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Viking often offers discounts as you get closer to the cruise date. If you don’t want a specific cruise on a specific date, you might get a big break. There are discount codes that can significantly drop the fare.

Not a good move. People plan, buy air, and look forward to a vacation. Canceling is always disappointing. Just giving people a refund cuts wrong.

I agree. My spouse sits back and lets me do all the work. I plan. Often book with private tour companies just for the 2 of us. I also print maps, get directions, learn about the local transportation, and ask questions on location forums. That cannot be done overnight. Using WS WiFi is expensive. WS wants to sell their excursions. I have taken many WS excursions. They are usually good. However, we have slowed down and tend to avoid group tours if possible. The shore excursion person often is unfamiliar with the ports. We got taken in Malaga. We asked the excursion person how can we get to the Picasso museum. He told us that it was far from where we were docking. He sold us a tour that included the museum. The tour went to many venues and mad a brief stop at the museum. Not knowing the lay of the land, we continued on the tour. It ended at a church close to the museum. Guide told us how to walk back to the ship. We walked back. Took us about 10 minutes. We passed the museum on our way. We were had. After that experience, I now research each port and expect no info from WS. They don’t even provide decent maps. You are your own best tour guide.

I have sailed to Bermuda many times. I have also flown in and stayed on land. Bermuda is beautiful. Given a choice, fly in and stay. Cruise is a good option. Being docked in Hamilton and St. George is the best. Insignia is small and can fit. Holland America used to sail Veendam into Hamilton. Not sure if it still goes there. Celebrity and the other big ships cannot get into Hamilton and St. George. To accommodate them Dockyard was built. It has no charm. It’s not where you want to be. If you go to dockyards, you will spend lots of time on the ferries and buses.

Find a cruise that has 4 available cabins that you can book now. While waitlisted cabin categories may open up, trying to get 4 in specific categories is too risky. When I travel with family or friends, we pick a cruise and book cabins… no gty or waitlist! Waiting could leave you with nothing.

Be comfortable and casual. June is hot. Dress during the day in lightweight pants and tees. A sundress might work. A hat is a must. Don’t forget the sunscreen, sunglasses, and bathing suit. I like shorts or crops if the weather is warm. For cooler climates, jeans or sweats with tees work well. Evening is still casual . I don’t wear shorts or jeans in GDR or specialty restaurants. They are ok in the Terrace Buffet or Waves at night. My usual evening attire is black slacks or capris with a nice blouse. Chicos is my go to place for cruise clothes. Be sure to try Terrace buffet and Waves for dinner. The choices include everything on GDR menu plus sushi, grilled fish and meat, Italian food from Waves. Pizza at night is very good. Enjoy.

I miss prime rib at Polo. We were on Vista in January. Got prime rib in GDR. Food choices are very good. Best dinner was at Ember. Ribeye steak was excellent. Also liked the potato soup. I enjoyed trying all the dining venues. I usually skip buffets. However, Terrace Grill is. Really good especially at dinner.

If verandas are sold out, I book concierge. The cabins are same size. Concierge has some perks that may or may not interest you.

I am elite plus on Celebrity. Each time we sailed on X, there were changes. Most were not good. They kept cutting services and increasing cabins. The crowding was the big reason that we stopped sailing on X. Oceania ships are spacious. It’s unusual to find anything crowded. Oceania has great service, excellent food with no extra charge for specialty restaurants, and can visit ports that the big ships cannot. Insignia can sail into Hamilton and St. George in Bermuda. We have stayed in the standard and concierge cabins. They are compact, but comfortable. The penthouse suites are bigger. With penthouse, you get priority restaurant reservations over other cabin categories . Concierge gets priority over standard balcony. Only you can decide if you want to get a suite. Enjoy your cruise. Bermuda is beautiful.

Windstar announced that Star Legend will do a mystery cruise in April 2025 RT Athens Would you take a cruise not knowing where it will stop? My spouse says book it. When you book a cruise, the cruise is the major destination. I am not sold.

People are different. Asking the question may get you more mixed up. Relax. I have met singles on many cruise lines. They are looking for the same thing as couples. Everyone wants great food, good service, and a pleasant voyage. Some lines have more activities and entertainment. If you want big entertainment , the big mass market lines may be more attractive. If you prefer more relaxing atmosphere with no lines or crowds, smaller ships are for you. Some lines don’t have kids. Some lines can access ports not open to big ships. Longer cruises often have older people. They have more time. If you are trying a new line, you might try a week cruise. The first time we took a 2 week cruise, I was 50. When we took the cruise line transfer, we were much younger than the other people on the bus. We wondered if we had made a mistake. Once onboard, we found other people like us. Had a great time. we have sailed on many cruise lines. We find Oceania is usually a good fit for us.

Table service at Waves should be better than waiting in line. We were on Vista in January. Waves was often crowded. People standing in line, people walking through to the pool, and too many tables on the deck passage area made Waves often very congested. If you sat at tables next to the passageway , people often bumped into your table. If Waves put tables out further onto the pool deck like Roviera/Marina, they could widen the passageway. On the opposite side of the deck, Aquamar has table service. Never saw people crowding to get in or through. The passage way through Aquamar was wide. It was a better choice going to the pool deck.

