On Regatta now

[PhD-iva]

14 minutes ago, jonthomas said:

it was in 2019. that is 4 to 5 years ago....that is a lot of wear and tear....

Well, a portion of that period was covid - no sailing.

[jonthomas]

ah yes, you are right...

[WESTEAST]

2 hours ago, jonthomas said:

We are on the Regatta in Sept to Alaska. It was refitted in 2019. Dont like to hear that she looks tired as we just got off  Riviera and have now seen what a newly  refitted ship looks like. Seems like we will be on tired looking ships for a while. Riviera now goes to Asia. We are only on Regatta and Marina, that are not scheduled for any refits.

 

But alas have booked a couple of Vista options. 

 

56 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Regatta (and the other R ships) all had their NEXT redo within the past several years - hardly “tired looking.”

We were onboard Regatta in September 2022 and the ship was in excellent condition.  The last time we were on Regatta was in February 2020 (post NEXT update).  The ship looked in the same great condition this past September as it did pre-Covid. Wouldn't hesitate to sail on her again.

[LHT28]

2 hours ago, jonthomas said:

We are on the Regatta in Sept to Alaska. It was refitted in 2019. Dont like to hear that she looks tired as we just got off  Riviera and have now seen what a newly  refitted ship looks like. Seems like we will be on tired looking ships for a while. Riviera now goes to Asia. We are only on Regatta and Marina, that are not scheduled for any refits.

 

But alas have booked a couple of Vista options. 

You have time to cancel the Sept cruise for full refund 

they are other ships sailing to Alaska  

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

11 hours ago, bajalin said:

Azamara Quest also missed Milford Sound, Akaroa and Bay of Islands.

Yes. it’s obvious that many ports down under are having issues that are beyond the reasonable/historical control of the cruise lines (including the possibility of increasing gov’t enforcement of heretofore somewhat lax environmental regulation). That’s one of the anticipatory reasons why cruise lines’ T&Cs are very clear regarding their limited (if any) liability for missed ports. 

I’d be (and have been - even recently) just as disappointed as most folks who have missed ports. But, we all agreed to the T&Cs which clearly state that we are due no compensation - NADA!  

Of course, I expect that many cruisers don’t read their T&Cs (until they’re looking for something they need/want) and probably don’t read their travel insurance policy either. Is everyone aware of the provisions of “trip interruption” protection - specifically remuneration for missed cruise ports? Some cruise-specific policies (e.g., Nationwide’s cruise policies) will reimburse you if you submit evidence of the missed port (just ask Guest Services onboard for a letter). Sadly, the aggregate claim limit is usually only several hundred dollars. But, it’s something to help ease the pain.

 

Though not meaning to defend any perceived chintziness in O not providing compensation for stuff it may not have caused or did cause because the “bigger picture” warranted it, I must remind folks here that modification of marine itineraries, particularly while underway, is no easy matter. And, let’s not forget that, in some cases, where ports are necessarily substituted, the ship may still incur many logistical expenses for the originally scheduled port. And yet, O never charges passengers extra to cover those costs.

 

In any case, if some of the posters here continue to be “bent out of shape” over their perception that O (or any cruise line) is unfairly and continuously “screwing them over” (or even just disappointing them) they may want to take their business elsewhere. (which, of course, may net them a far worse situation).

 

FWIW: we will soon embark on a 5 week western South Pacific cruise on Regatta. Based on our approx 100 O nights in 2022, I fully anticipate some issues that will bottom line at the incompetence of some O staff (onboard and/or in Miami). But, if some recognition of (or compensation) for a FUBAR is warranted, I (and/or a very “O influential” TA) will connect with someone who can actually address and handle the problem. Suffice to say that, when ever this situation has happened, we have often (though not always) come away satisfied with the outcome.
 

So, for now, O remains our preferred cruise line.

[jonthomas]

4 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

You have time to cancel the Sept cruise for full refund 

they are other ships sailing to Alaska  

 

 

O is our line of choice. 

[LHT28]

2 minutes ago, jonthomas said:

 

O is our line of choice. 

But if  you do not want tired ships  then you need to change your choice   as they are not going to  upgrade the ship for you

 

[jonthomas]

ok...dont keep beating a dead horse....

 

 

[zalusky]

2 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Regatta (and the other R ships) all had their NEXT redo within the past several years - hardly “tired looking.”

When I said tired I meant architecturally tired.  The carpet/pain/etc were fine.  The Regatta lounge is flat and it's hard to see the entertainers if you are not in the front row.  I had to bend my neck many times even in the so called aisle seat near the center.  There is only a single person bathroom for that lounge.

