NAUTICA's "Maiden"!.....

[aaannnthony]

.....24 day, Piraeus to Singapore, November 28th....booked it a few days ago....let the roll-call begin!

[Jancruz]

Stu and I are with a group on board, see you there
Jan
*************

[aaannnthony]

Back to page one.....who's aboard?

[KatWag]

Oh boy do I wish.....

The pricing for that trip was incredible!! We got the brochure the other day. If only we were retired we'd have jumped on it in a heartbeat!!!

Can't wait to hear what you all think of it when you get back.

[plimsol]

Add six more. We have all just returned from 12-day Regatta Caribbean cruise that was so very, very good that we've all booked the Athens/Singapore cruise. So looking forward to it. Just hope that any 'technical' problems do not surface as is common on changeovers.

Keep in touch!

[sandy2004]

Glad to see six more cruisers for the Athens-Singapore trip.
FYI-A new board has been created for those interested in sharing info for the inaugural Nautica cruise, November 28, Athens to Singapore.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Oceania-Nautica-11-28-05
For those on this cruise, come on over.
Sandy

[plimsol]

Sandy,
What is the advantage of the Yahoo message board over this CC board? We are very happy with what this board provides. We used this forum for our previous Oceania cruise and found it informative and great way for sharing information. In fact, we were able to meet several of the posters while on the cruise. Look forward to hearing from you.

[sandy2004]

Plimsol,
There is no advantage, nor disadvantage. The Yahoo Oceania board, for me, is easier to navigate, and the new one I posted is for the specific Nov 28 cruise. I check all the various Oceania boards, trying to gather information to help with my planning. This is a wonderful, informative board, and I enjoy all the posts, and I have learned much from all of them. I have not had much luck in researching the ports for the Nov 28 cruise, so had hoped to get some feedback on the other board to help in planning shore trips.
Cruise critic has an area for a rollcall type sign up for members of specific cruises, but Oceania is not one of them. We have the Yahoo board for that specic reason (I guess), and Laura, one of the Cruise Critic monitors, takes care of that board.
Sandy

[ClaudiaF]

Plimsol,
There is no advantage, nor disadvantage. The Yahoo Oceania board, for me, is easier to navigate, and the new one I posted is for the specific Nov 28 cruise. I check all the various Oceania boards, trying to gather information to help with my planning. This is a wonderful, informative board, and I enjoy all the posts, and I have learned much from all of them. I have not had much luck in researching the ports for the Nov 28 cruise, so had hoped to get some feedback on the other board to help in planning shore trips.
Cruise critic has an area for a rollcall type sign up for members of specific cruises, but Oceania is not one of them. We have the Yahoo board for that specic reason (I guess), and Laura, one of the Cruise Critic monitors, takes care of that board.
Sandy
That is not the same Laura ;-)

[sandy2004]

Thanks Claudia, my mistake.

[DonW]

Don & Jo Anne (Jo) from Treasure Island, FL. Mid-fifties and ready to jump from NCL, RCL, Carnival, Princess etc. for a better more upscale but casual experience. We liked Renaissance and have cruised on the Pacific Princess which was the R3, I believe.

Also, like unique itineraries.

From other postings, it seems we don't want transfers (which we declined after significant pressure) and ship excursions. We always prefer our own anyway.

Happy to see this roll call getting underway.

[GrannyLorr]

We attended a Travel Expo last weekend in Brisbane (Australia), and decided to book TWO Nautica cruises back to back. We have never been on a cruise before and now are waiting with baited breath to hear that our cruises have been confirmed. The TA here, said the bookings have to go through the US, so should hear something in the next couple of days.
We have booked the 35 day Hong Kong to Athens on March 31st.(2006) and the 12 day Athens to Istanbul on May 5th.
I will be reading these boards now every day for the next 12 months, for all the tips and hints. One question.....so far it seems to be mostly people from the US on these cruises, does anyone have any idea what the usual mix is? I dont think this line has been marketed here very much.:)

[GrannyLorr]

Well to say I am VERY p***** off, is to put it mildly! Just heard from the TA and have been told the cruise is booked out for the type of room we wanted. Hard to believe, seeing its twelve months away! We had wanted one of the Penthouse rooms, as this was to be our very first cruise, we wanted the best we could afford. Have been told that all we can get is an outside room on Deck 3! Looks like we wont be sailing with Oceana....more research now into other lines.:mad:

[Pismo]

Suggestion - maybe you should consider making a deposit on what's available and try to be waitlisted for a better cabin (sorry, Stateroom in Oceania parlance). It's a long time till the sailing date and I'd guess some openings will come up.
The 35 day cruise has a very nice itinerary, and adding a couple of Aussie voices to the minority from outside North America would be good.

