Stickman505

I know that the Terrace is available, as a perk, to those occupying concierge and above staterooms. We did use Marina’s terrace one cruise but if I remember correctly, it was not very accommodating.  There was no shade and the little cabanas were uncomfortable while only providing some sun protection.

We’re planning trips on Riviera and Regatta and am hoping someone can correct the poor impression I hold against what would seem to be a special place.  Perhaps someone has found a way to make the Spa Terrace more enjoyable.  Any ideas would be appreciated.

Hi Karen - I hope you have as much fun on your next Tahiti trip as you did on Marina!😀

Go for it!  We think those suites are the best on the ship (well, next to the Owner’s Suite).

The noise from the restaurant never bothered us.

I didn't post that thread but do agree that the loss of income to the ship could possibly be charged to the passenger that caused the damage. Again, depending on one's particular circumstances, an umbrella policy could be a cheap and wise means of protecting one's hard earned nest egg. Better yet is to think about potential damage and strive to avoid such situations. All the insurance in the world won't stop the enormous amount of time, regret and embarrassment that would most likely accompany damaging someone else's property in a major way.

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Pressed the send arrow before finishing or reviewing-

Articles like the one I referenced are available on the web but I can provide a link if anyone needs a reference. The article also pointed out other times an umbrella policy can be useful - times that result in the incursion of a liability, like dog bites, serving alcohol to guests at a party, teenage drivers (your family) and even if the cops find drugs left in your rental car by the last user (never thought about that one nor do I understand why that is a liability but I think the author meant coverage of the legal bills incurred in your defense).

I'm guessing that each cruise line would probably follow damage guidelines similar to my timeshare's.

Would love to hear from anyone that believes what I have presented is incorrect so that we can understand and put this to rest.

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Another puzzle piece-

We are currently staying at a property in Las Vegas owned by one of the largest timeshare groups in the world. We are owners.

I spoke with the general manager yesterday about the damage issues we have been discussing. I think I made him a bit uncomfortable,at first, but then he understood and was quite forthcoming. The Cliff Notes version is that he agreed, that in a major damage claim, that the property's insurance carrier would pay for the damage and then the carrier would attempt to collect from party that caused the damage..

He further explained that for smaller claims they review each case of damage (also theft, like a tv) and make a determination as to fault. If they feel that the tv you knocked off the wall happened accidentally, they won't charge you. If they decide you pulled the tv off the wall in a drunken rage, they will charge your owner's account or bill the credit card on file if you are a guest. Minor things like a broken glass or plate will be ignored.

I also, looked up information regarding the proper amount of insurance to carry. The author noted that while one's home equity and other assets are at risk, that retirement assets ( 401(k)'s and IRA's, for instance) are protected from creditors. It was suggested that, as a rule of thumb, one should carry enough liability insurance to cover the combination of one's t unprotected assets.

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I want to thank everyone for their contributions to this thread. I think most of us have gained some additional knowledge - Go Cruise Critic.

Many of the responses have provided us with some good "cocktail hour" laughs - again, thanks.

Probably the best advice is to ask an attorney but it's been my experience that I pay an attorney to educate themselves and then they only provide their best guess. I'll just keep asking (see below).

I have the two cruise contracts and I don't think the damage question is addressed in either.

I happened to be with a chief fire inspector for a major California county yesterday and I discussed the damage issue with him. He has dealt with many incidences where property is damaged by renters. The incidences usually involve cooking accidents or the mis-handling of fireplace ashes (I know, not likely in a cruise cabin). He told me that, after an accident, the fire inspector makes a report. Then, usually, the property owner's insurance company pays to repair the damages. After that, usually, the owner's insurance tries to collect from the renter's insurance company (or the renter if no insurance policy exists). Usually, the renter's insurance company tries to blame the owner (there should have been warnings as to the danger, for instance). After all the shouting, most times, the two insurance companies agree to some split of the damages rather than go to court.

The inspector made the point that if an individual rented property and had accumulated substantial assets (again, everyone's perception of substantial will differ) that the renter would be wise to carry enough insurance to protect themselves from loss. Our one million dollar umbrella policy costs $149 per year from a major insurance company.

I hope the above explanation fills in a good sized body of the knowledge, regarding damage to the property of others, that I think, we all should understand.

Here are some issues I'll keep exploring (what else do I have to do?):

Will our insurance cover us for damage we cause in a foreign country?

Do other states handle these situations differently?

Does maritime law handle these situations differently?

Does each cruise line have a unique policy?

What is the proper amount of insurance one should purchase?

Since, most of us are cruisers, is anyone else following the America's Cup races? I can see, on the tv, that there are usually two cruise ships docked just off the race course.

Modern ships are equipped, at great expense, with state of the art detection systems, linked to effective suppression equipment.

 

If these systems fail then the ship will share substantially in the liability. The likelihood of a "major fire" resulting from your scenario is minimal if these systems function properly.

 

I am not aware of any 'warning' about leaving modern electronics charging if you leave the cabin.

Thanks. We just returned from a cruise (major line) and were warned several times about the electronics issue. In fact, we were also told that room stewards would unplug any device that they found left connected while passengers were out of their rooms. Truth is that we left devices connected several times and they were never disconnected.

