TERRIER1 Posted November 28, 2012 #26 Share Posted November 28, 2012 What makes people assume that Ephron was "staying in a high-level cabin"? The mean-spirited cynicism of some of the above comments is inexplicable. You only get Bulgari soaps and a butler at a Penthouse level cabin and above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondorner Posted November 28, 2012 #27 Share Posted November 28, 2012 I have had the pleasure of meeting Don and Betsy... Kay, The pleasure was in traveling with you and Tarmo. Hope we can do it again...there are a bunch of old friends from Marina and Riviera getting together on the May 22, 2014 New York to London cruise on Marina. How about joining us? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKS Posted November 28, 2012 #28 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Oh, Don. It sounds so tempting. But we're booked aboard Marina 04/19/2014 to 05/06/2014, Papeete to Lima. I'm afraid my wallet simply won't support more than that. Our best to you and Betsy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titong Posted November 29, 2012 #29 Share Posted November 29, 2012 This begs the question - Is Oceania above inviting travel agents onboard for discounted or free cruises, and providing preferential treatment to them, for obvious business reasons? Harry Yes, I think they are-and I don't see the "obvious business reasons." Most people who take luxury cruises, I feel sure are going to research out these cruises by reading reviews of these ships, talking to friends, and comparing the costs. In my opinion, they are not going to base it on what a travel agent says or what the author of the puff article in the New York Times states. One person in an above post stated that he is taking his first Oceania cruise shortly, and the puff article in the New York Times has zero value to him. For mass market cruise lines which cater to conventioneers, business groups etc it may be helpful. It seems to me that luxury cruise lines cater to a different group than that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondorner Posted November 29, 2012 #30 Share Posted November 29, 2012 ...It demeans Oceania and their loyal cruisers, to see Oceania giving freebies to paid hacks like the New York Times writer to cruise with them. This begs the question - Is Oceania above inviting travel agents onboard for discounted or free cruises, and providing preferential treatment to them, for obvious business reasons? Yes, I think they are-and I don't see the "obvious business reasons."... titong, apparently you are not aware of events like the float out of a new ship and christening cruises, which are sepcifically intended for travel writers and travel agents, "paid hacks" or not. The business reasons are obvious, at least to me, and obviously to the cruise lines who provide these "freebies". It is to any organizations best interest that people of influence become familiar with the product. What they write can make or break the business. The trick is to provide a good enough product that writers can write approving articles and agents can make positive recommendations. This is something at which Oceania excels, and the results (the articles and recommendations) exhibit obvious sincerity. Regardless of whether Ms. Ephron or anyone else should disclaim their accommodations, the obvious effect of her article was that she genuinely enjoyed herself. I did not see any quid pro puo -- faking enthusiasm in return for the bribe of a few days on board -- and I'm certain that Oceania makes it clear that those who get to participate in the events are free to write their honest evaluations, good or bad. Such investment in providing first hand experience that can result in positive public information is hardly demeaning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joysav Posted November 29, 2012 #31 Share Posted November 29, 2012 http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/14/bright-passage/ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940DE7DB1539F93BA25752C1A9649D8B63 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spindrift Posted November 29, 2012 #32 Share Posted November 29, 2012 Hondorner, I was not refering to you as the "misrepresentation," so I apologize if you think it was directed at you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondorner Posted November 29, 2012 #33 Share Posted November 29, 2012 Hondorner, I was not refering to you as the "misrepresentation," so I apologize if you think it was directed at you. I did think so, but apology accepted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hambagahle Posted November 30, 2012 #34 Share Posted November 30, 2012 Personally I think her article was silly and rather shallow. And did not contribute much at all to anyone's knowledge of (a) cruising and (b) Oceania! Certainly did not appeal to this European... