What activities are offerred on TA?

[allyg]

We are on Riviera's TA in November? What can we expect?

[candbgirl]

I just did a TA on Regatta. There was lots to do and I'm thinking there may be more on the Riviera. There were several sessions of bridge everyday. Lessons in the morning and duplicate in the afternoon. Trivia and Bingo were played daily too. There were several speakers on board covering a wide variety of topics. There were also several cooking demonstrations. I spent a lot of time reading in the beautiful library and listening to the music in the Grand Hall. Of course there are Happy Hours at various bars and lastly do not miss the Tea. It is amazing. I'm sure I am missing many activities. You will have a great time.

[doubledobles]

I just did a TA on Regatta. There was lots to do and I'm thinking there may be more on the Riviera. There were several sessions of bridge everyday. Lessons in the morning and duplicate in the afternoon. Trivia and Bingo were played daily too. There were several speakers on board covering a wide variety of topics. There were also several cooking demonstrations. I spent a lot of time reading in the beautiful library and listening to the music in the Grand Hall. Of course there are Happy Hours at various bars and lastly do not miss the Tea. It is amazing. I'm sure I am missing many activities. You will have a great time.

You pretty much covered it all, candbgirl, the only other things I can think of are the Canyon Spa lectures and the needlepoint and knitting sessions in the morning with the hostess. Otherwise, this is a relaxing, do nothing, enjoyable cruise.

[tropicalkerry2002]

there was a "Crossing the Equator" ceremony one day, a Country Fair with games and prizes one day, a fabulous Tea Dansant one day.

 

I thought the 4 sea days in a row would be tedious, but WOW! did I learn to mellow out! There were a total of 8 sea days, and I loved them all!

 

LOVED sitting on the balcony listening to music, reading, smocking, thinking, gazing, dozing. The days were never long enough! For excitement, I'd do those things poolside!

 

Next cruise is port intensive, and I am already looking forward to the ONE port-free day!

[loum140]

There are also activities in the Artists Loft - could be watercolor or acrylic painting, sketching or other projects depending on the resident artist for that trip.

[YoHoHo]

There is also a Games Room with several card tables and a bookcase with assorted board games and cards, Mah Jong. There are sign-up sheets to form groups to play.

 

On deck the Entertainment staff will organize regular putting competitions (or as O calls it, 'golf putting'. I suppose that is to clarify it is not a shot putting competition :0 ), shuffleboard and ping pong.

 

On only one of our crossings we had a Country Fair as previously mentioned but whether it is put on or not depends on lot of factors. It takes a fair bit of staff and a lot of organization. Each department sets up a game of their own design relating to their work. It was a lot of fun and great interaction. Much of the fun was watching everyone else have fun throwing water balloons, painting each others faces blindfolded with mask from the Spa, etc.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

What about enrichment lectures? Wine or other tastings? Are the cooking demonstrations different from the cooking classes, which have a fee? Do the art classes have a fee?

[YoHoHo]

What about enrichment lectures? Wine or other tastings? Are the cooking demonstrations different from the cooking classes, which have a fee? Do the art classes have a fee?

Yes, as canbgirl mentioned there are speakers on-board; varies by the sailing.

 

There are wine tastings for a fee offered. The number and extent depend on the head sommelier and the interest/participation. On a recent Panama cruise we had an excellent series (five or six) which were very informative and well attended. They will also offer 'martini' tastings and perhaps a Scotch and others.

 

Cooking demonstrations are held in the Lounge with a portable 'kitchen'. Presented by a couple of the culinary department heads, it is a demonstration on technique on an item or two that is served on ship. The chefs interact well and it is entertaining. They usually entice a couple of audience members to participate. Serving staff may come around offering samples of one of the items they are preparing. Recipes are handed out as well.

