The folks at Oceania seem like pests.

[Stockjock]

I mentioned in another thread that my girlfriend has a milestone birthday coming up in a couple of years and I was thinking of taking her on an Oceania cruise.  I took her on a Princess cruise almost 10 years ago, so I wanted to step it up further for this one.

Did some due diligence by reading reviews, asking a question here, and talking to Oceania.  Candidly, some of the recent reviews have scared me away.

But now, I'm getting daily telephone calls from Oceania.  I think they've called 4 days in a row.  I answered the first time, but have let the rest go to voicemail.

They seem pretty pesky, which is surprising.  One might almost say desperate.

Anyone else have this experience?

Edited May 20, 2022 by Stockjock

[Host Jazzbeau]

Yes, and you would get the same calls (probably from the same person) if you spend some time exploring the Regent website.  I forget how I finally discouraged them – I think there's a way in your Oceania account settings to tell them not to call.  [I still get tons of emails from that person, but they go straight to the Spam folder...]

[AMHuntFerry]

After attending an online presentation I received an email and a voicemail. I responded to the email telling the rep that I have a travel agent. They have never contacted me again except for emails regarding a booked cruise.

 

We took our first cruise ever (we were "you'll never see me on a cruise ship" types) with O in December 2021 and were very surprised at how much we enjoyed our get-away. Be cautious with the reviews. A lot of people seem disgruntled by Covid-related issues (including inexperienced staff), menu changes, etc. Our experience was fantastic but we have no comparison to "before". If you like the idea of casual elegance and good food, you'll like the O experience. A 7 day Caribbean cruise to ports you've already been to is a perfect intro to the experience. Ours was 10 days and we left wishing for more despite the Carribean not being our cup of tea. We're trying out the smaller R-class ship on an 8-day CA cruise this fall since our previous cruise was on an O-class.

[Stockjock]

6 minutes ago, AMHuntFerry said:

After attending an online presentation I received an email and a voicemail. I responded to the email telling the rep that I have a travel agent. They have never contacted me again except for emails regarding a booked cruise.

 

We took our first cruise ever (we were "you'll never see me on a cruise ship" types) with O in December 2021 and were very surprised at how much we enjoyed our get-away. Be cautious with the reviews. A lot of people seem disgruntled by Covid-related issues (including inexperienced staff), menu changes, etc. Our experience was fantastic but we have no comparison to "before". If you like the idea of casual elegance and good food, you'll like the O experience. A 7 day Caribbean cruise to ports you've already been to is a perfect intro to the experience. Ours was 10 days and we left wishing for more despite the Carribean not being our cup of tea. We're trying out the smaller R-class ship on an 8-day CA cruise this fall since our previous cruise was on an O-class.

The cruise I was looking at was an R-Class for 7 days.  But as mentioned, I read a number of reviews talking about how they've gone downhill for them, and if I'm going to pay up, I want a true first class experience.  Seems like I might get more for my money on Princess, Celebrity or MSC Yacht Club, even though I understand that those are different categories of cruise line.

Haven't totally ruled it out, but the constant calls are a bit off-putting.

Edited May 20, 2022 by Stockjock

[Host Jazzbeau]

You would get a fuller Oceania experience on an O-ship, but even an R-ship will have better food than anything on Princess or even the Celebrity Retreat or MSC Yacht Club.

[Stockjock]

1 minute ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

You would get a fuller Oceania experience on an O-ship, but even an R-ship will have better food than anything on Princess or even the Celebrity Retreat or MSC Yacht Club.

The O-Ships seem a bit more interesting, but the pricing seems considerably better on the R-Ships.

[LHT28]

Next time you answer the call & just tell them you are working with an agent  & please stop calling

 

You may or may not like Oceania  but until you give them a try  you will not know

The R ships are small so their cabins & other spaces onboard are as well

 

Enjoy whatever cruise you choose

[Stockjock]

3 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

Next time you answer the call & just tell them you are working with an agent  & please stop calling

 

You may or may not like Oceania  but until you give them a try  you will not know

The R ships are small so their cabins & other spaces onboard are as well

 

Enjoy whatever cruise you choose

I will do that.

[Flatbush Flyer]

2 hours ago, Stockjock said:

The cruise I was looking at was an R-Class for 7 days.  But as mentioned, I read a number of reviews talking about how they've gone downhill for them, and if I'm going to pay up, I want a true first class experience.  Seems like I might get more for my money on Princess, Celebrity or MSC Yacht Club, even though I understand that those are different categories of cruise line.

Haven't totally ruled it out, but the constant calls are a bit off-putting.

LOL on that comparison. The food alone.....

O - Desperate? ROFL!  Pesky? As someone mentioned above- just respond that you have a travel agent (which, for Oceania is a smart move because of the potential for significant extra TA perks).

 

If you’re truly fine with Princess and Celebrity or even MSC’s wannabe “ship w/i a ship,” Oceania (or Regent) may not be a good fit for you. O’s newest customers are usually trying to escape those cruise lines (add HAL and even Viking to that list).

