Cabin 8024

[squeakers]

Anyone know anything good or bad about this small cabin tucked away in the suites. We have booked it for Regatta Baltic 22 Jul.

This is a valuable forum, even with the grumblers!

[Jancruz]

What would you like to know..it is a great cabin exactly like all the other A's on a wonderful deck and midship..

Jan
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[squeakers]

Thanks Jan for your reply. We've just discovered this vehicle for info and have been reading everything. I have been very excited about our July 20th booking to Baltic. After reading some of these messages, however, I'm beginning to doubt the level of service and comfort on Regatta. Am I being too gullible with what I'm reading? Also, are the passengers mostly elderly-we are 59 and young ones at that. We realize the evenings will be very quiet but with our active itinerary we thought that would be ok. Is it terribly quiet every night? We are also deciding on side trips in St. Petersburg and find too many choices. Any suggestions for most interesting ones without being repetitive in what we see. Also how do we find out other passengers who have booked our cruise? :) Thanks, Judy

[Zimmy]

I was on the Regatta last year at exactly the same time as you are going. You have chosen the perfect time for a Baltic cruise. The weather was outstanding - we had 14 days of paradise. Do not doubt the level of comfort and service on the Regatta. It is wonderful - there are just a lot of grumblers. We booked another cruise while we were onboard and the future cruise consultant told us that some of the people who were complaining about everything were also booking more cruises - go figure. You will have a wonderful time.
And by the way, we are in our mid-fifties, and most of the passengers were our contemporaries. You can never really know what the passenger mix will be, but don't assume that it will be elderly.

[joan24]

Welcome back, Jan. It's wonderful to see your posts again. You have been missed and our thoughts are with you and Stu. I'm sure that you are glad to be home. You are so generous with your information and I am so appreciative of all you've done on this post and Yahoo.
Joan

[ClaudiaF]

The shows were always packed when we were on in Feb. The quiet late night spot was the disco ..but I guess everyone was pooped ( except us..)

[squeakers]

thanks for all your responses. We are reassured that it will be wonderful. I didn't think they really had shows in the evening so that's a surprise. Any suggestions for side trips in St. Petersburg. Any recxomendations for other side trips while on the baltic trip? We will book thru ship since we won't need a visa. There are just so many choices. Thanks.

[joan24]

Hi,
We used Red October for tours in St. Petersburg in June. They are a great company and you don't need a visa if you tour with them. They will take care of everything. You can post on this board to find others on your cruise. The Yahoo board is also a good place to post. I was able to find people on our cruise to share a private tour and decrease the amount per person. I also did this for our May, Venice to Bacelona, cruise on the Regatta. Have a wonderful cruise.
Joan

[squeakers]

Hi Joan,

Thanks for the info, again. How far in advance did you book with Red October for your St. Petersburg tour? Did you follow their tours or did you help design the itinerary? One more thing, do you need to find others to fill the car or just book for yourselves? How did you get in touch with Red October? Thanks for all your help. First timers, can you tell? Judy:)

[chicagogal]

We took Regatta last Sept in the Med and had wonderful food and service and a great time. We always found PLENTY to do. I am 52 and my husband is 57. Many were in our same age range. Hope this helps.

Patty



Thanks Jan for your reply. We've just discovered this vehicle for info and have been reading everything. I have been very excited about our July 20th booking to Baltic. After reading some of these messages, however, I'm beginning to doubt the level of service and comfort on Regatta. Am I being too gullible with what I'm reading? Also, are the passengers mostly elderly-we are 59 and young ones at that. We realize the evenings will be very quiet but with our active itinerary we thought that would be ok. Is it terribly quiet every night? We are also deciding on side trips in St. Petersburg and find too many choices. Any suggestions for most interesting ones without being repetitive in what we see. Also how do we find out other passengers who have booked our cruise? :) Thanks, Judy

[squeakers]

Thanks Patty. That was good news. Judy

[brian_uk]

We have 8026 in June and think all the PH1's arethe same size 322 sq ft inc balcony.

We have never tried Oceania before and are looking forward to the trip.

[baffles]

Squeakers. We just had cabin number 8024 on the Feb. 20th, 12 day Miami to Miami cruise. With only two A1 catagory cabins on deck eight, we thought it would be a great spot. And as expected it was great.

The room stewards (1 male/1female) were the BEST ever in 8 cruises. Monica was the girls name. If my wife could have put her in the suitcase to come home with us, she would have. They kept the room in super shape. The room is in the center, basicly, so getting to the front or back of the ship was a breeze. Elevators were close enough. You'll love the room.

As far as the cruise and the ship, they were both what we thought a small ship would be like. We will do Oceania again, although we will move up to a PH1 or VS catagory.................

