ak1004

And if you book a minimum number of excursions and get 25% discount, then it's closer to 1.2 to 1.3. But also don't forget that with SM you can book any excursion, including OE and OS, which you could not with oLife. So for people who used to book ship excursions or mix of ship and private tours, not much is changing.

Agree 100%. There is such a big gap between great on board experience and the corporate behavior (including customer service, false advertising, website etc)

It was not. This was the original schedule I believe, the new date is April 2024.

Don't see the Summer Sale on the website. Are those savings real? Does the email have any sample sailings with prices so we can compare and see how does it compare to their website?

I think it's matter of perspective, and also depends on the ship. We sailed on the Riviera in May and on SS last December, and we found both lines comparable in terms of food and service. What makes SS more "luxury" than O is the fact that they are all inclusive, plus larger cabins and better space/passenger ratios. All other aspects - I didn't see anything on SS that makes it more luxury than O. On related note, we would sail on both O class and R class, but still consider the O class more "luxury". Much better cabins, newer ships, more ding options etc. I think that PH on the R class is not a good value (just my personal opinion).

I hope I'm not one of them.. But if I am, you won't see this post anyway.. kind of catch 22.. (Sorry, couldn't resist) 😁

Everyone is different. Could be work family elderly parents etc. Let's not judge people without knowing their situation.

I'm curious what are the legal reasons? Our TA provides us generous rebates, on top of any promotions or other credits. She also spends time calling O if there are any issues.

We had this on our last cruise. We asked about it, and the waiter said "well, it's a gift, we don't charge corkage fee on gifts". We actually gave our bottle to our friends as we don't drink, still no corkage fee.

Wasn't it the same with oLife? If you booked with oLife and selected 4 excursions, one of them in the last port, and the port was cancelled, wouldn't you lose it?

Well, the FV on the Vista is already around $400/day for most European sailings. Another $50 increase - and I can book SB or SS for basically the same price. I'm sure O are well aware of the competition prices.

Somehow none of my cruises is ever on sale..

If somehow you missed hundreds of posts on at least 5 different threads, all sailings now include drinks with meals and excursions credit.

Exactly how we feel. And to see places not accessible by cruise ship, we can take a river cruise, which has the best of both worlds.

We never sailed on Viking, so cannot comment on the quality of the food or other aspects. And we all know how subjective the food is. However, they have 9 ships (the biggest fleet among all premium and luxury lines), another 8 expected in the next 5 years, and the ships sail full despite the draconic payment policy. They also have the highest rating on CC of ALL lines (4.6) - https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/viking-ocean-cruises/cl/ (O is 3.9). While I don't give too much weight to the reviews, the fact remains. They must be doing something right. You cannot fool all the people all the time.

Hank, You are 100% correct, but it all comes with experience. We usually arrive 2-3 nights before the cruise and stay in the embarkation port. Booking our own hotels and our own excursions. We aim for small group excursions (10-15 people), but also do some exploring on our own. We also book our own air, but there are exceptions, like our SS cruise next year where they offered business class upgrade for $2,000 USD. Also, in some cases pre cruise hotel packages are attractively priced, and if you book through the cruise line, they include transfers and waive deviation fees. We definitely check prices. In our first two cruises from Port Everglades we booked ship transfers, but realized very quickly that taxi is cheaper and more convenient. It does take some experience to become more independent, but we are getting there.. Still feel the most comfortable with combination of land and sea - in our case it's typically 20% land and 80% sea, but it might change. On a related note, ships excursions are not always that bad. On our last SS cruise they had on average around 25 people on those excursions, and I don't think I would be comfortable to explore Al Manamah or Muscat on my own. But in Dubai and Abu Dhabi we had no issues.

SS business class upgrade to Europe is around $2,000 USD for 2024 sailings, a very good value in my opinion. This is for flights from Toronto. We usually don't book air with the cruise line, but this was too good to pass.

I know that Retreat prices are crazy, I was referring to standard cabins.

But Regent is even more inclusive and much more expensive. You presumably pay for unlimited drinks (not only at lunch/dinner) and all excursions (not only a credit).

I would assume that the minimum still applies, otherwise what's the point to have 2 different prices?

I don't disagree. On the contrary. As someone who doesn't drink and prefers to take private tours, I'm among those who would prefer the old program to stay. For me it worked perfectly because we drink a lot of specialty coffee and mineral water, but not alcohol. So it was a perfect fit for us (include things that we use and exclude things we don't). However, this is the trend with all premium/luxury lines. There are many things that we pay for and not necessarily use on the upscale lines. Some people don't use Wi-Fi, but were still paying for it anyway. Some people don't care about specialty restaurants, or don't drink specialty teas and coffees. SS recently started to include excursions in their fares. Where do you draw the line? Cannot please everyone. Many people say that if they wanted to book all inclusive, they would book SB or SS. Maybe they will if the price difference becomes small (I know we will) - and maybe it will cause O to re consider (but I'm not holding my breath). I also agree about the loyalty program, and this is exactly why we sail on many lines. Having those perks is nice, but they are still a relatively small percentage of the total fare. btw, speaking of loyalty programs, Windstar gives you a 5% discount on all sailings after the first sailing. SS does the same for select sailings, and extra 5% after 100 nights. So there are other programs that are also pretty good.

People should always check options and compare. We did it before SM and will continue doing it after SM. Could never understand people who cruise exclusively on one line. No line is perfect. Each line has pros and cons, why not to try more than one? Choice is good. Variety is good. Of course Oceania DOES NOT CARE if you move on. No line does. For them there are two things that matter: profits and guest satisfaction. In that specific order. And if profits come at expense of guests satisfaction, so be it. The SM price increase is now history. It is what it is. Going forward, the only thing that matters is the overall value and how O compares to other lines in terms of itineraries, price, and overall package.

Agree - but small group tours are also significantly more expensive. The only land tour I would consider is something that has maybe only 1-2 travels between cities. Say 4-5 days in Madrid, then 4-5 days in Barcelona and another 4-5 days in Lisbon. In each city there is also an option for short travels to see places nearby. Yes, you definitely see more in each place than on a cruise, but also see less places. On a cruise you "taste" each port, and then decide if it's worth to come back. Some ports are overnight. We also arrive 2-3 nights earlier to each port, so we have at least one place that we learn more in depth. There is a tradeoff to everything.

Exactly. We did it twice with Gate1. 4 cities in 9 days. Theoretically you have 2-3 days in each city. In reality, you spend 5-6 hours just travelling between the cities. Add time for packing/unpacking, hotels check in and check out, etc.

I like Windstar pricing structure. Option 1: cruise only. Option 2: Wi-Fi, unlimited beer, wine, and cocktails, and gratuities for $89/day. For people who drink, it's a very attractive option. People who don't, just pay separately for gratuities and Wi-Fi if they need one. Excursions are extra. This is what I call simple.