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I'm interested...I've got nothing else going on today, and I might learn something. Of course I don't know your insurance agent and will take everything with a grain of salt.

That grain of salt is what I was hoping to explore. I put my insurance agent's "understanding" in quotes as her answer was a little less than the solid answer I was hoping to receive. Anyway, she thought that a liability is created when the property of another is damaged. She also thought that our homeowner's policy would cover (to its limits) the damage. Further, because we had the underlying coverage (the HO policy), that our umbrella policy would apply to any excess costs. As you probably know, the legal expenses and loss-of-use charges could be substantial.

What started me thinking about this issue is that over the years we have rented a variety of properties and there seems to be different damage liability treatment depending on the property. We've chartered bare boats and were required to purchase a one-time insurance policy to cover damage to the boat. I've read the cruise documents of cruise lines and nothing is even mentioned about damage caused by me. The issue never seems to be addressed when staying at a hotel or in a time share. However, if you read the VRBO contract it appears to me that one is required to put down a security deposit and is also responsible for all damage to the property ( I'm not an attorney). Obviously, it would be much more likely to cause major damage when staying in a time share or a VRBO property than a cruise ship cabin.

I apologize for making the thread's title way too provocative but I do believe that this is a serious issue that we, as travelers, should understand. Hopefully there is nothing to worry about but I've asked a number of people and have never received what I consider to be a rock-solid answer.

Any help would be appreciated.

Example scenario:

Even though warned, you inadvertently leave an IPod plugged into the ship's electrical outlet and the device malfunctions resulting in a major fire.

Questions:

Are you personally responsible for the damages?

Do you believe you currently have insurance that will protect against the damages and related legal expenses, if you are found liable.

Has anyone actually faced a situation similar to the scenario described above and what happened?

I have asked my insurance agent and will gladly share her "understanding" if anyone is interested. This question also applies to hotel rooms, timeshares and VRBO rooms and homes.

I would appreciate everyone's comments/expertise as I'm concerned that people that travel have more financial risk than we realize when we occupy the property of others.

All right, I couldn't resist chiming in ( my daughter describes me as being freakishly tall - also 6' 7".

I went into high school as a short person and exited as the tallest person in our large class. Fifty years later I still don't think of myself as tall. Yeah, I view photos taken with others and the difference is obvious but the self image remains. I find it interesting that when I encounter other tall people that I don't feel like I'm "with my people". In fact, like everyone else I'm used to seeing people of normal hight. Meeting someone my own hight, or taller, seems a little weird.

I enjoyed seeing the seventeen year old's card, as for years I was bothered by the constant questions. I usually tried to brush off the questions and have mellowed with age but once, caught on a bad day, I answered the "did you play basketball" question with a snarky question: "no, did you play pee wee golf?" I only used that one once, to a woman in a Safeway store and we both had a good laugh so I considered myself lucky and never tried it again.

Now pushing seventy, I was taught a lesson in gracefully handling this ever present "hight thing". A couple of years ago, I was walking along the waterfront in Lahaina and a man came across the street and almost ran into me. We both stopped and I looked up almost a foot to the man's face. As I mentioned, I've been bombarded with hight questions most of my life so what do you think I said? I said " I'm really sorry to ask you this"- he stopped me, put out his hand and said " I'm Shawn Bradley (former NBA player) and I'm 7'6"". We talked for a few minutes and as he left, he looked down at me and said, "I'll bet that you're normally the tallest person in a room". We both laughed.

After Shawn's lesson, I've realized that the questions are almost always complements and I now make an effort to try to share a pleasant moment with anyone that takes the time to "say hello".

I see you'll be in Skagway. Princess offers a trip on the train to White Pass. One train ride is offered in the 14 passenger Luxury Car ( more expensive than the normal car, of course ). The cars are brand new this year and feature plush leather chairs and love seats. Lunch with wine and beer is included. The car also has an oversized observation deck. Another plus is that while the regular passengers wait in an outside, totally exposed long line, the Luxury tour passengers wait in a covered shed, board a bus for a very short ride to the train terminal in town to board. This was our favorite tour.

In reply to several questions/comments:

The aft pool on the Grand is adult only and deep - I almost caused a drowning in that pool - I'm 5'19" and was standing on the bottom of that pool when, a couple of normal height, stepped into the pool and unexpectedly found themselves over their heads- after they cleared the inhaled water we all had a good laugh.

A secret is the ship's tour. It costs $150 and lasts 3-4 hours. The tour is usually offered on the last sea day. It used to be first-come-first-served but last month on the Grand we were told that we would be put into a lottery as space is limited. We were selected but did go due to an illness.

Another tip- Princess rice is useless. An iPhone that drops from a rear pocket into a Princess toilet and is then buried in Princess rice for a week won't come back to life.

We have used the Bon Voyage program and it was great. We treated friends that drove us to the cruise terminal.

Speaking from painful experience, do not carry your new iPhone 6 in your back pocket on board a Princess Ship. Even burying it under a ton of Princess rice for a week didn't bring it back to life after its swim in a Princess toilet.

