Queen of DaNile

I stopped when they asked for my brokerage account number and password. Freaked me out about giving out that information.

My guess is if they drop Turkiye from the itinerary, we'll disembark in Athens. Works for me. Got a good cabin at a good price so floating around the eastern Med won't be a hardship :).

Thanks for sharing this. This is what I fear may happen to our July cruise where we have an overnight in Istanbul at the end...and why I chose to have Oceania make our return air arrangements. Not sure where the cruise may end so we'll let them figure it out.

We are literally doing a Seabourn/Oceania back to back this summer so our comparisons will be very fresh. We had no intention of revisiting Riviera so soon but due to itinerary changes caused by conflicts in the Middle East, this particular sailing came in at a very attractive price. The Seabourn leg is definitely more expensive but includes unique ports that we're willing to pay for. Upgrading to Concierge on Oceania was a bargain by comparison and gives us the option to stay on the ship and enjoy the spa deck should there be changes to the ports. My focus will be on comparing the food and quality of our time in port. We know what to expect from both lines so the question is how they deliver in virtually real time.

Absolutely not! And no response to my mid and post cruise comments.

We have been sailing Oceania for more than 19 years and have never experienced anything like what happened on our last Riviera cruise. As we stated on another thread, we lost a total of 15 hours of port time out of 11 ports. Only one port remained unchanged. Some ship excursions were either canceled or drastically altered and those with private excursions were left scrambling to contact their operators. The most dramatic change was reducing the time in Manila by 4 hours which was where many of the crew hoped to spend some time with their families. A letter stating " technical issue" was offered as the explanation. I would be very wary about booking an itinerary that contained ports you couldn't bear to miss.

Not exactly sure what you're trying to say but the food on our recent cruise was very good.

The accounting on Riviera recently was a nightmare. I checked our statement several times during the cruise and told Reception repeatedly that they were using refundable credit rather than the unrefundable. Because we disembarked a day early, they closed our account before I realized I would not be able to get our refundable OBC in cash and get a final statement. 10 days later we received a check in an incorrect amount. After several emails and a lengthy phone call with an Administrator in Guest Services, we finally agreed upon a future cruise credit that was slightly in our favor.

Only know of them giving cash or sending a check for refundable credit.

If you have white tie and tails, then go for it!

I explicitly voiced my feelings about the lack of transparency on both the mid cruise and final cruise comment surveys. Will it make a difference? Probably not. Even though it took a lot of time, made me feel better. I know, know, know not to book a cruise if visiting a particular port is of special interest but this experience made it crystal clear who not to trust. End of my rant - LOL

We enjoyed Riviera for the two weeks we were on her in SE Asia a few weeks ago. Ship, service, food were all very good. The remodeled bathrooms are lovely. As long as you're flexible about the times you are in ports, you should be OK. There were major changes to times in all but one port due to a mechanical issue that was never revealed. Don't count on "upper" management to be transparent about changes to your itinerary. If you're comfortable with that, you'll love your cruise.

Very true. We did see lots more during time there. Just trying to show Elephant Island since that was mentioned. Usually the seas are too rough and haze too thick to to even see it

This is what it looks like if you land on Elephant Island. Few do.

We're doing the Amazon on Nautica in November and were able to get the excursions we wanted. (Maybe because it is a smaller trip and we booked excursions as soon as we were able.) My understanding is that at present, Manaus is a tender port because of issues with the dock so keep that in mind when scheduling your tours. I would not count on Oceania adding excursions so you're better off arranging any private tours in advance You could contact https://www.dobrazilright.com for other suggestions. Good luck and hope you can work things out to enjoy your bucket list trip.

Thanks for sharing this. There is currently a great "deal" on a July cruise that ends with an overnight in Istanbul. Now you have me thinking this may not be such a great deal if Oceana has concerns about Türkiye. As with most cruise lines, transparency is not their long suit.

We finally have it in writing as to the current situation on Riviera "It is with sincere apologies we must notify you that due to technical issue there has been changes in the itinerary".

I heard third hand yesterday that there IS a problem with one of the ship's engines. If it is true, it should be communicated to the guests to stop speculation.

My understanding is that the port times have been altered because of a engine issue.That could be why we're moving so slowly!! If that is the case, the changes have been made by corporate and they should give the captain permission to inform the guests rather than have us believe the changes were made for some other reason. Only one of my tours was canceled when we first got on board but they have since found another operation that can work with the shortened port times.

We are onboard as well and took note of all the changes that results in a total of 14 hours less in port - the difference between the times provided on the final docs just few weeks ago and today's Currents. The havoc this has caused for ship and private excursions is not a great way to start a cruise.

I compared pricing for a West African itinerary on several lines, from premium to luxury. Seabourn Sojourn, 14 years old with only 450 passengers turned out to be less expensive per day, than the 24 year old Nautica with 684 passenger for virtually the same itinerary. Sojourn's basic veranda cabin has appx. 295' of indoor space vs 165' on Nautica. On a long cruise, space does matter to me. Throw in a walk-in closet, stocked bar, included premium spirits and comparable food (IMHO) and there was no question of which line to go with. The level of service and many included amenites made Seabourn an easy choice. I mentioned on the end of cruise survey when we left Vista that Oceania's pricing has edged up to where looking a true luxury lines makes a lot of sense. It pays to comparison shop, especially for the exotic itineraries.

Thank you for this information. We are communicating via WhatsApp and he is quoting about $82 USD($12. of it is the port fee). for pick up at the port to go to an airport hotel.

Smoking Policy from Vista last fall,

We ordered whatever we wanted (within reason) at the cocktail parties on Vista last fall.

The Final Cruise Vacation Summary that you receive via email just before the start of your cruise contains so much information that why wouldn't you print out at least that one page and bring it with you? Embarkation port information, Amenities, Prepurchased Tours, Itinerary AND Specialy Restaurant Reservations. Call me old fashioned but I like to have hard copies of everything pertaining to our trip and travel with all docs in a soft cover notebook.