HeatherInFlorida

It is my nature to be positive, look for the silver lining and hope for the best, but it would do me well to stop reading this thread since I board Riviera on Monday and my husband and I are literally praying at this point that the Noro virus will be eradicated and no one brings it with them. To read so much negativity about Oceania and the way they have handled this evidently ongoing problem is beyond troubling; I'm literally dreading this cruise.

Anyone who has ever read any of my reviews or posts knows that I don't mince words and I'm no cheerleader for anyone. I have been cheering Oceania simply because I've never had anything but fantastic experience with them in our past 4 cruises since 2013. But reading all this has me very worried.

Yesterday we had an offer of a 75% refund to downgrade from our PH cabin to a Concierge Class. I have no idea why. I didn't take it, but I was tempted to ask how much they'd give us to not go at all.

I will have internet onboard and assuming we have a signal, I will post to let everyone know what (if anything) is happening. I'm going to hope it's so normal and fabulous that I don't even bother. If you don't see me, it's good news. For all of us on this cruise and all those booked in the weeks to come, fingers crossed.

For all those who were on this cruise, I confess I can't imagine how horrifying it was ... even if you didn't get sick. Welcome home.

Are you suggesting that HAL is luxury? Hope not as it has the reputation as being the old folks home on the sea. Also, HAL, or any mainstream, premium or luxury cruise are not exempt from Norovirus. Being mostly a luxury cruise line passenger, I can attest to the fact that people get sick on luxury cruise lines too. Sail the cruise line that you enjoy and take precautions so you stay healthy!

HAL has had Noro many times over for sure. No cruise line is exempt as you say. Doesn't matter how luxurious, it can happen on any line.

HAL has been in our rear view mirror for years and we would never go back. Once such a wonderful line, it changed over the years and we moved to Celebrity. Then we tried Oceania and it's doubtful we'll cruise Celebrity again unless friends talk us into it.

But if you want to avoid Noro for sure, better not get on any ship😞.... So far not an option for us, but that could change!!

Don't worry, I got the same tone of comments on my live thread.

 

I have been on 3 ships with Noro. Riviera's was the worst I had seen.

 

I totally understand what you have gone through and you have my sympathies.

 

By the way, reporting your experiences and the facts, does NOT make you a complainer ;)

No one was snarky with the poster; he/she just thought someone might be. But how could anyone?? Horrible to go through this

Pretty sure I'd never cruise on Riviera again if this happens to us. I so pray it doesn't. Truth is we would have canceled if we could have. Feels a little like jumping into a ring of fire. But I have to be positive and hope they are successful.

Heather, glad that you are happy with your news. ;) We have mixed feelings about our cruise terminating early, and certainly are not looking forward to spending two nights in a strange hotel where the only meals comped will be breakfast.

 

Also, we are not getting a huge discount as you can read from the letter. The 25% back will represent the amount back for the 2 days we are losing. The 25% off of a future cruise will be in the same amount only IF one is able to take advantage of the offer. For us, the discount would be around $800 pp because we are in a standard veranda that cost $3699 pp. Unfortunately, we will not be able to use this credit within the year because of prior trips already planned. So for us and others in the same situation, we lose out on any "for the inconvenience " good will gesture.

 

. We have heard many on the ship mention that we passengers should get at least 50% back on our fare because the cruise has been in Code Red from the beginning and the cruise has been hard to enjoy on a daily bases....the smells, wet and ruined clothes, poor service, etc. We ourselves have the unfortunate luck to be right outside of three staff service entrances that have been full of activity day and night and causing us difficulty in getting good quality rest. Buckets of disinfective are being carried in and out, plus left near our stateroom door as well as the next door cabin. :rolleyes:

 

I am not complaining, but just stating how it is here onboard. I do hope that the next cruise will be free from illness and enjoyable for all. Good luck!

If I were in your shoes I'd be miserable. I was posting only from standing in my own shoes and I'm sure you'd be equally relieved to hear the ship was going to get doused with disinfectant if you were boarding on Monday. It doesn't take away from being unable to imagine what it's like to have a cruise ruined by something like this. It reminds me when I was relieved when a hurricane missed us, but knew that by missing us it hit the other coast. I was still relieved. So I completely understand where you're coming from and please believe me I sympathize with everyone on this cruise. It's just not fair.

I consider 25% "huge" and it was my reaction to someone posting that $100 would be nice. So that's a matter of perspective. I don't think money can fix what all of you are going through. I just told a friend no amount of money could make me want to have been on your cruise ... they could give me a full refund and I would still wish I'd been anywhere but there. Personally I believe Oceania stepped up to the plate, but maybe in your shoes I'd feel differently.

