pinotlover

Sounds like to me they used it on a different tour.

First paragraph goes to the heart of a post I just made in Reduced Ports Stays. We didn’t make the Falklands last year, we were in the majority and it got skipped/cancelled. One should NEVER use SM credits for a Falklands ship tour. You’re begging for self inflicted trouble. I have never gone hungry on any cruise. I’m not a fattening hog, and cutting portion sizes is a good thing. Amazing watching people order huge steaks or chops and then sending most to the garbage. 😒

Another strategy is to strategize your credit use, and never use SM credits to book tender ports! Use up all your credits on standard ports, then pay for tender ports tours making them reimbursable if missed or shortened. Play the odds.

Interesting. We disembark on 4/13 and won’t be back from Japan until 4/19. I wonder if we’ll even see the new Collection before we disembark? Will the OCA pre book us for on board booking discounts and OBC? Never cut a new release this close before.

Just a few personal observations from one that cruises purely for the ports and sees SM as only a price increase. 1. I believe Oceania could improve the situation by not allowing SM credits to be used until after FP. 2. People on my upcoming cruise have complained about no ship tours in certain ports being available. What they mean is: no tours they want to do. There’s a difference. When we didn’t like Vikings included tours, we booked private ones, and didn’t cry over lost funds. Seeing and doing what we wanted to do in port was far more important to us than any free/included ship tour. I realize not all feel that way. 3. Oceania has a history of missing ports and cutting port times. That’s established. Therefore, if you really cared about your SM credits, why would anyone wait until the last couple of ports to use them? Apply them early in the cruise so that if necessary they can be used later on. 4. There’s a bit of “ the early bird gets the worm” to all of this. If you are one of those that enjoy Oceania shorexs or are really emphatic about the SM credit, perhaps a strategy is to book the cruise at least a year in advance before tours are released so to get those tours you desire. This may mean; not booking aboard, or missing another of the constant sales, but only you can decide what’s more important. SM is now the order of business. The exercise now should be how to strategize on best using the new policies.

Maybe, maybe not. A group of us, doing an after tour party on Marina, shared our Travel Agency and Travel Agent names and deals/services we were provided. I was rather shocked to hear of one using a strictly online Agency that gave a rebate of 11 or 12% depending upon certain criteria. Catch was, one got billed ( actually subtracted from rebate) for for any other service provided. If you cancel a cruise, you get a bill for any past services.

Actually, the Travel Agency, for which the Travel Agent is employed, receives a commission from Oceania. Travel Agents are paid in multiple fashions, only one of which is by commission.

No. It’s a price increase overall for Oceania. Whether any individual feels they got a deal, in the long run the prices went up. If X= the retail cost of any shore excursion. I have found it mostly impossible to convince most Oceania passengers that mathematically paying 2X less a 25% discount is more than X. For many that simple math is unfathomable. Sometimes the math is even worse. Or, money just doesn’t matter to most of them. Laughing our buttocks off is defined when taking a private tour for $85 each and having people on the same van, doing the exact same tour, paying $365 each to Oceania. 😂😂😂 Maybe they booked enough overpriced tours they got $25% off! Because only old rich Oceania cruisers believe that $365 - 25%< $85. Happens regularly. Happened twice this past summer on Vista. Never pay retail says some! 😂😂 They booked enough to get 25% off! 😂👍👍! Absolutely, SM tour credits are a wonderful deal. Just book more ship tours and get a better deal. 🙄

It’s use it or lose it! there are so many permutations of the question, I don’t feel like a three page reply. But only rarely will you ever see or expect OBC for SM bookings Igor missed ports. Get over it . SM is simply a price increase. 😒

NO! Absolutely NO! It’s Oceania, not another line. There is a singular “ Wine by the Glass “ list that is applicable to all wine packages.Read All as those exact wines are available by the glass whether on any beverage package or not. NO separate wines for any package.

Shortened port stays typically = less port fees. Another huge savings.

First hint was the Saran wrapped TC. Are they monitoring everyone’s temperature yet/still?

Interesting! 51days * $18/day = $918. So if any additional grats are owed, it would be the $5/day for a butler. Never seen any organization cut the $5/day out of PPG and not like wise pay.

Contact ryan@thewine-experience.com you can see his website at www.thewine-experience.com highly recommended. Tell him hello for me!

At least we’re long past the silly posts by some lauding how Oceania passengers are so much more sophisticated and mannerly than those on other ships. 😂

We did a wonderful tour of Montevideo, then off to visit a couple of great wineries and a grill meat lunch with the wines at one of the wineries. Private tour, I easily put together a group of eight. Tremendous day!

Last time we had the wrapping in the TC was last year on Marina when Covid struck the ship mightily. The crew soon went mandatory mask. Be careful out there my friend.

If one is of such diminished physical or mental condition they need a monitor, perhaps they shouldn’t be allowed to roam unaccompanied.

Thank You for the recommendation. I’ll try to check it out! 🙏

Unless we just wanted to do Greece and Athens on a pre land tour, or post in Venice , very few Americans would fly all the way to Athens for 5 days on a ship. Far more logical for our European counterparts. Already taking a Group to Tuscany in September for two weeks. Much more relaxed and great food!

I would suggest that the price reduction you enjoyed had nothing to do with OLife versus SM, but that you were/are on a cruise that was sorely under subscribed. So much so that Oceania found it necessary to make significant price cuts. That it was on an earlier Ultimate Sale is an easy indicator of this. Not even the Ultimate Sale was enough and the big price cut then came. Not an appropriate OLife/SM comparison . We have entered an era in cruising of old KMart “ Blue Light Specials “ and gaint Macys Sales. One’s cost of a cruise is dependent upon which sale they caught. People complaining about prices being opaque are missing the entire point. There are no clear comparison in prices except that Oceania will continue to adjust individual cruise prices until they satisfactorily fill the ship. That’s as clear as it gets. There’s nothing new out there today. Oceania is trying to fill cruises that have been available for booking for 15-16 months that hasn’t sold. Expect another huge sale before the next big cruise release. The best indicator we will get will be in April when Oceania is scheduled to do a new set of cruise releases for late 25-26. A comparison between those prices and similar cruises from the last release ( back in 22 I think) will be an accurate indicator of where prices have gone. Then the sales will shortly resume.

The vast majority of us are pleasantly congenial at dinner. It may be a much more delightful evening for people to book early “ sharing” , than much later alone. We’ve had lots of great conversations, and meet numerous future friends and fellow cruisers, by sharing the dinner table. It’s only an extreme rarity that bad table mates can ruin a meal. However, if you’d rather eat late, that option is available for you. * We don’t wake up everyday looking for an excuse to be offended.

We often avoid the full scorn and only order half portions in the Specialties. This is especially the case in Toscana. A half portion of both the Primi and Secondi is plenty for us. If any room for more exists, there’s always dessert! We’re just not into ordering whole portions and sending most of it to garbage. That deserves some scorn when smaller options exist.

Not what we were served. No tomatoes, doubtful mozzarella, and not a sprig of basil to be found ( fresh or dried). It was a poor excuse of a cheese pizza being offered as a Margherita. Oceania serves plenty of good food , so we’ll steer clear of the pizza and be fine. Food can well be boring and/or boorish.

I still remember the very plan boorish cheese pizza on Vista that they were advertising as a Margherita pizza . When I told the waiter “ that’s not what we ordered!”; she replied “ we know that’s not really a Margherita pizza, but only the chef’s version of one”. The pizza was 🤮 and we put pizza in the same category as ordering lobster on board. Why bother, other good stuff to choice from, the risk of disappointment is too high to bother with.