jwitt2

We were on our first Oceania cruise on the Riviera over the holidays almost 8 years ago. My birthday falls during this time. Our friends had gone the previous year and raved about it. The ship was beautifully decorated and there were special events. We were surprised at how many children were on board, because we had heard they don't usually travel on Oceania, even at the holidays. There were almost 100, so they had to hire special staff for them because there normally are no programs for children. Some of them didn't go to those activities though and seemed to be underfoot. There was a nice visit with Santa for them complete with presents. On New Years Eve, many of them were running around up in the lounge on the dance floor which was annoying. We went on the holiday cruise on the QM2 several years ago and it was not as overwhelmed with children. We probably won't do Oceania over the holidays again. 

We were on the first sailing of the Mariner and I bought his book. He had a book signing, came roaring up on his little motor bike. It was great meeting him.

On 11/8/2019 at 9:21 AM, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

Seems we never pass the future cruises area that it it not busy. And we are adding to it. We are booking a sky suite on Silhouette to Southampton next April. Will be interested to see a “revolution-ized” ship vs Edge.  And we have booked, for the first time, a return on QM2, just in Britannia, so we can check out Cunard. We’ve talked to several people on board who tried Cunard and really liked it. My husband doesn’t mind wearing a jacket and loves wearing his tux, so we will see!

We were on the QM2 holiday cruise in December. It was a wonderful experience being in the Princess Grille class, but I don't know if I would do it again. One of the bartenders in the Chart Room named Martines Rocha de Souza (think he goes by Martin) has written 2 books about his experience on the high seas and how he got there. They were selling them in the bookstore which has many fine books. I bought them and had him autograph them. Check it out if you get a chance.  Thanks for all of your posts. We are looking forward to our cruise on the Edge in January, followed by a longer one on the Reflection. We did Oceania Riviera to W. Caribbean in March and Azamara to Cuba last Thanksgiving. All of these were fine ships. I have never been on a cruise I didn't like. Number 76 coming up.

I couldn't sign in to the app after I downloaded it. I tried both email addresses and the mobile number using an old password. It recognized me and said update the password because the old password didn't have a number in it. I did that but can't get in. It said my email addresses were already used.  ????? DH doesn't want to use the mobile app anyway, he has a flip phone which he rarely uses. Said he can check things on the cabin TV. 

I have been following this thread once a week for months. I recognized Bob right away as we were on the Breakaway out of NYC several years ago and some HAL cruise before that as he pointed out to me. Wishing a speedy recovery for him and will pray for him. Wishing a safe journey to all of you and thanks for your posts. GO BUCKS!

Jo Ann W. 

When we left on the 6th, he parked at C after he dropped me and the luggage at terminal B. We came in to E today. Had to take a shuttle from the ship to the garage for the first time in ages. Usually the porter rolls the luggage to the car. At least it didn't take long to disembark. We were allowed to leave before any announcement. Didn't even have to sit down. Still trying to find the survey.

I was on this cruise to celebrate my birthday. Only 4 other people showed up for the Cruise Critic gathering on the first sea day. This lack of interest has happened on the past few cruises, no matter what line. They were setting up for a wedding where we met so I felt like I was in the way. Enjoyed meeting Mama Fran, Elke and Oliver there. Fran told us about the books written by the bar waiter, so I bought them and look forward to reading them. He graciously signed them for me. Thanks for your blog. We didn't stay up for NYE, so were interested in what you reported. We were in the Princess Grill which was wonderful. I booked the Veranda Steakhouse for my birthday, the last evening. Should have stayed in the Princess Grill, it is much nicer, less hectic and has better food, although we did have a couple of kids in PG who let loose once in awhile. Did not expect that. Cunard overbooked the PG and offered us and some others a free cruise if we would downgrade. We refused the offer. We had sailed on the QM2 once before in the sheltered balcony they offered us which was okay, but I wanted to see how the PG was. I am glad that we did it, but don't think we will do it again. Been there, done that. The ship is very nice but sometimes difficult to navigate. The Queen's Room was very crowded at times. The entertainment was great but we had to get there early to get a decent seat. This happens on other ships though. Having some free internet time was nice but it was so slow that I couldn't do much. Missed seeing the American football games, particularly the Rose Bowl, only British soccer was shown. The water in the outdoor pool was cool even in the Caribbean, so I went to the hot tub on the Grill deck. They even served tea and scones up there which was very nice. I was surprised that even though the children seemed to have their own pool, they were still in the pool that said it was only for age 18 and over. The warmer indoor pool was full of kids, so I only went there once. We received two lovely cups and saucers with the Cunard ship logos on them, wondered if everyone else had. We had discarded some of the luggage tags that we put on prior to boarding and then found out we were supposed to use them again for disembarkation. Have never done this before. I still had one on my larger bag, but it was placed in the wrong area in NY, as was my other bag with a new, handwritten tag they gave me. It took me awhile to find my bags and the people there didn't seem to know what was going on. Not sure if we will ever go on a World Cruise, but if we do, it will not be on this line. I am getting used to the other lines which don't make me dress up. We did like formals in our younger days. My number of cruises is about to pass my age, so I guess that's why my tastes are not what they used to be.

