smalltowner

Thank you for the input.

Penny

Hi:

I am soon embarking on a back to back cruise of 36 nights on Sirena.  The first 24 nights consist of two segments but were booked as a single longer cruise and with the Simply More package.  The next 12 nights were booked separately because they are our 20th cruise, and have no package.  I have already booked excursions for the 24-day cruise using the excursion credits from the Simply More package.  Apart from the excursion credits, we have many more shipboard credits available to spend during the first 24 days, and not as many available for the second, 12-day, cruise.  I am wondering if anyone on a back-to-back cruise with separately booked segments has ever tried to go to the Destinations counter during the first segment to book excursions for the second segment.  I was hoping maybe if I could do that, the excursion cost would be charged to shipboard credit available on the first segment.  Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Penny

The free cruise is 12 days, and when I averaged out our previous sailings that was the average.  We will lose the SM benefits at the end of the previous 2 legs.  Apparently we will be issued a new card that indicates we don't have SM.  We will have all the loyalty benefits for Platinum level.... $500 SBC, spa credit, prepaid gratuities, bottle of wine in stateroom.  But, as these aren't available for our use until shortly before sailing date, excursions can't be booked using SBC at the moment. I am going to visit Reception once we're onboard the first leg to see whether SBC from first 2 legs can be carried over to 3rd or if they have to be used up before then to avoid forfeiting them.  If the credits can't be carried over, I will use some of them to purchase a bottles of wine package to keep in the stateroom for later use wherever we want to imbibe.  I plan to visit the excursions desk also to see if I can book a couple of third leg excursions ahead of time.

Regarding booking the 20th cruise, I booked it in May, paying $1000 to do so, after my TA discussed the whole scenario with an Oceania representative.  I had an invoice stating what I owed as if it were any other booking.  In September, my TA made the formal nomination, I think.  A couple times before final payment date (January 11), my TA was calling them to ask when the approval would be happening, and was told there was a line-up and eventually our turn would come.  He was also informed that no payment could be made until the final statement arrived, even if past the final payment date.  About a week after final payment date, I received notice that the cruise was approved for our 20th, and they owed me money, since I had prepaid $1000 and the taxes and fees were less than that.

Penny

Back here to report that we have officially been given the third leg of a back-to-back-to-back as our free cruise.  And it was free, except for taxes.  We are in a B2 veranda, which is about the average of what we've been in over our cruise career, from ocean view to veranda to concierge.  It's the same room for the whole 3 segments, but the free cruise had to be a separate booking.  Once it was finalized, our loyalty club credits disappeared, and when I asked my TA he said that's how Oceania does it, and they will re-appear later.  Can anyone tell me when they reappear.  Is it after sailing?

Thanks for that information. Our 20th cruise is a 12-day on Sirena.  We booked it as cruise-only with no air, as that was what we were told we had to do for the "free cruise".  We do have an invoice, because we have to take the two previous B2B cruises before we are eligible for the free one.  The final payment date for the 20th cruise is well after the final payment date for the 18th and 19th, and 2 months before we set sail for the whole B2B2B in mid-March 2024. I'm not sure what happens regarding payment for the 20th when it's dependent upon us completing the previous ones.  In fact, we haven't even completed our 17th yet.  That's happening in a month on Vista.  But I do want to take more than 6 excursions on the "free cruise", so it's good to know the discount will be available.

No, it does not.  We can book Oceania excursions but they are à la carte.  I don't know if there will be a discount for booking 6 or more excursions.  Another question waiting for my TA's return.

Yes, my TA has been in conversation with an Oceania agent about the third B2B cruise being the 20th.  Currently it is booked as cruise only with an invoice which presumably we won't have to pay. Same stateroom as the previous two B2Bs.  We'll see what our TA can find out when he gets back at the end of the month.

My TA is on vacation, so I thought I'd throw this question out to Oceania cruisers with more than 20 cruises under their belts.  Our 20th is going to happen as the third in a series of back-to-backs.  Because the first two in the series were eligible for a significant discount with the summer sale, we re-booked them with "Simply More". As a result, we have a huge amount of cruise credit, even not counting the excursion credits, and with the drinks package we won't even need to spend for wine at dinner.  But on the 20th cruise, we have much less credit, only what we get for our level and the gratuities.  My question is; since we will be continuing to be on the ship, can we continue to use credit from the previous segments, or do we have to use it up before the 20th cruise begins?  We have been on back-to-backs before and we could carry over credits, but we were paying for the cruises in that case.

Thanks all.  We'll be in Miami a day ahead, so I can just go to Walgreens or even Publix which would probably have them too.  I don't think chia seeds bought as a dietary supplement can sprout, but don't want to risk getting into a discussion with a border agent.