Enjoy.............:D

[Jancruz]

Thanks Jan for your reply. We've just discovered this vehicle for info and have been reading everything. I have been very excited about our July 20th booking to Baltic. After reading some of these messages, however, I'm beginning to doubt the level of service and comfort on Regatta. Am I being too gullible with what I'm reading? Also, are the passengers mostly elderly-we are 59 and young ones at that. We realize the evenings will be very quiet but with our active itinerary we thought that would be ok. Is it terribly quiet every night? We are also deciding on side trips in St. Petersburg and find too many choices. Any suggestions for most interesting ones without being repetitive in what we see. Also how do we find out other passengers who have booked our cruise? :) Thanks, Judy

Hi Judy,
Tho I am older than you..I have been on the ships 8 times already and have loved every cruise..I am not sure who it is you read that was not happy with Regatta..but I am surprised as almost everyone loves these size ships..Service is outstanding, food incredible and entetainment very acceptable..the social staff put on several shows that are wonderful in addition to other performers, speakers and movies..I find younger and older on every cruise and all have a great time..I also took Red October in St. Petersberg and I am sure you will find other couples to join you..that are on your trip..
Let me know if you need any other info..:)
Jan
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[FanJan]

We took this cruise late last June & loved it. We had a late night crowd almost every night - remember you are in the land of the White Nights & it seems to keep people up & active much later than usual.

I would like to recommend one particular shore excursion offered by O in St. Petersburg - Grand Imperial Evening of the Tsars. It takes place after the palace closes to the general public, so we were really able to appreciate the beautiful rooms, especially the Amber Room. We were with the on-board lecturer who had been to the palace many times & she was just blown away by having the palace to ourselves!

You will just love this cruise!!!! FanJan

[squeakers]

Jan , Your reply is so exciting. thanks. Which Red October private tours would you recommend? Did you do the custom or just private tour?
Baffles, I'm glad to hear the news about the stewards for that cabin. Can't wait.
Brian, thanks. Although we are next to your cabin, we are an A1 which I'm hoping will be fine.
Fanjan, we will probably take that Tzar tour -it sounds terrific. Any others you suggest? Judy
Joan, thanks. Red October it is. I am looking them up today. Did you use the usa office or go directly to russain branch for your arrangements with the company? I definitely do not need to get my own visa if I book through them, right? thanks, judy

[Jancruz]

[QUOTE=squeakers]Jan , Your reply is so exciting. thanks. Which Red October private tours would you recommend? Did you do the custom or just private tour?

I suggest you write to Laura at Red October..tell her you know me and ask for a few custom itineraries and she will be happy to send them to you..ask for a price for at least 4 as you can always find another couple to go from this board..
Regards,:)
Jan
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[squeakers]

thanks, Jan. I will write to Laura. I hope to hear from some others going on our cruise.

[squeakers]

Hi Jan, Is Laura on the usa or russia side of red october? thanks, judy

[joan24]

Judy,
Laura is on the Russian side of Red October.
Joan

[Jancruz]

Laura is the Managing Director of Red October in St. Pete.

Jan
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[squeakers]

thanks, Jan and Joan. I'll write to her this weekend. Judy:)

[ARTGRL]

WISH YOU were with US on our trip instead- we are on the March 16th- we are the same age as you.............our experience has been that we are amongst the youngest- last cruise we saw no one even close (tg we were with friends)....! Oh well, maybe another time!

[squeakers]

how was your march 16th cruise? where'd you go? hoping this one in july will be the first of many others for us. husband never cruised before. i did ions ago. we hope ours will have some like ages but whatever we'ree still excited about it. judy:)

[shoshona2]

Hi Squeakers,

Wow, I now feel so old. We were on the Regatta in 2003, did the Infinity for S.A. (Celebrity) in 2004, we are booked for the Insignia in July for the Black Sea and will be on the Nautica doing Asia in March 2006. We just returned from a week in New Orleans and have air plane e-tickets for Las Vegas, Boston, Philadelphia, and Miami (twice) up in the closet ready to go. My husband just returned from Africa several weeks ago. Since I'm older than your 59 (7 years), does that make me "elderly" ? We closed every dining room on our Baltic tour in 2003 on the Regatta and still got up early to sightsee. We found friends younger than us and older than us and had a fantastic time. If you were on a ship where everyone had suites and were paying more than twice as much as we are, maybe you could call it a "mostly elderly" makeup of passengers.

Lighten up and enjoy your cruise!
Sheila

[calexand]

We are currently booked into 8027 (A1) on the Nautica. With the 2 for 1 deal going on for our sailing should we change to PH3. From deck plans that I've seen the PH3 are diffently not mid ship but certainly larger....Bottom line is the extra cost worth the extra room.

[Zimmy]

The penthouse rooms are definitely larger. And if it's important to you, the bathtub certainly adds value, although the bathroom is still very small. We have been in cruises in both types of rooms. What we've found is that when we travel with others, we're never in our room and the A room is fine. But when we travel by ourselves we find that the penthouse suite is worth the extra money.

[meow!]

The PHs are exactly 1.5 times the size of A's and Bs overall (this applies to the balcony too). They have the same length and 1.5 times the width.

