LOGHL Posted June 24, 2010 #1 Share Posted June 24, 2010 we have not been on Oceania in a number of years....the one cruise that we took had been a bit disappointing.... The food was VERY good....the service was VERY good... our accommodations were more than satisfactory. BUT...... we found that the tours were much less in quality than we anticipated..mostly because of crowding on the coaches... the show lounge...poorly laid out.....the passengers dress was at best......not particularly neat..ie:- wearing sleeveless shirts in the specialty restaurtant.. wearing hats in the DR. We have MANY nights on many other cruise lines. We are interested in an Oceania cruise in the coming months, and wonder if there have been any changes in the siuations that I mentioned...The show lounge, I know cannot be changed so we will disregard that. I am wondering if they have solved the overcrowded busses, and if folks dress "properly" in the eating venues.....I don't care if they do or do not wear jackets.....just NO HATS & sleeved shirts collared or otherwise. thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted June 24, 2010 #2 Share Posted June 24, 2010 BUT...... we found that the tours were much less in quality than we anticipated..mostly because of crowding on the coaches... Join the Roll Call & take private tours problem solved the show lounge...poorly laid out.....the passengers dress was at best......not particularly neat..ie:- wearing sleeveless shirts in the specialty restaurtant.. wearing hats in the DR. Do you mean the men or Women in sleeveless shirts? I have never seen men in sleeveless shirts in the dining venues other than Waves or the Terrace Never seen anyone with HATS in the GDR either I am wondering if they have solved the overcrowded busses, and if folks dress "properly" in the eating venues.....I don't care if they do or do not wear jackets.....just NO HATS & sleeved shirts collared or otherwise. thank you Well you cannot change how people dress but I would not think they would be allowed in the GDR or specialty restaurants with HATS on Could have been just some people on your cruise who chose to be different & the staff do not like to rock the boat . I have seen them turn away men in shorts, sandals at dinner I would give them another try if you like all the other things about Oceania Lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoHoHo Posted June 24, 2010 #3 Share Posted June 24, 2010 <SNIP>the show lounge...poorly laid out.....the passengers dress was at best......not particularly neat..ie:- wearing sleeveless shirts in the specialty restaurtant.. wearing hats in the DR. <CHOP> One cruise each in 2008 & 2009 did not see any hats or sleeveless shirts on men in any restaurant. Curious - what did you find was poorly laid out in the show lounge? While a long leisurely dinner and stroll on deck was a bigger draw for me than most of the shows, I thought the room was good; semi-circular around the amply-sized dance floor (sadly mostly unused) in front of the stage and comfortable seating. Do not recall sight-line problems but did not attend a lot of shows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondorner Posted June 24, 2010 #4 Share Posted June 24, 2010 As you said, the show lounge is what the show lounge is. We enjoy cabaret-style entertainment, so we think it's great, but we know most people consider it a weak spot on Oceania. We have never seen the type of dress you mention in the Grand Dining Room. Was it prevalent among passengers, or just an isolated case or two that happened to be near you? I'm trying to picture 682 slobs on Oceania and only 2 who dress nicely, and I'm utterly failing to see that picture. You say you have been on lots of cruises besides Oceania; what did you experience on their excursions? My experience is that all of the cruise lines use the same tour providers and the "crowded bus syndrome" is the same no matter upon which ship one arrives. If your experience is different, I'd appreciate knowing which cruise lines manage to arrange small, uncrowded excursions for their passengers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted June 24, 2010 #5 Share Posted June 24, 2010 We have done a couple of O tours & the bus in never full but that may be the destination I cannot see it myself as most O passengers DIY But there is always an exception One cruise we saw a lot of people with formal gowns etc.. the only one of several O cruises Each cruise has different people (usually) & they all have different dress codes;) Lyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orchestrapal Posted June 24, 2010 #6 Share Posted June 24, 2010 We just spent 40 days o Regatta and did not see anyone in a hat in the grand diningroom nor did we see any inappropriate dress. Country Club Casual seemed to have been observed at all times. As for crowded buses, we only took 2 ships tours which both had many empty seats and were generally well run. Bus tour are what they are and you can always take private tours. The ships are wonderful as is the food and service. Give O another try!:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LOGHL Posted June 24, 2010 Author #7 Share Posted June 24, 2010 [. You say you have been on lots of cruises besides Oceania; what did you experience on their excursions? My experience is that all of the cruise lines use the same tour providers and the "crowded bus syndrome" is the same no matter upon which ship one arrives. If your experience is different, I'd appreciate knowing which cruise lines manage to arrange small, uncrowded excursions for their passengers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LOGHL Posted June 24, 2010 Author #8 Share Posted June 24, 2010 [. You say you have been on lots of cruises besides Oceania; what did you experience on their excursions? My experience is that all of the cruise lines use the same tour providers and the "crowded bus syndrome" is the same no matter upon which ship one arrives. If your experience is different, I'd appreciate knowing which cruise lines manage to arrange small, uncrowded excursions for their passengers. the cruise lines that we have been on MANY time are Silversea, & Regent, and