Oceania Cruises Launches Option For Pre-Cruise Specialty Restaurant Reservations

It’s pretty much a given that we cruise travelers are a compulsive lot. We plan months in advance to insure that we encounter only smooth sailing once underway on our highly anticipated cruises. That includes our dining choices. To that end, Oceania Cruises is introducing a new online portal that will allow booked guests make advance reservations for specialty restaurants from the comfort of their home.

Oceania Cruises’ three 684-guest vessels–Regatta, Insignia, and Nautica–offer a choice of four different dining venues, all of which come under the watchful eye of renowned master chef, Jacques Pépin, who serves as executive culinary director for the cruise line. Guests can choose from The Grand Dining Room, Polo Grill, Toscana and Tapas on the Terrace. Oceania Cruises’ brand new, 1,258-guest Marina, scheduled to launch in winter 2010, will offer 10 different dining venues, six of which will be gourmet restaurants to be included on the Dining Reservations Calendar. A plus is that the new online “Dining Reservations Calendar” conveniently includes the times the ship is in port, as well as any pre-reserved shore excursions to assist guests in selecting the ideal dining times. Reservations can be made 90 days in advance of sailing, once final payment has been received, and will remain available until 10 days prior to departure.

Access to the Dining Reservations Calendar begins with the 2009-2010 Winter Collection voyages of Regatta, Insignia and Nautica to Asia and Australia, South America, and the Caribbean. To use the calendar, guests must register in the “Already Booked” section of OceaniaCruises.com. By year-end, travel agents will also have the ability to make dinner reservations on behalf of their clients via the travel agent center on Oceania Cruises’ Web site.