1985rz1

10 hours ago, Vallesan said:

I think that may have partly been due to the cabin size. Choose carefully if you decide to sail on Oceania’s small ships.

This is important enought to repost.  Folks should carefully read the stateroom specs.

14 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

Thank you both. So basically, all is the same in terms of numbers of reservations in specialty restaurants PH and below.   However, your butler (which we have never had…we never felt we would see the added value for the cost on some lines, tbh) can be helpful. 

This thread has given me a lot to think about…..
 

Just to emphasize @AMHuntFerry's post, for the O and A ships on cruions 18 days and longer, PHs get more advance reservations than A category and below. And there are some distinctions between A category and those below on longer cruises on R ships.

1 hour ago, OC Cruisers said:

Just super helpful!! Thank you☺️

 

Do you find the beds to be comfy?

Yes.  We really like the beds, but as we all know, beds are a personal decision.

5 minutes ago, OC Cruisers said:

Generally, we’re Regent loyalists and just saw an O itinerary that intrigued us, so reading this thread has been both funny and informative. Wondered if the onboard environment is friendly? Are there tables for two in the dining room (husband is pretty deaf so conversing is hard for him). And are there lots of announcements and sales pushes? Thanks a bunch!!

We've found the onboard atmosphere friendly.

Yes there are tables for two in the MDR and in the Specialties. In the MDR, we never had to wait more than a few minutes for a 2-top; more often there was no wait. In the Specialties, where reservations are required, getting a Table for 2  in advance does require making the reservation as soon as the bookings open and being flexible on day and time. Additional reservations while onboard may be tricky.

We have not found the announcements to be overly frequent.

Other then a  few fliers reminding folks of onboard future booking specials, there aren't really any sales pushes.

40 minutes ago, mauibabes said:

@1985rz1

The simple answer is NO but I can assure you, your Butler will get you more reservations just because “they can” 🙏, they have friends in the Specialties.  If there is availability that night, they can accommodate your request if you can be flexible on time and sharing tables.  If you want it to be ONLY Two Tops, it is a bigger challenge. My experience has been that we eat 50-60% of our dinners in a Specialty restaurant on any cruise and that is without our Butler serving us dinner in our room. Your Butler can take good care of you 🤪.  
Enjoy,

Mauibabes

Huh?  Did you mean to quote me.  I was simply providing the reservation list which shows that in some cases PH's get more advance reservations than standard staterooms depending on ship and length of cruise.  So I don't understsnd the "no."

4 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

Do those benefits remain if transferring a BoB booking to my TA within 14 days of the cruise’s end?

 

Yes.

7 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

One question. Do PH receive an additional number of specialty restaurant reservations?  

It's complicated.

https://oceaniacruises.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360005477653-How-many-dining-reservations-am-I-allowed-in-each-specialty-restaurant

And as you know, this only applies to advance online reservations.  Anyone can ask for more when onboard.

20 minutes ago, cdn.cruiser said:

Could someone tell me the percentage off, if you book a cruise while on board.

someone told me it is 10 to 15% off. However that person is at the top loyalty level.

doubt if that is true for someone at the lowest loyalty level.

another question, what is the gratuity per person per day for a regular balcony cabin?

thank you.

The benefits for onboard booking are not tied to loyalty level.  They are tied to the stateroom category booked. 

I've never seen onboard discounts anywhere near 10 or 15%.

Gratuity for a standard stateroom is $18 per dayper person.

5 hours ago, Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin said:

Okay, can someone please tell me about this extra 25% off excursions package?  Where do you find this information?  We have a 2025 cruise (so excursions not yet available) and this sounds like something we might be interested in.  I have been looking on the website, and it alludes to the 25% off, but I can't find any specific information.  Do I have to wait until the shorex list is available?

Yes, you have to wait until the Shorex list is available.  It will be specified on page 1 of the Shorex pdf, which your TA can send to you.

1 hour ago, the mice said:

Also have T-mobile Magenta Max 55+ (I think it has a different name now but is essentially the same thing) and love it. I don't use up my 5GB but my DH does. Very easy to add on a data package once he runs out. 

 

I have also found WhatsApp to be very useful. (and I am not the most savvy about all this stuff). Most private tour guides use it, usually contacting me via text.  But I have called an Italian guide from home in NY on my cell with no charge. 

Just to clarify for those who might know: The 5 GB data limit  on Magenta Max 55+ applies only to intenational high speed data, but US high speed data is unlimited. Beyond 5GB, international data is unlimited at 256 kbs.  WhatsApp uses data whether it's cell or WiFi.

2 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Thanks much.   We have to get our Passports Renewed (out of pages) so will have plenty of time to get out new passports as we don't sail until September.

May sure you get the expanded pages version.

1 hour ago, footprintsaroundtheglobe said:

I recommend choosing the passenger side of the shuttle for the trip over

What is the passenger side?  

39 minutes ago, clo said:

Just to be clear, this isn't included on the new Simply More wine, beer and champagne, right?

I honestly don't know, since what I posted is the bar list, and have yet to experience SM (Still working with old OL bookings).  But I thought the question was about what was available, not what was included in SM.

