ak1004

We got some OBC, which is indicated in our booking. Is it possible to see it in my.silversea? We booked an excursion in disembarkation day which is not included, how do I make sure it is paid from the credit we have?

Thank you! $79 is actually pretty reasonable.. Our cruise in in May 2023, so hopefully things will look better by then..

Do you know if Oceania offers transfers from Southampton to Heathrow airport, and if they do, what is the earliest time we can book our flight? There is a flight from Heathrow to Toronto at 14:10. I know it takes around 2 hours to get from Southampton to Heathrow, so if the transfer leaves around 9:30, this should be enough time? The next flight is at 18:00.

We felt that overall the ship is in a good shape, but since it's 18 years old already and was last refurbished in 2016 if I'm not mistaken, there are areas that need some "refreshment". We did see some rusty railings, tired carpets and some seats in the theater that need to be renewed. Also some of the reclining seats in the planetarium don't recline properly. Nothing major, and considering its age, it seems very well maintained. We were on the deck only on the first day (it was pretty chilly the rest of the sailing), but we saw some people using the sunbeds, so I assume they were fine.

Thank you. None of the deficiencies I mentioned was not a deal breaker for us, so it is definitely possible we will be sailing on Cunard again if the itinerary and the price are good. And who knows, maybe next time it will be in the Grills..

My "negativity" was balanced by few good and great things that I mentioned. I believe my review was very objective and balanced, especially when compared to some other recent reviews. https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=686180 https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=686464 https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=685560 https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=686678 But yes, I understand that no review will have any impact on the "regulars" - and that's completely fine. Some people like to experience and compare different products, others like to stick to what they know. We have friends who were sailing exclusively on Celebrity for 15+ years. After trying Oceania they are not going back to Celebrity.

You mean like this quote: Then 2 days before the end, the captain made an announcement that he is going to reduce speed significantly, otherwise we will arrive early. It was almost like he put the ship on autopilot at high speed, went to sleep, then woke up after 5 day - "ooops, we are too close, have to reduce the speed". Wouldn't any reasonable person understand that it was supposed to be a joke and I didn't really think that the captain went to sleep for 5 days?? But some people reacted like I insulted their own child.. All I tried to do is sharing my experience, the good, the bad and the ugly. Maybe some people took it too personally that I don't consider Cunard to be a luxury line, but that's their problem. Sorry.

Why? It's the same line.

My comment about the captain taking a nap was obviously a joke. As for reading my posts - this forum has an amazing feature called "unfollow". You can unfollow topics, you can unfollow users, and I believe you can even put users on ignore. P.S. Yes, there is such thing as ethically sourced foie gras, it just costs more. And yes, this is one of the differences between Britannia and QG. Not at all. I mentioned that London Theater at sea was one in a lifetime event. Some other aspects were good, not great, and in line with our expectations and other competitors like Celebrity.

Another myth. But the funny thing is that it is available in the Grills, but not Britannia. Another example how suites passengers are treated differently, and how Cunard is using those myths to cut costs..

Couldn't disagree more. Even on the same ship, there could be a huge difference between main dining room and suites dining and/or specialty restaurants. Celebrity's Luminae and specialty restaurants are comparable in quality to Oceania, while their main dining room is below average.

I always share my appreciation, as well as my criticism. I was very critical of Oceania's entertainment and activities, but my criticism was never met with such hostility.. I salute Cunard marketing department for creating such loyal customer base and such attractive virtual reality!!

And Silversea is 3.9, Regent 3.8, but Celebrity 4.1. Does anyone really believe that Celebrity is better than SS and Regent? At the end of the day, the only opinion that matters is YOURS. It's what important to YOU. For us, Cunard is 4 out of 5 (mostly because of the food and the service), but this specific sailing was 3 out of 5 because of internet and embarkation. If internet is not important to YOU, and you are not picky about food, plus like to dress up, it would definitely be 5 out of 5. And this is one of the reasons some people like smaller ships with only 500-1,000 people.

I completely understand it. I was responding to a comment that it's not fair to compare Oceania with Britannia. And I agree. They are in a different league.

Canadian website shows $4,299 CAD which is £272 per night. Plus 14 nights cruise will typically be cheaper per night than 10 night cruise.

Not at all. Even in the sample menu, they have two steaks, and on other evenings they had rack of lamb. Plus on Oceania many other items were really outstanding.

I'm not sure which cabin categories you are referring to. On a typical 10-14 days European cruise, Oceania veranda is around $450-500 CAD per night while Cunard Britannia balcony is around $350-400 CAD. When you consider all the inclusions (Oceania price includes complimentary specialty restaurants, Internet, still and sparkling waters, soft drinks, specialty coffees and teas, and in many cases gratuities), the price difference is really negligible. This is the pricing in Canada, it might be different in the UK.

Everyone is different. Everyone has different taste, diet restrictions, cooking preferences etc. For example, I'm diabetic, so I prefer not to abuse items like Pizza, Pasta, Hamburgers etc. My preference is grilled meat and fish. And if steaks are not really appealing, no grilled lamb, chicken breast I don't eat even at home, and I don't eat pork for various reasons, there is not much left. So yes, needless to repeat it, but food is very subjective. btw, I found the food on Celebrity very mediocre as well.

Or maybe it was available on the evening we wasted $90 in The Verandah.. 🙂

We gave up on breakfast and lunch in the Britannia after two failed attempts when we had to go to the buffet to finish the meals, otherwise we would remain hungry. QG should be a different story of course.

Well, this is our point of reference.

We were well aware of the dress code. However, as I mentioned on several occasions, we came to this sailing to see the "London Theater at sea", and while we definitely prefer a more relaxed dress code, this was not a deal breaker for us. Well, I guess it depends on the point of reference. Ours was Oceania, with choice of 13 starters/salad/soups, 9 entrees and 8 desserts. https://www.oceaniacruises.com/sites/default/files/2021-01/Grand-Dining-Room-Dinner-Menu.pdf https://www.oceaniacruises.com/sites/default/files/2021-01/Grand-Dining-Room-Dessert-Menu.pdf And it's not only the number of dishes. It's also what kind of dishes they have (or don't have). No foie gras. No lobster bisque. No rack of lamb. No filet mignon. A lot of dishes that we like were not available. The steaks were tasteless and overcooked, so I gave up on steaks after the second night. Also, take a look at Oceania breakfast menu and compare it to QM2. https://www.oceaniacruises.com/Documents/Menus/81604382387/Grand-Dining-Breakfast-Menu.pdf So yes, for us, it was limited, in the number of dishes and the type of dishes. This was the first cruise since we started cruising that both of us have lost weight. Probably says it all..

On our sailing nobody bothered to check the boarding time. You could arrive whenever you wanted.

A full review posted - https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=687012

Our P2P went up by $300 in each category (at least the few lowest ones).