Glad someone kept this going, really enjoyed seeing it on this snowy day. Heading there in May. Honeymooned there over 50 years ago. Always love to return.

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I vote for Mario Vines. It was 2 years ago on the Westerdam. Unforgettable, the best.

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We will be in a regular balcony cabin on the Silhouette for 2 weeks. Does anyone know if the couch can be moved out from the wall or is it attached? Could not fit my suitcase under the bed on the Grandeur of the Seas, so asked the steward about storing the luggage and she moved couch away from the wall and we put all of our luggage and shopping bags there. There have been sheets, blankets and drawers taking up room under the bed at times. The luggage passes airline requirements, but we are driving. As an Elite, I don't understand what sounds like free laundry benefit, have not used it. Might be able to pack less if I knew I could have some things washed for free.

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Are you coming in to NY late? If so, why?

Just received an email from corporate stating they would place bed blocks under our Grandeur bed to raise it higher off the floor, this will be helpful If they will actually do it! I am taking the email to share with the Housekeeping Supervisor If there is a problem. Now we can only hope for a decent mattress! I just feel like we shouldn't have to beg for comfort!

I wish we would have known about this or about opening up the suitcase. When I pulled my hard sided Samsonite out from under the bed to pack it, it had a crack in the corner.

I am on the Grandeur now for 8 nights. We had one stage show by the singers and dancers about the 70s and tonight will be a Tango show by them. They also did a 15 minute aerial show in the atrium one night. They were going to do one again last night but there was too much ship movement so it was canceled. It has been windy all week, Coco Cay was closed and my snorkeling and catamaran tour in Key West was cancelled.

I am on the Grandeur. As posted earlier, there is no library, just a case with books which don't seem to be arranged in any particular order. The daily Sudoku and Trivia are here and maybe games. The Viking Crown was supposed to be quiet this afternoon but when I was there some people were babbling away in French or something and were a bit loud. I am in the Solarium and it is full of noisy kids.

I am on the Grandeur and used this service. It was not busy when we left the stuff or when we went back to pick it up. It was tagged and sitting around the stage. I kept my jewelry and tablet with me.

I am on the Grandeur, they went up several days before Thanksgiving.

I am on Grandeur. There are some sales by the pool and by the shops. Not sure it is any more than usual.

I am on the Grandeur now, deck 3 outside. Beds are hard as a rock and pillows are thin. Blanket is too heavy, but I would freeze without it. Woke up in a sweat most nights. This is not like HAL Signature of Excellence or whatever it is called where people want to purchase the matress to take home.

I am on the Grandeur, have not had to sign for a towel to use on the ship, but it was required if you took it off the ship at the gangway.

Elder Hostel or whatever it was called when we took Voyage of the Vikings some years ago had a group on board. There were no ship excursions in Greenland so we were wandering around with some friends as we often do anyway. As we were standing around looking at something and taking pictures, the Elder Hostel group was nearby with their leader who stopped her commentary and yelled at us that they were on a private tour and we should not be listening in, or something to that effect. After that we referred to them as the Hostel Elders.

I recall that several years ago when we were on Celebrity there was talk on Cruise Critic that ladies were not to wear open toed shoes to some cocktail party for past passengers, I believe it was. Don't remember if it was enforced but I do remember that there was often someone at the door at such functions and a man in shorts was turned away at an afternoon wine tasting for past passengers.

I was on the same cruise just got off today. Our cabin was freezing when we boarded but then it got too hot. People on the deck above had those Lanai doors propped open which probably didn't help. We didn't think food was as good and portions are smaller. Dining staff was overworked but still did their best. Entertainment was excellent, performers were best we have seen in awhile, but there were only 2 big shows. Contrary to previous reports, we thought HAL Cats were good. Neptune group in Ocean Bar and Adagio in Explorer Lounge were also excellent. Overall we had a good cruise. Like having 3 nights in Bermuda and docking in Hamilton. Weather was beautiful.

Maybe in your opinion! :rolleyes: Personally, my two Celebrity cruises were nothing short of EXCELLENT! ;)

I agree. Maybe they were not on the newer ships we were on, Silhouette and Reflection.

I was on the Ryndam from Tampa in January. Key West was our first port, so we didn't have to clear anything. When we got back to Tampa, we cleared both immigration and customs.

My advice is to hire a porter. At least in Tampa, they had separate lines which were much faster with minimal waiting time.

We finally got to go to one of these in Jan. on the Ryndam. We asked about it on several other cruises. One time they acted like they didn't know what we were talking about. even when we went to the dining room and asked. We had asked when we checked in. Another time there was a lunch for some religious group so the dining room was not available. Hope you have better luck. It is nice to be able to sit and not be rushed. Less hectic than the crowded Lido.