Cruseforme

I do not have a copy, but just asked our friends who have stayed in the OV cabins on Marina last year, and they said that the door handle/slot menu for the B-G cabins do not even list hot breakfast items.  Just cold items, coffee, tea, juice.   However, you can order hot items from the actual room service menu books (the 24 hour offerings), just no breakfast (if that makes sense)!   

Sorry, I can’t help you, but I haven’t stopped laughing since I read your last statement!   The best laugh in a while, thanks!    

I do not know if you can outright prepay them, however, if your TA or Oceania says no, try adding via an onboard gift!!   Give it to yourself!    Here is a link to the information about bon voyage gifts.  It is $100 for a $100 OBC gift!  And I would guess you can buy multiples, so here is a solution!   Enjoy!!   

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/documents/bonvoyagegifts/26643/Bon-Voyage-Gifts.pdf

52 minutes ago, glenneagle said:

We were on the same cruise. We were at a shared table one night with the couple who brought the 6 suitcases.It was there first and last Oceania cruise.They have only done Crystal.They were not happy as they each brought a case each of formal attire and no one was dressed up.They obviously did not do their re search.. and O is just not for them. We do miss the cold towels and water Celebrity has, but we prefer O now that we are a bit older.......

 

 

We are on our 3rd Crystal Cruise, and on a 10 day, you usually have one black tie optional night and more for more days onboard, but, in our experience, aprox 10% or less wear actual formal wear, the rest are in various stages of nicer dress (ie., jacket, jacket/tie, or suit for men and cocktail short dress, or dark slacks for women).   6 suitcases is more than you would need for an around the world cruise!    So even on Crystal, they may be in the minority, sounds like they just like to dress formally,  which should be NBD, dress if you want on any line!  But if you are expecting formal, Nowadays, you may be surprised on most.     Of course, YMMV.   

The dress code for Crystal shows:

Black Tie Optional Attire 

A Black Tie Optional evening offers a celebratory opportunity to dress more formally on a special evening(s). For men, this includes a dark suit with tie, or tuxedo; for women, this includes a formal cocktail dress, evening gown or dressy evening separates. On Black Tie Optional evenings, we request at least a jacket to be worn by men and a dress, skirt or dress slacks and blouse or sweater to be worn by women. Jeans may not be worn in any dining venues or lounges, including the Casino, on Black Tie Optional evenings.

Isn’t this a duplicate post?   See original...

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2652450-4-of-us-sharing-a-balcony-room/?tab=comments#comment-57208597

is there anything else we can discuss, that wasn’t discussed the first time?   

We used to do a TA, spend time in Europe either doing a river cruise, or self tour for 2-3 weeks, then fly back.   We actually lived in Germany for awhile and took a TA over the first time!   It was actually before everything got so clogged up with Tourism, so a wonderful way to see Europe, and have a great slow trip over (and once back).   Now, I would never consider doing that with all the crowds.   We like the fact that we had many sea days to relax!   

The only sit down per se is Waves, where you order burgers, surf/Turf, Mahi, etc grilled to order and they deliver to table.   It does become crowded, so be aware.  The best solution is to board later (eat a lunch locally in area), and come aboard at your leisure later.   No fuss, no muss, no lines, just a very relaxing day!  

   If you are doing  b2b or Grand Voyage, those folks have a plated lunch in either the GDR or Specialty restaurant, with invite only.    

Without context, it is usually Guarantee - as in, a guarantee’d cabin in the class vs an actual cabin number when you book your cruise.   Mass mkt cruiselines sell these cabins at a lessor price, because you take a shot at either getting a cabin nobody else wanted in that class booked, or possibly a higher level cabin.   Premium plus and luxury cruiselines guarantee that you will be on the cruise, the level booked or higher, and are usually not sold until all other cabins are percentagely sold (but before a waitlist).  

I am so glad it all worked out!   We have been traveling for 9 years with our Inogen(s), and it is a new lease on life for my DH.   Enjoy your freedom!   

3 hours ago, OCruisers said:

Is permission from the cruise line needed to bring your own Inogen unit & extra batteries?

