Special Celebration on board Riviera

[CruisingCleo]

Goodmorning! We are looking at Riviera for a cruise in December 2015 in the Carribean. This will be our first 'real' cruise, before we have had some holidays on small sailing ships, but this will be completely different I suppose. During the cruise we will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary. Can you put in a request for a special meal (not in the private room as there will only be the two of us) but in one of the restaurants. How does Oceania handle this? Has any one experience with this?

Thank you, your advice is much appreciated! :)

[SellaVee]

I'm not sure what you mean by a special meal but I'll share our experience.

 

Last year we celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary on board Riviera. We'd been asked well in advance if we were celebrating anything and I mentioned our anniversary.

 

On boarding we found a card in our stateroom. It was a fairly general offering, not particularly inspiring, and there when we arrived rather than delivered on the day. I'd booked Toscana for the evening of our anniversary and we enjoyed what I consider a special meal but it was no different to anyone else's.

 

I'd asked our steward for a champagne bucket to be ready when we returned from our excursion so we'd enjoyed a glass of champagne on our balcony before going to dinner.

 

Apart from the card the cruise line did nothing. Now I don't at all want this to sound like a criticism. The whole cruise was special, the excursion that day with a private guide for the two of us was special, the champagne on the balcony was special and the meal, in one of the speciality restaurants, was special too. We didn't need anything else and my OH hates a fuss.

 

Interestingly, two years previously we'd celebrated our anniversary on Regatta. I'd used our speciality reservations earlier in the cruise so I had to ask for a extra booking for our anniversary. We were given a table and at the end of our meal a really lovely cake appeared and we were congratulated. Trouble is we were both so full we could barely manage a mouthful! It was a lovely gesture which I wasn't expecting. I think it happened because I spoke to the staff directly and maybe the chef was feeling creative.

 

I think there are too many birthdays and anniversaries on Oceania for them to celebrate them all!

 

However, depending on the type of stateroom you are in, you may be able to request a special meal. If you're in a suite the world's your oyster. Just ask your butler.

[orchestrapal]

The most you can expect in a public restaurant is a small cake if you ask for it in advance od the day.

If you are in a suite your butler can make it very special for you.we have celebrated our anniversary as well as my husband's birthday many times on O.

We have had large cakes, which we have shared with all our favorite personal,as well asmany special dishes. If your into the room decoration,which we are not, he can also do baloons ans such for you.

[StanandJim]

Goodmorning! We are looking at Riviera for a cruise in December 2015 in the Carribean. This will be our first 'real' cruise, before we have had some holidays on small sailing ships, but this will be completely different I suppose. During the cruise we will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary. Can you put in a request for a special meal (not in the private room as there will only be the two of us) but in one of the restaurants. How does Oceania handle this? Has any one experience with this?

Thank you, your advice is much appreciated! :)

 

Warmest Congratulations on your Anniversary, but one of the things that you need to be aware of when cruising with a.....ahem.....slightly more mature demographic, is that some of the other passengers will still see you as newlyweds.

 

We've attended a SIXTY FIFTH Anniversary Party on an Oceania Ship. :D

 

Enjoy feeling young!!;)

[dlouise]

We are boarding the Riviera next Sunday with 7 family members to celebrate a special birthday. How far in advance do we need to request a Birthday cake?

Will our butler take care if this, we have two Vista suites in addition to two regular cabins for the little ones.

[Jancruz]

We are boarding the Riviera next Sunday with 7 family members to celebrate a special birthday. How far in advance do we need to request a Birthday cake?

Will our butler take care if this, we have two Vista suites in addition to two regular cabins for the little ones.

 

I would check with the executive concierge the day after you board the ship..the first day he is way to busy..

Jancruz1

[LHT28]

A few yrs ago we celebrated our special anniversary with O

When we arrived there was a card in the cabin (would have been more special if it had arrived on the day ) never the less it was a nice gesture

 

We arranged for dinner in Polo on our special day...

Have no idea if there was a cake or not we left after the 1st course

We were at a 2 top in the aft section next to a rowdy crowd of 8 ..not ideal for a relaxing dinner

 

Anyway if you want a special dinner go on one of the Luxury lines

There are no special requests unless it is on the menu

 

Happy Anniversary

[StanandJim]

I would check with the executive concierge the day after you board the ship..the first day he is way to busy..

Jancruz1

 

I don't think that they need to go as far as the Concierge just for a cake, Jan.

Surely one of their Butlers could handle a birthday celebration perfectly well.