[Druke I]

aaaanthony (sp)

Would love to make that trip, and finally meet up with you, but it is just not in the cards.

We'll be on Oceania's Regatta, in the Baltic, 8-31-05, then on Regal Princess 'round the Horn, Mar 06.

[ClaudiaF]

Wrote in part:
[QUOTE=GrannyLorr
Well to say I am VERY p***** off, is to put it mildly! Just heard from the TA and have been told the cruise is booked out for the type of room we wanted. Hard to believe, seeing its twelve months away! [/QUOTE]

Hard to believe but it seems that with such great itineraries why wouldn't they get sold out? Plus the fact that they are small ships not your 1600 passenger thing.. they will book up much more quickly.
I agree you should grab another cabin and get wauit listed.. you can always cancel.. or maybe you will get lucky and get your cabin in any event.

[GrannyLorr]

Waitlisting is not really an option for us. We have too many arrangements to make, to be able to take a 2 month trip. We had planned on spending some time in Turkey, particularly Galipoli, and probably Dubai, on the way home. Time off work etc just cant be arranged at the last moment. We had also hoped to use some Frequent Flyer points, for at least one of our airfares, but with Qantas, these bookings need to be twelve months in advance to have any chance of a free ticket! I have another TA trying to book something, but Im not holding out much hope. We seem to get a pretty bad deal here with cruises. Hardly any advertising etc. and by the time I find something on the Net its too late! If I want to see some "Pacific Islands" Im sure I could sail tomorrow, but not much else to chose.:(

[SeaCCruiser]

"by the time I find something on the Net it's too late"
Why not log on to something like *************.com, to check new cruise listings and availability. Cruise Calendar is also a good source. www.02cruise.com/cruise_search/CruiseCalendar.asp

[ClaudiaF]

Waitlisting is not really an option for us. We have too many arrangements to make, to be able to take a 2 month trip. We had planned on spending some time in Turkey, particularly Galipoli, and probably Dubai, on the way home. Time off work etc just cant be arranged at the last moment. We had also hoped to use some Frequent Flyer points, for at least one of our airfares, but with Qantas, these bookings need to be twelve months in advance to have any chance of a free ticket! I have another TA trying to book something, but Im not holding out much hope. We seem to get a pretty bad deal here with cruises. Hardly any advertising etc. and by the time I find something on the Net its too late! If I want to see some "Pacific Islands" Im sure I could sail tomorrow, but not much else to chose.:(
Where do you live that you get no advertising?

[GrannyLorr]

Thanks SeaCCruiser, I will check out that link....Claudia I am in Brisbane, Australia. Ive heard recently the Pacific Princess, which does a summer season down here, is being replaced by the larger Dawn Princess, so obviously cruising is becoming more popular. Maybe we will start to get more choices.

[GrannyLorr]

ok...just checked out Cruise Calendar....that only covers to March 2006....thats what I have tried to book and already been told Im too late....BUGGER....off to have a look at Vacations to Go......

[Jancruz]

There will be no one that can get you a Penthouse for that trip..the only thing you can do is see if you can get a waitlist or choose another cruise..

Jan:)
*************

[GrannyLorr]

so Jancruz.........are all Oceania cruises given out to US TA's only to sell? If not, what percentage is available for other nationalities? Are we simply wasting our time even trying?

[meow!]

Oceania usually starts by advertising on their own website at www.oceaniacruises.com You can keep watching that particular website and if you see something you like, show it to your TA. And if your local TAs are not of much help, you can always call Oceania directly (long distance calls are really cheap these days), and if necessary, buy your ticket directly from Oceania. The cruise line will not give you any discount that TAs may (giving you part of their comission), and they may not "pamper" you like your friendly TA (but some TAs are less agreeable than Oceania's staff), but this way, at least you won't "miss the boat"! Hope this helps.

