Bandman45

Did you have any issues with glare on the LCD screen? Without a viewfinder I'm concerned it will be difficult to see what I'm shooting.

Sea42 - - there are better choices than the GoPro. I used a GoPro for three years before I relegated it to the closet, still there. Lesson learned. IMO way overrated.

Great job on your review, truly enjoying your perspective. Thank you for making the time to do this!

Our French Polynesia cruise will also be our first with Oceania and first to Tahiti. What were your disappointments with the ports? We will be 63 and 71 and are pretty active. Plan on lots of snorkeling. Did you take O excursions? Did you have any disappointments with Oceania?

 

 

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Heartfeltraveler - - we simply expected the ports to offer a bit more if one just wants to poke around. Bora Bora was great fun with the catamaran/snorkel tour and Raiatea was a place I wish we could have had more time as we were docked at the pier. At other stops we did our own tours. The ship is beautiful and well appointed, first class. However, at the specialty restaurant, Toscano we had really bizarre evening with the server, tried to serve us salads twice and couldn't remember who was supposed to get what for the entree. Something weird was going on that night and the manager was clueless. The second time we went to Jacques we were seated promptly with menu's but after 20 minutes we had to flag down the maitre'd so we could order. The real highlight for food was the Red Ginger, outstanding and La Reserve was, without question one of the finest restaurants we've ever enjoyed, a close 2nd to Commanders Palace in New Orleans. Just bite the bullet and spend the money on La Reserve, worth every penny. I'm glad we did the trip, sure helps break up the winter blahs. Our next cruise takes us to London and Norway later this year and I'm hoping we can do Europe again next summer (2019) on a river cruise with our close friends,. But the one I'm really hoping we can do in 2020 is New Zealand. You will have a great time on Marina but be ready for humidity ..... sure beats wind chills.

We just did Marina in Tahiti, our first O adventure. Very enjoyable but we didn't think the food deserves all the praise it gets, it's very good but certainly not 5 star. We had two situations in speciality restaurants where the service was very inattentive to stay the least and in the Grand Dining room where the server was surly. In complete contrast we had outstanding service all the rest of the time, there was something going on with the servers in those other three situations that all of us noticed. Our cabin steward was awesome and the bedding was the best of any ship we've ever been on. I think we've grown spoiled on river cruise ships in Europe.

We took the O transfers once, never again.

As you can see, it does work in concierge rooms and gives new meaning to the word s l o w and unusable in late afternoon.

We've been back now 8 days since the Feb. 13 cruise, P-P. It was our first cruise with O and we did have a good time. However, in our opinion the ports were a big disappointment. Our expectations were higher but we still made it work especially when one considers the long flights. We felt very fortunate that the weather for us was awesome, even with the high humidity. I would struggle to recommend this cruise in comparison to all the other amazing cruises we've been on. Fortunately, we were with two of our best friends and it all worked out and I'm glad we have had the experience.

We are on the Marina in Feb. and have a few questions about what many of you do for insurance. Did you choose what was provided by Oceania? If not, what company did you use? Were the benefits comparable? Pricing?

One more liquor question. I know we can bring on three bottles of spirits at embarkation, can one be wine, one bourbon and one vodka? If one finds a good selection of wine during the cruise can it be brought back to the ship? We are on the Marina next winter in Tahiti so just trying to think forward. Are spirits available at the Papeete airport or possibly a beverage store near the port? Thanks!

We have experienced far superior professional talent on our two European River cruises than any "bigger cruise" line. I was a music educator for 49 years. Perhaps it was the proper river cruise company for us, which I will hold back from this board,

Often times on big ships the evening shows are well attended because it's free, period. If I had to pay for those shows (even though I am through the cruise ticket price) I wouldn't. We enjoyed the river cruise entertainment in Europe as often times they would bring on local talent before departing in the evening and it was far superior to on board entertainment. My hope on our winter trip is an awesome dinner and then a laid back piano bar!

StanandJim,

I think that's great advice, thank you! Since we have not been in Tahiti I appreciate your insight. We are just kind of worn out with ships tours, especially the main line cruise ships. We really enjoy the river cruise ship tours in Europe compared to the bigger ships catering to the bigger markets, often times we just felt like it was a cattle call. We are just not sure at this moment to do, I think we are going to try and schedule our own day trips if we can figure out which are best for the Riviera in Feb.

We were in Italy last fall for two weeks with two other couple staying in Villas. Our first week was just outside of Florence in the Tuscany region. Personally I believe $700 is way to much unless you just want them to do everything, which is OK. I think if you do some research you could do even better and save big $$$. We are on the Riveria in Tahiti in Feb. and we are trying hard not to use the ship's excursions, it does take extra hours of research but in most cases it's well worth it.