even with the "free" tours Regent busses are never completely full,, We will give it another try...especially since they have been taken over by Apollo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caribbeansun Posted June 24, 2010 #9 Share Posted June 24, 2010 I've never taken a ship tour so can't comment but frankly I can't help but think any bus tour would be disappointing for me since I choose do my own thing in every port. Sleeveless shirts, hats in the dining rooms :confused: It's a shame you had such a negative experience. If you find the people on O beneath your way of dressing you should probably stick with what you like and are more comfortable with particularly if it was enough to spoil your experience. You can't control the way other people dress or act any more than you can change the layout of the show lounge. "Covey's Habit 1: Be Proactive, focus on the things you can actually do something about." we have not been on Oceania in a number of years....the one cruise that we took had been a bit disappointing....The food was VERY good....the service was VERY good... our accommodations were more than satisfactory. BUT...... we found that the tours were much less in quality than we anticipated..mostly because of crowding on the coaches... the show lounge...poorly laid out.....the passengers dress was at best......not particularly neat..ie:- wearing sleeveless shirts in the specialty restaurtant.. wearing hats in the DR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms Understood Posted June 24, 2010 #10 Share Posted June 24, 2010 I agree with Carribeansun, if the way other people are dressed is enought to spoil your vacation, you should stick with Silversea. We were approached in the bar on Silver Cloud and advised that as it is now 6 pm we need to go get dressed in our formal wear. We were in slacks and tops, not bathing suits or t shirts and they were very nice about it but they are sticklers for their dress code in public areas. Looking forward to my first O cruise and and anticipate a somewhat more relaxed approach. Too each his own! --------------------- Helen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondorner Posted June 24, 2010 #11 Share Posted June 24, 2010 ...especially since they have been taken over by Apollo. Not sure what you mean; Apollo's role in both Oceania and Regent appears to be supplying funding. Both Oceania and Regent are under the management of Prestige Cruise Holdings, a subdivision of Apollo, and the CEO of Prestige is Frank Del Rio, the founder of Oceania. While Apollo has a couple of board members at Prestige, they play virtually no role in the day-to-day operations. In other words, nothing in management has changed at Oceania except they now have the funds to build two new ships, and the only thing that has changed at Regent is that they now enjoy the management expertise that successfully built Oceania. Bob Binder continues as President of Oceania and Mark Conroy continues as President of Regent, both reporting to Frank Del Rio at Prestige, not Apollo. I've not sailed Silversea (and likely never will), but I have sailed both Regent and Oceania in the same area, and their excursions were virtually identical. Both use whatever excursions are available in a specific area, and neither have any direct control over the excursions, other than perhaps specifying twice as many buses as other cruise lines, if they are available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LOGHL Posted June 24, 2010 Author #12 Share Posted June 24, 2010 Sleeveless shirts, hats in the dining rooms :confused: It's a shame you had such a negative experience. If you find the people on O beneath your way of dressing you should probably stick with what you like and are more comfortable with particularly if it was enough to spoil your experience. Good Lord, I never said anything about people being beneath my way of dressing.. just find it a bit irritating while I am dining to see a man walk by with his hairy underarms ... It did not spoil my experience... other wise I wouldn't consider another cruise on O. People can dress as they wish as long as they dress neatly in whatever they choose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wripro Posted June 24, 2010 #13 Share Posted June 24, 2010 As for excursions most bus tours imo are pretty lame. I don't care if the bus is half full or completely full there is always one person who thinks the time limit does not apply to him/her and keeps everyone else waiting. It's much easier and usually cheaper to arrange private tours, especially if you share with another couple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caribbeansun Posted June 24, 2010 #14 Share Posted June 24, 2010 That's not the impression your original post leaves It did not spoil my experience... other wise I wouldn't consider another cruise on O. Your statement the one cruise that we took had been a bit disappointing....The good The food was VERY good.... the service was VERY good... our accommodations were more than satisfactory The bad we found that the tours were much less in quality than we anticipated..the show lounge...poorly laid out..... the passengers dress was at best......not particularly neat Since you state the experience was disappointing I have to conclude that the bad outweighed the good. You set aside the issue of the show lounge. I concluded that to mean you didn't feel people dressed as well as you would like them to have dressed if the sight of a few people in hats and what now seems to be one person in an inappropriate shirt (and I do agree that sleeveless shirts are entirely inappropriate in the dining venues) were enough to outweigh the positives and make the cruise disappointing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunDapple Posted June 24, 2010 #15 Share Posted June 24, 2010 Chelonia, I am questioning the "hats in the GDR" issue. Surely you do not mean in the evening at the dinner table? I would be a bit uncomfortable if I were seated at dinner with someone who wore a hat too. But perhaps you mean a baseball cap, at breakfast or lunch? For some reason baseball caps don't bother me. A baseball cap seen passing my table during the day does not upset me, not even a passing fedora in the GDR, but a hat worn while seated at the dinner table is another thing. My DH wears a cap quite a bit, I suspect it's to cover his thinning hair, although he would never admit it. ;) He takes it off when seated indoors, but does not remove it when we dine al fresco. Just trying to figure out what you mean, I am certainly not judging your comment. Jacquie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digby Posted June 24, 2010 #16 Share Posted June 24, 2010 I've always thought that the people on my Oceania cruises were well dressed at all times, but I've never understood how what a stranger was wearing or not wearing could determine my having a good time. Clean and not smelly is all I ask. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oceans&Rivers Posted June 24, 2010 #17 Share Posted June 24, 2010 I am on record as preferring somewhat more casual dress, but I do not understand why anyone would wear a baseball hat or other sports hat to a dining room at any time of day. Surely, the person who wants to wear a baseball hat outside can remove it prior to entering the dining room. It is a simple act of courtesy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aruba Posted June 24, 2010 #18 Share Posted June 24, 2010 We call it "the 10% factor". Wherever you go, 10% of the people you meet will be #$%^&'s. That's former-waiter terminology. Fortunately on Oceania it is more like the "1% factor". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raffeer Posted June 25, 2010 #19 Share Posted June 25, 2010 Surely, the person who wants to wear a baseball hat outside can remove it prior to entering the dining room. Maybe the baseball cap is being worn in lieu of a yarmulke, at lunch perhaps? On second thought, that would go hand in hand with kosher food. On Oceania? In any case what someone has on their head makes no never mind to me. As an earlier poster said, as long as they do not smell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted June 25, 2010 #20 Share Posted June 25, 2010 I was going to ask what the problem was with people wearing hats. Flowery summer hats? Baseball caps? Yamulkas? There ARE people who believe that it is not right NOT to wear a hat. I'm talking men, not women here. I don't understand why anyone would object anyway. If we're talking baseball caps, maybe the guy is bald and doesn't want it to be known! Sleeveless shirts? Again, I don't see the problem ... as long as the arms are nicely toned! (Okay, I don't wear sleeveless shirts because my arms are NOT nicely toned!) But I don't have a problem unless those sleeveless shirts are full of holes. My experience on all of our Oceania cruises -- and Renaissance before that -- was that people were very nicely but casually dressed. Casual was not TOO casual. I agree about the entertainment -- we don't book Oceania cruises for that. But we like the room just fine! I'm sorry if you were disappointed the first time, and perhaps it was unusual that you were bothered so much in terms of the hats and sleeveless shirts, etc. But there will never be any guarantees ... no formal nights means no formal nights! I'm still puzzled about what you mean by hats, though ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chalkies Posted June 25, 2010 #21 Share Posted June 25, 2010 I've been a lurker here since the summer of 2006, a member since Aug. 2007. Never posted but I just have to weigh in on this one. (GULP!) We took our first O. cruise in Oct. 2006 & it was one of the best experiences of our lives. No complaints about anything. I went through chemo years ago & after my recovery my pre-existing hair loss condition was worse. I HAVE to wear some kind of head covering & baseball hats are my choice. I did wear them to all of the dining venues - nice bb hats not sports logo, etc. Did receive some "looks" but received more when I wore a "kicky" beret to the GDR. I know it's not the norm but I'm NOT going to wear a wig! I don't mean to offend anyone but think about what it's like for a woman to have a significant, permanent hair loss condition. Back to lurking... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted June 25, 2010 #22 Share Posted June 25, 2010 Which goes along with what I said before. There are lots of reasons why people might want to wear a head covering. Some religious. Some as with the previous poster ... I think we can afford to be generous ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian_uk Posted June 25, 2010 #23 Share Posted June 25, 2010 Seems to me Much ado about nothing !! Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aruba Posted June 25, 2010 #24 Share Posted June 25, 2010 I've been a lurker here since the summer of 2006, a member since Aug. 2007. Never posted but I just have to weigh in on this one. (GULP!) We took our first O. cruise in Oct. 2006 & it was one of the best experiences of our lives. No complaints about anything. I went through chemo years ago & after my recovery my pre-existing hair loss condition was worse. I HAVE to wear some kind of head covering & baseball hats are my choice. I did wear them to all of the dining venues - nice bb hats not sports logo, etc. Did receive some "looks" but received more when I wore a "kicky" beret to the GDR. I know it's not the norm but I'm NOT going to wear a wig! I don't mean to offend anyone but think about what it's like for a woman to have a significant, permanent hair loss condition. Back to lurking... Thank you for posting. You brought up something I had not thought about. Hope you're doing well after the chemo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pratzert Posted June 25, 2010 #25 Share Posted June 25, 2010 [quote name=the passengers dress was at best......not particularly neat..ie:- wearing sleeveless shirts in the specialty restaurtant.. wearing hats in the DR. [/quote] Sounds like "Larry the Cable Guy" was on that cruise. When I read your post, that is the first vision that popped into my brain. I could hear this guy sitting in the MDR yelling "Git 'er Done !":) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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