JDincalif

3 minutes ago, jackdeb said:

It looks like Humphry Slocombe focuses on odd ball flavours to try to set themselves apart, and not thinking of quality.

We found the HS ice cream quality equivalent to other O ice cream offerings. Whether these are surpassed by other brands or cruise line offerings could be a separate (contentious) discussion 😉

40 minutes ago, bradpole said:

some of my favorites are the corn flavored one, Elvis the fat years, Harvey Milk and cookies, Regatta Royale, and the lavender flavored one.  Personally I think it was a nice addition to regular flavors they offer.  

Other cheeky tasty flavors include "Secret Breakfast" (bourbon with cornflake cookie bits) and "After School Special" (chocolate-covered potato chip bits with caramel swirl). It was fun to try something different

In May 2022 Viking Ocean (Mars) did not carry Paxlovid. In July 2022 Oceania (Regatta) carried Paxlovid. Travel insurance covered the $800 charge for this medication.

6 hours ago, ontheweb said:

Good question, though it is more of a question for those in charge at cruisecritic than the cruise line CEOs.

Agreed; the question was intended for the Cruise Critic administrator whose original post was quoted to indicate that intention

On 2/15/2023 at 12:22 PM, CCAubs said:

Do you have a question that you’d love to ask Mr. Del Rio? Are you wondering what’s ahead for onboard dining and entertainment? Have thoughts on how NCLH can leverage technology to improve the cruise experience? Do you have questions about the cruise line’s sustainability efforts? We want to hear from you.

 

Share your questions below, and your question might be one asked of Mr. Del Rio at this year’s event.

Will Cruise Critic provide a summary of Mr. Del Rio's responses to these questions following the event?

On 2/15/2023 at 12:04 PM, CCAubs said:

Do you have a question that you’d love to ask a cruise line CEO? Are you wondering what’s ahead for onboard dining and entertainment? Have thoughts on how cruise lines can leverage technology to improve the cruise experience? Do you have questions about cruise line sustainability efforts? We want to hear from you.

 

Share your questions below, and your question might be one asked of the CEOs at this year’s event.

Will Cruise Critic provide a summary of CEO responses to these questions following the event?

Please clarify how the recently announced reductions in port time stays provide significant environmental benefit.

For Mr. Del Rio: Please explain what benefits to the environment are gained from the recently announced reductions in Oceania port stay times.

Additionally, have observed some reading in library with (covered) cups of coffee/tea; haven't seen any express prohibition of these in the library

On Regatta now - library has several shelves dedicated to book swap - mostly popular fiction paperbacks

6 hours ago, Robbie555 said:

Just wondering, what year was that?

 

Is that sailing mentioned on your signature?

J was on a two week Renaissance voyage in (she believes) January 2001 between Istanbul and Barcelona. This cruise was announced on short notice due to cancellation of a different itinerary, and what a bargain it was: two weeks, $599/pp for an ocean view.

(Not included in signature as this was before J met D; signature represents "the happy shared adventures of J and D"☺️)

Won a 'fanny pack' in a Renaissance trivia competition. The cruise director presented it with the (humorous?) remark (warning?): "This is the perfect item to identify yourself as a tourist anywhere in the world"

9 hours ago, dcsam said:

Are there many lines and crowds on Oceania’s small ships?  Their passenger/space ratio is similar to the mega ships, which I find crowded.  
Thank you. 

Responding more directly to your question: Apart from the occasional dinner/tender/shore excursion queue, we haven't experienced crowds and lines on Oceania ships, even when the ships were at full capacity. Our only voyage on a 'larger' ship (not a mega) was on one with a maximum passenger capacity around 3000 with a passenger/space ratio close to the Oceania O and R class ships; definitely felt more crowded.

Here's some more great information from njhorseman that helps to explain how the passenger/space ratio isn't sufficient to predict the feeling of being crowded:

Also two ships of identical GT, and let's say even identical non-passenger interior space and carrying an identical number of passengers could have substantially different amount of public space simply by varying the size of the cabins. A ship with larger cabins will have less public space for dining rooms, entertainment venues, etc. than an otherwise identical GT ship carrying the same number of passengers but in smaller cabins .