 

The Horizon lounge has no bathrooms.  You have to go down a floor.

 

The casino was only used about 20% and should be repurposed.

 

There is only one self surface laundry room for the entire ship and was always busy..  They should repurpose some inside cabins on other decks for additional capacity.  

 

I am not happy with the bar situation.  They all make different drink.  One time I wanted a daiquiri and was told only the pool bar has the ingredients for it and it is not open in the evening.  All bars should have access to all ingredients.

 

Personally there were a number of times I was not interested in the main restaurant or the Terrace Grill and just wanted a Waves item but its not open in the evening.

 

Now the staff was excellent and we were lucky enough to have gotten PH room or I would more to complain about.  My only complaint on the entertainment was the strings.  They were just off.  The cruise director and the rest of the entertainment including the guest entertainment was great.

 

We are on Viking next in May and I look forward to compare.  I am not a loyalist.

Edited January 21, 2023 by zalusky

[LHT28]

51 minutes ago, zalusky said:

When I said tired I meant architecturally tired.  The carpet/pain/etc were fine.  The Regatta lounge is flat and it's hard to see the entertainers if you are not in the front row.  I had to bend my neck many times even in the so called aisle seat near the center. 

 

Yes the R ships  have their limitation

 we always sit on the side or the back of the lounge  good sight lines from there

  Now you know about the R ships you can avoid them

 Many people like them  including me

 

Everyone has choices in life

 

[pinotlover]

Just received notification of port modifications for our Dec OZ circumnavigation. Email only includes changes for first leg to Bali. It does not include 2nd leg.

[zalusky]

21 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Just received notification of port modifications for our Dec OZ circumnavigation. Email only includes changes for first leg to Bali. It does not include 2nd leg.

One of my big complaints this year was being in Fremantle during the big New Years week holiday.  Rottnest Island was a disaster packed with locals vacationing.  It looks like 2024 is scheduled later.

 

Good Luck!

[ORV]

On 1/21/2023 at 1:59 PM, zalusky said:

When I said tired I meant architecturally tired.  The carpet/pain/etc were fine.  The Regatta lounge is flat and it's hard to see the entertainers if you are not in the front row.  I had to bend my neck many times even in the so called aisle seat near the center.  There is only a single person bathroom for that lounge.

 

The Horizon lounge has no bathrooms.  You have to go down a floor.

 

The casino was only used about 20% and should be repurposed.

 

There is only one self surface laundry room for the entire ship and was always busy..  They should repurpose some inside cabins on other decks for additional capacity.  

 

I am not happy with the bar situation.  They all make different drink.  One time I wanted a daiquiri and was told only the pool bar has the ingredients for it and it is not open in the evening.  All bars should have access to all ingredients.

 

Personally there were a number of times I was not interested in the main restaurant or the Terrace Grill and just wanted a Waves item but its not open in the evening.

 

Now the staff was excellent and we were lucky enough to have gotten PH room or I would more to complain about.  My only complaint on the entertainment was the strings.  They were just off.  The cruise director and the rest of the entertainment including the guest entertainment was great.

 

We are on Viking next in May and I look forward to compare.  I am not a loyalist.

Perhaps Oceania is not the cruise line for you. While I prefer the O ships it’s important to understand that Oceania was built on the popularity of the R class. The O class is basically an expansion of the R ships with a few additions and fixing some deficits. As well as doubling the size.  Most O loyalists love the R class. It seems lately that we’ve had quite a few posters wanting Oceania to change to what they want it to be instead of what it is. I’m not necessarily an O cheerleader, just an observer. 

[zalusky]

1 hour ago, ORV said:

Perhaps Oceania is not the cruise line for you. While I prefer the O ships it’s important to understand that Oceania was built on the popularity of the R class. The O class is basically an expansion of the R ships with a few additions and fixing some deficits. As well as doubling the size.  Most O loyalists love the R class. It seems lately that we’ve had quite a few posters wanting Oceania to change to what they want it to be instead of what it is. I’m not necessarily an O cheerleader, just an observer. 

I get that but I chose it for the itinerary and I was curious to see if the best food at sea was true.

There really aren't many lines that do the circumnavigation.

 

Hindsight I might have like the Seabourn itinerary better.

 

I am not a loyalist I am willing to try lots of lines to see what they offer. Maybe we will try the O class ship at some point.  I don't mind a small ship but I would bet if O were building an R class ship from scratch they would change quite a few things.

[ORV]

2 minutes ago, zalusky said:

I don't mind a small ship but I would bet if O were building an R class ship from scratch they would change quite a few things.