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titong Posted November 30, 2012 #35 Share Posted November 30, 2012 Personally I think her article was silly and rather shallow. And did not contribute much at all to anyone's knowledge of (a) cruising and (b) Oceania! Certainly did not appeal to this European... I agree with your comments. I am an American and her article did not appeal to me either-mainly though not totally for the reasons you cited. I have a feeling that Oceania paid for her and her spouse to take this cruise-to include all their expenses. And, they hoped that she would write a puff article-which she did. However, as seen from some of the posters here-Oceania's conduct was tacky, tacky. Oceania has too much going for it. It is too good a cruise line with a lot of superlative qualities to engage in that kind of what I would consider, tacky, cheap advertising. It hurts their brand and reputation-in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harryw Posted November 30, 2012 Author #36 Share Posted November 30, 2012 Maybe it's about reader's expectations. I didn't expect a critical essay in the "Style" magazine. What I did find was an entertaining piece through the subjective prism of the writer's observations - on the type of passengers she interacted with, colors she saw in the sky, etc. Not an article that someone should make consumer decisions on, but should be appreciated on a literary level. Harry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titong Posted November 30, 2012 #37 Share Posted November 30, 2012 Maybe it's about reader's expectations. I didn't expect a critical essay in the "Style" magazine. What I did find was an entertaining piece through the subjective prism of the writer's observations - on the type of passengers she interacted with, colors she saw in the sky, etc. Not an article that someone should make consumer decisions on, but should be appreciated on a literary level. Harry Harry, do you really mean "literary level"? Do you actually consider her article great poetry-or great writing? I have read some of the great writers and poets: James Dickey, Wiliam Faulkner, Thomas Wolfe-and I sure don't see her in that category. I could see Oceania spending money to bring one of those writers in that category on board as a guest speaker and writer. As a matter of fact, Oceania needs to improve in their guest speaker category. Maybe they should consider spending some of their money on that department. Or perhaps they might want to consider spending some of the money they spent on that couple on improving the entertainment-which is another of their weak points. In all honesty, I must admit that the food on Oceania is better than that of any of the other luxury cruise lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TERRIER1 Posted November 30, 2012 #38 Share Posted November 30, 2012 Maybe it's about reader's expectations. I didn't expect a critical essay in the "Style" magazine. What I did find was an entertaining piece through the subjective prism of the writer's observations - on the type of passengers she interacted with, colors she saw in the sky, etc. Not an article that someone should make consumer decisions on, but should be appreciated on a literary level. Harry I enjoyed the article and her commentary but I didn't consider it a literary piece. I viewed it as a travel dialogue that made it appear everyone who sailed with Oceania would experience the same perks and amenities especially since O is at the higher end of cruising spectrum. When I originally read the article I never even bothered to see who wrote it. I am from the East coast and there are a lot of people with the last name Ephron so as far as I was concerned it was just another contributor to the Times writing a travel piece (lol). My husband and I had a good laugh when he stated that obviously she wasn't staying in our cabin. I can understand the NYT paying for her article but I think I would be dismayed if Oceania picked up the full tab the for the voyage and then placed them in the Penthouse suite just for good press. Call me naive or dumb but I would think that having a "supplier" of services pick up the tab would sway what was written. