How is anyone managing the chaos of Air travel and getting to the ship on time?

[ORV]

2 hours ago, jonthomas said:

Its NOT the covid I am referring to...we have also been on a cruise in March...yes our whole trivia team came down with covid...some in Marseille hospital, some left stranded in Barcelona to quarantine...

 

but I am talking about having to go days earlier, in case all or some flights are cancelled....having to do without luggage, just a carry on, since so much of the luggage is being lost...apple tags are not helping...

 

those are todays ordeals...just surprised no one is talking about them...

 

we did NOT have airline and baggage  issues in March...

Jon, perhaps some of it is because it might not be as prevalent as news sensationalism makes it out to be. 

[DENIE]

7 hours ago, Jancruz said:

Plus one

Jancruz1

Plus 2

[DENIE]

7 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

You have clearly worked yourself up into a tizzy.  You have booked a Transatlantic – the only hassles will be the very first part, getting from your home to the ship.  Once on board, Oceania will take care of everything and you will be pampered and coddled.

 

My advice is to stop reading Cruise Critic for a while, as every complaint will get you going again.  Travel is an adventure, and even the worst experience can be looked back on fondly after it's over.  But if you are only willing to travel if everything is guaranteed to go smoothly, you are right:  you should cancel any other trips you have booked, because it will never be like that.

 

As a famed journalist once often said...."the rest of the story...."

 

I wrote what I did because my review was of the Oceania Riviera, and not the trials or tribulations of getting to/from our cruise, which had nothing to do with Oceania (we booked our own flights)

 

First, we are not experienced international (Europe) cruisers, but knew from research to allow time, now more than ever.  With that we needed every moment of transfer in London to make it to our Rome flight.  But we planned for that. We did not plan for British Airways to forget to transfer one of our 2 bags to Rome, but it did arrive to our hotel the night before embarkation. Then, on our return trip, we needed every minute to get from check in to our gate in Barcelona for our London flight.  We also did not prepare (how could we?) that we sat on the tarmac at Heathrow for our return flight to Phoenix for 4 hours while police and medics were called aboard to remove passengers in business class (yes!!). 

 

Would we do this again? In a heartbeat.  The cruise was an amazing experience, and we could not have been happier.  We were just braced for anything that could have happened.  Fortunately, nothing happened that was within Oceania's scope.

 

I agree with Host Jazzbeau....perhaps time to stop reading Cruise Critic.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Anyone who has read Cruise Critic for a long time already knew that flying in the day of a cruise is rolling the dice – in good times or bad.  So if this is news, you are not doing your homework.

[Mareblu]

11 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

You have clearly worked yourself up into a tizzy.  You have booked a Transatlantic – the only hassles will be the very first part, getting from your home to the ship.  Once on board, Oceania will take care of everything and you will be pampered and coddled.

 

My advice is to stop reading Cruise Critic for a while, as every complaint will get you going again.  Travel is an adventure, and even the worst experience can be looked back on fondly after it's over.  But if you are only willing to travel if everything is guaranteed to go smoothly, you are right:  you should cancel any other trips you have booked, because it will never be like that.

 

Plus 3

[Mareblu]

4 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Anyone who has read Cruise Critic for a long time already knew that flying in the day of a cruise is rolling the dice – in good times or bad.  So if this is news, you are not doing your homework.

I’m always aghast at the number of people who fly into a country on the day of embarkation, then  trust that luggage will arrive with them, and transport to the cruise terminal will be a smooth operation.  Courting Murphy’s law😱

[Gracie115]

7 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Anyone who has read Cruise Critic for a long time already knew that flying in the day of a cruise is rolling the dice – in good times or bad.  So if this is news, you are not doing your homework.

 

So VERY true!!!!!  The small cost of a hotel for a night or two is well worth the peace of mind it gives you!!!!!!

[MEFIowa]

17 hours ago, jonthomas said:

Just surprised there aren't more posts from those who are travelling right now and what ordeal they are encountering. Just reading that all is very rosy does not give one the real picture. 

I flew from Des Moines, IA to Asuncion, Paraguay and back (via Chicago and Sao Paulo, on United & GOL) from April 18-May 4, 2022. And I still had to do all the pre-testing to get into Paraguay and back into the USA. And guess what.... IT ALL WENT WELL!

