Flatbush Flyer

2 hours ago, Rknweed said:

Just wondering if I can bring my headphones on a cruise and they will work on the provided television in the staterooms?

Will be travelling soon on Silversea

Knowing what kind of TV connectivity feature(s) are present on the specific set and whether they are available (rather than intentionally disconnected), e.g., headphone Jack, Bluetooth, optical audio, would help to answer your question. 

1 hour ago, ORV said:

I think this is on par with Priority Terminal Checkin.  Any time I’ve ever mentioned it they look at me like I’ve got 3 heads. I just get in an empty line and act like I know what I’m doing. 

So true. When all else fails (which is usually the case), it’s “first come, first served.”            😳🤔😉😎

4 hours ago, broberts said:

 

The only people that are confused are those that want to be. From the very first post the OP has been clear about the problem.

 

Actually, in this case, that’s far from the truth. 
In any case, let’s hope for the best for OP and also hope that the next OP response is saved for a report of the outcome.

9 minutes ago, Bongomauka said:

Sorry for the confusion. Our primary healthcare insurance provider will reimburse Oceania directly, not us. We received a bill through Oceania’s third party insurance processor but was told by the agent not to pay it directly as he couldn’t guarantee that we would get a receipt that we would need to get reimbursed ourselves. BTW it was another cruise payment more than $100K, hence our stress level. 

Okay, you’ve done your best to explain it all. Might I suggest that, even though your many many replies are still missing/adding info and the thread grows more confusing each day, it might be a better idea to hold off on posting until you can report on the actual outcome?

16 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

Considering doing a transatlantic Florida to Amsterdam on Celebrity Silhouette and a European cruise on Holland America Statendam from Amsterdam. The Silhouette arrives at 6 AM May 5th and the Statendam departs 4 PM May 5th. Is this just a foolish endeavor or have others done it with little difficulty? 

⚓

IMO, consecutive cruises using two different cruise lines is a waste of time, effort and money. Expand your research to look at Oceania’s multi-segment itineraries (which is their hallmark. They’re a real benefit for O cruisers incl. discount of total fare, same cabin and added O Club perks.
Our upcoming 5 week cruise includes three segments starting in Bangkok and ending in Tokyo.

Worth checking out what O has since they do many transoceanic cruises that dovetail perfectly with regional offerings.

16 hours ago, WESTEAST said:

We will achieve Silver Status on our upcoming cruise and reviewing the additional benefits, curious to understand what does, "VIP Shore Excursion Check-in" mean? Familiar with the Shore Excursion check-in process - perhaps it means that we can give our Excursion cards in early once the desk in the Lounge is open versus being called up per their announcements?  Thanks!

This was a short-lived, failed O experiment of a separate line (for folks with higher O Club status) at check-in for tours that met in the Lounge. Only problem was there was no enforcement. So, everyone just got in the shortest line. Saw it/used it on two cruises before it disappeared in late 2022 or early 2023.

19 hours ago, shepherd really said:

Yes, but if you win a nonrefundable, nontransferable OBC as you are disembarking, how exactly can you use it?  

As I trust you already know: It’s applied to any remaining balance on your account.

2 hours ago, SATaxman said:

Although the TA I chose said they are part of this group I do not see this logo on their website.

Being a member of the Connoisseurs Club is not the same as being part of its Elite segment (top 20).

As for “are they really in the CC?” It would be stated on the Oceania invoice. And one would assume the’re not lying if they put the CC banner in their ads.

16 minutes ago, SATaxman said:

I know that we cannot recommend specific TAs on CC; however, can anyone tell me where this list of top 20 is located?

There is no list. Look for this logo and ask O regulars onboard. 

1 hour ago, K32682 said:

 

Tipping early is not technically a "bribe" unless you are requesting a service outside of their normal duties. The more accurate term is "facilitation payment" as the cabin steward is going to provide the service in any event and the gratuity is an incentive to provide you preferential treatment. Tipping at the end of the cruise meanwhile confers no benefit to you.