We've brought wine onto two different P cruises. In SF it was a tedious process and we paid $15 for 10 bottles that were stamped ( 2 were not stamped and were free). In Alaska (Whittier), the process was very smooth and the attendants also charged us for 10 bottles but stamped all twelve. They explained that they didn't want us to have a problem if we grabbed the wrong bottle. We were challenged at the table and did have to show the waiter that our bottle had been stamped. We used our wine in the main dining room and once at Alfredo's.

We live in Sonoma County (Ca wine country) and have so many fine selections that it was worth it to bring our own wine. Also, not having to fly ( leaving from SF ) or flying on Alaska Airlines out of the Sonoma County Airport means there is no cost to ship the wine ( Alaska Airlines out of Sonoma County allows each passenger to ship a case of wine each for free ).

It was a beautiful thing!

Definitely talk to the cruise ambassador. Here's how it recently worked for us. We had booked two O cruises through our travel agent. On the second cruise we had picked a specific Oceania Suite and had placed the required deposit. While on the first cruise, I kept hearing the announcements about talking to the ambassador about future cruises and possible discounts. I walked by her desk one day and she was available ( which was unusual ) so I sat down and asked if it would be possible to receive a discount on the second cruise that we had already booked ( the second cruise was still over a year away ). She couldn't make that decision herself but stated that she would contact the office and see what could be done. We received a letter that night stating that we were granted $800 off the second cruise. The credit was issued through our travel agent and the whole process was seamless. I'm sure there are many factors that influence such decisions but I think we're proof that a pleasant five minute conversation may very well be worth the effort.

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Thanks everyone. I'll be talking to our butler.

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We will be on Marina starting in Tahiti. We have an aft-facing Oceania Suite. We want to host a cocktail party for 8 new friends. We are planing on watching a beautiful tropical island fade into dusk as the sun sets. After the party we will all be attending a Privėe Diner.

Because of the quantity of food that will be served in Privėe we are hesitant to serve heavy hors d'oeuvres at the pre-dinner party. One suggestion we've received is for everyone to bring a cheese plater ordered from their individual room service attendant. Would appreciate advice from anyone that has had to face a similar such dire situation.

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Thanks so much to all for your help.

We'll be traveling on Marina next year and have "met" a number of new friends on the Marina Roll Call. We thought it would be fun to get together for dinner one night. Does anyone know the maximum number of passengers that can be seated at one table? Also, is this something a butler could help arrange?

Thanks.

Does anyone else suffer from excessive O promotional brochure mailings? We have just returned home after 14 weeks and found 17 O catalogues and brochures as well as 2 from our TA. I don't know about you, but I track O cruise prices and availability on line.

 

 

 

O, is it necessary to flood everyone with these expensive mailings? Could they be reduced and cruise prices reduced a bit?

I had some fun with this subject on our recent cruise and you can too. When we were in an area with new friends ( like a crowded elevator), I'd ask if anyone knew how I could get on Oceania's mailing list. The responses were instantaneous and pretty entertaining.

Let's hope so...it is one of our favourite quick lunches...:D

We were on Regatta in February and Waves offered both the Kobe and the Surf & Turf ( at least from the menu's in the cabanas ). I had the Kobe once and wasn't impressed but the surf & turf was incredible.

Thanks very much for the explanation and the photos. JimandStan's attached video was an eye opener. The range of motion and the change in pitch speed was surprising. I also loved the "Where To Buy" radio button.

 

The newer, larger Oceania ships are very well stabilized, and we didn't find the motion at the back of the ship to be significantly different from what we could feel in a mid-ship cabin on the Marina and Riviera, but you will notice the engine vibrations more distinctly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

When the thrusters are in use, the entire ship can hear and feel it, but the bow and/or stern get the brunt of it. Fortunately, they use the thrusters very sparingly. Maybe five or ten minutes as the ship enters or leaves a landing stage, and they are only necessary in some Ports .

 

 

Enjoy your Suite!

JimandStan,

Thanks for the picture of the thrusters. If you have pictures of the stabilizers would you please post them? I think I saw them once on Regatta. They looked like surfboards extending from near midship and didn't appear too large. I saw them while leaving port during happy hour so my vision could have been compromised.

Thanks.

Kiawahdon-

Thanks for taking the time to post your suggestions.

I'd like to elaborate on #6. We just returned from Regatta and will be on Marina next year (I assume Marina's and Regatta's systems are similar based on your description).

I would have liked to see much more information displayed on the TV. The information presented seemed random and in some cases hardly ever updated. In this age of computer weather predictions,it seemed odd that "today's and tomorrow's" weather usually displayed as N/A. As to the randomness of the presentation, if I wanted a certain piece of information, I sometimes had to spend long periods waiting for the screen to roll to the desired page while other screens repeated over and over. Adding to the additional information/interaction that you mentioned I think many technically minded passengers would love to see a page displaying technical information such as: Number of generators running and their voltage output; shaft rotation speeds and fuel consumption rate. Additionally, screen shots of the navigational radar screens and shots of the weather radar screens would add a lot of enjoyment for those of us that are captain wannabes.

We loved our 2014 cruise and are looking forward to 2015.