GoingPlacesSoon

I enjoyed this cruise for the itinerary, but found the service to be lacking.  It is not at all the same on other cruise lines.  Most of the staff reported that they were "first year contract" , "would not renew" and were not happy to be there.  So sad to hear.

So sorry to hear this.  I have always purchased travel insurance and have had to use it twice.  Once when my brother in law had a major stroke.  I had good experiences with travel insurance paying in full.

On 2/17/2018 at 9:45 PM, MandyPuppy said:

I must admit I am really discouraged with Oceania based upon this and other threads describing this horrible situation in Lima. Even if my husband and I were to book a tour that would deliver us direct to the ship, we could easily have been in that line, and the fact that Oceania would accept their passengers being treated that way is unacceptable. With no criticism toward you, Mura, clearly there is some kind of preferential treatment given to people who deal with locals or, as reported in one message, to those who are willing to exchange money for preferred treatment. If this is the norm in the port in Lima, itineraries should be changed accordingly.

I agree, and hope this changes before our 2020 cruise.  I will monitor and look for improvements

was told the manifest was closed and to check at the port.  I'm happy with what I have but wondered about upgrades at port.  Apparently RC doesn't have upgrades on sailing.  Thanks for the replies.

Has anyone attempted to change staterooms when you arrive a the pier?  Did you have a problem getting your luggage if you changed rooms?

What has puzzled me is that they change the per day price.  One day it is $50/pp for deluxe package and later it is $47/pp.  I haven't seen other cruise lines change like that.  Keep watch.

I've picked up on the price increases. There has already been an increase on my 2020 South America sailing. Quite interesting since this is already priced quite high when I compare to other lines (and what was sold for 2019) and what stock is being heavily discounted to (on Azamara and seaboarn) for 2019. I still haven't done a Carribean cruise so I have been watching that for 2021. The 2020 carribean sailings just had increases, rather interesting considering even the category "g" is still available . Category G is always booked up on day 1 anywhere else in the world. For the price of an interior I could get a balcony on Azamara for 2019. For the price of a balcony I could go on Silversea. So lets see what happens. I like O and the biggest draw to them was the fact I could book up front and know I was getting a fair price. Though now I'll be shopping around. I'll remain optimistic.

 

Oh well they are nice but they arnt the best!

We looked at South Africa, and waitlisted for January 2019. Finally decided to switch to 2020 after waiting. Wanting to book FF miles in advance to work our favor. Now the 2019 South Africa sailing has plenty of available. I think the practice of booking on board and ability to switch to another booking is working against the cruise line keeping bookings and also keeping away those that would book.. Keeping an eye on those cruises of interest and still of value.

It is against CC rules to ask for TA sites or TA recommendations

 

Might be good to read the guidelines before you get a warning from admin or worse ;)

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/faq.php?s=&do=search&q=travel+agent&match=all&titlesonly=0

 

Just saying

Thanks for guidelines link.

I once contacted Oceania for information about the "kids program" Alaska cruise fares after my previous agent retired. I got a call back from a supposed Connoisseur Club agent who had gotten my question from Oceania. He then tried to talk me out of Oceania, saying it wasn't an appropriate cruise for families! So they do seem to send the questions to agents. My guess is that this was the new guy in a large office who didn't know what he was doing. I then went on a site where I could compare different agent offers for the same cruise. Got a great agent. also Connoisseur Club, with a great offer and have booked exclusively with her ever since.

 

Mary

Mary, What site did you find where you could compare different agent offers for the same cruise?

I asked several passengers on last cruise for TA recommendations. They had some good deals, but mostly mentioned that they had a hard time getting in touch with their agent. Still searching... Oceania does have a list of agency, but not agents.

This thread answered several questions I had about the wait list. Unfortunately it doesn't leave me feeling very good about the system in place. I guess having a premier travel agent is most important. How do you find one with that relationship with Oceania?

Only twice? Nothing new. You'll be bombarded with Oceania literature until you ask to be removed from mailings and/or hit the Bronze loyalty level.

From what I understand from several folks who have already tried Viking, Oceania has nothing to worry about.

I agree with those that tried Viking and went back to O, been there and done that.

ONE reason to keep those brochures (stacked away) is in the event you decide you want to book a wait listed cruise. Once all categories are wait listed, it is hard to find the prices on line if you decide you do want to wait list. At least having the brochure gives you an estimate...

What didn't you like? The new menus? The food preparation? Did you like it on earlier O cruises?

