cruisingxpert

13 hours ago, mauibabes said:

Ask O or your TA and they can get you that number.  Congrats on your 20th. We got ours last year and I think it amounted to about a $13,000 savings. We received a Credit based on our average booked stateroom of an A-2 room and we had booked a PH. Whatever you receive, it is a very welcome loyalty benefit. 
Congratulations, Mauibabes

That's very interesting.  I didn't think they would allow you to book a higher category than what O says is your average.  My average will be a PH but I don't think I can book a higher category and get the credit for the ph value.

10 hours ago, ORV said:

I can give you an exact amount as I keep an email folder of old invoices going back to 2014 or so. Ours was in July of 2018 and it was $336 per person. What was fun on that cruise, besides Lyn and our TA being on it, was that our trivia team was made up completely of 4 couples that were all on their 20th cruise. We met by random on the first day of trivia, figure the odds on that. Our team name was The Freebies. 

Thank you Orv.  That's too funny about your Trivia team name and how you met.

On 10/6/2022 at 9:35 AM, ORV said:

You do have to pay government fees & taxes. This came out of the deposit.  This is about the only time with Oceania that this is broken out separately. 

@ORV  I have my 20th coming up soon and I did what you and Flatbushflyer said about booking it in advance and ask to covert it after 19th cruise.  I see FF said I do get my loyalty OBC but I'm wondering what the government fees and taxes will amount to.  Mine is a 12 day European cruise and if I remember yours was a 14 day European cruise.  Can you or anyone who has had their 20th give me a ballpark amount?

16 minutes ago, edgee said:

If she did not click it through as a final completed registration, I do not think that she did anything wrong.

According to her post, she changed the expiry date of her passport and said the online check in took.  I take that to mean she was able to complete her check in with the incorrect expiry date.

I'm not mocking her, I'm only pointing out what she said.

On 11/13/2022 at 6:18 PM, susiesan said:

Apparently my passport expiration date is outside that time frame. So I changed the  expiration date to one month later and the online check in took.

On your first post you said the above

Now you say 

27 minutes ago, susiesan said:

There is no false information in my online check in form as it isn't completed.

You haven't said where your disembarkation port is?

@Port Royal  Pretty sure it was Tamarind, Colony Club and Discovery Bay back then.  I guess I'm looking for a walk down memory lane.  I loved Barbados.  Thanks for all your help on this Board.

22 hours ago, PORT ROYAL said:

Try Coral Reef….. note the taxi fare will be $30 e/w….. 

However, if seeking a great day, plus best bang for one’s Buck, consider a lunch sail with drinks etc on Elegance…. Plus they collect one and drop back

https://www.elegancebarbados.com

 

Thank you.  I've been on Silver Moon  3 times and Carlisle Beach the last time in Barbados so wanted to do something a bit different.  Used to do land trips to Barbados back in the late sixties and early 70's.

Will check out Coral Reef.  Did it have a different name before?  There were 3 hotels on the west coast that were connected and you could be at one and dine at all 3.

Carlisle is a gorgeous beach but does tend to get pretty crowded.  I would love to go to a hotel beach where I could use the pool and have a beach lounger and I would buy lunch there.  Any suggestions?

If they are going to have a Bubbly Bar, does that mean they will ditch the crappy Germain Champagne?

There was a thread on Regent back in 2018 where so many complained about the Germain Champagne that Jason O'Keefe posted on their site and said

Jason OKeefe

• •  90
• February 9, 2017
• Member Title: Regent Seven Seas Cruises ~Verified Account

4 hours ago, Damcruiser said:

In all our many, many Celebrity cruises, I never had the quality of a Bloody Caesar that I received on board.

Interesting because Celebrity, as far as I know, still uses the same seasoning mix.  Dimitri's Bloody Mary Seasoning Mix.  It is wonderful and you can order it on Amazon.  However, here in Canada they sock it to us with delivery charges.  I had one every day on Nieuw Amsterdam last week.  Just don't let them add Tabasco and kill the flavour- they did that one day because I said the word spicy- which Dimitri is  Forget the tomato juice and add clamato- which contrary to what some people fear, clamato is not a fishy flavour😃

I got the same thing on Thursday for a cruise on Tuesday.  I sent a message through the contact site and heard nothing but late Thursday night it worked.  No idea if my message had anything to do with it.

Here's a pic of Sirena cabin looking from the bed.

Has anyone used their services?  We are staying at a hotel on the Canal in Venice next May but our ship will leave from Trieste.  I was quoted 370 Euro for 3 people.  Price includes pick up by water taxi from our hotel to Piazzale Rome where we will transfer to a Mercedes minivan and be driven to the cruise terminal in Trieste.

Seems like a good price and tripadvisor reviews are good.

I was looking at Blacklane but read some awful reviews of last minute cancellations.

On a Riviera cruise, I asked Dominique Nicolle, the General Manager, for permission to have the partition opened and the answer was NO

They often have inspections on the first cruise after being out of country for months.  I was on an Oceania cruise that had just arrived from overseas and  they asked that we didn't show up before 3pm.  I know people who did say they got on around 1pm.

1 hour ago, crystalspin said:

You pay the whole price unless you on one ship in Alaska (Westerdam?) which is test-driving a Have-It-All-And-More plan where only the difference is paid.