As I was saying, that is what they did with the O class, kept what worked on the R ships, fixed what didn’t. They are refining that further with the redo of Riviera and the Allure class. All of their ships basic layout and design is based on the R ships. 

[PaulMCO]

16 minutes ago, ORV said:

As I was saying, that is what they did with the O class, kept what worked on the R ships, fixed what didn’t. They are refining that further with the redo of Riviera and the Allure class. All of their ships basic layout and design is based on the R ships. 

like removing Jacques???

[zalusky]

37 minutes ago, ORV said:

As I was saying, that is what they did with the O class, kept what worked on the R ships, fixed what didn’t. They are refining that further with the redo of Riviera and the Allure class. All of their ships basic layout and design is based on the R ships. 

Lets see here what else could they have done in the latest R redo:

• Little or no bathrooms by the two largest lounges on the ship - steal some casino/Horizon space
• Visibility in Regatta lounge is very erratic - maybe raise the stage a little
• One self service laundry room for the entire ship - just steal an inside cabin on another deck

 

Things they could fix now:

• Closing Waves at dinner time when Terrace offerings is less than impressive or you want a mix.
• Lousy Sushi - very dry rice and tiny tiny cuts of sashimi
• Cannot get any drink at any bar - especially since they have different hours

 

Also this has been mentioned in other threads but I seriously wanted an app at times to do quick checks on my reservations / shipboard account / port info and other Currents data.  Having to look at my TV is old school.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 22, 2023 by zalusky

[ORV]

52 minutes ago, zalusky said:

Lets see here what else could they have done in the latest R redo:

• Little or no bathrooms by the two largest lounges on the ship - steal some casino/Horizon space
• Visibility in Regatta lounge is very erratic - maybe raise the stage a little
• One self service laundry room for the entire ship - just steal an inside cabin on another deck

 

Things they could fix now:

• Closing Waves at dinner time when Terrace offerings is less than impressive or you want a mix.
• Lousy Sushi - very dry rice and tiny tiny cuts of sashimi
• Cannot get any drink at any bar - especially since they have different hours

 

Also this has been mentioned in other threads but I seriously wanted an app at times to do quick checks on my reservations / shipboard account / port info and other Currents data.  Having to look at my TV is old school.

 

 

 

 

 

This is simply your perception. I’ll touch on one point, an App is one of the worst things that Oceania could do to destroy their ambience. I just got off a Royal Caribbean cruise where they have a great app. You look around at dinner and 25 or 30 % of the people are sitting there staring at their phone. This is 180 degrees from what Oceania is about.  I’m not not trying to be catty or rude but if you don’t get this then Oceania really may not be the cruise line for you. 
 

ok, I’ll hit another point, plumbing for extra bathrooms in public spaces could get real expensive. 
 

Laundry is available for a price, many cruise lines have no free laundry available, this is one of the things they fixed with the O class. 
 

We could all pick little things that would work better for us, it is what it is, I’m not in charge.  I go, I use the product they have, I accept it for what it is. For every one of these things you don’t like you could find someone else that does like them, or accepts them to enjoy what they do really like. 

 

[zalusky]

1 hour ago, ORV said:

This is simply your perception. I’ll touch on one point, an App is one of the worst things that Oceania could do to destroy their ambience. I just got off a Royal Caribbean cruise where they have a great app. You look around at dinner and 25 or 30 % of the people are sitting there staring at their phone. This is 180 degrees from what Oceania is about.  I’m not not trying to be catty or rude but if you don’t get this then Oceania really may not be the cruise line for you. 
 

ok, I’ll hit another point, plumbing for extra bathrooms in public spaces could get real expensive. 
 

Laundry is available for a price, many cruise lines have no free laundry available, this is one of the things they fixed with the O class. 
 

We could all pick little things that would work better for us, it is what it is, I’m not in charge.  I go, I use the product they have, I accept it for what it is. For every one of these things you don’t like you could find someone else that does like them, or accepts them to enjoy what they do really like. 

 

People aren't staring at their phones to check their account status or request/checking reservations.  They are staring their phones to do a lot of non cruise stuff like read social media or news ...

 

I saw plenty of people looking at their phones on Regatta.

 

I am not suggesting an app to text your other friends on the ship.   Just one example is many times when I am at a port I want to know my reservation times or whats on the ships menu to decide if I should eat in town or go back to the ship.  And yes that means I should be able to access the ships data over the internet and not be limited to accessing it just while on the ship.

