mauibabes

@davencl We were recently on Vista and our next cruise is also Vista and then Nautica so we will not see Graham and Shuna until 2025, major bummer. One evening 6 of us had dinner in the GDR and had a wonderful time. You are right, GREAT PEOPLE! Mauibabes, aka Bonnie and Gerry

You are NOT on Princess! NO AUCTIONS. As FF said this is a part of the cruise enrichment program Oceania offers to the guests and of course to benefit the Artists. The paintings are most often excellent and we have friends as well as ourselves who have purchased original paintings or prints or customized, 1 of 1, prints. A great way to spend some available SBC 🤪. We have fallen in love with Graham Denison’s palette knife paintings 😇👍. He and Shuna are on Riviera for 2+ months at a time, especially sailing in Europe since they live in Spain. All in all, just enjoy the Oceania experience. Mauibabes

Amen Basor, we were on a segment in April 2018, Beijing to Sydney and it was a great experience, one we would do again. We too will be on the Vista Miami to LA Inaugural and that will be our second PC transit. We will not be doing that “sail around the lake” type trip so we will experience the best part of a Panama Canal cruise. As was shared, our segment covered roughly the mid point of the ATW and we found the 200 or so people aboard to be great travelers. We were welcomed into Private Tours organized by other ATW travelers, even one by wonderful people who were sailing in an Owners Suite. There may have been a half dozen who were cliquish but certainly a significant minority. Specialty reservations were easy to get, over 20 out of 35 days. We did not participate in ATW cruiser events, not sure there even was one while we were aboard. We did have a wonderful Sunday Brunch for everyone. Please remember when booking a cruise of any kind or length or segment on Oceania, We are F-A-M-I-L-Y and everyone is welcomed, not like some other lines. IMHO, You should have NO CONCERNS about booking this PC segment. Mauibabes

@Bone1 DITTO for Jan’s post, #29. Lots of CC poster’s are avowed DIYers and that is good but NOTHING beats an Oceania Connoisseur Club member TA to get the real facts and protect their client guests. We always book cruises on board and have developed wonderful relationships with many of the Oceania Club Ambassador’s. YES, they advertise and reinforce the “Best Price Guarantee” with those bookings and Oceania will stand by that for like bookings that are offered. That TA who says the Best Price is offered at the time of the cruise release is correct but maybe not 100% of the time. But be aware, prices can be and are increased over time. Can a price go down, yes again in some situations where a special sale may be offered for cruises with unsold inventory. You can be perpetually vigilant checking the websites or again, just use a well connected and Oceania experienced/ knowledgeable TA and let them work for you. Just remember, an apples to apples comparison can be quite challenging, especially with multiple promotional offers and their combine ability. JMHO Mauibabes

Try your TA and if not using a TA, call O directly. We have one booked in October and making Molten Lava Cake 🤪😇🙏👍 mauibabes

We were on Vista last week but did not personally see any of the Deck 9 rooms but agree they are the extended balcony rooms. We have an October sailing on Vista and up on Deck 11 and have a similar expanded balcony. I discussed it at length with my O Rep when we booked the trip ensuring it was what it looked like on the Deck Plan. Just Enjoy, Mauibabes

We were told September when we were on Vista last week and I understand Allura sailings for 2025 Inaugural sailings will be announced in August. 👍🤪🤙❤️ Mauibabes

Seems to me when I made a quick look last week it was 3 or 4 W and D’s. Friends did use them, easy peasy. They are on each deck and you may be eligible due to your stateroom level to get 3 bags of laundry done for Free if you have the needed 3 days to wait on their return. Enjoy, Mauibabes

Perhaps if you are with a group going out on a Private tour, you might consider checking in with the Destinations staff the day/night before and ask what time they might like you to be present in the Ship’s Lounge to get on an early tender ticket. Believe me, they try to be accommodating and do want you to come back for future cruises. A little advance planning helps a lot when it comes to meeting expectations so Enjoy you cruise. Mauibabes