[Jancruz]

so Jancruz.........are all Oceania cruises given out to US TA's only to sell? If not, what percentage is available for other nationalities? Are we simply wasting our time even trying?

Anyone in the world can purchase cabins anytime on Oceania..it is just that this inaugural cruise sold out almost immediately..when I was in South America in January and was trying to email Oceania for a Penthouse for one of my clients on board..I had to wait-list them and that was over 2 months ago..With a limited amount of PH's..anytime you want them you have to book quickly..Oceania does not give cabin allotments to any TA..we book them as we get requests..I can hardly get any cabins at this point for 2005 Europe and Asia cruises on Oceania
Jan:)
*************

[GrannyLorr]

Jancruz, thanks for the info...I would be willing to book 2 years in advance if I could! Just noticed the Oceania site has cruises listed up to 20 months in advance...but no LONG ones...have to keep searching!

[aaannnthony]

Sorry, but just realized in reading this thread that I had not noted that we had to cancel because of a "family matter" conflict in early December 2005.

However, waiting to see if the same itinerary will be posted for 2006. At this time, Nautica's 2006 schedule only goes through November 27th at Istanbul. We're booked on the 11/15-27, Rome to Istanbul, looking to do the b-2-b!

[kcb55]

We are so thrilled to be on this cruise. It almost didnt' happen as it was sold out and I was able to get a room through a very special cruise specialist. I think there was a cancellation and I think we got the last room. It was just meant to be....

I have been working on setting up tours as we like to do our own as my husband is on crutches and it is easier for him to get in car rather than buses. I am in the middle of gathering all kinds of info for the different ports. As I get good stuff, will let others here know as well.

Looking forward to hearing from all of you that are on this cruise. We have been on Oceania in the past several times and just love the ship. In fact we cancelled another cruise just so we could go on again with Oceania. We have pretty much traveled the world with them....lots of great stories.

[mercury51]

i am booked on maiden voyage the athens to singapore nautica my cabin mate is ready to bail totally straight but is anyone interested in sharing i will go anyway just would like to save some money

[plimsol]

There have been no postings since June and it is now August. Where are all the previous posters? I know we have not posted in some time so here goes.

Our group originally consisted of 6 but we are down to 4. We are now in the process of obtaining visas, etc. As we (Don and Grace) have been to Athens twice before, we decided to arrive the day the ship sails but our friends, Bill and Brenda, are going the day before. We are all looking forward to this cruise although we, D/G, have previously done a 26-day cruise and B/B, have done a 29-day cruise. We sure wish that Oceania would get information on Muscat and Dubai but we have been looking on the internet and there is much information to be gleaned from this source. Try www.tripadvisor.com (http://www.tripadvisor.com) for Egypt.
Keep in touch!!
D/G & B/B

[Jane110]

Where do you live that you get no advertising?

Claudia,

GrannyLorr lives in Brisbane, Australia.

Jane

[Jayayeff]

We sure wish that Oceania would get information on Muscat and Dubai but we have been looking on the internet and there is much information to be gleaned from this source. D/G & B/B

What kind of information are you looking for? I live in Dubai and have been into Oman several times too. I know there are several Dubai tourist info websites, I'll look some up for you and post again later. They should give you quite a bit of general info, anything specific please ask and I'll help if I can. Only a week before I leave for my Insignia Med. cruise, but will be back in Dubai from the 30th August..
Anne

[Jayayeff]

What kind of information are you looking for? I live in Dubai and have been into Oman several times too. I know there are several Dubai tourist info websites, I'll look some up for you and post again later. They should give you quite a bit of general info, anything specific please ask and I'll help if I can. Only a week before I leave for my Insignia Med. cruise, but will be back in Dubai from the 30th August..
Anne

