) list on the second night, a Belle Glos and were told it was the ONLY bottle on board!). A shame as a Pinot noir sauce would pair well with a Pinot noir wine. They chose a Sauvignon blanc from Italy. Hmm. A nice wine and it kind of worked but I’ll bet when they get “restocked” they would pair this differently. The scallop and chorizo and the sauce is incredible. 

The third dish was a surprise in part because I normally wouldn’t order duck breast and it was on the Chartreuse dinner menu last night. The cherry sauce was beautifully paired with the fat of the duck breast and was incredibly enjoyable. The French Bordeaux (left bank) was a real surprise and very good with the dish. This was one of the surprise wines (and food) for us today. 

They also served between this course and the next an Amarone wine from northern Italy. I think this is an acquired taste as it was a bit harsh (but quite the bargain on the wine list during dinner if someone wanted to try something different). 

Next up was one of my favorite dishes of the cruise and certainly of the Pacific Rim menu, the NY strip steak with the bulgogi sauce. And a perfect pairing with the Shafer (Napa) Syrah. Wow. Served with the chive mashed potatoes and the maldon course salt flakes (you have to squint to see on the top of the plate, pick some up with your fingers and sprinkle on the meat. Yum). Once again a perfect dish and perfect pairing. 

Dessert wine, Dolce from Far Niente is a favorite. Always has been. Very expensive ($110 a half bottle on board) it was paired perfectly with the lemon Bavarian cream and berries. What a treat. 

Lunch was $169 pp. The wines were probably worth that (see the prices of each wine on board on the final menu below with my detailed notes) but it would have been nice to have some new dishes vs the ones that were already in the other restaurants. Mind you all were good, but this is a chance to showcase the talent of the chefs on board! And have them come out and talk about their dish and show the passion what they were thinking along with why they helped select the wine pairing (vs the other way around). What an awesome event this would be with that one-two punch.

 

I would recommend. But better with a wider election of onboard wines. 

My notes

Lovely review. I appreciate it.  I agree with you that it is strange that there was no explanation of the goal of the pairings. I don't think I have ever had a wine pairing meal that did not discuss the objective of each pairing. I am not sure I would pay for this event without assurance that we would get a full explanation of the objectives of each pairing. 

Thanks a lot, Robbie

We have not done this personally but attended one on the Serina while on a 31 day circumnavigation of Australia a few years ago (2017).  It was a very nice event held in the library.  This was the 50th anniversary for our friends. There were, I think, 12 of us in attendance plus the string quartet, the cruise director, the Captain officiating and a couple of the entertainers assisting. Afterward they set us up a table for 14 in the back of Tuscan Steak (Polo equivalent). 

The Captain told me they do this fairly often and have a routine.  On this cruise one of the young entertainers was very involved in setting this up and making everything go smoothly. All in all a very well done ceremony.

Just now, 1985rz1 said:

The bottom curve (blue) is for the US, with the 65 per million.  The curve with 275 per million is for Belgium (black).  The colors look similar, so it's easy to confuse.

My bad.  That's exactly what I did and it is confusing.Usually (often) the chart legend is shown in the same order as the data lines so I assumed the top (black) line was for the USA.   I knew what I was interpreting from the chart (erroneously) was wrong hence the indignant correction.  My apologies to Truelyblond.

The data source I linked is really good if you are interested.

check this source for accurate data https://ourworldindata.org/coronavirus#covid-19-deaths-by-country

Its a bit complicated but accurate.

The source of the erroneous graph is some Scandinavian financial advisory company ???

2 hours ago, TrulyBlonde said:

I found this graph today which really puts it into perspective based on population of countries. April 11, 2020

 

This chart is not correct.  Don't know the source but US death rate per million population is roughly 65 per million not 275 as shown on the chart.  Also, first US death was Feb 28 making 41 days since the first death.  Don't think the other numbers are correct either. google it yourself.

11 minutes ago, Paulchili said:

It is from LHR (after a cruise ending in Southampton) to Paris.

It still shows as operating on BA website. I wish to cancel it but waiting for BA to cancel it first.

I also have an IB flight from SFO to MAD In early May that still shows as operating.

Basically the airlines are playing chicken with us. They would prefer that we get nervous and cancel so they keep their flights on the board even though they know that they will not fly them. If we cancel we get the credit voucher.  If we wait them out, as Paul says, until they finally cancel the flight we can get a cash refund.

3 hours ago, Mrs f. said:

Were the Tenerife wines good?  We were too tired at that point to get off our van.

 

Lets just say they are "interesting".  Some very pleasant and drinkable whites.  Reds that we tried were less interesting but still quite good.  Overall good values.  Because of its isolated location the Canaries have both unique grape varieties and growing and vinting techniques that have not changed for perhaps 500 years.

  I see that this was your first post so welcome to CC.  I suggest you fiddle around a bit with the search function and be sure to select "this forum" or  you will get a return from all cruise lines.  Cumbersome and annoying.

With respect to wine and spirits. Yes, Oceania has an official but unenforced policy. I have personally brought a case of wine on board  on three occasions (hand carried two winery type 6 packs).  Also brought additional wine aboard as needed.  Corkage fee is $25 per bottle (as of last June). They will store your unfinished bottles and bring it to your table next time you ask. 

Wine prices are pretty high on board and selections a bit thin if you have specific tastes.  So, retail plus $25 would be substantially below the cost of the same or similar wine off their list.  Plus, you get a wine you know you want to drink.

We will be disembarking in Stockholm the day you board.  Enjoy your cruise.

Robbie

Petoonya, 

I am not (yet) handicapped but we have traveled on the R ships several times with handicapped travel companions using scooters, canes and crutches.  Having been in the role of assisting these folks I have come to two conclusions: First, while there some inconveniences it is quite possible to have an enjoyable cruise on the R ships.  Second,  it all depends on the attitude of the person.  Those who are easily frustrated and impatient with their limitations simply will not have a good time. The shipboard environment will just multiply their frustration.  For those who accept their limitations with good humor and grace will have a good experience. 

You seem to know your patient pretty well. In advising him please consider how he is likely to react to the inevitable additional inconveniences inherent in travel for a handicapped person.