It really depends on how “YOU” travel and not others. We usually select the Shore excursion amenity option and couple those tours with some private ones. A lot depends on who we are traveling with and our itinerary. We often use Oceania air, especially when heading to Europe and can get a deal on Premium Economy seats. We just completed a whirlwind Rome- Venice trip on Vista and dropped a wad 🤪 on Biz Class and it was great but hardly worth three times the price, again, IMHO. That is going to be a tough sell on the DW 😇🙏 in the future. Guess I will pick my battles 🤪. With all said and done with all amenity OBC, Shareholder benefits, O Club OBC, etc, we walked off Vista owing $18.80 to Our dear friends at Mastercard. IMHO, a little mix and match of Oceania benefits and an understanding of what fits your travel style is all that is needed for you to determine what is YOUR best Value decision. If life is structured under a “green eyeshade” then bottom line cheapest is your way to go. I know we will spend every cent we receive so in the end, it all works out for us. Enjoy your cruise, no matter how you structure your travels. Mauibabes

@slw207693 Absolutely right on reviews. We too were aboard the Founders cruise and it was excellent. The staff, crew and guests had an outstanding experience on that first “paying customer” cruise. Perfect, no but hiccups are good because it keeps us all focused on always doing better. If I may add, the art work in the Grand Hall are far from Knick knacks, there is some absolutely gorgeous blown glass pieces and if I heard correctly, part of about $7,000,000 in artwork on Vista. We were fortunate to have eaten in Polo and it was excellent with even more monster steak options for two. We also got to eat in Privee, from the Polo menu, and it was also excellent with outstanding service. IMHO, Ember is not a Premium/Specialty restaurant requiring reservations and limited access. In fact, it could easily become an excellent lunch or quick meal location, ala The Cheesecake Factory or similar upscale bistro/cafe. Menu items were good but certainly not in a league with the other Reservation required Specialty restaurants. 75-90 minute dinners were not had, closer to 2 hours if in a group of 4 or more. We ate in the Aquamar Kitchen for breakfast and lunch and it was good but will need continual tweaking of the menu. My DW could not even order fresh fruit with her breakfast, all fruit was being used to make smoothies which were certainly not lo cal options. I had the Avocado toast which was good but the toast was quite firm, almost day old toast as you needed a sharp knife to cut it up into small pieces. We ate in Red Ginger on the first night, my personal favorite, and every dish had that great flavor but the food did not come from the kitchen “hot”, just warm. We had a chat with the Maitre d and we never heard from anyone else dining there over the week having this problem. She “handled it”. All in All, it was an absolutely amazing cruise and we are excited for our October sailing with a bunch of friends on her. Keep up the great work on your reviews. 👍🍷😇 Mauibabes

@Mariastreby That is why the Dinner Reservations Staff are always offering reservations in the various Specialty Restaurants on the first night of virtually every cruise we have bee on. By 6:30 there is often quite a line up outside the GDR virtually every night. It is gone in 10-15 minutes. This can happen various nights on any cruise especially on nights when there are Cocktail Parties with the Captain or Club Ambassadors. We always suggest to people to avoid using one of your Specialty Restaurant quotas the first night of any cruise and just test your luck because 9 of 10 times you will be accommodated. Enjoy your cruise. Mauibabes

I would rather forget the tea leaves and suggest any cruiser take the trips that they want to and make up their own minds. We have been on Princess a number of times but moved on based on the degradation of the overall product and the quantity of passengers on the ships. Celebrity, a step up from P but still far too many passengers and not much of an improvement in cuisine and service. Oceania, we just found a niche that made us feel comfortable with smaller passenger numbers. The service and cuisine is superior, even if some of the staff are somewhat new to the hospitality or cruise industry. We have tested lines and made our decision, forget the commentary and experiences expressed by CC posters. The only decision that matters to us is what WE think because it is our money and we will spend it where we feel we are getting the best cruise value. As we cruise and meet new guests on board Oceania, I know our niche is quite inviting because we are meeting more and more P and C refugees. Make your own decisions, but make them on your own experiences, not some posters rants. JMHO. 😇👍🙏 Good luck and Enjoy your cruise. Mauibabes

Definitely, we get on board in Miami so we’ll be at the M&G and can talk. We have some other friends on the Montreal segment as well. Ciao Mauibabes

Sorry, never spent any time in the Founder’s Bar. We did roll through a Bar Menu in Horizons and as I recall, a Big O and others were around $14. Did spend part of an evening in Martinis playing. Name that Tune. The cruise was too short; with 3 hosted parties to attend, a dinner with a group in Prive, wine tasting session and several bottles of Oceania provided Champagne and wine to consume did not leave enough time for much other bar tasting time. We barely had time to visit all the restaurants and in fact missed the Seafood Extravaganza twice in the Terrace Cafe which was reportedly BEYOND BELIEF. Tooooo much to do and tooooo little time to do it. All a 7 day cruise did for us was reconfirm that it is TOO short a cruise as we have spent about 11 days with a totally disfunctional body clock. Add in delayed or cancelled flights from the Left Coast, it was really difficult to get into full cruise mode. Good thing we are booked back on her for 16 days in October so we can take it all in. Mauibabes