43 minutes ago, Cruisedreamer1 said:

Could someone take a photo of the cordials listed on the wine menu? It can be from any O ship. I'm trying to show a an interested friend on what the ship has and what she drinks. Thanks

Under "DESSERT & FORTIFIED" in the "Wines by the Glass" section and under the "APERITIFS & CORDIALS."

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/sites/default/files/2023-04/general-bar-menu-oceania.pdf

4 hours ago, Pearl64 said:

Does anyone know if you are permitted to bring unopened crackers off the ship? My husband is diabetic and I always carry the snack peanut butter and crackers or just plain peanuts. I certainly do not want to hold up immigration. He usually is ok but it is just insurance if he has issues. Would a doctor's note help?  Thanks.

I suspect that unopened crackers would be OK, but I would be very cautious and ask an official government site and not depend on any advice from here or any other social media site.  In New Zealand, the restrictions were rigid, and if you got as far as a customs inspector at any port with any prohibited items such as fruit or vegetables...even a banana or an apple...there is a minimum fine (I think $400) that is instantly assessed.  No exceptions and no leniency. 

And a doctor's note would not make any difference, especially since you can always but snacks in the port.

2 hours ago, BSR said:

On a B2B cruise will I be able to book all my specialty dining reservations when the booking window becomes available?

If it's a true b2b (2 booking numbers) the each segment will have it's own booking window. If its an extended cruise (1 booking number for both segments) then you will be likely to book both segments when the window becomes available.

8 hours ago, chocchic said:

We're booked on Sirena Hamburg to Oslo in August.  I'm running into excursions that will only give refunds if provided anywhere from 48 hours to 1 week notice of cancellation. I'm a little nervous since we cruised Oceania in New Zealand January 23 and had 3 ports cancelled.  I'm wondering if it was Oceania or New Zealand ?  They were not necessarily weather related.  

Any thoughts on whether I can be confident about Sirena making it to ports in August?

Just to put excursion cancellations into a bit of perspective, we returned from an Azamara in February, and two nights in Tasmania were cancelled because of sea conditions.

We're on the Sirena from Oslo to London on the Sirena from August 10 - 28, 2024.  We risk likely cancellations on the Norway to Edinbugh portion at Faeroe islands,  Historicaly it's  50-50.

3 hours ago, maccrate said:

Just booked a September 2024 cruise.  Went to Options on the website, and to beverage packages.  Since our Simply More fare includes the lunch/dinner beverage package, I wanted to upgrade to the Prestige package.  On the website, the option for purchasing the beverage package lists only the Prestige package at $69.99/person/day.  There is no option to purchase the upgrade which should only be $30/person/day.  

 

Anyone else experience this?  Work around? Or, just wait until we board and upgrade at that point?

 

Thanks.

If you do a search on "Beverage Packages" on this forum, you will several posts that discuss this issue in the recent and distant past.

The bottom line is that if you have SM, you can upgrade while onboard for $30 per day. Those who are on the old cruise-only OLife program, don't have any lunch/dine/wine/beer drink package included and have to pay the full price of the Prestige package

44 minutes ago, gailellen12 said:

I have a 1200.00 sm excursion credit. I have booked some excursions but would need to book 7 more to be entitled to the 25 percent discount. I am doing all the excursions I want to do so obviously would need to spend a lot more money to qualify for25 percent discount. Would actually lose money doing this. Makes no sense

Yes, it's not always worth it.  I just do the math like you did to decide.

1 hour ago, ORV said:

One of the best things we’ve done for travel is to change to the T-Mobile Magenta max 55+  
 

Text and data in something like 215 countries, call if you need to make one at .25 a- minute, usually don’t need to, text is fine. Free internet on Delta & AA and I’m sure others. I get a bunch of other perks that’s not relevant to travel but nice to have. 

Same here!  Great plan.

3 minutes ago, Cruisedreamer1 said:

By the way, we signed up for 3 excursions and found that we either buy another excursion or lose the $13 left on our $400 pp excursion credit.

Have you look how many excursion you need to get a 25% across the board discount.  In some cases, with the 25% discount, it's cheaper than just adding just one.

4 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

Year after year we saw this happen until we finally stopped going there and switched to watching chair hogs on cruise ships.

🤣

13 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

I don't doubt your theory at all.  Your post does bring up a side issue I've always wondered about.  How do you get the numbers you cited?  I've seen posts on many other threads where numbers and percentages are offered.  I've been curious as to where the numbers originate.  Are the numbers posted somewhere on the web?  Again, I'm not questioning your numbers, I'd be interested in seeing the numbers for future cruises I may take or decide to book.  Thank you.

I don't know where @ORV get his numbers, but we found them shared by the Captain at repeater's receptions.

1 hour ago, pinotlover said:

I remove them indoors and always at meals.

🙌👏 Yea and Thank you.

53 minutes ago, Techno123 said:

The concierge and executive lounges and the Aquamar spa terrace only available to concierge up:

Isn't the Spa Terrace available to every one, but at a daily fee if it's not included in your stateroom?

On the R ships there are no Concierge or executive lounges, so for those ships, there are no restricted areas.