We usually do our own air. However, sometimes there may be good reason to book Oceania air. Yes, we got seats together on all the planes. Last year, we booked late. We couldn’t find any air at an acceptable price. We chose O air. We flew from Philadelphia to London to catch a cruise out of Southampton. There are several non stops daily. We couldn’t get on them. O flew us from Phl to Fra on Eurowings discovery. Seats weren’t assigned until online checkin. We got seats across the aisle from each other. However when we got to the airport, our seats had changed to next to each other in the middle of group of 4. From Fra, we flew to LGW and took bus to Southampton. We arrived at 3 pm. Ship sailed at 5 pm. We made it. Never would fly in that close to sailing. Going home, we flew from Oslo to Amsterdam, Amsterdam to Minneapolis, and Minneapolis to Philadelphia. It was crazy. We got home. if you don’t mind living on the edge, O air can be exciting.

We got a brochure from Seabourn that sparked our interest. Wondering if Seabourn is for us. We are in our 70s. We have traveled extensively for many years. Our travels have been both on land and sea. We have taken many land tours and ship excursions. Now that we are retired, we have slowed down. We still enjoy traveling, but not taking group tours. Sometimes we prefer private tours tuned to our pace and interests. Sometimes just cruising is enough. Taking a winter Caribbean cruise has become our time to relax and enjoy warm weather. We love meeting interesting people, dining in a variety of restaurants, and are happiest relaxing in style. We are looking for a cruise that fits our style: less than 1500 guests, excellent food with a variety of dining venues, spacious cabins, good service, some entertainment, offers tours without including them in the fare, and doesn’t have formal nights. Years ago we used to enjoy dressing up. Now, we would rather do club casual. Do you think Seabourn is a fit for us.

I was recently on Vista. Pool is deep. I am 5’3”. I couldn’t touch the bottom. I would prefer a shallower pool that I can walk in. There is a set of stairs to enter the pool. Shorter people seemed to stay by those steps.

We were confused before the trip. We don’t live near anyplace that we could get the visa easily. We opted to buy the visa on the ship using OBC. It wasn’t expensive, less than $10. Vietnam is beautiful. Be sure to bring American dollars. We had Dong. However, everyone asked for US dollars. Shopping is great. Wish that I bought more.

If you get to ship and don’t like your cabin, ask for a change. We have done it. Upgrade at a small cost compared to booking upgrade before sailing.

We hired a taxi at the port. Took us around the island including Baths. Went at our own pace. Cost was less than the ship excursion.

I cruise often on Oceania and other cruise lines. Last year I took 3 O cruises. On the first cruise, I booked a future cruise. On the 2nd cruise, I didn’t book a future cruise. That cruise was in June 2023. Got home and shortly after got a very nice Welcome Home letter with an offer of $200 off if we booked a future cruise within 45 days of disembarking. Booked in July 2023 for a May 2024 cruise. She took all the info about the coupon and sent it to Oceania. She said as soon as the $200 discount was applied, she would send us an updated invoice. A few months later, I asked about the discount. She contacted Oceania and was told that it didn’t apply since I booked that cruise onboard. I didn’t book anything on that June cruise. Sent the actual coupon to the Miami address on the coupon. Still nothing. Final payment for the May 2024 cruise is due this week. In the scheme of things $200 isn’t much compared to the total cost of a cruise. Just rather annoyed. Did a cruise January 2024. Also didn’t book a future cruise onboard. We didn’t get a welcome home letter. If a company makes an offer, it should honor that offer. Disappointed in O Dania.

Just the beef. While I like eating beef, I actually prefer fish. In Europe, we had amazing fish. In the Caribbean, the fish was ok, but not as good. It may be a difference of suppliers. The food on Oceania is very good. Looking forward to my next O cruise.

Vista was great. We loved it. Hope that Marina is as good. Marina is our favorite ship. On Marina on previous cruises in Europe, the food was good except in Polo. Meat was tough. Polo on Vista was better. We sailed out of Miami. Meat was very good. Wondering if the problem is the provision location. Enjoy Vista.

Your comments are disturbing. I have sailed on Marina many times. Most recent Marina cruise was June 2023. My next O cruise is Marina. Just off Vista 2 weeks ago. Food was good. Many items were excellent . There were a few dishes that could’ve been hotter. Portions were ok. I don’t expect perfection. I eat breakfast in Terrace Grill. It’s quicker than the GDR. If I get something that isn’t to my taste, there are many good options. Baristas and the Bakery are also a good breakfast venue.

Prices were much higher after pandemic. We had booked Into the Midnight Sun for summer 2020. When the cruise got canceled, we took the refund instead of the 125%voucher. When we went to rebook the same cruise for 2023, the prices were extremely high. We waited until there was a promo. The promo price was similar to the 2020 cruise. After canceling cruises and offering vouchers, there were lots of people trying to cash in the vouchers within a limited time period. With a use it or lose it , those vouchers found guests booking again. Using vouchers time has passed. Now most people booking don’t have fcc or vouchers. Cruise fares will remain high if bookings are up. If bookings are slow, prices will drop. It’s just basic economics.

Viking often has promos that include free air. Just booked a cruise that included free air. Got code from Viking cruisecritic board. It saved us $.

I was pleasantly surprised at moving up when you start the qualifying cruise. Just another nice thing that makes Oceania cruises great.