For information on Dubai try the following:
The official Dubai Dept. of Tourism website www.dubaitourism.ae (http://www.dubaitourism.ae) which in addition to info on Dubai also has a section dedicated to the brand new cruise terminal where the ship will dock
Others sites with general info are www.dubaicityguide.com (http://www.dubaicityguide.com) or www.dreamdubai.com (http://www.dreamdubai.com)
If you're interestedin taking organised excursions available in and around Dubai have a look at www.arabianadventures.com (http://www.arabianadventures.com)
Also if you go to the reviews page of Cruise Critic and then to Africa/Middle East in Destinations there is a review written by someone who was on a cruise that called in Dubai last winter and a seperate review on the city of Dubai.
For Oman the official tourism website is www.destinationoman.com (http://www.destinationoman.com)
Hope you find the sites helpful and enjoy your short stay in Dubai when you get here.
Anne

[DREUX]

Hello Aaannnthony,

This reply is not regarding this thread, but was unable to email you directly. I met you on board QM2 back in May and I have noticed from this board that you seem quite sold on Oceania'a product. I have just booked the Nov 27, 2005 sailing from Barcelona to Rio on Insigna, just a day before you leave on the Nautica's maiden voyage so I guess we will both be in Europe at the same time but heading in opposite directions. This will be our first sailing with Oceania. We have booked a Cat D cabin, low and mid ship, hoping we do not hit really rough seas. How do the small Oceania ships handle rough seas as we are doing a crossing southbound? What is it about Oceania that has sold you on thier product? What can I expect on the Insigna, is Oceania really coming close to the Crystal & SIlver Seas experience? Any feedback about Oceania you can provide would be appreciated as I respect your judgement. Also anyone else's feedback would be welcome as well. Thanks and Bon Voyage, I, for one will be counting the days.

Doug

[plimsol]

A special thanks for Jayayeff (Anne). You have given excellent websites. I have given them a quick once over and will give them more time in the next few days. The destination review was very informative. Again, THANKS!!!
D/G

[DonW]

A few updates.

I requested and received air deviation with no problem. Plan to tour inland Greece by car for a week so am departing US on Nov 20 with arrival in Athens on Nov 21.

Departing Singapore on Dec 23.

Deviation fee is $100 for both of us.

Booked rental car for week in Greece via Thrifty for $172 for the week with std transmission and compact car.

Booked Ledra Athens Marriott Hotel for Nov 27 via Priceline at $75 + $16.60 tax/service fee for a total of $91.60.

Don W.

[Kruiserkate]

Hello:

My husband, John and I are booked on the maiden voyage of Nautica. Also our friends, Roy and Rita (who live in Seattle) but we are all originally English.
We recently returned from two months in England and R and R are still there until September 12th. So I am now ready to concentrate on this cruise.

Last week we received a letter from Oceania (forwarded to us by our TA) saying we all had to obtain visas for Egypt, Oman and India and that we could get all three through Zierer for $349 each person. We had previously been told by our TA that Oceania would be getting blanket visas for passengers going ONLY on their tours. We had thought that in Oman (we are only there 8 1/2 hours) and India we would definately go on Oceania's tours and not get visas thereby saving $120 each. I spoke to our TA today and he said everyone must have the three visas when they board in Athens. Is this the same story that everyone is getting?

Also, what is the distance between the port of Singapore and the airport? We have done it once before but can't really remember. Oceania wants $70 each for the transfers ($280 for 4 seems high). We could surely get a taxi for less.

Final payments are due August 16th. I could also add a bit about air deviations for our return flights but will save that for another post.

Kathy

[bobiv]

We booked this cruise last Christams. Looking forward to meeting everybody.

Our son and family moved to Japan last year, so we are trying to get to Asia once or twice a year. We were going to stop in Japan after leaving the cruise, but our son found out we were going to be some place warm, so they have decided to meet us in Singapore. We're planning on spending Christmas in Penang. We will probably take the train up. It looks to be an interesting trip. We plan on spending New Years Eve in Singapore, before flying home early on Jan 1.

We are arriving in Athens on Nov 26, staying at the Athenaeum Intercontinental. We've been to Greece before, but will probably still arrange a tour or two from the hotel.

There has been a bit of discussion on the Yahoo board about changes in the Visa Requirement. This was posted on the 6th in a note there.

