Late docking in Miami for the Riviera.

[KS&JW]

We had two medical emergencies last evening causing us to make a detour to Nassau.  Once, then again two hours later we had to return once again to Nassau.  This caused us to not get into Miami until after 8am.  It is currently 9:30 and the ship is still clearing customs, etc.  Just a reminder as to why that early morning flight is not a good idea. 

[bebop bonnie]

Thanks for the heads up!  We'll be boarding today!  Hope the medical emergencies turn out to be minor and hope you all make your flights!

[KS&JW]

It is now 10:00 and just now are the first passengers exiting the ship.  

[pinotlover]

Experienced cruisers/ travelers on these threads, along with the ones on Cruise Air, continually advise travelers to not book outgoing flights on disembarkment day before 12:00. Many choose to not heed that advice. 

 

Many incredible stories about people booking 10:30 flights out of FLL when disembarkment is ( supposed to be) at 8:00 in Miami! The craziest was some fellow O passengers that booked 10:40 flights out of Heathrow. British customs didn’t start clearing passengers until 9:00 that day. People book their flights and take their chances. No amount of advice will sway some. 

[ORV]

50 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Experienced cruisers/ travelers on these threads, along with the ones on Cruise Air, continually advise travelers to not book outgoing flights on disembarkment day before 12:00. Many choose to not heed that advice. 

 

Many incredible stories about people booking 10:30 flights out of FLL when disembarkment is ( supposed to be) at 8:00 in Miami! The craziest was some fellow O passengers that booked 10:40 flights out of Heathrow. British customs didn’t start clearing passengers until 9:00 that day. People book their flights and take their chances. No amount of advice will sway some. 

Then of course once it goes south it's someone else's fault. 

[Paulchili]

I wonder how many people on this cruise will miss their flights (and then blame O for it).

Edited January 2, 2019 by Paulchili

[RJB]

3 hours ago, pinotlover said:

Experienced cruisers/ travelers on these threads, along with the ones on Cruise Air, continually advise travelers to not book outgoing flights on disembarkment day before 12:00. Many choose to not heed that advice. 

 

Many incredible stories about people booking 10:30 flights out of FLL when disembarkment is ( supposed to be) at 8:00 in Miami! The craziest was some fellow O passengers that booked 10:40 flights out of Heathrow. British customs didn’t start clearing passengers until 9:00 that day. People book their flights and take their chances. No amount of advice will sway some. 

Very good advise.  

[rloke]

Apparently one of the crew members passed away...condolences...

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, ipoh said:

Apparently one of the crew members passed away...condolences...

That is  sad

Was it an accident that cause  their demise?

 

Thoughts  & Prayers  to their family & friends

[riandei]

Someone has jumped off the ship and apparently died. Very sad CSI is here.

[Rob the Cruiser]

Another delay. I'm watching the Port of Miami webcam. There are five law enforcement vehicles parked at the pier next to Riviera. 

Edited January 2, 2019 by Rob the Cruiser

[gentlemancruiser]

the crew did an amazing job yesterday and today. There were a lot of upset guest because of the extended delays this morning.   We were told via a letter to our cabin this morning that disembarkation would be delayed by 1 hour.   This was extended and extended.   There was nothing mentioned about the crew member's death, however yesterday (New Year's day) at 10am there was a Code Mike to the room service area on deck 5.  

[riandei]

8 hours ago, gentlemancruiser said:

the crew did an amazing job yesterday and today. There were a lot of upset guest because of the extended delays this morning.   We were told via a letter to our cabin this morning that disembarkation would be delayed by 1 hour.   This was extended and extended.   There was nothing mentioned about the crew member's death, however yesterday (New Year's day) at 10am there was a Code Mike to the room service area on deck 5.  

We were able to board approximately 2 hours late we were having lunch when we heard a MAN OVERBOARD at 2:30-3:00 pm.

 

we were told via letter in our cabin that a crew member had died unexpectedly 

 

we did depart on time.  When we left there was a tent set up where the body was covered by a tarp. CSI was still actively working the scene.

[LHT28]

Confused

Did  someone fall/jump off the ship while docked  or was there a problem in the crew service area?

Different reports going on here

"Code Mike"  is usually a medical isn't it ?

