So How Do We Get To The Ship? Insignia 6-14

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TheSeaCruzer

Guest
After calling Oceania they have informed me that they are no longer providing transfers to and from Dover for our 6-14 sailing. My question is so how do we get from Gatwick or Heathrow to Dover? Any recomendations and ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Seth
 
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Frank Black

Guest
Sounds like Oceania may be in trouble again. Frankly, I am not convinced that they have the staying power. I was on the Mercury a few weeks ago and our waitress once worked for their old company. They asked her to come back to work but she too is afraid they are under capitalized. BTW... it's pretty expensive to go from the airport to Dover.
 
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TheSeaCruzer

Guest
Fank Black (Sounds like Oceania may be in trouble again. Frankly, I am not convinced that they have the staying power.) Can you be more specific with this? What do you mean by again?

Dear Mr. Black,

Oceania has already gone bove and beyoned the call of duty to help us. They are very coustomer friendly. Upon further conversation with Oceania I now understand why they made this decision. Part of the great product that Oceania offors is that they have great deals. Great deals for a luxury product.
In order to make a deal such as 2 for 1 air or two nights in London precruise like they are offoring for our cruise, there obviously has to be certian limitations. When one purchaces the 2 for 1 air included in the price is their ship to shore transfers. Just like any crusie line Oceania has to arrange for coaches to meet their coustomers. The majority of US to London flights get in to London between 6am and 9am. Thus a smart cruise line like Oceania would lump all these passangers into two or three coaches. Rather than spreading out this process to include all passangers - which would ultimatly increace the price of the transfer. Oceania has simply sold out all their space for the coaches.
For a cruise line getting transportation from London to Dover for over 600 people is a great feat. In the Alasken or Caribbean market this is easy for a cruise line. With over 4,000 people embarking and another 4,000 disembarking one day there are plenty of coaches available. This is simply not the case with the London to Dover, Harwich, or Southampton transfers.

Frank Black (BTW... it's pretty expensive to go from the airport to Dover.)

The the cost of Oceania's transfers is very comparable to what it costs to individualy get from London to Dover. In retrospect we are now looking forward to our own private transfer. We can tell the driver where we want to go, when we want to go, for how long, and for how much. All in All a much better arrangement.
Even without crusing on Oceania I can already tell they are going above and beyond the call of duty. This is by no means Oceania's fault. Oceania is a luxury line by any standerds and truly I look forward to crusing with them.

Seth
 
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Petert

Guest
Hi Seth,

I sailed on the Rennaisance R1 several years ago and really loved the ship, which is of the class that you will be cruising on. The ships are beautiful and the smaller size makes for a very nice personal experience aboard. No lines to stand in and great personal service. We have sailed out of both Dover and Harwich, and since we arrive a couple of days before embakation, and make our own hotel reservations we are on our own when it comes to getting from the airport to the port area. We have always arrived at Heathrow so I am not familiar with Gatwick but ground transport options should be similar. We have taken the bus to London Victoria station, taxi to Liverpool rail station and the the train to Harwich. For two people this is cheaper than the cruise ground transfer cost, but does require your handling of your own baggage. This Sept we are sailing from Dover and will be taking the National bus service from Heathrow to Victoria Station and transferring to the Victoria/Dover bus.

If you are interested you can locate the schedules and fares for the bus or rail transport on the internet.

Peter
 
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