> From: "Customer Info" <CustomerInfo@o...>
> To: "P & P BAKER" <prb@r...>
> Sent: Tuesday, August 30, 2005 1:16 AM
> Subject: RE: nautica 25/11 visa policy - OMAN
>
>
> Hello again:
>
> We have received a reply from our Product Development Department,
and they
> advise:
>
> "A visa is no longer required for Oman. We are adjusting our
current visa
> package."
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Oceania Cruises
> www.OceaniaCruises.com (http://www.OceaniaCruises.com)
> Your World. Your Way.
>

[aaannnthony]

"Bumped" forward to facilitate the new "Maiden" thread!!

[Garmed]

Judy and Don here. We just booked last week (see above LOL) We are very excited as have been looking for this itinerary for some time. Don't know how we missed seeing it before now!

[dallasite]

We're on the Nautica's inaugural cruise also, and hope to see some of you.
Dorman and Frances Cordell
Dallas, Texas

[Garmed]

Jancruz We booked this cruise 2 weeks ago from an email we received. We did get the last cabin with a veranda but deck four was still available. Grannylorr, you should sign up to receive emails from Oceania. I also read that you can book two adjoining cabins sometimes and ask that one be converted to living room furniture and they will do that if a penthouse is not available.

[plimsol]

Go to www.traveltrade.com/ (http://www.traveltrade.com/) and on left hand side go down to search and type in "Nautica", and then click on search. When new page comes up, go to #3 - "Nautica will introduce new design for Oceania".

This information came out on August 18 so, perhaps, we are not up-to-date on our cruising searches. Hopefully they do not change it too much as we thought the Regatta on our February '05 cruise was absolutely fine. As of now, I believe this ship is in drydock or heading there. Does anyone know?

D/G

[Garmed]

Thanks for the information about the upgrades. I hate it when they have different 'classes' on ships. That is why I like Crystal. If you are staying in the Penthouse or Inside Cabin, all passengers are treated the same. There is a special line for embarkation but no special time and anyone can book in the alternative restaurants as much as they want. Now Oceania wants to add special cabanas. La-de-da, I say! We should all boycott this idea.

[isabella52]

I am anxious to hear all about the Nautica's maiden voyage: restaurants, cabanas, etc.
Can anyone tell me about ste # 6088?
Thanks, & hope your trip is wonderful!
:)

[ClaudiaF]

Thanks for the information about the upgrades. I hate it when they have different 'classes' on ships. That is why I like Crystal. If you are staying in the Penthouse or Inside Cabin, all passengers are treated the same. There is a special line for embarkation but no special time and anyone can book in the alternative restaurants as much as they want. Now Oceania wants to add special cabanas. La-de-da, I say! We should all boycott this idea.

Anyone can book the cabanas if they want to spend that money to do so.. it is not just for certain cabins only.

[Jancruz]

I also read that you can book two adjoining cabins sometimes and ask that one be converted to living room furniture and they will do that if a penthouse is not available


I am not sure where you heard that but it is not true!
Jan
*************

[ClaudiaF]

Oceania had mentioned that in one of their brochures ( I think that is where I also read that) Jan.:)

[Jancruz]

Hi Claudia,
You know meI asked the VP and he said absolutely not..so you know as much as I do..LOL
Jan
*************

[Jayayeff]

For information on Dubai try the following:
The official Dubai Dept. of Tourism website www.dubaitourism.ae (http://www.dubaitourism.ae) which in addition to info on Dubai also has a section dedicated to the brand new cruise terminal where the ship will dock
Others sites with general info are www.dubaicityguide.com (http://www.dubaicityguide.com) or www.dreamdubai.com (http://www.dreamdubai.com)
If you're interestedin taking organised excursions available in and around Dubai have a look at www.arabianadventures.com (http://www.arabianadventures.com)
Also if you go to the reviews page of Cruise Critic and then to Africa/Middle East in Destinations there is a review written by someone who was on a cruise that called in Dubai last winter and a seperate review on the city of Dubai.
For Oman the official tourism website is www.destinationoman.com (http://www.destinationoman.com)
Hope you find the sites helpful and enjoy your short stay in Dubai when you get here.
Anne

Bumped for Jan to check if any of these links that I gave to people who stopped in Dubai in Dec. 2005 are helpful..

Anne

Anne