 

Either way it is a sad situation

[KS&JW]

There were two "code Mikes' in the last 24 hours of the Christmas cruise.  The first one was (I assume) a crew member in the room service area.  That person was dropped off at Nassau at 6pm.  An hour later there was another code Mike in the medial center. ( I assume a passenger.) That is when we turned around and went back to Nassau again.  This second medical emergency was too much to overcome, time wise, causing the ship to be late into port by over 2 hours. Then, evidently, a crew member went overboard in the afternoon after the ship was docked and the new passengers for the January cruise were on board.  

[BenMurphy]

Sad to hear

Oceania Cruises say a crew member has died today aboard Oceania Riviera. The cruise ship arrived at Port Miami later than expected and many passengers expressed their frustration because of the delayed embarkation, not knowing what was going on.

In a response to one of the comments from a passenger saying “Check in today for the Riveria was unacceptable!  2 hours standing in line with no rhyme or reason!“ Oceania Cruises released the following statement on Twitter:

“Today at Port Miami, one of Riviera's crew members passed away. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to the family members of the crew member, as well as our officers, staff and guests on board. We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused. “

The cause of the death is not known and the deceased will not be named until the family or next of kin can be notified.

Tag: 
Deaths

ar that a crew member has died on board Riveria 

Edited January 3, 2019 by BenMurphy

[gentlemancruiser]

6 hours ago, KS&JW said:

There were two "code Mikes' in the last 24 hours of the Christmas cruise.  The first one was (I assume) a crew member in the room service area.  That person was dropped off at Nassau at 6pm.  An hour later there was another code Mike in the medial center. ( I assume a passenger.) That is when we turned around and went back to Nassau again.  This second medical emergency was too much to overcome, time wise, causing the ship to be late into port by over 2 hours. Then, evidently, a crew member went overboard in the afternoon after the ship was docked and the new passengers for the January cruise were on board.  

The 1st medical disembarkation in Nassau was a guest, not a crew member.  It was an elderly woman, she was accompanied by her husband (whom I later found out has alzheimer's),   The woman had grey hair and had difficulty breathing.   She was conscious as she was loaded onto the ambulance.  The 2nd medical was also a passenger who was in a coma.   

 

We left Nassau just before 11pm and when I checked MarineTraffic we were at a speed of 22.3 knots which meant we should have been able to reach Miami by 6am.    Not sure what happened to cause the late arrival.   It is possible to reach Nassau from Miami in about 5 hours. 

 

Edited January 3, 2019 by gentlemancruiser
changes

[riandei]

18 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Confused

Did  someone fall/jump off the ship while docked  or was there a problem in the crew service area?

Different reports going on here

"Code Mike"  is usually a medical isn't it ?

 

Either way it is a sad situation

Yes...whilw we were having lunch on embarkation there was an alarm called for man overboard.   This was in addition to the medical emergencies 

[CruisinMommas]

1 hour ago, riandei said:

Yes...whilw we were having lunch on embarkation there was an alarm called for man overboard.   This was in addition to the medical emergencies 

We will be sailing on the Rivera one month from tomorrow. We live in the next town north of you. I have been reading many different posts trying to get an idea of the workings of Oceania. We have sailed several lines (mass market) and one luxury line for years. I like to pretend I know what I am doing when I get on a ship.  I might have a few more questions for you. 

Carol

[bebop bonnie]

We boarded the Riviera on January 2. Because of cruise critic (thank you!)  we were aware of and prepared for the delay in boarding due to the medical emergencies the evening before. However The boarding area at the port of Miami for the Riviera was total chaos for several hours. Would have been appropriate for someone from Oceania to address the crowd of people waiting to board.  However no one address the crowd which continued to be angry and frustrated. Once on board and after the first glass of champagne all was well.   And as  A previous poster said, the man overboard announcement came and then a number of Miami Dade police cars and CSI were at the dock. I believe we departed Miami about an hour late. When we returned from dinner there was a short simple and appropriate letter  in our suite  from the captain simply stating that there had been a death of a crew member prior to our departure.  We’re currently are at sea and it is smooth sailing and a delightful day. 