[travellerin1984]

We are celebrating our honeymoon on Riviera in August. We don't expect anything special from the cruise line. I want to ask if there is something I can arrange for us. I looked at the wine pairing dinners but I think it might not be worth it... It is our first time on Oceania ship (we have cruised on Celebrity so far) and think that specialty dinners are special enough. Is there something else what would be nice on a honeymoon?

[tvmovielover]

We are celebrating our honeymoon on Riviera in August. We don't expect anything special from the cruise line. I want to ask if there is something I can arrange for us. I looked at the wine pairing dinners but I think it might not be worth it... It is our first time on Oceania ship (we have cruised on Celebrity so far) and think that specialty dinners are special enough. Is there something else what would be nice on a honeymoon?

Yes this dining room was made for a group but two or more will also be treated well in this lovely space. We used on board credit to book the room on our anniversary last summer with only a set of in-laws plus us. I got the courage to push for this after reading about a couple who booked Privee for just themselves and loved it. We had a wonderful dinner with selections from both Toscana and Polo. Because we wanted to use the on board credit to do this, we could not book it until we got on the ship the day before our anniversary. With the help of one of the captains in the MDR, we got it booked the first night and my husband also ordered a cake (it was not that different from the many other great desserts but appreciated nonetheless and just the right size for 4). We used our concierge level bottles of champagne for the dinner as this was not a big anniversary. The staff was wonderful about everything. It was a great way to celebrate a big or small occasion and fun for a big or small group. I think it would be great any night on a honeymoon if you have OBC to burn or will pay the $250 for something different (though not as different as the wine dinners). I enjoyed using OBC for this more than I would have enjoyed buying something in the stores and there was still some left for drinks.

[Playtennis]

I think that what also one needs to take into consideration is what a passenger will consider his/their ...anniversary, etc. we've celebrated on board an anniversary that in actuality was the day after the cruise.

So shoot me[emoji88]

[YoHoHo]

We are celebrating our honeymoon on Riviera in August. We don't expect anything special from the cruise line. I want to ask if there is something I can arrange for us. I looked at the wine pairing dinners but I think it might not be worth it... It is our first time on Oceania ship (we have cruised on Celebrity so far) and think that specialty dinners are special enough. Is there something else what would be nice on a honeymoon?

As much as I enjoy La Reserve and it would be a special thing to do, it does not have the intimacy of table for two in Toscana or Polo or Jacques. For special evening on a honeymoon I would use those nights. Privee, excellent for a group of 8 but not a honeymoon.

 

I see O has brought back their Bon Voyage Gift page (link at the very bottom of the page). Well sort of, it is now a PDF order form. Flowers, spa credit & a bottle of bubbly could be in your cabin waiting your arrival.

 

Enjoy your honeymoon cruise.

[Mura]

Answering the honeymooner's question is not easy! You COULD try for Privee for just you two, since it only costs you $25pp (or at least I think so, we've never done that) ... But I also had heard that Privee was being eliminated so my first question would be: is that possible?

 

It's really hard to have an intimate private dinner in any of the restaurants.

 

If you are in a top suite then the butler could certainly arrange a special dinner for you ... But otherwise, I can't think of a way to really do it!

 

I agree that while we have thoroughly enjoyed our La Reserve dinners, that's probably not what honeymooners want to do ... with up to 22 of their most intimate friends that they have never met before.

 

Good luck and happy honeymoon!

 

Mura

[StanandJim]

There is a $250 per evening fee for the use of Privée, and up to ten people may be accomodated.

An intimate dinner for two is also an option.

In case of a smaller party, any "extra" chairs are moved away from the table, and against the wall.

[CruisingCleo]

Thanks to all of you for your kind replies. You've certainly given us enough food for thought about the way to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary :D!

It is on the day the Riviera will dock in St. Maarten (7th december), so we could also choose to dine in a restaurant on the island.

But we think that the ship offers enough opportunity to have a wonderful evening!

We will probably have many more questions, so we will be back on this forum.

For now best regard and thank you!

Mirjam

[Aliasamy]

On cruises I have celebrated my wedding (got off the ship in Santorini, got married and got back on!), my 40th birthday, my 50th birthday last year and this year will be our 10th wedding anniversary. The biggest fuss was made the day we got married of course:). I am fairly low key and dislike too much attention so happy to have celebrated my other special occasions in Toscanos with my husband and two friends whom we always travel with. A champagne, cake and being with my loved ones has always made it special. I usually pamper myself a bit on those days and have a massage, get my hair done and a manicure!:D