I hope you arrive safely home healthy:)

All I know is that Oceana is addressing this in the best possible way. The passengers on board the ship are getting more than $100 credit I assure you. They're getting a huge discount off this cruise and another discount off a future one. So it didn't make for a very nice cruise, but at least Oceana stepped up. I agree with others that the fault does not lie with Oceania. Still, it is up to them to do their best to correct the situation. And they are doing that. Good for them.

Great news for those of us on the 2/22 cruise😃 Just heard from my TA they're bringing the Riviera back 2 days early for a thorough cleaning. Offering guests hotel rooms, discount off this cruise and also a future cruise. So maybe they'll really get her spiffy clean. Doesn't stop sick people from coming on board but at least it may rid the ship of any previous issues. Fingers crossed! I'm packing😃

We've been notified by Oceania of our late boarding on Monday. I will post from the ship about how we're doing. I'm going to remain positive and hopeful.

Muchty's post regarding his/her experience was referring to the previous cruise before the 2/12 cruise ... not the one the CDC report refers to which is the current one.

Not fun to read this cruiser's experience knowing we'll be hopping onboard on Monday after the ship (I assume) is deep cleaned. My hope is that it will be inspected so metisculously that even the tiniest germ would dare make its way onto the next voyage:):):).

But I feel so badly for all the people experiencing this. We all look forward to our cruises and to say this "puts a damper" on the cruise is an understatement I think. What a shame.

Way more comfy there😃! Hope to meet you onboard.

Since they are planning an inspection/cleaning on disembarkation/ embarkation day I would stay at the hotel until later in the day

You will be more comfortable there than sitting at the port

You can eat lunch & have restrooms close at hand

Then unless Oceania says otherwise head to the port about 2 -3 pm

Exactly. Thank you. My husband and I are also on the 2/22 cruise and obviously we're not thrilled that Noro is onboard now, but on the other hand we are completely confident that Oceania is going to do a thorough cleaning and health officials will be onboard that day to make sure of that. Getting onboard a little bit late isn't going to be the end of the world for any of us and I just thank God I am fortunate to be boarding the Riviera at all ... whatever time.

Since we know for sure it will take longer to clean the ship, it would be silly to get to the pier for our original boarding times. Getting there a bit later will make it more comfortable for everyone.

If anything, we have a better chance of a Noro free ship than many others heading to all the piers in all the world over the next few days to board their ships. Unfortunately Noro is a common occurrence. No one is happy about it, but we'll end up having a fabulous time with amazing service and delicious food with, hopefully, yummy weather the whole time.

Hi Rhea! We were supposed to be on your cruise and had to cancel. Then we booked this last minute. So happy everything is still great on our favorite ship. Can't wait to board!

I must have missed some posts because I did not read any comments mocking people who became ill. Speaking for myself I was making fun of people on CC who over react and beat a subject to death.

Noro is not fun. And I feel badly for anyone who gets sick onboard a ship. I hope it doesn't happen to us when we board Riviera Monday. But some people on CC have a habit of turning everything into a firestorm. I don't blame Oceania though it may make some people feel better to do so. People get on the ship sick and it spreads in a contained environment. It's incredibly hard to eradicate. I refuse to believe that Oceania doesn't take it very seriously and do everything they can to stop the spread of the virus.

I so wish CC had a "like" button because I'd click it on every post since my last one :):):). I agree that no news is good news. For sure someone would be posting "Help!!! Get me off this sick ship!"

I need to start packing.😃

No one is ever thrilled to hear that Noro is aboard a ship ... especially when, like me, you're just about to embark that ship in a week.

But I'd forgotten how people on CC can literally beat this stuff until it is so dead that no miracle could possibly revive it and then start beating the poor dead horse again anyway. Noro occurs on all ships, all lines ... no one is exempt. It doesn't happen on the ship; people bring it to the ship and it spreads because of the contained environment.

So maybe we should never cruise again, never go to a hotel again, never board an airline again. Instead we can sit behind our keyboards and live vicariously through the wonderful world of social media. Maybe we should lock ourselves in our safe little homes and die of boredom instead.

I know that so well. We've been cruising since 1982 so we've got lots of great memories. I just noticed you cruised on the Seawind Crown in 1995. I need to look up the year we were on her; had a great time on that ship sometime in the 90s ... a far cry from the Riviera but a great time. We are a little funny about our dog; she's kind of the center of our lives and rules the roost. But I think she'll be OK and we'll have a few more cruises before we put the bags away for good😃

Just seeing this thread now as I drop back in on CC as we near our next Riviera cruise and I think you've made a choice you'll be happy with. I echo many other comments regarding restaurants, pools, etc., so no reason to repeat.