 

People who are bitter and resentful that someone else may be paying a little extra and getting better service might regard it as a "low life" practice but if tipping early didn't bring results they wouldn't care. 

 

 

“Slice it or dice it” anyway you want, but a bribe (to get “preferential” treatment) is still a bribe and is still low class. And accepting a bribe for the purpose of treating someone better than the next person could cost a crew member their job.

In any case, kind words, a friendly attitude and reasonable requests will always get you more than will trying to buy extra service (or wrongly suggesting that you won’t get great services unless you pay extra).

58 minutes ago, Psoque said:

It is unfathomable that a person working for Oceania would just say something like that without checking.  Makes me wonder if Oceania does any serious vetting on their new hires and if they actually do any decent job on training their employees.

I know for a fact that new hires on the phone rep staff get training. But, like with any customer service operation, not all reps are created equal. 
Though we mostly book onboard and then transfer to a well respected Connoisseurs Club “elite” (O top twenty) TA, we still maintain a good working relationship with a long serving O phone rep who knows O inside out and can often get initial issues (particularly the glitchy web cart for tours) quickly fixed. We use our preferred TA for perks and save it for O FUBARS.

1 hour ago, Vallesan said:

Oceania introduced a new scheme not so long ago “Pre-Cruise Savings Programme” where you can book a new cruise within the 30 days prior to you next sailing. This gives you the same benefits as if you were booking on board.

At the moment the program offers this in the UK.

 

However, just one word of caution. The OBC could be applied to either to the current cruise or the upcoming cruise that you are booking. I used a Future Cruise Certificate, £400 which acts as the deposit on the cruise you use the certificate to purchase, to purchase my January cruise. I asked for the OBC from this scheme to be applied to my January cruise but am being told that because I used a FCC, which already has an OBC attached to it, I can’t combine it with another.

I’m rather annoyed. I’m not asking for anything more or a discount just to used the OBC on my ‘current’ cruise. Anyway, my TA is disputing this with Oceania so we will see.
 

I guess my word of caution is more to do with the FCC’s. They seem to give you the same benefits as booking a cruise on board but in effect they aren’t combinable with any other offers. Not sure I would purchase one again.

Getting the Book Onboard deal within the 30 days prior to your upcoming cruise is nothing new. Over the years, I’ve used it a couple of times when new itineraries (in which I was extremely interested) were opened for booking just prior to an upcoming cruise and I had a particular cabin in mind. 
However, I can’t remember if I used a Future Cruise Certificate on any of those occasions.

That said, I do buy those FCCs on occasion if the current BoB bonus is substantial. And, although I haven’t run into the issue I think you’re citing (I.e., not being allowed to “double dip” the FCC purchase bonus SBC and then get a second BoB bonus SBC when you use it), I would understand O’s position: If you initially indicated you wanted the FCC to be applied to the next cruise along with award of the booking bonus SBC, why would O then give you a duplicate/second bonus SBC for a “new” booking when you already had the FCC bonus applied to that new booking. One future cruise booking (either with cash or FCC deposit) gets you only one booking bonus SBC.

4 hours ago, SATaxman said:

That I do not know. All I know is that our TA held 7 itineraries for 7 days before we decided. We chose the one based on our preference in November. When this topic came up on CC, I checked the 7 pages we had printed out. 3 had OCAPP, the other 4 (including the one we selected) did not. Not sure it would have changed our selection. The TA actually offered to change if we wanted to. As I said, we are "newbies", our first O cruise was in October, booked directly though O and we loved it. Not sure now if any similar cruise would have had the gratuities included. We selected based on the dates, and the itinerary.

Actually, as a first time O cruiser, the right TA might have had access to a 5% “new O cruise” fare discount. I got one on our first O cruise many many moons ago.