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titong Posted November 30, 2012 #39 Share Posted November 30, 2012 I enjoyed the article and her commentary but I didn't consider it a literary piece. I viewed it as a travel dialogue that made it appear everyone who sailed with Oceania would experience the same perks and amenities especially since O is at the higher end of cruising spectrum. When I originally read the article I never even bothered to see who wrote it. I am from the East coast and there are a lot of people with the last name Ephron so as far as I was concerned it was just another contributor to the Times writing a travel piece (lol). My husband and I had a good laugh when he stated that obviously she wasn't staying in our cabin. I can understand the NYT paying for her article but I think I would be dismayed if Oceania picked up the full tab the for the voyage and then placed them in the Penthouse suite just for good press. Call me naive or dumb but I would think that having a "supplier" of services pick up the tab would sway what was written. I notice that the president of Oceania posts here sometimes. Perhaps, he will let us know how much of the tab Oceania picked up for her and her husband to take that cruise. My gut feeling is that Oceania paid for their entire tab-to include airfare-probably business or first class airfare. If that is in fact the case, I am very, very disappointed in Oceania and their management team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimandStan Posted November 30, 2012 #40 Share Posted November 30, 2012 I notice that the president of Oceania posts here sometimes. Perhaps, he will let us know how much of the tab Oceania picked up for her and her husband to take that cruise. My gut feeling is that Oceania paid for their entire tab-to include airfare-probably business or first class airfare. If that is in fact the case, I am very, very disappointed in Oceania and their management team. This is such a silly thread. Will somebody please tell this individual that EVERY CRUISE LINE IN EXISTENCE, ROUTINELY Invites Travel Writers onto their ships free of charge? None of this is hushed up or a secret, it is called PUBLICITY, and Oceania engages the services of a very high toned public relations firm to insure that their product is kept in the public eye. Yes Virgina, Rex Reed and Roger Ebert don't pay for movie tickets, Ben Brantley does not even remember what the box office looks like, and if getting a free trip was any guarantee of a good review, then there would NEVER EVER be any bad reviews of ANY CRUISE LINE, because it is a UNIVERSAL PRACTICE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TERRIER1 Posted December 1, 2012 #41 Share Posted December 1, 2012 [quote name='JimandStan'][SIZE="3"][FONT="Arial"]This is such a silly thread. Will somebody please tell this individual that EVERY CRUISE LINE IN EXISTENCE, [B]ROUTINELY[/B] Invites Travel Writers onto their ships free of charge? None of this is hushed up or a secret, it is called [B][U]PUBLICITY[/U][/B], and Oceania engages the services of a very high toned public relations firm to insure that their product is kept in the public eye. Yes Virgina, Rex Reed and Roger Ebert don't pay for movie tickets, Ben Brantley does not even remember what the box office looks like, and if getting a free trip was any guarantee of a good review, then there would NEVER EVER be any bad reviews of ANY CRUISE LINE, because it is a UNIVERSAL PRACTICE.[/FONT][/SIZE][/QUOTE] News to me. Having been in the corporate world all my life we had to sign yearly affidavits saying we would not and had not accepted any gifts of value of above a certain amount (very low $) from our suppliers so we would not be swayed in our decision making. I thought is was a practice across all industries. I shall now read all travel reviews for what they are worth. Thanks for the insight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titong Posted December 1, 2012 #42 Share Posted December 1, 2012 [quote name='JimandStan'][SIZE=3][FONT=Arial]This is such a silly thread. [/FONT][/SIZE] [SIZE=3][FONT=Arial]Will somebody please tell this individual that EVERY CRUISE LINE IN EXISTENCE, [B]ROUTINELY[/B] Invites Travel Writers onto their ships free of charge?[/FONT][/SIZE] [SIZE=3][FONT=Arial]None of this is hushed up or a secret, it is called [B][U]PUBLICITY[/U][/B], and Oceania engages the services of a very high toned public relations firm to insure that their product is kept in the public eye.[/FONT][/SIZE] [SIZE=3][FONT=Arial]Yes Virgina, Rex Reed and Roger Ebert don't pay for movie tickets, Ben Brantley does not even remember what the box office looks like, and if getting a free trip was any guarantee of a good review, then there would NEVER EVER be any bad reviews of ANY CRUISE LINE, because it is a UNIVERSAL PRACTICE.[/FONT][/SIZE][/quote] If none of this is "hushed up or a secret," then why hasn't Oceania told us whether Oceania paid for their upper class cabin and whether they paid for that couples airfare-and if they paid for business, and/or first class airfare. My gut feeling is that Oceania did. I suggested that Oceania would be better off paying to improve the entertainment, and/or their guest speaker program. Also, I can hear you fine. It is considered very rude to write in capitals. That is considered as yelling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quaker54 Posted December 1, 2012 #43 Share Posted December 1, 2012 Thank you Jim and Stan. There have been several "silly" threads recently. Can't imagine FDR having time to post on such a thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hondorner Posted December 1, 2012 #44 Share Posted December 1, 2012 People who deliberately pick on the most trite subjects, question the most meaningless things and complain the loudest about trivial things, with seemingly no other motive but to disrupt and cause dissension, are called internet trolls. Just sayin'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titong Posted December 1, 2012 #45 Share Posted December 1, 2012 [quote name='hondorner']People who deliberately pick on the most trite subjects, question the most meaningless things and complain the loudest about trivial things, with seemingly no other motive but to disrupt and cause dissension, are called internet trolls. Just sayin'.[/quote] Don, With all due respect, things that may be trivial to some people are not trivial to others. For some reason, it really bothers me that I am paying thousands of dollars to take these Oceania cruises, and here comes some travel writer who it looks like is given a free upper class cabin-and possibly free first class airfare to write a puff article. In spite of the great food on Oceania, it really makes me consider whether I want to continue to give Oceania my business. But, hey to each his own. I would also like to add that you really help a lot of people on this forum. You really give some good answers to many of the posters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aZ4me Posted December 1, 2012 #46 Share Posted December 1, 2012 [quote name='harryw'](Winter 2012 Style Magazine) Harry [URL]http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/14/bright-passage/[/URL][/quote] Harry, While the tone of this thread has taken several twists and turns, I'm still very glad you posted the link to this piece. Whether someone considers it helpful or not, I enjoyed reading it because it brought back memories of my Marina cruise. If nothing else, the discussion has certainly pointed out the various personalities that are attracted to Oceania's product. ;) --------------- Don and Jim and Stan, I always check out threads where I see you have posted. Thanks for not disappointing. --------------- O Cruisers in general, I'm so glad that once people are on a cruise, the mood in general seems carefree and fun. Looking forward to enjoying my next O cruise. And, if there is a Style reporter on board, the more the merrier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harryw Posted December 1, 2012 Author #47 Share Posted December 1, 2012 Perhaps "literary" was a poor word choice. The comment on guest speakers is well taken. I've been disappointed with many speakers over the years. It's a good gig though. Harry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TERRIER1 Posted December 1, 2012 #48 Share Posted December 1, 2012 [quote name='harryw']Perhaps "literary" was a poor word choice. The comment on guest speakers is well taken. I've been disappointed with many speakers over the years. It's a good gig though. Harry[/QUOTE] I agree it's a good gig. If it wasn't I would not be returning on my 6th cruise. However, people are allowed to voiced their opinion good or bad without being called dumb or otherwise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TERRIER1 Posted December 1, 2012 #49 Share Posted December 1, 2012 [quote name='hondorner']People who deliberately pick on the most trite subjects, question the most meaningless things and complain the loudest about trivial things, with seemingly no other motive but to disrupt and cause dissension, are called internet trolls. Just sayin'.[/QUOTE] This is not a trite subject. I have given the name of Oceania cruises to my friends and associates. We are all from the New York area. They read the article and asked me about the amenities. I told them that those perks are for the penthouse and up. We are not causing dissension and not trolling and we are not "dumb". Please be respectful to those who have not cruised before and do take take these articles at face value. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
titong Posted December 1, 2012 #50 Share Posted December 1, 2012 [quote name='TERRIER1']This is not a trite subject. I have given the name of Oceania cruises to my friends and associates. We are all from the New York area. They read the article and asked me about the amenities. I told them that those perks are for the penthouse and up. We are not causing dissension and not trolling and we are not "dumb". Please be respectful to those who have not cruised before and do take take these articles at face value.[/quote] I agree. You stated my feelings much better than I could have. We should all be respectful of each other and not engage in name calling by telling people we don't agree with that they are "trolls." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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