julia

I srsly do NOT want to rain on your excitement, but that balcony guarantee might backfire. For brand new cruisers, a lower, centered cabin is a better choice for possible seasickness. The guarantee could result in a higher, more forward/aft cabin with lots of movement. Just my two cents...

One of the (many) reasons for traveling with children is to expose them to the REAL world and real world experiences. Life is not a video game. Travel can be fun, exciting, learning, and frightening... all at once. Travel grows character. While I can understand being frightened by loud bangs, I'm at a loss as to what took them to the worst case scenario of the ship sinking. That needs some serious discussion....

What? Wait.... @AMHuntFerry We are BoyCee! Eagle to be exact!

Well Cliff, I hate to tell you but..... Oceania DOES NOT CARE if you move on. Sorry. Cold, hard, fact. They are covering increased costs on EVERY LEVEL. As is every single cruise line, hotel, theme park, restaurant, grocery store, etc, etc. Bemoaning the increases will have no effect on the outcome. Either you CHOOSE to cruise or you don't.

Why is everyone SO bent out of shape with the "inclusion" of beer and wine?? The cost to the cruise line for alcohol is MINIMAL! It's not the $12-$15 drinks that are "included"... it's pennies on the dollar for what they pay wholesale. FREE? No, nothing is free. It's "included". Get over it or move on.

And yet another thread about SimplyMore!! 😲😅 #groundhogday

@mauibabes.... ⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️😅

What the heck? This thread was about the changes to cancellation terms!

Sorry, but if I had a butler tell ME to "call housekeeping", I would plaster on my biggest smile and say softly, "Thank you, I believe YOU can call housekeeping and have those blankets delivered shortly".

Just so you are clear on this point, the 20% IS INCLUDED in the drink package. It is only ADDED to drinks purchased individually.

Not required at all, but as with all places, there will be some still masking.

Very cool... thx for sharing!!

Thanks for the detailed review and welcome to the world of cruising... this first cruise will forever be your benchmark. Hopefully, you will get your sea legs in the future, and I highly recommend using this generic meclazine from WalMart. Take it before leaving home, throughout the trip (as needed), and continue a few days after. Yes, that "after trip" swaying is real!

@CHEZMARYLOU Welcome to the O board! X Elite here, and booked on Regatta next. Looking for that small ship experience, especially after sailing on Beyond!

Seriously, how much room could the original pill containers take?! Not that I'd be worried about proving anything, but I simply would never remove RX pills from their original containers while traveling. Just my two cents.

So much angst over what is basically a simple change! The bottom line is that cruise prices WILL continue to increase, across the board, and on every single line. The costs to supply these ships are increasing, as anyone can see when you're in your grocery store (hell, eggs were recently $5/dozen!). Fuel costs, food costs, labor costs, maintenance costs, insurance costs, debt, etc, have ALL added to higher pricing (not just included alcohol!) All of us will need to roll with the punches, and determine if cruising is worth the value or not.

Thx @basor... that's what I thought.

"Effective starting Oct 1, 2023".... so I'm assuming this will NOT impact our current booking on Regatta on Sept 20, 2023 (with OLife beverage option)? Yes? No?

Upon embarkation, is it possible to exchange the complimentary bottle of champagne (in the concierge cabin) for a bottle of wine? Thx!

NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! So sad to hear this!! 😭

@cbr663... very nice, balanced review. We too felt the Koningsdam was noisy and crowded (at times). Grand Dutch was always slow. Surprisingly, we also stayed at L'Hermitage in Vancouver (pre-cruise) and we really enjoyed it!

Whaaaat?? I drank Tanqueray gin and Tito's vodka regularly on the Koningsdam (for 35 days!)

Oh, I loved "I will alert the media!" 😅😅 Unfortunately, his best line was too risqué to post here (think Dudley Moore in the bathtub), but he nailed it!

Speaking to the "drawing the bath/butler" discussion here... Sir John Gielgud stole the entire movie with just one line in 1981. I'm still laughing. Arthur. 😲😅⬆️🎶

Um, it seems to me that since the OP was already discussing two VERY BASIC requests with said "butler", Mr Butler's answers should have been "ice? yes, of course, I will advise your cabin steward of your request. Dinner reservations? Yes, of course, I will contact the Maitre D on your behalf. Is there anything else I can assist you with?" Not, "ask your steward, call for dining yourself." But then again, that's just my two cents.