We just left Vista Saturday and Yes, they sent us a lovely cruise booklet, aka blue book. Yes, there were baggage tags and they were received about a month before sailing. Vista was FANTASTIC. Perfect, no but overall amazing. There are so many new experiences to be had so you will have plenty of time to enjoy them all and make your own decisions and form your own opinions. Ciao, Mauibabes

@slw207693 We just got off the Founder’s Cruise and if I may, THE DREAM TEAM WAS FAR MORE THAN A DREAM TEAM, ABSOLUTELY THE BEST THERE IS 🙏😇🤪👍 We went to the final show last night and heard Vincenzo and then heard Isabel and the surprise guest, Paul, sing an amazing duet. OMG, if you ever get the opportunity to hear him, we did twice on this trip, he is awesome and Isabel is a fabulous talent. Mauibabes

The first Vista O Club party is today, 5/17 and one more probably tomorrow. Yes you get invitations and the Platinum level guests are allowed to join any of the parties, especially nice option if traveling with friends who might be invited to a different party. it is true, they do not “punch your ticket” so to speak so a person could attend one or more parties and not get raked over the coals. Mauibabes

I can not show pictures of the Veranda staterooms closets as we are in a PH. When we were talking to FDR he mentioned the PH closets have the same or more hanging and drawer space than the wali-in on Marina and Riviera. It was changed based on the design requirements and the best use of space, weight, etc. for the ship as a whole. Here are a few pix from our PH. Mauibabes

Depending on the length of the cruise and the number of guests and number of past guests, there can be 1,2,3, it kinda depends. You will get an invitation to attend the one that is applicable to your loyalty level. It is a very nice, fun evening and learning about the program and meeting guests and having some beverages and appetizers. Go and Enjoy! Mauibabes

VISTA, OMG,OMG,OMG😇🛳️ We boarded Saturday and had our CC Meet and Greet with about 100 in attendance. Thanks to HiFi43, Mr. And Mrs Cool Chile. FDR was great in his Q and A and took on all questions. This ship is absolutely AWESOME. She is like an O Class ship that has gone through a contemporary beautification project, without budgetary restrictions. For those of you coming soon, there are lots of pictures out there so not going to add more yet. Everyone must have the opportunity to let their jaw drop 👍. OK, two more OMG, OMG’s and I’ll “Drop the Mic”. Mauibabes

@AlexCherie We won't ever forget that. A trip of a lifetime. It is what we thought too but now 15+ years later, a trip of a lifetime has become a passion and 25 Oceania cruises later. A trip a year sometimes has turned into more and then when lots of friends get involved, it is even more fun. Just enjoy yourselves and plan to test out Vista, she REALLY LOOKS AMAZING. Mauibabes

@MEFIowa By then you will be able to cruise on Allura as well as Vista. Allura itineraries go on sale in August for her mid to late 2025 Inaugural sailings. I would not expect to see any more Bargain Hunter’s Paradise Sales, so yes, the prices will be up. I had read the cost of the two Allura Class ships was over $660 million each and do not know if that includes all the art and other accoutrements. Somehow they have to make up that $11 B hole that was created during the Covid shutdown and Survival efforts over two plus years. Yes, all cruising will cost more🤪🤙. Looking forward to boarding Vista Saturday. We got a scare this a.m. with a AA.com email telling us our flight to FCO was cancelled. A quick check of flights to replace ours, a mere $11,000+ pp for Biz Class one way. Sure glad it was just a time change and not a complete flight cancellation. If we were to have to book today in Economy Standard, it was over $2400 pp one way. With this kind of pricing, the cruise fares might be considered “cheap” or at least a “bargain” in comparison. Just love the airlines and their version of dynamic pricing 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬 Ciao, Mauibabes

The site I saw to watch the Christening came from an NCLH Press Release. “the event site and livestream registration can be found here: www.VistaCelebration.com”

Not us on the F and F cruise, we board on Saturday in Civitavecchia. The photos I have added here are ones my DW has seen on FB and other guests postings. I just wanted the CC posters to see more of Vista asap. Bags packed and ready even though we don’t fly until Thursday evening. Mauibabes