Riviera Review

4.5 / 5.0
782 reviews

Celebration of the Sun

Review for the Caribbean Cruise on Riviera
User Avatar
Lane412000
10+ Cruises • Age 60s

Rating by category

Cabin
Value for Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Service

Additional details

Sail Date: Feb 2017
Cabin: Penthouse Suite

• Background information

This was our 6th Oceania cruise, but first aboard the Riviera. Because of my upcoming work schedule, we decided to book this cruise on Friday, February 10th for the Sunday, February 12th departure. Our favorite cabins (OC – Oceania Suites) were fully booked, so we took a PH1 cabin (11047). This cruise was a 12 day round trip Miami cruise to Caribbean ports. Other than San Juan we had not previously visited the other islands. We started the cruise with a $1,200 on board credit ($600 from Oceania O-Life Program, $200 for our 6th Oceania cruise and $400 from the TA). The itinerary included two sea days, then seven port days and then finished with two sea days going back to Miami.

We used Southwest points (miles) to get two round trip MSY-FLL air tickets and left on Saturday evening and returned back to MSY immediately after the cruise. We used Infinity Transportation for transportation from FLL to the Marriott and after the cruise from the Riviera back to FLL. One way travel in an executive sedan was $100 each way with the tip included. Infinity Transportation did an excellent job communicating the driver was on site and awaiting us for both trips.

Cabin Review

Penthouse Suite

Cabin PH1

We were booked into a PH1 cabin. The cabin number was 11047. Our cabin was serviced by Liduvina and the butler was Ashoke. We have had butlers on our previous Oceania cruises. Sometimes we use the butlers a great deal and sometimes we don’t. On this cruise we did not use the butler very often and we think Ashoke was offended or concerned that we didn’t. Although we continued to try and get him to understand that it was nothing we was doing or not doing that we made the decision not to use butler services very often. Anyway, not using his services caused him to start pressing and trying harder, which then created issues. We were on the cruise to spend time relaxing with little timetables, which meant napping every afternoon if possible. We did not order the daily canapes as we had enough food from the dining venues, but the butler decided to start bringing us daily canapes which meant ringing the phone in the cabin every day even though the Do Not Disturb sign was next to the cabin door.

The cabin and balcony were more than large enough for us. The closet was a good size and we found by the end of the cruise neither one of use had even sat on the couch. The bathroom with a separate tub and shower was great.

So, the cabin worked well for us on this cruise although we spent many a time talking about our missed 12009 OC cabin….laughing

Port Reviews

Miami

Took a cab from the Miami Marriott Key Biscayne to the cruise port. The cab ride was about 10 minutes and cost $20. Easy embarkation process which was completed in less than 10 minutes.

San Juan

San Juan – we had visited San Juan over thirty years ago and had seen the tourist areas like the fort, forest, rum factory, beaches. This cruise we walked to the two forts and took a few photos.

Martinique

Fort de France, Martinique – Luckily, we had not booked any excursions for this port as we were still wobbly after our Antigua excursion the day before. We walked around the city for a few hours and went back to the cruise ship.

Barbados

Bridgetown, Barbados – We had decided to just book a tour once we got off the cruise ship. Unfortunately, we arrived into Barbados on Sunday, which meant the Bridgetown area was closed for the day. We could have jumped in a cab for a quick island tour, but had already decided that one island is the same as the next island. We hung around the port area and then took a quick $10 cab ride into the city of Bridgetown just to see it. In 20 minutes we were back at the port.

7 Helpful Votes
previous reviewnext review

Find a Riviera Cruise from $1,600

Any Month

Get special cruise deals, expert advice, insider tips and more.By proceeding, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

© 1995—2024, The Independent Traveler, Inc.