 

Permission, no...awareness, yes.   You need to inform them that you are bringing any oxygen concentrator (whether POC or full size) onboard.   This is for safety reasons, in case of any emergency, they are aware there is an oxygen patient in xxx cabin or suite.   Please call the cruise line special needs number (or have your TA inform them) to make them aware of this.   

They hand out party favors, hats, and noisemakers at dinner in all venues.   We have always eaten at a specialty restaurant for New Years Eve, so cannot comment on special dinner in GDR.  At aprox 11 or so, they bring out the small band on deck, and you can dance and “party” (kinda low key) until midnight.   They hand out complimentary champagne (at least they did last year), at midnight, and slowly wind down.   I think most went to bed fairly soon after midnight.    Not a wild party scene, just nice.   Some said the next day, that there were snack items around the pool also (we didn’t see them, but weren’t looking either).    

To compare perks, prices, itineraries, suites and lines, you should get a good TA.  Any good TA will build you a simple spreadsheet with info.   

 see the T&C’s:

DAYS PRIOR
TO CRUISE SAIL DATE - CANCELLATION AMOUNT

• 91-120 Days Prior - $250 per person administrative fee++
• 76-90 Days Prior - 25% of Fare
• 61-75 Days Prior - 50% of Fare
• 31-60 Days Prior - 75% of Fare
• 0-30 Days Prior - 100% of Fare

Cruises of more than 15 days except 180-Day Voyages: 

DAYS PRIOR 
TO CRUISE SAIL DATE - CANCELLATION AMOUNT 

• 151-180 Days Prior - $250 per person administrative fee++
• 121-150 Days Prior - 25% of Fare
• 91-120 Days Prior - 50% of Fare
• 61-90 Days Prior - 75% of Fare
• 0-60 Days Prior - 100% of Fare

180-Day Voyages

DAYS PRIOR
TO CRUISE SAIL DATE - CANCELLATION AMOUNT

• Deposit-181 Days Prior - $500 per person 
• 151-180 Days Prior - 25% of Fare
• 121-150 Days Prior - 50% of Fare
• 91-120 Days Prior - 75% of Fare
• 0-90 Days Prior - 100% of Fare

For Owner's, Vista and Oceania Suites, the cancellation amounts are as listed above with two exceptions: For cruises of less than 15 days, the administrative fee from 91 to 120 days prior to sailing is 10% of the Fare; and for cruises 15 days or longer, the administrative fee from 151 to 180 days prior to sailing is 10% of the Fare. 

++The Administrative Fee may be converted to a Future Cruise Credit redeemable on bookings made up to 12 months after cancellation date and for travel within 2 years of date of issue. 

I think your spellcheck is correcting your typing!   It’s Regent.   As in Regent Seven Seas.  

43 minutes ago, Shawnino said:

 

I keep reading this from different people.

I'm not going to say that everyone's mistaken, but when I go price out cruises I'm actually interested in and try to apples-to-apples it as best I can (similar cabins; adding on to the O price for shore-ex; etc.), the luxury lines still come out 50% more expensive than O.

 

What am I missing? Is it certain itineraries, certain times of year, what? 

Our TA (luxury TA), keeps a watch for us, we tell her times of the year we want to cruise, she gives us options of itinerary, lines and suites, (as well as the rebates, and OBC).    I think it’s certain itineraries (September in Alaska, or May in Alaska, different times in Orient, or Europe, etc).   So,deals can be found, but you need to have either a sharp eye for comparison, a bit more leeway on times and places, or a great TA to help.   For us, it’s no longer the itinerary, its the experience of getting out and enjoying life while we are able to.  

1 hour ago, TERRIER1 said:

I think you accurately and very well summarized the situation. When I started sailing on Oceania in 2008 I raved about the line to one and all and it was our go to cruise line. Times have changed and so has Oceania. It is in the mix but no longer a first choice. If you look at the reviews on CC over the years they tell the same story. In the beginning, all the reviews were stellar and now they have declined significantly. Today it it a matter of itinerary and value before I consider Oceania whereas in the past I wouldn't have reason to really look at another cruise line. I have noticed cost cutting over the last several years as well as an attitude change in the wonderful staff. 

+1 .  Actually Regent and Crystal have been offering great deals, which make them the same price as Oceania.  That’s how we first switched to luxury, and they IMHO, provide an upscale total pkg.  