 

But I paid close attention to what I had to do and made sure I did it. My luggage and I made it exactly as were supposed to. No flight delays or cancellation. I was on a flight to Chicago, mid-air, when they lifted the interior masking requirement and the passengers rejoiced as we took our masks off. I didn't get COVID.

 

I spent 2 magical weeks driving 2000+ KM to heck & back from deep in the Chaco desert (Filadelfia) to the Argentina border at Encarnacion (along the Parana River). I'd get up at 0500 and wander around Asuncion or Filadelfia or Paraguari or Santa Maria de Fe or Humaita or Pilar or Bella Vista. Never robbed or mugged or threatened. The people were friendly. And I had the vacation experience of a lifetime.

[ChadnKate]

Tips for a better cruise travel:

Hope for the best, plan for the worst. 

       Put Apple Airtags or similar tracking devices in all checked bags. In your carryons too. 

       Put two luggage tags on each checked bag.

       If you travel with ordinary looking bags, wrap then in a colorful "skin" which you can find on several sites including Amazon. This makes them easier for you to see when coming off the carousel. Harder for someone else to mistakenly grab. Also put a colored strap around each bag with your name in magic marker on the strap. This also makes it easier for the baggage handlers to load your bags more precisely, and less likely to be a victim of random thievery - harder to open. This sounds like a lot of work but truly just takes a couple of minutes. In the cabin just put the wrap and strap inside the empty suitcase which you store under the Oceania bed. 

     Arrive at least a day early. Usually Oceania cruises start in an interesting port but they don't offer excursions to those embarking. Enjoy yourself for a day or two there!

     I always make an itinerary sheet with dates, phone numbers (including Oceania's and our cruise booking number) and leave a copy on the top inside each suitcase. It also is useful to give to your kids, house sitter or whomever back home who might need to reach you. This includes the lost luggage department of the airline!

    Cross pack essential items. His change of clothes in her bag. Hers in his....

    Always keep all medicines in your carryon. 

    Oceania will let you bring wine onboard. Assuming you are going to bring more stuff home than you travel from home with, put those bottles in the triple sealed bubble wrap special sleeves you can get on Amazon for about $6 each.  After the wine is gone they lie flat and take up little space and can even cushion any breakables you buy to take home.

     As to TSA: if you bring any significant volume of jewelry (real or costume) put them in a pouch where you can easily grab it from your carryon and put in the X-ray tray with shoes, etc. If you don't TSA may flag you for a lengthier inspection.

    Know your travel insurance: its policy number, phone number, and its protections.

 

An ounce  (or 2) of prevention ......

[shank63]

We fly to Edinburgh on 7/20 (with a connection) which gives us 2 nights before boarding Sirena.  I now think 3 nights would have been better, but air travel was not so convoluted when we booked.  We plan to use more carryons than in the past to have a few days of clothing on hand as well as cross packing our checked bags.  

[jonthomas]

Well I can only assume that there are very few people on CC, or very few travelling right now. 

 

So many screaming all over the world of the horrors of air travel right now, but no mention here...all is rosy and happy here. Not a  single post of how someone has missed the cruise since so many flights are cancelled forcing travelers to spend countless nights and days at the airports waiting to be rebooked. 

 

Someone might even mention that I should post evidence if this. Just read the news. 

 

Has anyone spoken to cruise line reps to see what cruise lines are doing about ensuring their passengers get onto the ship? I havent since our cruise is in November, but surely there are those who are cruising now or about to be cruising. 

 

I guess I really have my answer, there is no interest in this topic and no one is having any issues. All is well and all are happy, 

[jonthomas]

There is no point saying how wonderful everything was in March and April. There were no extraordinary issues at that time. We also flew in March for an O cruise. Yes on the day of the cruise.

 

Someone here said it is a small price to pay for peace of mind to go in a couple of days early and stay in hotel. It is very relative what is a small price for some may not be for others.

 

Deviation would cost 350, a couple of nights in hotel another 600 at least...meals ...incidentals...so you can add another 1, 000 to your cruise cost. Not small price to me. Not to mention extra time away from work. 

[patty1955]

8 minutes ago, jonthomas said:

There is no point saying how wonderful everything was in March and April. There were no extraordinary issues at that time. We also flew in March for an O cruise. Yes on the day of the cruise.

 

Someone here said it is a small price to pay for peace of mind to go in a couple of days early and stay in hotel. It is very relative what is a small price for some may not be for others.