Hope they do it on all the ships.  Celebrity has that plan so you have a chance to try an expensive glass of wine that you probably wouldn't otherwise try.

2 hours ago, Hlitner said:

I have no doubt that new line will have great onboard service and very good entertainment (which we have found on all our MSC Yacht Club cruises).  But my big question is whether their cuisine will be up to expectations because this is an issue that we think haunts MSC.

 

Cruise Critic Chris who is on Marina right now said Franck Garanger has left O and is now head of Cuisine for Explora Journeys.

I noticed something in the article "And for lovers of the grape, Oancea is adding 75 new wines to Oceania's already extensive wine list."

What about wine by the glass?  I'm a wine drinker and the choices of wine by the glass are not plentiful or very good.  I would buy a drink package if they offered something like Celebrity that has far more choices of wine by the glass and an option to have a glass of more expensive wines for a small additional cost. 

Trying to decide which hotel to choose.  Both are similarly priced and both are on the Grand Canal and we can get a water taxi from airport to hotel door.

Has anybody been to either of these hotels and if both, which one did they prefer?

Thank you for doing the review.  We are big fans of the Terrace on the O ships and hardly ever go to the GDR.  We just came off the Insignia and we were disappointed with the Terrace- everything you said we agree with.  One thing I do enjoy there is the pasta station..

We dined in the GDR on Insignia on 2 nights- had really good meals and wished we had gone there more often.

The redo on the rooms is lovely.  Other than smaller bathroom and closet space, I think the layout in the PH cabins is nicer than the O ship PH layout.

11 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

 

The concession at Clearwater found the gypsy driver for us  when we asked if they would call a taxi. He must have been hanging out there waiting for the opportunity. There was a couple that had prearranged for a taxi back but they thought he had stood them up so we all shared the gypsy taxi who charged the same amount as the legal taxi we had taken to Clearwater. So $20 divided by 4 we did not mind.  I don't know how to find one to take you there from St. George. The passenger on Insignia now lucked out. We took a taxi to Clearwater from St. George. We had no problem finding one to take us therefrom the  town square.  I was on Insignia and not overly worried as we didn't have to catch a ferry back to the Dockyard. It is in the interest of the concession there for people to come and go so I believe they will help tourists find a taxi or other ride back to St. George otherwise tourists won't go there. There is a taxi app called Hitch that I hve on my phone that I have never had to use but you might want to download it.

Thank you.  That's great information.  Really looking forward to coming back to Bermuda 

On 5/16/2022 at 6:30 PM, Charles4515 said:

Gombeys found us a gypsy driver who charged the same $20 fare as the taxi. 

You are so very helpful, Charles.  Appreciate that you take the time to respond.  You mentioned a gypsy driver which someone on the Insignia right now talked about.  She said she had found a regular taxi and asked to go to Clearwater Beach and would the driver agree to meet and bring them back.  He said no and that they should go to Tobacco Bay because they could get a cab back.  They went, thought it was awful and jumped into a cab that was just dropping people off at Tobacco Bay.  She found out that he was a "gypsy" driver.  He took them to Clearwater Beach and agreed to a time to pick them up.  They mentioned the bar and the food truck, had a great time and the driver picked them up right on time.

My question- we are docking in St George next week on Insignia and I wonder how we find a "gypsy" driver to take us to Clearwater and agree to bring us back at a designated time.

On 6/2/2022 at 12:06 AM, WKUTopperFan said:

Winsome Transport is the name of the company

@WKUTopperFan

I did a tour several years ago with Ralph Richardson of Winsome Tours,  He was very friendly and knowledgeable.  There were 8 of and he even took us to his house and down to the dock to see the water.  I have no hesitation in recommending him.

I believe Winsome Tours handles the Famous Homes and Hideaway cruise tour.  I loved it and have done it 3 times.  Wonderful way to see Bermuda from the water.

9 minutes ago, Aloha 1 said:

Not according to the latest EU updates. Yes on land, ie; trains and buses but not other wise. Not even on planes which are public transport.

 

Celebrity, for example, as of today says masks optional on board for cruises embarking, visiting, or disembarking in Spain and Italy.

Google updates on mask wearing.  Several countries including Italy and Spain have said they are not going to drop mask wearing in several areas even though EU guidelines say differently.  That's probably why Ortega is hedging his bets about mask wearing and testing.

 I like Celebrity but I don't think they were enforcing rules as much as O was.  I was on Riviera in May and if you forgot to put your mask on in the Terrace, especially, you were reminded to do so.

1 hour ago, Aloha 1 said:

Received an email yesterday with Covid protocols for our July cruises. Very puzzled that Carlos Ortega would send out, at this late date, an email referencing requirements per country that are no longer valid. It's June 24th and both Spain and Italy have essentially dropped almost all covid restrictions, yet the O memo references June 3rd restrictions which are no longer valid. Since the June 15th EU updates are clearly available. i do not understand why O would confuse passengers with false info.

Italy has extended mask wearing on public transport until September and I believe Spain is also doing something similar.  Cruise ships are considered public transport.

https://www.wantedinrome.com/news/covid-italy-extends-mask-mandate-for-public-transport.html