8 hours ago, dcsam said:

Are there many lines and crowds on Oceania’s small ships?  Their passenger/space ratio is similar to the mega ships, which I find crowded.  
Thank you. 

Elsewhere on the Oceania board, njhorseman provided an excellent discussion of the passenger/space ratio and the perception of 'crowding':

The ratios used in the cruisemapper website's calculation are not  true measures of how spacious a ship will seem to its passengers. Gross Tonnage is calculated from the volume of all enclosed spaces of a ship so it includes a substantial amount of space not accessible to or used by passengers such as engine rooms,  crew living quarters, galleys and storerooms. Two ships of equal passenger capacity and equal Gross Tonnage can have differences in the amount of space occupied by facilities not used by passengers. As an example I know that when Marina and Riviera were built there was mention of how large the galleys were relative to the passenger capacity of the ships, so that raises the question of whether actual accessible passenger space per passenger on the "O" ships is in reality more than that on the "R" ships .

On our most recent Viking cruise, we learned from the staff at Mamsen's that the "Success Cake" is gluten free. 

9 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

I wasn't able to find when these regulations went into effect, or perhaps when they started to be enforced, since this seems to have caught several ships off guard.

A quick web search indicates that such regulations in NZ were initiated in 2014, with detailed guidance available for significant changes that became effective in May 2018.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.00390/full

Of course, a lot has happened since then...

1 hour ago, susiesan said:

This is BS. Shortening the time in port isn't going to do anything to reduce the carbon footprint. It's more likely a move to generate more onboard spending by keeping people on the ship longer. I try not to do business with woke companies, I never thought Oceania was one. I'm going to have to reevaluate taking my Sept. Sirena cruise if O starts tinkering with the in port times. Doesn't O advertise longer times in ports as a benefit to cruising with them?

Details of the NCL program and a link to contact NCL directly with your comments, questions and concerns can be found here

39 minutes ago, Tranquility Base said:

Which ports were affected the most with a shortened stay ?

What would be an example of the new timings in port where passengers are likely to be touring for much of the day ?

 

18 hours ago, HHI Cruiser1 said:

Seems like ALL Oceania arrival and departure times would also be impacted by this new direction, but haven't read any posts about other ships being late or early impacting excursion as published by Oceania.

Today we received the same letter for our January 30 Regatta voyage between Auckland and Sydney. Several arrival times were revised half an hour to an hour later; several departure times revised to half an hour to an hour earlier.

Using mobile devices, we've noticed recently that Search function no longer offers "member search," just "content search".

22 minutes ago, JDincalif said:

This works for NCL/Oceania cruises. Pier 91, serving other cruise lines, is 2 miles from the Edgewater.

 

 

Here's a link to help you find your current assigned cruise terminal and the 2023 tentative cruise/port schedule.

https://www.portseattle.org/cruise-ships

55 minutes ago, JDincalif said:

We stayed at the Edgewater, literally right next door to Pier 66. Hotel staff put our bags on a luggage cart and walked us to baggage drop. It's not inexpensive but we found it to be a good base for exploring the waterfront and other Seattle sights.

This works for NCL/Oceania cruises. Pier 91, serving other cruise lines, is 2 miles from the Edgewater.

44 minutes ago, 9tee2Sea said:

You are not going to be able to walk to the port from any hotel in Seattle.

We stayed at the Edgewater, literally right next door to Pier 66. Hotel staff put our bags on a luggage cart and walked us to baggage drop. It's not inexpensive but we found it to be a good base for exploring the waterfront and other Seattle sights.

2 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

....the 2029 10th anniversary cruise of the Sky Survivors 😁

 

My best to everyone and wishing you all a Happy, safe, and healthy Holiday season! 

☺️ Until that happy day, thank dog we have this forum to keep in touch with 'survivors' and friends. Stories, information, expertise, support - a truly lovely community. Wishing happy holidays to all and many delightful adventures in the year to come!