There is a reason Luxury cruises cost more.  The adage is, “you get what you pay for” comes to mind.   There are classes of cruiselines, ie., mass market (NCL, RCCL, CARN...etc), premium (Celebrity, Hal),  premium plus (or luxury lite ..Azamara, Viking Ocean, Oceania), and luxury classes..(Regent, Crystal, Seabourn, Silversea, etc).  It makes sense that when you are on a luxury line, your meals are also better than the Mass Mkt lines.  As the majority of the posters on CC are mass mkt cruisers, OP probably needs to clarify.   This is high subjective.    For us, we progressed from mass mkt, to premium, to premium plus, and now lux, and find that Seabourn to us has the best food for a non charter cruise, but YMMV.   

24 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

I was a workaholic dedicated to my job. I worked Mon to Friday at times from 7AM to 7 PM and many weekends as well. I rarely took personal days .Although I could have taken 5 weeks vacation every year the most I ever took was 10 days.

In all the years I worked I only took 2 cruises.HUGE mistake.

If I could live my life all over again work would be a second option.

 

we never wanted to say “ I wish I ..Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda..” we lived for our vacations, and went everywhere and did our safari’s, glaciers, exploring and traveling the world early in life. So glad we did, as life is so unpredictable, you never know when or if a situation should occur that renders you limited to travel,  no matter what the age.   It sure made us realize how lucky we were!  So instead of wallowing about what we can’t do, we celebrate in what we did do!   

Try looking at exploration cruises.    They are for the adventurous, and we found them to be exciting!    You can get up close and personal (ie, Galapagos, Antarctica, etc).   We used to take this type of cruise (uncruise), years ago when we were bored!   There is a CC forum you might find more information on:  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/55-eco-amp-expedition-cruising/

I am heartbroken, and told our good friend who is GF, and will be on the Marina again next month.  She has always filled out the forms the night before (what is available), and turned them in and received exactly what she checked off.   I told her your experience with not having your selections available, and she was devastated, and may end up bringing things so she can eat snacks etc.  Last cruise we were on, (last Fall), the Chef brought out not only the cookies and pastries she selected, but also other options for the table to try.  

I thought we were the only ones that found her to be a bit over zealous.   We had her on one cruise last year and actually did comment at the end of the cruise review, that we found her annoyingly verbose, like an infomercial.   It tended to jolt you out of a peaceful mood, into a bolt upright shock!  Sad to say it Just seems more and more, O moving towards the mass mkt hawking of products and services onboard. Sad.   

Regent is also the same.   Big conversation on the Regent board last week about it.   Don’t like it, say it in your end of cruise review!    

50 minutes ago, GrammieK said:

Yes!  Not happy with who went home and even more unhappy with some of the "stars" that stayed. Any early favorites?

 

P.S.  I've been on Oceania a number of times. Maybe haven't seen a tuxedo, but certainly many suits or sport coats for men and many lovely cocktail length dresses and long flowing dresses. 

Yes, on Oceania, depending on the itinerary (Caribbean more relaxed), attire goes from the bare minimum suggested, to suits/ties and dressy dresses. Some also depends on time of year (Holidays more dressy).   Unfortunately some regulars on the Oceania board like bare minimum and advertise it very vocally.   We migrated to other lines eventually as the food and clientele just went downward in our opinion.   

Pss, we like Sailor!!   

Actually people still wear gowns and suits on cruises.   High end luxury cruises still have formal optional, where aprox 60% + dress.  Seabourn, Silversea and others.  We renewed our vows last year, and I wore: (see pic).  

Folks dress how they feel comfortable, I think we needn’t be so judgey how others choose to dress on their vacation.     Women bullying other women is so wrong.  If you enjoy dressing, go for it.  No one should feel bullied because of one poster and their unfiltered opinion.   

Hi Rick,

  we would love to help you, but need information first.

1) which cruise line?

2) Which Ports?

3) what type of accessible, wheelchair, scooter, etc?

4) Do you want private tours, or cruiseline tours, and if private, how much is your budget? 

5).  What type of tours, ie, bus runs, or whale watching, etc?   

most cruise lines have accessible tours listed, and you can also call their special needs number to find out which ones for your cruise are appropriate.  

.