 

Regarding plumbing yes thats an issue but not as bad as you think in most cases there are cabins above and below implying plumbing is all around and just has to be connected to.  Taking out an inside cabin and replacing it with a laundry room would be one of the easiest changes they could make.

[Flatbush Flyer]

5 minutes ago, zalusky said:

People aren't staring at their phones to check their account status or request/checking reservations.  They are staring their phones to do a lot of non cruise stuff like read social media or news ...

 

I saw plenty of people looking at their phones on Regatta.

 

I am not suggesting an app to text your other friends on the ship.   Just one example is many times when I am at a port I want to know my reservation times or whats on the ships menu to decide if I should eat in town or go back to the ship.  And yes that means I should be able to access the ships data over the internet and not be limited to accessing it just while on the ship.

 

Regarding plumbing yes thats an issue but not as bad as you think in most cases there are cabins above and below implying plumbing is all around and just has to be connected to.  Taking out an inside cabin and replacing it with a laundry room would be one of the easiest changes they could make.

As others have said: O is a bad choice for you. 

[zalusky]

8 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

As others have said: O is a bad choice for you. 

So first impressions don't matter and its love it or leave it and don't you dare suggest improvements.

Edited January 23, 2023 by zalusky

[Flatbush Flyer]

Just now, zalusky said:

So first impressions don't matter and its love it or leave it.

Believe it or not, YES.

 

Twenty years ago, Frank Del Rio (et al.) founded Oceania with a very specific niche market in mind: in general, adults who are well traveled, know value, are accomplished and who have worked hard for their money. That has translated into a passenger population with a better than 70% repeat rate found on pretty much every cruise. 
AND, many of those repeaters, who had experienced other cruise lines previously have never needed to look back after their first O cruise. Count us among them (at least so far).  
 

Of course, not everything is perfect on board. But, I am convinced that I speak for a lot of regulars who would agree that fixing your pet peeves could come at a cost of decreased attention to the things we don’t want changed (e.g., bottom line food quality, stellar service…..). Put more simply: “don’t fix what ain’t broke.”

 

[AMHuntFerry]

2 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Believe it or not, YES.

 

Twenty years ago, Frank Del Rio (et al.) founded Oceania with a very specific niche market in mind: in general, adults who are well traveled, know value, are accomplished and who have worked hard for their money. That has translated into a passenger population with a better than 70% repeat rate found on pretty much every cruise. 
AND, many of those repeaters, who had experienced other cruise lines previously have never needed to look back after their first O cruise. Count us among them (at least so far).  
 

Of course, not everything is perfect on board. But, I am convinced that I speak for a lot of regulars who would agree that fixing your pet peeves could come at a cost of decreased attention to the things we don’t want changed (e.g., bottom line food quality, stellar service…..). Put more simply: “don’t fix what ain’t broke.”

 

Relative newbies will also agree. I had no interest in cruising other than the NYC-Southampton run on the QM2 until I found Oceania. Now we're hooked.

[zalusky]

1 hour ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Believe it or not, YES.

 

Twenty years ago, Frank Del Rio (et al.) founded Oceania with a very specific niche market in mind: in general, adults who are well traveled, know value, are accomplished and who have worked hard for their money. That has translated into a passenger population with a better than 70% repeat rate found on pretty much every cruise. 
AND, many of those repeaters, who had experienced other cruise lines previously have never needed to look back after their first O cruise. Count us among them (at least so far).  
 

Of course, not everything is perfect on board. But, I am convinced that I speak for a lot of regulars who would agree that fixing your pet peeves could come at a cost of decreased attention to the things we don’t want changed (e.g., bottom line food quality, stellar service…..). Put more simply: “don’t fix what ain’t broke.”

 

I have to disagree.  Why did they redo the rooms recently that cost a lot of money.  They could have spent that all on food.   At a certain point we all die and they have to bring in younger people.

 

I don’t even understand how not having bathrooms next to the Horizon even passed code.  Of course they probably don’t have building codes.

 

Now I am not a complete whiner.  The staff and guests were great.  Everybody was very friendly.  Everytine I sat down I had wonderful conversations.  Even the six plates of snack surprise in our room after the penguin parade was appreciated.

 

Our butler was 0 to 60 in all our needs.

 

However the things I mentioned detracted from my enjoying the cruise.  I was also surprised that given all the hype about the food.  I was somewhat unimpressed except for the Waves grill which I hit many many times.  The Terrace grill had its moments but was also quite repetitive.

[Flatbush Flyer]

17 minutes ago, zalusky said:

….  Of course they probably don’t have building codes.…

LOL