It would be an international flight, from Canada, so I thought seeds would be prohibited.

In recent months I have discovered the benefits to my digestive system of a spoonful of chia seeds on my cereal.  I know I can't transport them on a plane, but I'm wondering if I could buy a sealed bag in Miami and take them onboard Insignia, or perhaps if they might even be available in Terrace Cafe as a cereal add-on?  It's been three years since I've cruised and chia seeds were not on my radar then.

Penny

So, you are saying there is a captain's reception.  I know how it works, and usually we don't go to the lounge for it anymore, just to Martini's, but I was wondering if they would have it on such a short cruise. Glad to hear they do.  Thanks.

This summer, my husband and I are sailing from Barcelona to Lisbon on Sirena, a 7-day cruise that visits ports we haven't been to before.  We have never before done such a short cruise, but it works out because we are visiting our son in Helsinki and traveling around with him before flying to Barcelona for the cruise.  It seemed a nice way to end our trip.  I'm wondering if there is a Captain's reception on such a short cruise, or a loyalty club party?  We have done 12 Oceania cruises so far, so are at the silver level.  Just thinking ahead to what our wine needs will be 😄.

Thanks for all the input and good wishes.  I'm looking forward to getting away from winter in a couple of months.

Thank you, Peetoonya.  This gives me an idea of costs in French Polynesia.  I am concerned about a beach with no shade, too, so that's good to know about Matira Beach.

Update:  Nausori looks like a no-go.  Suva would be better for just looking around.  Our last time in Fiji and Suva was 2005, so we should see some differences.  I remember we really liked the Fiji Museum, so we could go back there.  We never in a million years thought we'd ever return to Fiji, so we tried to see as much as possible in 10 days in 2005.  First we spent a week at a resort near Nadi.  From there, we did numerous excursions: explored Nadi, hiked the Nausori highlands, visited Yavuna village (including lunch with a family, a talk by a village elder and a kava ceremony), took a bus to Suva for a day, got a taxi tour to the Sigatoka sand dunes and the Tavuni Hill Fort, and took a cruise through the Mamanuca Islands.  Then we went to the little island of Nananu-I-Ra, where we spent 3 days snorkelling.  After that, we flew from Nadi to Auckland to spend 2 months in New Zealand, mainly hiking and fishing (my husband).  Those were the days.  He even hiked the Tongariro Crossing.  Time has passed, and we can't do some things we used to love doing, but, hey, here we are returning to Fiji, and we can still walk a few kilometres in a town if nothing else!  I think we'll just decide on the spot about FJD, as it is possible we won't do anything that requires them.

I will take some XPF though, along with USD and AUD.  Thanks for all the feedback.

Thanks, Bronte2.  I have looked into it today, and am wondering if my husband will be able to manage it, especially if it has been raining.  Mud seems to be a factor in descriptions of the trails.  There is a bus that goes there every 20 to 30 minutes for $2 each, and if we did go, I think we'd use the bus rather than a taxi.  If it looks too difficult, we can just have a drink at the restaurant there and take the next bus back to Suva.  I may look more into Nausori, the town the bus is heading for when it goes past the park.  Maybe there's something to see there.  We like going on local buses, just for the experience.

Petoonya, what are the rates like for a taxi in FP?  In Bora Bora and Moorea we might just want to taxi to a beach, as we've already done 4WD tours there, and snorkel excursions.  Depending on whether the ship tenders in from Opunohu or Cook's Bay in Moorea, we could maybe even walk to a beach. I remember it being really hot and humid for walking though. We have an overnight in Tahiti, and time to get a taxi tour there, which we have not done before.  Any idea how many XPF that might run? 

I'm thinking when I order some AUD through the Auto Club, I might get a few XPF and FJD dollars, but trying to figure out how many. 

In Fiji, my thoughts were for a taxi to the Garden of the Sleeping Giant and back, then walk around the town a bit, as we haven't explored it before.  In Suva, I was thinking of a taxi to the Colo-I-Suva forest park and back.  On our previous trip to Fiji we did spend a day in the town of Suva.

I guess another place to find this out might be on the TA forums.

Bronte2, we are staying at Manly Beach for our pre-cruise time, but will make a day trip to Sydney.  In 1994 we were there in your Aussie winter to visit my sister-in-law and her family for 2 weeks, after we did a tour of all the iconic spots such as the Great Barrier Reef, Cape Douglas, Kakadu, Katherine Gorge, Darwin, Uluru, Kangaroo Island.  During our time with our relatives, we went to many spots close to Sydney, such as the Blue Mountains and Bondi Beach.  My husband has some mobility issues now, at almost 75, but we plan to do some hiking around Manly and to snorkel at Shelly Beach.  We still enjoy snorkelling, but have to be in calm water and off a beach, not a boat.  But as long as we can do some things, we're happy!