 

Deviation would cost 350, a couple of nights in hotel another 600 at least...meals ...incidentals...so you can add another 1, 000 to your cruise cost. Not small price to me. Not to mention extra time away from work. 

You might want to wait until things are settled to cruise.

Since you've already started another thread regarding this subject, can we get back to the topic?

[tvmovielover]

jonthomas I hope you are right and there have not been any or many issues so far.  We booked a 7 day med cruise late Sept fm Rome to Barcelona for some ports we have not been to and would not be doable in one land trip.  We booked this over a year ago and put in a few days in Rome and a few days in Barcelona environs to visit some other places we have not been so not going to worry about Flight cancellations yet (hoping no new variants of Covid cause problems).  We also have been to Barcelona many times so are going to Tarragona and other places outside at disembarkation.  Have you done those too?

[tgg]

45 minutes ago, jonthomas said:

Someone here said it is a small price to pay for peace of mind to go in a couple of days early and stay in hotel. It is very relative what is a small price for some may not be for others.

 

Deviation would cost 350, a couple of nights in hotel another 600 at least...meals ...incidentals...so you can add another 1, 000 to your cruise cost. Not small price to me. Not to mention extra time away from work. 

 

We never book flights with a cruise line. And we aren't among those who have frequent flyer miles who can fly for free. We choose our own flights with the times we want, and our own hotels with the price we want. One extra night has always been enough. 

[Norseh2o]

On 7/13/2022 at 10:19 AM, jonthomas said:

yes but how was it getting to the ship and getting home?

 

did your luggage arrive?

 

I am surprised that there are not more stories here about what you have to go through to get onto the ship and then back home. 

Have completed 4 cruises since November, 2021. 1 on Holland, 3 on Oceania. Holland trip (35 days) was round trip from San Diego to San Diego, as I live near SD, I’ll skip the details. 
Flew to Venice 3 days early in November,  luggage arrived safely. Days in Venice=wonderful pre-cruise experience, pre-Covid tests and proctored tests completed (negative), van travel to Trieste provided by Oceania was fine, boarded the Marina in < 45 minutes.  Travel home from Miami, no luggage issues, a bit of a dash in Atlanta airport to connection to SD.
April, 2022 on the Regatta Coastal California trip (❤️) involved Amtrak and Lyft travel from home to San Pedro Port. Negative test results in hand, boarded ship in less than 30 minutes, luggage on bed when we arrived in cabin after a Terrace lunch.

June, 2022, flew to Lisbon 3 days before embarking the Insignia. Just under 3 hours to get through “customs”. Dreadful. We picked up luggage from carousel after our crawl through customs, not sure if it arrived with us or later but all bags were accounted for. Again, Covid test from States and proctored tests done in our Lisbon hotel room allowed easy access to the Insignia. Hotel provided excellent transportation from airport to hotel and to the Insignia. Boarded the Insignia in <45 minutes. Again, all luggage on bed in cabin after a Terrace lunch. Travel at the end of the trip, NYC - SeaTac was without delay, all bags found on the carousel. 
Flew Delta Comfort+ and 1st Class for these trips. Hope this helps?

[jonthomas]

Our flights are with O because they pride themselves on "getting you there". We will count on them to tell us what is the best course of action when flights become available for our Nov 19 cruise. If they suggest because of what is happening with unforeseen cancellations etc that we go in earlier, we will ask that they wave the deviation fee. We will pay for hotels for one or two nights. Seems to me that would be easier for them then to make sure they get us to some port on the itinerary, if we miss the first few days. This is to get to Barcelona, home from Miami is not really a concern. The concern is making the ship. 

 

The hope is that things with Air travel in November will go back to what they were when we travelled in April. We are thankful that we made the decision to use O air and have them figure this out. 

[oskidunker]

2 hours ago, jonthomas said:

Well I can only assume that there are very few people on CC, or very few travelling right now. 

 

So many screaming all over the world of the horrors of air travel right now, but no mention here...all is rosy and happy here. Not a  single post of how someone has missed the cruise since so many flights are cancelled forcing travelers to spend countless nights and days at the airports waiting to be rebooked. 

 

Someone might even mention that I should post evidence if this. Just read the news. 

 

Has anyone spoken to cruise line reps to see what cruise lines are doing about ensuring their passengers get onto the ship? I havent since our cruise is in November, but surely there are those who are cruising now or about to be cruising. 