5 hours ago, pinotlover said:

A slight correction to this . It’s “ up to $250/pp.”  the actual amount anyone receives depends upon the length of the cruise . 

I’m betting that’s correct. I just checked a sampling of my O cruises since pre-pandemic and, though I got $250 in lieu every time the TA covered the grats., the shortest cruise was only 3 weeks.  

4 hours ago, Psoque said:

What does OCAPP stand for?

Oceania Cruises Amenity Partnership Program.

5 minutes ago, SATaxman said:

Does anyone know why some cruises have the OCAAP included and others not? We were looking at several 2025 itineraries. 3 have OCAAP included, 4 do not. We liked one of the ones without much more and booked it anyway. It would have be nice to "save" the $56/dayX12 days; however, the one we chose fit our desires more, Is it possible that the gratuities will be included ever before 2025?

Silver O Club and above get complimentary gratuities.

Like other incentive $ and/or sales, OCAPP is intended (at least in part) to encourage bookings where slow sales may be expected. That’s part of the reason why you’ll only see the OCAPP covering only the “least desirable” segment of a multi-segment cruise.  

One important caveat: If you can get TA grats (OCAPP or otherwise) take them if you also have O Club grats. In that way, O Club will then give you $250 “in lieu” non-refundable SBC.

13 minutes ago, Harters said:

Won't this just be a TA offering a perk, as some have always done, rather than it coming direct from O?

 

In the last couple of days, I've even spotted a UK cruise specialist offering discount, beverage package and free car parking. Unfortunately, we're not yet in a position to book that particular cruise and it will be just our luck that they withdraw the offer by the time we are ready

Most importantly, I’d steer clear of any TA whose advertising an/or comments suggest particular perks are theirs instead of O’s. It’s a not uncommon practice among less than scrupulous TAs.

For example, some TAs will make a big deal about covering your O gratuities charge. And, while that statement may be true, when you look at your official O invoice you may find the gratuities coverage listed as associated with your TA but also having the acronym OCAPP cited with it. OCAPP $ paying gratuities are actually Oceania $ incentives passed through to passengers via TAs!

Likewise, suggesting that O Life or SM perks or even always included internet, non-alcoholic beverages and specialty restaurants are a “gift” from the TA is nasty bit of misinformation that should alert you to the fact that there will be trouble with that TA. (BTW, you’ll see a lot of that “truth bending” on websites that promote TA competitive bidding for bookings).

16 minutes ago, thekegler said:

Would it be okay to give a tip our butler upfront upon arrival at our cabin even though the price includes tips? I was think an extra $10/10Euro per day may be fair. The other option tip the butler at the end of the cruise if they performed excellently. We are on Silverseas I read they do quite a bit for the guests. 

So, you want to know if “bribing” someone gets better service? IMO, it’s an insult to suggest to a crew member that they won’t do a good job unless you give them a bribe first.

Save that “low rent” move for Vegas (yuck).

If a crew member goes “above and beyond” for you, recognize that at the end of the cruise with a nice note including any extra gratuity. And don’t forget to mention their name in your cruise reviews.

1 hour ago, Windjammer24 said:

This might not be the right place for this post but I’m new to the Oceania brand. I spoke with one of the sales reps on Monday January 15 and she told me that there were no more happy hours or captain’s receptions. I ask why these events have stopped and her reply was it was a senior management decision. Can someone verify that Oceania has stopped the happy hours the captains welcome party and receptions.

Ridiculous. You just happened upon a less than seasoned phone rep. 
While it’s true that the events were curtailed during the earlier highly restrictive Covid reactions, they’ve been back since soon after the industry restart. In fact, O has added a separate welcome party for first time O cruisers.

Just now, Shorex said:

While a TA might book air just to satisfy a client, this is no longer in their wheelhouse. They have no more expertise than anyone who can use the internet. There is no commission from the airlines and hasn't been for about 30 years.

