YoHoHo Posted July 31, 2020 #1 Share Posted July 31, 2020 Finally decided to make the leap and place a booking for a cruise. Wanted a TA followed by a couple of weeks touring and flight home. A significant part of O's value equation for us is the included air with PE upgrade on trans-Atlantics. It is far too long of a flight back to the west coast to fly in economy. However, the PE upgrade offers have all been removed. I suspect O is struggling with the airline unknowns but this stopped us from booking today. Airlines still price International one-way air the stupid-scale; I refuse to pay as much or more than a return ticket or play the "throw away the 2nd half of the ticket" game. We looked at a return via another cruise line but I think only Cunard runs TAs to NA in the spring and their schedule either departs a day before disembarkation or 6 weeks after which is too long a gap for us. I looked at Cunard's spring 2021 schedule as it would be more complete than 2022 hoping that a suitable 2021 date might later be offered for 2022 but no joy. There might be another cruise line with a TA to Europe that the timing with a return on Cunard would work. Will look into that - not an Oceania cruise but maybe time to try something new to me. O has Insignia coming back to NA in the Spring 2021 but I suspect that is an anomaly with the Covid redeployment scheduling and not likely in 2022. Disappointed our attempt to book a cruise on O has been foiled after so much waiting and handwringing. I enjoy a cruise with O and wanted to support them so will check back in a few months as this pandemic continues to evolve. Maybe we'll end up skipping the cruise and just do an extended land trip, that is DW preference anyway and the "locals" would be happy to have some bookings too. I'll just have to continue to be patient and keep an eye out for O to add the promotion again. Anyway just want to post a heads-up that PE upgrade is no longer on offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted July 31, 2020 #2 Share Posted July 31, 2020 maybe they are waiting to see when they will get to sail again before offering PE seats Any cruises in the next 6 mths are still iffy especially if Countries overseas are not allowing Americans by then At the rate the USA is dealing with the Covid pandemic I can see Europe still locking out Americans until next summer Would O be able to find enough non Americans to make the TA viable JMO 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted July 31, 2020 #3 Share Posted July 31, 2020 7 minutes ago, LHT28 said: maybe they are waiting to see when they will get to sail again before offering PE seats Any cruises in the next 6 mths are still iffy especially if Countries overseas are not allowing Americans by then At the rate the USA is dealing with the Covid pandemic I can see Europe still locking out Americans until next summer Would O be able to find enough non Americans to make the TA viable JMO I am sure not. O has a good history of what they are doing. Wait another year and things should be back to normal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted July 31, 2020 #4 Share Posted July 31, 2020 32 minutes ago, RJB said: I am sure not. O has a good history of what they are doing. Wait another year and things should be back to normal. But maybe the second wave will hit the USA before cruises start up then it will be a different story 😉 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clo Posted August 1, 2020 #5 Share Posted August 1, 2020 1 hour ago, LHT28 said: But maybe the second wave will hit the USA before cruises start up then it will be a different story 😉 I guess that everyone saw that Hurtigruten (Norway) had two crew members test positive and they're currently hospitalized Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orchestrapal Posted August 1, 2020 #6 Share Posted August 1, 2020 12 hours ago, clo said: I guess that everyone saw that Hurtigruten (Norway) had two crew members test positive and they're currently hospitalized Sadly up to 33 positive crew members testing positive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare ORV Posted August 1, 2020 #7 Share Posted August 1, 2020 15 hours ago, clo said: I guess that everyone saw that Hurtigruten (Norway) had two crew members test positive and they're currently hospitalized I guess I didn't see that. Where were we supposed to see it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare JRIH Posted August 1, 2020 #8 Share Posted August 1, 2020 I just booked a cruise for next June and they were offering business class flight upgrades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted August 1, 2020 #9 Share Posted August 1, 2020 Just now, JRIH said: I just booked a cruise for next June and they were offering business class flight upgrades. Oceania ? Or your TA? You do not say what Country you are in regional differences may apply Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare JRIH Posted August 1, 2020 #10 Share Posted August 1, 2020 Sorry, I just assumed you knew Oceania, oh well. We booked it through Oceania. I am in the United States. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clo Posted August 1, 2020 #11 Share Posted August 1, 2020 3 hours ago, orchestrapal said: Sadly up to 33 positive crew members testing positive. Yeah. https://thebarentsobserver.com/en/travel/2020/07/hurtigruten-cancels-svalbard-cruise-crew-members-have-been-diagnosed-covid-19 I don't remember where I first saw it. Maybe here on the Hurtigruten board. This could have really serious consequence(s). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted August 1, 2020 #12 Share Posted August 1, 2020 1 hour ago, JRIH said: Sorry, I just assumed you knew Oceania, oh well. We booked it through Oceania. I am in the United States. I have learned never to assume here 😉 Thanks Must be a secret deal 😉 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare ORV Posted August 1, 2020 #13 Share Posted August 1, 2020 36 minutes ago, LHT28 said: I have learned never to assume here 😉 Thanks Must be a secret deal 😉 I think you've always been able to book Business air with Oceania. Whether it's a deal or not is another story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvsmickey Posted August 1, 2020 #14 Share Posted August 1, 2020 Just booked a TA leaving April 9th. On Marina. Premium Economy upgrade was offered and we booked that. Not sure it will be able to sail, but 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted August 1, 2020 #15 Share Posted August 1, 2020 1 hour ago, ORV said: I think you've always been able to book Business air with Oceania. Whether it's a deal or not is another story. That is true but usually I found cheaper to book it myself for Bus class Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacksmith Posted August 2, 2020 #16 Share Posted August 2, 2020 If you are paying out of pocket for business class upgrade, you may want to consider Regent. They include BC for international flights as well as a few other costs. Sometimes the per diem cost is not that much more.Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulchili Posted August 2, 2020 #17 Share Posted August 2, 2020 1 hour ago, blacksmith said: If you are paying out of pocket for business class upgrade, Is that not only for certain cat cabins and above (not the "cheap ones") Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ladys Mom Posted August 2, 2020 #18 Share Posted August 2, 2020 Regent offers BC for all cabin classes, for all intercontinental flights. If you work with them, sometimes you can even stay on BC or go to FC on domestic flights, if they originated out of North America. This was one of the reasons we switched from Oceania to Regent. The other reason was that it is virtually all-inclusive. We have taken cruises where we did not pay an additional penny the entire cruise, after paying the fare on the front end. This all-inclusive situation may work for some people while others say they don't drink or they want to find their own shore excursions, etc. We have attempted to book an additional Oceania cruise recently, which we have since cancelled, because the price was so low that even after adding BC airfare, drink package, and private shore excursions we were still ahead. Because we took the FCC, we will find another Oceania cruise that hopefully will not cost more than a comparable Regent cruise. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted August 2, 2020 #19 Share Posted August 2, 2020 14 minutes ago, Ladys Mom said: The other reason was that it is virtually all-inclusive. We have taken cruises where we did not pay an additional penny the entire cruise, after paying the fare on the front end. This all-inclusive situation may work for some people while others say they don't drink or they want to find their own shore excursions, etc. We have attempted to book an additional Oceania cruise recently, which we have since cancelled, because the price was so low that even after adding BC airfare, drink package, and private shore excursions we were still ahead. Because we took the FCC, we will find another Oceania cruise that hopefully will not cost more than a comparable Regent cruise. There is no one size fits all cruise line We took an more inclusive "Luxury" line last year because it was cheaper than O & wanted to see the difference Sometimes the grass in not always greener 😉 People need to pick the line that works best for them Glad you found yours 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacksmith Posted August 2, 2020 #20 Share Posted August 2, 2020 Is that not only for certain cat cabins and above (not the "cheap ones")I think Lady Mom answered your question. I didn’t intend to open another discussion comparing the two lines (that’s been done). But when you add BC to Oceania the cost jumps quite a bit.Sent from my iPhone using Forums 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare ORV Posted August 2, 2020 #21 Share Posted August 2, 2020 On 7/31/2020 at 2:15 PM, YoHoHo said: Anyway just want to post a heads-up that PE upgrade is no longer on offer. 22 hours ago, luvsmickey said: Just booked a TA leaving April 9th. On Marina. Premium Economy upgrade was offered and we booked that. Not sure it will be able to sail, but 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼 Well, someone is getting bad information. Keep in mind that PE has always been only on certain cruises. There are a lot of variables, much of whether or not it's offered from the departure airports. When it's available I always get it. It's worth every penny of the $199 or $249 pp per way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted August 2, 2020 #22 Share Posted August 2, 2020 On 8/1/2020 at 3:38 PM, luvsmickey said: Just booked a TA leaving April 9th. On Marina. Premium Economy upgrade was offered and we booked that. Not sure it will be able to sail, but 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼 What was the cost to upgrade to PE? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoHoHo Posted August 2, 2020 Author #23 Share Posted August 2, 2020 (edited) 3 hours ago, ORV said: Keep in mind that PE has always been only on certain cruises. There are a lot of variables, much of whether or not it's offered from the departure airports. When it's available I always get it. It's worth every penny of the $199 or $249 pp per way. "Well, someone is getting bad information. " I assume you mean me, as luvsmickey has booked and paid for PE it is not likely them who has it wrong. That said, PE is not currently offered on any O cruises, currently; at least not for Canadians. Unfortunately O, unlike some other cruise lines, now forces us to see offerings priced in CDN $. Other lets us choose. Or their search engine is broken. I did see PE offered on an itinerary a couple of weeks back so was surprised to see them all gone now that I went to book. Can't tell of course when "just booked" was for luvsmickey, maybe "just today" or maybe "just recently" and perhaps that was when I was looking a couple of weeks back. Maybe this is O's regional thing and they are available for USA customers but not for me. I don't expect that though being as we have similar air offerings from the airlines. Does not really matter. Zero available now for me. Argh. As proof I included a screen shot of O "specials" and on the PE page showing "0 matches" but CC is not adding it to the post. it does show it as an uploaded image as I edit but not when submitted. Edited August 2, 2020 by YoHoHo comment on missing image in post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvsmickey Posted August 2, 2020 #24 Share Posted August 2, 2020 1 hour ago, LHT28 said: What was the cost to upgrade to PE? It was $199 pp for the return from Rome 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted August 2, 2020 #25 Share Posted August 2, 2020 26 minutes ago, YoHoHo said: That said, PE is not currently offered on any O cruises, currently; at least not for Canadians. Unfortunately O, unlike some other cruise lines, now forces us to see offerings priced in CDN $. Other lets us choose. Yes annoying that O's site gives us CAD pricing in the past though if the PE deal was there we could see it just at the CAD price of $249 PP usually Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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