[edgee]

I truly believe that Oceania has a corporate culture of evasiveness non communication and elusiveness as regards customer service. Senior officers are a very reserved bunch..almost appear surly at times when in presence of guests. Recent experiences I have had include late boarding on Insignia in NYC (disembarkation from previous cruise was delayed due to late arrival) and handling of persistent Norovirus problem on long Marina cruise. "When in doubt, cover up." is their operating mantra compared to other cruise lines. I still cruise with them because I like their product, but all things equal I will choose another cruise line, partially because of this corporate culture...strictly by the book, hold your cards closely, never reach out to the customer in a helpful way if it can be avoided, culture.

[StanandJim]

25 minutes ago, edgee said:

I truly believe that Oceania has a corporate culture of evasiveness non communication and elusiveness as regards customer service. Senior officers are a very reserved bunch..almost appear surly at times when in presence of guests. Recent experiences I have had include late boarding on Insignia in NYC (disembarkation from previous cruise was delayed due to late arrival) and handling of persistent Norovirus problem on long Marina cruise. "When in doubt, cover up." is their operating mantra compared to other cruise lines. I still cruise with them because I like their product, but all things equal I will choose another cruise line, partially because of this corporate culture...strictly by the book, hold your cards closely, never reach out to the customer in a helpful way if it can be avoided, culture.

A human being has died and your sole concern is that you may not have been apprised of the details quickly enough.

Nice

 

 

[edgee]

I was speaking generally in reaction to the general gist if this thread which was moving more broadly beyond just the tragic recent incidents on Riviera..I cited other examples and was certainly NOT  complaining personally about not being informed re: this awful incident during which I was nowhere near Miami! 

Edited January 4, 2019 by edgee

[Paulchili]

4 hours ago, edgee said:

I truly believe that Oceania has a corporate culture of evasiveness non communication and elusiveness as regards customer service. Senior officers are a very reserved bunch..almost appear surly at times when in presence of guests. Recent experiences I have had include late boarding on Insignia in NYC (disembarkation from previous cruise was delayed due to late arrival) and handling of persistent Norovirus problem on long Marina cruise. "When in doubt, cover up." is their operating mantra compared to other cruise lines. I still cruise with them because I like their product, but all things equal I will choose another cruise line, partially because of this corporate culture...strictly by the book, hold your cards closely, never reach out to the customer in a helpful way if it can be avoided, culture.

I have very limited dealings with Oceania’s home office as I rarely need it. On the that rare occasion when I did need it (accommodation of a lower price on an onboard booking) my TA handled it and it went through without any problems.

OTOH, I have nothing but praise for onboard staff handling any “issues’ I have encountered. On one occasion we missed my favorite item at afternoon tea due to an excursion. When I casually mentioned it to the head waiter at tea the next day, we were delivered 4 pieces of Paris-Brest desserts the following day to our amazement. Our friend missed out on brioche bread at special luncheon and the chef delivered them a whole loaf the next morning. Both times they obviously prepared these items specially just for us as it was not on a regular menu for that day - i.e. specially baked just for us. These are not game changing events but are greatly appreciated as an effort to truly please the passengers.

So while the home office may “never reach out to the customer in a helpful way” the ship’s staff certainly do.

JME.

Edited January 5, 2019 by Paulchili

[golfguyhhi]

I've been on 9 Oceania cruises, with the 10th scheduled next week.  I have NEVER seen any officers, junior, middle, or senior appear almost (or anything like) surly when in the presence of guests -- even when some guests I have seen around the officers were absolute oafs.

 

Only 1 captain of the 9 I sailed with was sufficiently proficient in English as to be comfortable conversing in English with guests --- which may get them labeled as "reserved".  But their job was to skillfully deliver the ship (and us, its contents) safely from port to port, not puff up our pride by being seen talking with us.

 

But every officer I ever had any contact with was  always cordial and forthcoming and willing to spend time talking to me or my wife.  I never tried to keep them very long as I know they have serious ongoing responsibilities in running the ship.

 

It is absolute meaningless hyperbole to suggest the Oceania officers have ever appeared surly around passengers.

 

We were in a Code Red, Level 2, aboard Regatta for 5 days and were told repeatedly by the Captain and Cruise Director over the speaker system and in Currents what the situation was in terms of remaining sick people, newly reported sick that day, and the estimate of how long the Code Red would continue after the last newly reported case.  We were also reminded constantly to WASH OUR HANDS to help stop the infection.  Oceania never hid behind a wall of silence on the issues and how they impacted us as passengers.

 

I try not to respond to threads like this, but some of the comments I read here forced my hands to the keyboard.