 

I guess I really have my answer, there is no interest in this topic and no one is having any issues. All is well and all are happy, 

You miss the ship, you have to go to the next port. I would assume O Air and they would pay for it. 

[jonthomas]

Just now, oskidunker said:

You miss the ship, you have to go to the next port. I would assume O Air and they would pay for it. 

 

 

yes that is why we are glad we opted for O air....at this uncertain time....

 

but you would think it would be better for them and for us to make sure we go early enough to allow for  flight cancellations...wearing rose colored glasses would make me think that all will be well as soon as summer travel is over....I just dont own a pair.....

[oskidunker]

I am doing my own air and going 5 days early, spending some time in Bath. Staying two nights after the cruise in Bilbao Spain. Air on united but have to take  Lufthansa out to Frankfurt to catch united to sfo. Only one hour connection time could be a problem but hoping for the best . Maybe by Oct 21 things will be better. If something goes wrong and I have to stay in Frankfurt for a day or two, its ok.hopefully United and Lufthansa gates are close

[FolsomMike]

2 hours ago, jonthomas said:

Well I can only assume that there are very few people on CC, or very few travelling right now. 

 

So many screaming all over the world of the horrors of air travel right now, but no mention here...all is rosy and happy here. Not a  single post of how someone has missed the cruise since so many flights are cancelled forcing travelers to spend countless nights and days at the airports waiting to be rebooked. 

 

Someone might even mention that I should post evidence if this. Just read the news. 

 

Has anyone spoken to cruise line reps to see what cruise lines are doing about ensuring their passengers get onto the ship? I havent since our cruise is in November, but surely there are those who are cruising now or about to be cruising. 

 

I guess I really have my answer, there is no interest in this topic and no one is having any issues. All is well and all are happy, 

Or…it could just be that most travelers haven’t really been affected that much. Stats show that at every European airport, the flight cancellations are well below 10%. As the news does, bad stuff gets the attention. I hear about horrible car crashes every day, but they doesn’t mean I’m likely to experience one. 

[ORV]

A couple of points here:

 

It is my understanding that if you miss the embarkation port in these post Covid times you are not being allowed to board later. I don't know if this will relax and go back to the way it used to be in the future, but for now I wouldn't plan on it. 

 

Jon, I think you are putting too much faith in what Oceania can and will do for you in case things go sideways with your flight. Personally, I feel you will have more control taking your own flights, if you take the air credit then the deviation fee is not an issue. I realize that in some instances, especially with a one way TA it's hard to match their price. But you might be putting another level of red tape to deal with in case things go bad. I'm sure there are others that feel the same. 

 

Just another thought, if you haven't posted your concerns on the Cruise Air forum here on CC you might get some insights from people with a lot of experience with airlines. 

 

 

[jonthomas]

Canada has been voted as number One in missed, cancelled flights ...this week. Our govt says it is getting better, but they have cancelled so many flights that far less people are flying, that is why it is better...you have to be really stupid not to understand that...you know the saying, you can fool some of the people........

 

I hope you are wrong in thinking that O does not take getting their passengers onto the ship seriously....we are counting on them....

 

in the past we always did our own flights, but these times we want every advantage....and flying with O we think gives us that...time will tell...hoping that things settle down enough not to need that advantage....

 

thank you to those of you who being helpful here...

 

is anyone else going on a cruise in November without wanting to stop anywhere else before they get onto the ship?

 

I should also start a new topic...how to go on a 15 day cruise with only carry on luggage...yup that is what our airport is recommending...

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, jonthomas said:

I should also start a new topic...how to go on a 15 day cruise with only carry on luggage...yup that is what our airport is recommending...

It can be done

You just need to plan carefully & do laundry along the way or send it out  😉

 

[KS&JW]

1 hour ago, jonthomas said:

 

 

I should also start a new topic...how to go on a 15 day cruise with only carry on luggage...yup that is what our airport is recommending...

We don't check luggage. It is much easier to do on an ocean cruise because of the easy access to laundry facilities.   We spent one month in Germany/Austria December 2019 with just a carry on. That trip included a river cruise, but they don't have the laundry facilities of ocean cruises so finding Laundromats was a requirement. It can be done.  You just have to plan for it. 

Edited July 14, 2022 by KS&JW