As for bad reviews, negative comments on CC should be “taken with a grain of salt.”  After all, only about 10% of O passengers use (or have even heard of) CC and some of the nasty comments are things like “the food is too fancy for grandpa.” More importantly, recognize that pretty much every O cruise has 75%+\- repeat customers.

 

Does O have occasional issues? Of course. But, if you say something of reasonable concern to an O onboard manager, it’ll be made right quickly.

 

I will say, however, that a 7 day cruise (MIA-MIA I guess?) is not where Oceania shines best. That’s a “boat ride” on Oceania (though those quickies do pay the bills).

 

In any case: for the relatively inexpensive cost of a one week MIA-MIA, why don’t you find out for yourself?

[aaaaa]

Use this link change your preferences regarding contacts from Oceania:

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/changeofaddress/

 

[Mura]

3 hours ago, Stockjock said:

I will do that.

In addition, remember that the "R" ships are older and smaller than the "O" ships.  I imagine the same will be with the upcoming VISTA ships.  I don't know, are we going to call them "V" ships???

 

Also remember that there are some who complain about everything just as there are some who love everything.  I have learned to try to judge the quality of the post whether it is "pro" or "con".  I tend to discount those posts that are entirely in one direction or the other.

 

This isn't easy when you don't know the people who are posting!  But I give more credit to those people who say I loved this but I didn't like this.  We are big fans of Oceania but I won't say that ANY of the 17 cruises we have taken have been PERFECT.  But they are awfully good ...

 

Mura

 

[FetaCheese]

Remember, bathrooms on R ships, are still the same small size as before the renovation.  Liked the glass shower door better that the "sticky curtain", but the mirror above sink that protrudes out toward you really bothered me.  Who designed it? Hit head a few times until I got used to the smaller area above sink. When I tried Viking, their bathrooms were far superior: size, layout, heated floors, anti fog mirror, storage.

[ORV]

1 hour ago, Mura said:

I don't know, are we going to call them "V" ships???

Aren't they going to be the Allura class? So probably A ships. 

[Flatbush Flyer]

33 minutes ago, ORV said:

Aren't they going to be the Allura class? So probably A ships. 

Vista and the one to follow already are the “A” (Allura Class) ships. 

[MEFIowa]

18 hours ago, Stockjock said:

The O-Ships seem a bit more interesting, but the pricing seems considerably better on the R-Ships.

Wife and I did our first cruise on Riviera in 12/21 (10 days W. Caribbean). We loved it so much we booked an E. Caribbean for 11/22 on Sirena while on Riviera. But since then we've booked future 2023  (Oct, Med) and 2024 (Sept, Baltic) cruises on Riviera. The pricing seems comparable for O and R class vessels IF you pay careful attention to the sailing dates, and try to go a bit off peak. Peak season pricing is high.

[ORV]

18 hours ago, Stockjock said:

The O-Ships seem a bit more interesting, but the pricing seems considerably better on the R-Ships.

 

4 minutes ago, MEFIowa said:

Wife and I did our first cruise on Riviera in 12/21 (10 days W. Caribbean). We loved it so much we booked an E. Caribbean for 11/22 on Sirena while on Riviera. But since then we've booked future 2023  (Oct, Med) and 2024 (Sept, Baltic) cruises on Riviera. The pricing seems comparable for O and R class vessels IF you pay careful attention to the sailing dates, and try to go a bit off peak. Peak season pricing is high.

I'm pretty sure it's more itinerary dependent than ship dependent. If a Caribbean cruise then an O ship will probably be more than the R, depending on number of days of course. 

[Mura]

On 5/20/2022 at 10:41 PM, Flatbush Flyer said:

Vista and the one to follow already are the “A” (Allura Class) ships. 

Good points.  I'll try to remember that!

 

[Stockjock]

FWIW, I did get call #5 today.  But they didn't call yesterday, lol.

[Stockjock]

Call number six, lol.Call number six, lol.

[LHT28]

25 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

 

 

OT

 I like your phone

what model number is it??

I could use one with big numbers on the keypad  LOL

Thanks

Lyn

[Stockjock]

2 hours ago, LHT28 said:

 

OT

 I like your phone

what model number is it??

I could use one with big numbers on the keypad  LOL

Thanks

Lyn

It's a discontinued Panasonic model.  Not sure of the model, but they have many similar that are still produced.  Maybe just do an Amazon search?

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, Stockjock said:

It's a discontinued Panasonic model.  Not sure of the model, but they have many similar that are still produced.  Maybe just do an Amazon search?

Thank you

[pinotlover]

On 5/20/2022 at 3:49 PM, Stockjock said:

I will do that.

Better yet, don’t open Pandora’s Box. Your Travel Agent can provide you with all the cruise information, on any itinerary, you might like. They can discretely provide that without awakening the beast.

 

In the South there’s a saying about “ let sleeping dogs lie “. If you make the decision to awaken them, don’t complain about the outcome. If you call Oceania direct, then you woke the beast. Simple concept.
 

I call my TA for information.