 

The for-fee culinary classes, only on the O-class ships, are held in the hands-on Culinary Centre with 12 (?) shared-by-two cooking stations. It is a proper training kitchen with the chef at the front demonstrating the technique, overhead mirror, camera, etc for all to see. These have a fee and are very popular. They are booked through the Destinations desk just like an excursion.

[LHT28]

What about enrichment lectures? Wine or other tastings? Are the cooking demonstrations different from the cooking classes, which have a fee? Do the art classes have a fee?

 

On the regular cruises (not TA's) they had scotch tastings , Martini & wine tastings all fee based

The cooking demos are usually in the lounge (maybe only on the small ships) free of charge

Cooking classes on the new larger ships where they have a designated chef & area ..fee based

 

The Artist loft I believe is free, some classes on the small ships but you pay for materials I think ..maybe someone who has used the classes will comment

 

sorry doubled with YOHOHO

[LuAnn]

contest held on a sea day was really fun. Several teams got together and built "ships" that were then put in the pool to see if they would float...some did..some didn't!! :p Lu

[hondorner]

The artist loft usually has two instructors, sometimes a husband and wife, once a father and son. Usually one will be skilled in photography and will offer seminars and classes on camera use, lenses, filters and such. On one cruise (where the son was the photograper) they held night classes on deck to learn more about photographing the night skies. More recently, the classes centered more on digital technology.

 

The other instructor is usually more into art (watercolor, etc) or crafts. Betsy has attended classes in water color (and discovered a hidden talent), tee-shirt embellishment and more. During Marina's Miaden Voyage, a group of crafty ladies interest in various fabric arts put together a little program of their own, combining quilting, knitting, embroidery and more. It was TKS's idea, and she can have more input.

 

The artist (the photographer's father) who did the watercolor classes also offered classes in pencil sketching, oil painting and more.

 

There are no designated fees for the classes in the artist loft, and in all of Betsy's classes, there were no fees for materials, even for the tee-shirt class. I think Oceania gives the instructors a budget for materials. I suppose there could be a fee for materials, depending on the class and the instructor, but so far, none for Betsy.

 

Just like lecturers, they vary from cruise to cruise, and one can never be certain who the instructors will be and what classes will be offered. So far, however, all the instructors we've seen have been expert and personable.

 

The artist loft is a great idea, and one of the reasons why Marina and Riviera have edged out the "R" ships in my preference.

 

Here's Anna Smith, one of the fabric artists, in a class working on antique Mola, and a photo of the studio itself.

 

 

[wripro]

The activity I love most on a TA is watching the sea. I can do it for hours, especially with a drink in my hand.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

The activity I love most on a TA is watching the sea. I can do it for hours, especially with a drink in my hand.

 

I love doing that too. Just hope that for our crossing, November 2013, the weather cooperates!

[ChatKat in Ca.]

We did a crossing on Regent in 2007 and loved it; This does sound identical.

We had ideal weather on our crossing; A plus to the Nov 13 crossing is Bermuda which was a delightful port.

 

Fitness classes and walking on deck seem to be missing from the list;

[findacruise]

We did a crossing on Regent in 2007 and loved it; This does sound identical.

We had ideal weather on our crossing; A plus to the Nov 13 crossing is Bermuda which was a delightful port.

 

Fitness classes and walking on deck seem to be missing from the list;

 

They had fitness classes and deck walking on the TA we were on and on the regular cruises. Most fitness classes are free, but a few have charges. I think Pilates might be one, but don't quote me! Sign up for the classes was on a clip board in the center.

[doubledobles]

We did a crossing on Regent in 2007 and loved it; This does sound identical.

We had ideal weather on our crossing; A plus to the Nov 13 crossing is Bermuda which was a delightful port.

 

Fitness classes and walking on deck seem to be missing from the list;

The crossings on Regent and on Oceania are very similiar, which is why we love them. If you want 14 days of good food and relaxation, they're the best.

[allyg]

Thanks for taking the time to respond--sounds like a great way to relax!