We began cruising on Oceania in January 2013 and never looked back. We were in a PH on Riviera and fell in love. Well ... I did. DH doesn't care about the cabin, but like Mura, I do and while I loved the PH cabin on Regatta, I missed the Riviera bathroom and definitely the walk-in closet. Still, I did enjoy the wall to wall windows and table placement on Regatta.

We've been on 2 Riviera and 2 Regatta cruises. I've reviewed one of each here on CC. I had thought we would prefer Regatta based on our early sailing days on smaller ships. But after the 2nd Regatta cruise this past April we decided we prefer the Riviera by far. It doesn't feel large, we meet just as many people and the staff and service is so stellar on both that other than running into the CD, the Captain and other officers more often on Regatta, we felt no difference in the "feel".

Our February Riviera cruise may be our last depending on how our little dog does while we're away this time (April turned into a nightmare for our poor dog sitter friends) so we can't wait to enjoy Oceania luxury once again. Enjoy your cruise and I hope you're not as near the end of your cruising days as you think:)

Thanks, everyone, both for your replies and for telling me I'm not crazy :). Our TA was able to get us into 8033 which is perfect ... not port side, but I think I can give that up!

So appreciate your help!

Thank you both!!! Great info and I so appreciate it. We're trying for 8033 just because I don't usually like a connecting door, but if we stay in 8025 I'm happy to hear there was no noise problem. And hopefully it's as you remember and the bed is on the left in 8025, too.

Thank you, Catharine. I could work down from yours because it is every other I'm sure.

However, in the short time it took between having it available and me saying yes, it was gone. I now have 8025.

So now hopefully someone can help about the other numbers I mentioned? Most important is 8025 for now.

Thanks!

Doubtful there's a symmetry to it and they're not perfectly opposite so I can't take that chance. But you're right. Many cruise line deck plans show where the doorway is so you know. But Oceana, unfortunately, doesn't do that.

Thanks so much!!:) Disappointed because I love port side. Hopefully someone will know about the Starboard cabins I mentioned. But you do make me feel a little less weird… LOL:). It just really works better for us when the bed is on the left.

We are on the Regatta in April and just upgraded to 8026 (PH1) on the port side, but we still have time to switch to starboard side if we need to.

I have a really strange question:). If you have stayed in this cabin could you tell me if the bed is to the left or right as you enter the cabin? I'd also really appreciate if anyone knows about the starboard side cabins available as of now ... ... 8021, 8025, 8033, 8035.

I'd love to explain, but if I do you will think there's a crazy person cruising Oceania these days.

So appreciate any help you can give! Thank you:)

We had fun on the Westerdam and the prinsendam

Why r they off your radar- I know though- I love the smaller ships.....that being said,

We're going on the Volendam for a month in April from china to Vancouver

Still cabins left on that one, too!

H

We absolutely did, but that was a long time ago. We haven't cruised HAL for ages as you know. But we were going to give it another try and booked an SA so that we can compare it with the PH on Oceania. But the way they handled this was very disappointing so we're just not going to do it. And I could never uproot myself for a whole month; you know I'm a potted plant.:):):)

LOL!!! Hi Helaine! You crack me up. No, we can't do whole Panama Canal that time of year because we have family coming for the Thanksgiving holidays. but otherwise a great idea! We booked January on Oceana so that's a done deal. I'll be in touch ... good to see you here :)

Heather, nice to hear from you! We've been on the Regatta twice & both have been wonderful cruises..Hopefully we'll be able to cruise on Oceania again soon.. Agree the Prinsendam just about mirrors the Regatta.. Now is the time to tell the story about the Lady Matre'd on the Regatta..

 

We were on her with our good Buddies..One day the Matre'd asked my Friends DH why he never took any of the wonderful Muffins for breakfast.. His answer was "I can't have the sugar".. With that she said "Tomorrow you will have muffins made with splenda" & the next day he did & every day thereafter he did..He really enjoyed them too!..

 

One day we had a very early tour & we all decided to eat in the Buffet.. The next day the Matre'd asked where we were & we told her why we had to eat in the Buffet & why our Friend did not get his muffins.. Her answer to him was "Next time that happens you send one of the Stewards down to the MDR to get your muffins from me" !! She meant every word of it!! We all were shocked as NEVER had we seen such service on any cruise..

 

After my first cruise, or even my second, this might have surprised me. But after our cruise on Regatta, I'm not surprised at all. There's an extra level of service that cannot be duplicated on the larger ships :).