Thanks for the reminder about Kauai.  I was planning to rent a car there, and I think I need to pre-book.

And thanks for the information about Suva.  Lautoka is before Suva on the itinerary, so I guess I will find out there about whether or not they will take AUD.  I plan to get there with AUD to use if it is accepted.  I will just cash them in when I get home to Canada if I still have some.  This will be our 4th visit to OZ, and I would love to just save the AUD for a 5th visit, but 30 hours or more of travel to get there is becoming tougher and tougher all the time.

We've been to NZ a couple of times, and loved it, but we don't go there on this cruise.  The ports after Sydney are Brisbane, Vanuatu, Lautoka (Fiji), Suva (Fiji), Pago Pago (American Samoa), Apia (Samoa), Bora Bora, Moorea, Papeete (overnight and halfway point of B2B for us), Rangiroa, Nuku Hiva, Hilo (Big Island), Honolulu and Nawiliwili (Kauai), ending in San Diego.  Lots of sea days of course.  The only places in this itinerary that we have never seen before are Brisbane, Vanuatu, Pago Pago, Apia, Nuku Hiva and Nawiliwili.

I'm not really worried about buying stuff in stores; rather I'm imagining arriving in some of these ports and deciding to try to get a taxi tour, but not having the currency they want.  On the other hand, if it's a rainy day, I won't want to do that, so I won't need that currency.  The towns where this may be an issue are the Fiji ports and Apia if there is no ATM near the ship dock in those places.  The easy way is to just go on a shore excursion offered by Oceania, but we've already done a lot of what they offer (visit a school/village, take part in a kava ceremony, etc.), on a previous land trip to Fiji, (on the way to New Zealand), and we don't really want to do it again.

When we did a French Polynesia cruise a few years back, I don't even remember if we got XPF.  We were with Paul Gauguin and had everything prebooked through the cruise line, including a pre-cruise hotel and lots of shore excursions.  Mind you, we did do a few excursions with cruise critic organized groups, so maybe XPF were required for those, but we forget these things after a few years!  Anyway, because we did so many excursions before in French Polynesia, I'm pretty relaxed about what to do there this time, but I just wondered if taxi drivers would take USD if we made a spur-of-the-moment decision to get a taxi to a beach or something.

Thanks for the input.

My husband and I are cruising on Regatta from Sydney AU to San Diego from March 1 to April 1.  We have been to many of the ports at some time or other in the past, and we have done many of the activities visitors to these islands usually do, but we just love the relaxed vibe of crossings, so we thought we'd try a Pacific one for a change.  I'm not sure what to do about currency, as we may not even need any, if we decide to just walk around in the small port towns of the islands we will visit.  We will have Australian dollars, as we are spending a couple of weeks in Manly Beach before we embark, and we will take US dollars as well, but I'm not sure if either currency would be acceptable in Fiji or Samoa.  I think Australian dollars are accepted in Vanuatu and American dollars in French Polynesia, but if I'm wrong, please let me know.  If I need local currency in Lautoka or Suva, Fiji, or in Apia, Samoa, will an ATM or currency exchange be available anywhere near where the ship docks, or where a shuttle will deposit us (if there is a shuttle provided)?  If the weather is nice, there are some places outside of town that we might want to taxi to, but we probably need local currency for this.  I'd appreciate some insight from anyone who has cruised to these ports.  Thanks.

Thank you very much for the information.

I'm sure this question has been asked before, but I can't seem to find a way to search through threads with keywords, as I could before this website was changed.  I am boarding Zuiderdam next Sunday, and wondering if I can carry a few litres of water or Perrier on board with me.

I was on the Regatta in late May 2016 for a 10-day Alaska cruise. Everything was excellent - food, staff, Oceania excursions (our OLife choice), weather (for Alaska), and a fantastic view of the Hubbard Glacier. The captain stayed there for quite a while, giving each side of the ship plenty of time for photos from their balconies, and the glacier calved numerous times, to a chorus of oohs and aahs! Maybe we were lucky, but that was our Alaska experience close to the time frame you're looking at.

Penny

Actually that idea just popped into my head this morning. I even found a water bottle stuffed under the bathroom sink. No cozy though, and no butler. Probably I can get water hot enough to last 30 minutes by running hot water for a bit in the bathroom. Old school method to the rescue!