Yes, I did like the food in GDR on earlier O cruises. I agree that everyone has different tastes, and what one prefers another may not. I ordered Veal Parmesan, and the breading was so thick and hard it was difficult to cut with a knife. Certainly had difficulty chewing it. The other entree was beef steak. I asked which cut of beef and was told a NY Strip. I asked for a more tender cut and the waiter brought over the manager that said the beef would be sirloin, and they would try for a tender cut. I ordered it medium. It was cooked medium but so tough I could not chew it. Others mentioned the same opinion. One lady on a tour said she couldn't cut her fish with a knife at GDR, and another lady made the same comment about beef steak as I did. The appetizers and salad were good. I was just so disappointed with the entrees those 2 nights, but had great meals the rest of the cruise.

Sorry to hear your experience was so unhappy. Your experience does match with ours. Perhaps yours was an aberration? But I can see why you don't want to give O another chance.

 

 

I won't flame you!

 

 

I agree with Paul's comments. This sounds like a real anomaly but those of us who love Oceania over many cruises want to know when there are problems as well as when everything was just perfect.

 

 

Mura

Just returned from Marina, Amsterdam to Amsterdam. Must say the GDR was extremely disappointing. Except for 2 below expectations in GDR, we dined in Specialty, La Reserve or Terrace Cafe. The Terrace Cafe was better than GDR. Dining experience was excellent in all venues except for GDR. I left my comment cards.

Thank you for this information and so many options to consider. GG, are you a Travel Insurance broker? Are all Trip Insurance policies transferable?

In the past we were able to purchase trip insurance (medical/cancellation) at the date of final payment. That was fine. The company we used in the past now requires purchase of trip insurance at the time of making a deposit.

Are there reputable independent insurance companies that allow you to purchase trip insurance at time of final payment?

TIA

 

 

 

I don't know. I'm pretty sure that Connoisseurs Club is individuals rather than overall agencies.

BTW, one other caveat about "book onboard." Some cruises that are in high demand are considered "select cruises" and the book onboard discount is a flat $200 per cabin. That can be a bit of a shock when you're expecting hundreds more.

 

How can an individual find Connoisseurs Club agent for savings?

We are taking the O'Life Air and Oceania has us taking an 11:35am flight out of Amsterdam. After seeing that we decided to pay for transfers. This is our first time with their air, and we have always used a taxi in the past. After seeing the air flights, I will let them be responsible for getting us to airport and home.

Thanks! We had expected to just take a taxi, but with the early departure, wanted a more dependable ride. Can you provide contact info?

Our departure in Amsterdam is earlier than expected, has anyone used a personal driver that will meet you at terminal and transport directly to airport? This will be in rush hour traffic. TIA.

Our wine Group may well take over Horizons one, if not two, evenings from 6-7 pm.

 

We will take over Polo Grill also for one evening, but that counts as our guaranteed reservation, and all still gets their full compliment of Specialties reservations.

 

I have personally always enjoyed the Alumni Groups. They bring younger cruisers and more energy to the ship. People actually going to the bars or dancing in Horizons after the show, instead of straight to bed! That is in lieu of the ones that Went to bed before the show!

Which wine group are you traveling with? We were on the Vineyards and Vignettes and encountered a couple wine group tours. They had some amazing tours not offered to other Oceania guests.

I would consider pre booking a taxi a LOT cheaper than O transfers

Taxi is always cheaper than the transfers, and if pre booked, much faster too.

anoldyelllowdog--

we purchased our own and upgraded to business class for the flights to OZ.

 

Flying to Europe from the east coast of US we upgrade to premium economy as well and sometimes O has flights and prices that are better than what we can do for ourselves.

we usually use our FF miles, but last cruise we use O's air and paid for deviated flight and that worked out well because we upgraded to business after ticketing which was rather late. For 2018 we are willing to try O's flights with upgraded Premium Economy, but just wondered what airline they use. We were told last year they do not have contract with United for Upgrades.. so we will see Bon Voyage, have a great trip!

We're flying to Amsterdam tomorrow and haven't heard of any changes. The airport was up and running not too long after Harvey. Driving to the airport was trickier, as many highways were still flooded. Much of that is resolved now.

I'm curious what flights/air lines were arranged for you. We have a flight in 2018 Houston to Amsterdam, and we purchased the upgrade to Premium Economy.

Here are reasons to think your ship/cruise line is losing ground (from a friend's latest cruise on Viking):

Was told to stay off ship for a day for dry dock repairs at own expense including meals.

Was told they needed to take a "free" city tour after their paid tour because the ship couldn't provide transportation back to ship after the paid tour. Or they could pay for taxi back at own expense.

Was told their airplane return was cancelled but refused to help provide documentation of new air arrangements even though a cruise/air package was purchased through TA. This was a return to Houston BTW.

Ship docked at industrial area (instead of previously published docking information), but didn't provide any shuttle to town. Was told to purchase own taxi if needed.

Food was returned several times by at least 4 different passengers at same table. Hmmm.

Ok, rant over.

But I think the employees smiled a lot.

I am not employee of Oceania or a TA, but just stating my opinion. Hoping service is still as expected. I am booked 2018.