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vaitape

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Posts posted by vaitape

    Oceania vs Seabourn: My experience

    in Oceania Cruises

    Posted

    On 1/19/2024 at 5:34 PM, mauibabes said:

    How does the price compare with a Marina Antarctic cruise that does sail byes?  I am sure there is a huge difference in the number of guests aboard the two ships. We were on Marina last January and a friend on Seabourn and she felt the food and service was pretty comparable.   Expedition cruises are different so you definitely had a great trip. So glad you enjoyed it, we loved our sail by trip and were not up to an expedition sailing. 
     

    Mauibabes

    Seabourn makes Antarctica landings so easy. You really don't have to be "spry" or able to run a marathon to get the best out of Seabourn's expedition cruises. Food was great, lovely large rooms and bathrooms with walk in closet.....top notch.

    • Like 1

    Insignia December 5-17

    in Oceania Cruises

    Posted

    10 hours ago, ToxM said:

    We are on Regent in 2 weeks which has no casual dining in the evening (already a minus for regent and I am not even onboard yet) so my footwear indisrections will be put to a good test

    There is a casual dining option on Regent, weather permitting. It is at the pool. Menu is a bit limited but it's lovely to sit there and watch the sun set, the service is excellent as it is everywhere on Regent, and food is good. Also the Italian resto is pretty casual in my opinion though no shorts or flip flops.

    Encore Room #522

    in Seabourn Cruise Line

    Posted

    3 hours ago, johng75370 said:

    Here’s a recent thread on the topic that might be helpful; different class of ship from Encore but they are very similar in design/construction: 

     

    Many thanks for your helpful post.

     

    You're a better researcher than I am!

     

    Encore Room #522

    in Seabourn Cruise Line

    Posted

    25 minutes ago, Lilycat2010 said:

    I was in 524 on the other side of the elevators in May.  No issues with noise!

    Thank you for your reply.

     

    522 shares the wall with the elevator shaft which is our concern. 524 doesn't.

     

    Don't want to hear the elevator going up and down while we're sleeping.

    Itineraries

    in Seabourn Cruise Line

    Posted

    17 hours ago, Utopia1 said:

    ( I do not want to repeat the West Africa itinerary we had on the 2023 World Cruise.)

    The West Africa itinerary 2023: Was there something about the itinerary that didn't interest you or ?? 

    Thinking about it so would appreciate your feedback.

    Myanmar, is refund possible after final payment

    in Oceania Cruises

    Posted

    2 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

    I'm not so sure about @vaitape's strategy.  While I agree that O's communication skills are lacking, to tell passengers that they are going to skip a port but don't have the alternatives worked out yet would be quite unsettling to many. The anguish over the uncertainty of not knowing is not really relieved but just redirected, and for some that anxiety may be heightened.  I think they feel it's better to have the new itinerary in place before starting all sorts of speculation and discord.  It ain't easy to please everyone.

    YMMV

    Myanmar, is refund possible after final payment

    in Oceania Cruises

    Posted · Edited by vaitape

    1 hour ago, FlyerTalker said:


    Maybe, just maybe, it had to do with waiting until alternative arrangements had been firmed up.  It's not like ports just have docks sitting around empty all the time.

     

    To support this, look at the revised itinerary posted above.  There's a bunch of backtracking here, as the ship goes south to Sabang, then east to Langkawi, north to Phuket and south again to KL.

     

    Thought problem:  Imagine the howls if Oceania said "We're cancelling Myanmar, but have no alternative plans to announce". The cry would be "why can't you do something?"  Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

    Flyer Talk,

    Usually I agree with you. You're one of my favorite posters because of your knowledge and insight. But, disagree with on your "thought problem".

     

    We would have appreciated knowing that Myanmar was canceled and would have accepted "we have no alternative plans to announce at this time., however we are diligently working on a new itinerary. Your safety is our priority" or something like that.

     

    COMMUNIATION is not one of O's strong points.

    • Like 6

    Oceania Marina to Antartica…but many concerns

    in Oceania Cruises

    Posted

    We did a Seabourn cruise to Antarctica in 2020 and it was the trip of a lifetime.

     

    Fantastic expedition team with naturalists, marine biologists, etc onboard to answer all our questions. If we were out on deck, one of the team would approach us and explain what we were looking at and answer any questions we had. Zodiac tours and landings each day while we were in Antarctica. 

     

    Every evening before dinner, we went to the theater for a de-briefing and an explanation of what to expect for tomorrow. When we walked into the theater, the expedition team lined the entry way to greet us, along with the staff offering wine, champagne, spirits and mulled wine.

     

    If you can stretch your budget a bit beyond an O fare, don't do a sail-by. Walk among the stinky, curious penguins and have the full Antarctica experience.

     

    ps the day in the Falklands was amazing as well!

     

     

    • Like 3
    • Thanks 2

    Extraordinary Savings Sale

    in Oceania Cruises

    Posted

    1 hour ago, SSCAF001 said:

    I am on the Nautica Singapore to Barcelona cruise departing on May 10, 2023 for 40 days. Both legs of this BtoB cruise are part of the Extraordinary savings sales. For my cabin it would be a saving of 1.2k€. Final payment has been made already. Do you think Oceania will accept to allow me to benefit from this discounted price? Price reduction, I do not think. But maybe further OBC or free drink package? I have contacted my TA on Friday afternoon but got no answer and now I have to wait Monday at the earliest. Thanks for your thoughts on this.

    We inquired via our TA about the Ultimate OLife package when it was first offered for this cruise. We were told that our original fare already had many discounts (Really?) and O would not add Ultimate to our SIN-BCN cruise. 

    Please let us know what you find out.

    Myanmar, is refund possible after final payment

    in Oceania Cruises

    Posted · Edited by vaitape

    2 hours ago, bob brown said:

    I went to our “ATW Concierge”, and asked her, but (as expected), they could not confirm that we will skip Myanmar until the Miami offices release that decision.

    And yes, she is well aware of the frustration that is causing for many, but it is “above her pay grade” to remedy the situation…

     

    I suppose I could try to escalate it to the general manager, or even the captain, but I don’t consider it worth the effort, as I am fairly certain we will not be going there, and am content to wait for official word, whenever it comes, perhaps by the time we reach Dubai.

     

    If anyone not on board finds that unacceptable, you are welcome to pursue it with the Miami office…🤷‍♂️

    Bob,

    Thank you very much for your efforts.

    We can't understand what the deal is with O's lack of communication and respect for their passengers. 

     

     

     

    • Thanks 1
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