Whether the PHs are worth it depends on several factors:
1. the price difference - this varies with itinerary, the upcharge may vary, from $50 per diem to $110 per diem, roughly
2. the length of your cruise - the longer it is, the more you are likely to feel that you need more space, but then the more you have to pay
3. are you the type that will spend a lot of time in your cabin or not
4. what you are used to - if you are used to standard cabins on mass market ships, then the A's and Bs are "standard fare", on the other hand, if you are used to boutique ships, then the PHs are the only ones that are somewhat comparable
5. what will you do with the money saved - 2x$700 to 2x$1500 for a couple can get you another one-week cruise on another line a few months later!

Hope this helps.

[2dogcarol]

Hi Sheila,

Remember me? Carol and her mother, Pat, from the Infinity. Mom and I are looking to take our first Oceania cruise next year. We are thinking about the 16 day Barcelona to Stockholm on the Regatta. Funny thing is, when we booked our first cruise together in 2001, the ship was with Renaissance and the cruise was cancelled when they went bankrupt. Mom says we may be going full circle. We just returned from the Sapphire Princess in Australia. It was a wonderful cruise but we didn't think Princess was quite up to par with Celebrity. Since I've seen you last I have also been to England, France, and the Dominican Republic with my husband. Sounds like you and your DH have been keeping busy. I have been emailing Ellis and Dena as they are thinking of taking the Australian cruise next year. It is fun to come across old friends on cruise critic. Enjoy your travels.

Carol

[Jane110]

Which Red October private tours would you recommend? Did you do the custom or just private tour?

Squeakers,

Laura at Red October will give you a suggested itinerary and then you can modify it if you'd like.

Red October and Denrus are both outstanding tour companies for St. Petersburg. I used Red October, however, everyone that went with Denrus raved about them also.

You can try to find another couple, or two, who will be on your cruise to share the costs of you can use them alone, which of course will be more expensive. We had a group of 4 which we we felt was the perfect number.

I think you'll love your Oceania cruise. We've been on two and hope to go on another, perhaps next year. The ships are very pretty, the service is wonderful and the food is great. The evening entertainment is fine with me - it's lowkey - but then, I'm not a huge fan of the big production numbers that the big ships have. I'm in my 40's and enjoy the passengers of all ages that Oceania attracts.

Jane

[shoshona2]

Hi Carol,

I just viewed your email and said, "That's Carol from our Infinity S.A. cruise!" We had cabin 7121 for our Baltic Cruise in 2003 and loved it. We tried to get it for our Black Sea Cruise in July, but couldn't. We did prevail for the Asian March 16th on the Nautica. Dee and Mike from Rochester are also booked for the Asian cruise with us and they have the aft cabin above us. So glad you have been traveling a lot. We took an Asian Tour with Tauck in October adn Irwin just returned from Tanzania with his brother. Do you still have my email address? I lost yours when my computer crashed. How is your mom doing? Have they rebuilt the area where she lives? Please send her my best wishes. You will love the Oceania -- we did and thus rebooked for two more.
Sheila

[2dogcarol]

Hi Sheila,

Mom and I booked the Stockholm to London cruise in June of 2006. Did you go to any of these cities on your Baltic cruise- Tallin, St. Petersburg, Helsinki,
Gdansk, Copenhagen, Berlin, Amsterdam, and Bruges? I'm hoping that as the time gets closer we might find some other couples to do the Red October tours. I really like the large ships, like the Infinity and the Sapphire. I didn't care for Seabourne-too small. I'm hoping that the Oceania will be an acceptable size. We were really blown away by the itinerary and the free air clinched it for us. Since it is so port intensive I'll probably be too tired to party into the night anyway. I am going to miss the traditional seating but it's always fun to try something new. If you have any info or suggestions on any of these ports you can email me at bncvance@charter.net.

Carol

[karonius]

Just wondering if anyone has any updates on cabin 8024? My main questions are about noise from above, pool area, and next door as it is a connecting stateroom. Thanks

[Druke I]

Five year old thread! Wow!!

Sorry, can't help you. Good luck.

[karonius]

Thought I would drum up an old thread instead of starting another. I just hope someone has some updated information.

[LHT28]

Just wondering if anyone has any updates on cabin 8024? My main questions are about noise from above, pool area, and next door as it is a connecting stateroom. Thanks

Any noise from connecting staterooms would depend on who your neighbours ;)

[karonius]

We have this stateroom and wondering if we should see if any other A-1 staterooms are available on deck 7. Any recommendations on which A-1 cabin would be better? Or, should be just let it be..?

[Globe]

Also had cabin 8024 ( needed midship due to motion issues and all those cabins on deck 7 were occupied ) on a Panama Canal cruise a few yrs. ago and had some problems with noise coming from the pool deck. On quite a few occasions we would here the banging and scraping of the deck loungers above in the very early morning, as the crew were setting things up for the day. We had to bring this to their attention a number to times before they made an effort to be more careful when moving furniture around etc.

Keeping in mind that I am a fairly light sleeper, this might not have been a problem for those that sleep very soundly. We had no issues with noise coming from the connecting door though.

On our next cruise though I opted to make sure we had midship on Deck 7 and this worked out well. Will be in the same location on our next cruise in Spring '11