Well, when it comes to cruise specializing TAs, at least one has a robust air department in part because it allows them to circumvent trip rebate limits imposed by tour providers (“technically,” the TA can rebate if it also has non-tour-provider services in the total mix). For us, as passengers, it can mean the difference in TA perks between a $250 gift card and a $2500 check.

Our primary TA, which is one of O’s top twenty “Elite” members of its Connoisseurs Club, is also the largest North American seller of a popular high end tour company known for its small ship/land combo trips. Their air department doesn’t necessarily beat anyone else’s air prices on non-bulk tix but, it opens the door for doing the rebates for which it is so well known. In addition, it returns us to the yesteryear definition of TAs as “full service.”

Just now, basor said:

It can be confusing as some indicate cruise only (meaning no air) but when you read the fine print, you find it includes beverage package and SBC for excursions,,,which means it is Simply More with no air

You’d think that the first thing anyone considering an O cruise would do is “read the fine print.” 😳

15 minutes ago, Psoque said:

I was just browsing a few online travel agency websites and noted that I see at least two companies are (appearing to be) selling Oceania cruises without Simply More.  Is this something that is easy for a travel agent to negotiate?  Or is this limited to group bookings?

As you said, “appearing to be.” Just because it’s not mentioned, doesn’t mean it’s not “included.”

As aforementioned here a zillion times,  there is no longer a “cruise only” fare. Rather, there’s now only a choice of w/or w/o air.  
Think about it: introducing all sorts of exceptions would quickly defeat the whole concept of “simply more.”

4 hours ago, ChrisB123 said:

We don't travel much out of the USA so global entry wouldn't be worth it. TSA precheck might if it shortens the time in line. 

It would be “worth it” if you change your travel habits in the next several years and already have GE before Homeland Security suspends acceptance of new applications (which are at an all time high and unlikely to slow down).

13 minutes ago, Smokeyham said:

Thanks for the responses so far.  If we are not to get a better fare, and only get a small reward for booking through a TA, then I guess we have to wonder if using a TA is worth the "cost" of losing control of the booking and relying on them to watch for lower fares.  

Am I missing something here?  Our TA will not book airfares for us.  She will look into hotel bookings and transfers, and is a one-person operation.

 

 

Perhaps you missed my post above where I gave you an example of at least one cruise line that does “quiet sales” through their preferred TAs while also giving them “pass through” funds to incentivize their clients. And this is in addition to added pass through incentive funds from certain TAs’ consortia. And all of that is before any commission sharing.

In fact, we will soon be leaving on a month long cruise, where our TA is using pass through incentive funds to cover the gratuities while also sending us a rebate check for more than $2k. And that’s on top of a discounted fare to begin with.

That said, great TAs are few and far between. But, doing your homework in selecting one (or two) will pay off.

Reality check: As for having “control over your booking,” do you not realize that you (like me) are a mere rounding error in a cruise line’s daily bottom line?

If you book direct, you may think you are “in control” of your booking while waiting “on hold” with a cruise line phone employee who really can’t bend the rules of the company for which s/he works. At the same time, I speed dial my “top twenty seller” of my preferred cruise line who, in turn, speed dials the regional cruise line rep and gets issues fixed before i hang up. Who’s really “in control?”

Take some time to search here on CC for any of my several comprehensive posts on how to find a great TA.

1 hour ago, Harters said:

I think this must be the thread, V

 

The short answer seems to be that if you can't use it, you lose it. 

 

It's a bit similar to  me not drinking alcohol but still paying for the SM booze arrangements. Or, IIRC, you also mentioned the new inclusion of gratuities for European customers doesnt account for those who get freebie gratuities.

When will folks learn to NEVER use the O Cart  to buy tours (particularly if you’re doing a multi-segment cruise). Get the most current excursions pdf, cross check against the web listings and then call O to have a rep confirm which one(s) is/are accurate? and available (according to his/her access to the accounting system).