rizello

We were in 3048 and loved it.  So quiet, but that was in 2021 when Covid restrictions were still in place.  Still thought it was a great location.

Thanks for the review.  I am researching Azamara as it looks like it has great itineraries.

I was a bit turned off by the request for 'optional' tipping when signing a bill/check.  That has gotten out of hand everywhere, not just cruise ships.  If the drinks package includes gratuities, they should not be having staff mention the option for an optional tip, nor should the app make you choose '0'.  

Some good ideas already. I have been packing light for almost 40 years of international travel ala Rick Steves. My first trip to Europe for six weeks was in carryon and I haven’t looked back.  My carryon weighs 25 pounds all packed. Complete mix and match, lightweight and quick dry clothing. I like to look nice when traveling so packing light just helps me me more organized.  

As a potential new O cruiser, I am pleased by what I see.  I have mentioned that I have been interested in O, but the onramp to the new lingo and way everything was organized currently is daunting.

I do compare it to Viking who makes it incredibly easy for a person.  I like that more things are included and I don't need a spreadsheet to determine which option to take.  If O would consider allowing 2 internet connections per stateroom as part of included, would be wonderful. I don't see how 1 connection is any value.

4 hours ago, MarkCruises said:

As a new Oceania cruiser (next year), I hope the new program is similar to Viking’s, with included wine at dinner and one included excursion per port.  As the cruise line president said in the recent article, the present multiple O Line choices are confusing to newbies.  Simplicity is better.  

The confusing options are the main reasons I haven’t booked with O.  I have been on Viking a few times and really like the all inclusive. I do like the O itineraries but I haven’t been able to figure out what my cost would really be with all the add ons 

22 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

Well all of this is clear as mud to someone just now considering Oceania Cruises for the first time.  If is a first time for me as well however I studied O a few years ago, booked it and it got cancelled due to Covid.  I am back booked for November 2023.  

 

 

I want to second the 'clear as mud' comment.  I want to try Oceania, but I think they make it difficult for first timers.  It is dizzying to me to figure out all of the miscellaneous items and what they cover, etc.

I am a relatively new cruiser and have taken two Viking cruises.  They do make it simple:  beer and wine included at all meals, wifi free with 2 connections per stateroom, one included excursion at each port, clear pricing on the extra drinks package, paid excursions, etc.  

I have heard so many good things though about Oceania food and their itineraries so I'm trying to wade through the confusion to see if I can figure it out.  I imagine it is like learning a new language:  extremely challenging at first and then easy once you know it.

Thanks for the continued conversations on this topic.  I am still thinking about an Oceania cruise and will look forward to the reviews coming from several of you after you experience both lines.

I so appreciate this topic.  I have been trying to compare and it is a big headache.  The one advantage to Viking is the almost all-inclusive fares.  Oceania fare structure seems so very confusing and I agree you need a spreadsheet to compare apples to apples.  Viking does make it easy to just pay one price and have less to think about.  And the ships are beautiful and rooms very spacious and comfortable.

Thanks for posting!  We were on the Venus in 2021 and really enjoyed the Gavi di Gavi.  Now I can see the specifics and order it here in the US.

Hello:

I am a relatively new cruiser.  I have taken one Carnival cruise many years ago, and then most recently a Viking ocean and river cruise.  I really enjoyed Viking a lot as most things are included, the ship is nice and quiet, and rooms are large with balconies, etc.

But, it looks like Azamara offers some different opportunities that other cruise lines don't.  I see the variety in dining options, the Azamazing excursion, White Nights, etc. 

I have read many of the posts on CruiseCritic and watched videos to get a feel for the ships, how things work, etc.  I really was spoiled by Viking with all balcony rooms, large rooms, generous bathrooms, included excursions, free wi fi, etc.

I admit the Azamara rooms seemed smaller and the bathrooms especially.  So, I'm hoping to hear from veteran Azamara cruisers who have done other lines.  Should I give Azamara a try?  What do you think is the big difference?  Or is there really no substantial difference and I should focus on itinerary to determine a cruise line?  (I have also looked at Oceania but their pricing structure seems way too confusing.)

Thanks for considering this post.  I appreciate all input.  

On 9/13/2022 at 11:36 AM, OneSixtyToOne said:

Service is excellent. Within a day or two everyone will recognize you and know your name. I’ve read that the crew studies pictures of the passengers to ensure a personal experience.

Thanks for this thread.  We have sailed one Viking Ocean cruise and are very interested to see how they compare to other lines.  We really loved our experience and I hope to book more cruises in the future.

We sailed last year and only 198 passengers on our ship. Loved the service, but definitely did not have the crew recognize us and know our name during an 11 day cruise.  I don't fault that, though, a lot to expect for crew to remember 930 passenger names.

We were just in Passau in early August on a Viking cruise.  The eBike excursion is quite expensive for 3 hours, so we opted out and walked around the city.  If you really do want to do an eBike, there are 2 places in town where you can rent an eBike for about $20-30 Euros for the day and you can easily do the route on your own.  We tried to rent the bike, but you needed an advance reservation.  The ebike rental shops are just in the town and easy to reach by foot.

We just completed our first river cruise last month.  It was on Viking, Amsterdam to Budapest.  Viking had included air and it was nice not having to find our own flights, especially as flights are not cheap these days.  We paid $100 extra to fly into Amsterdam a day early.  We had a swan level room and it was just fine for us.  You really are not in your room very much.  

The realities of a river cruise are much different, so it is helpful to be prepared.  There is only one restaurant and only one main lounge area, so river cruises are really set up for mingling with others.  Hopefully by next year Covid will be a thing of the past, but this year it just made for close quarters and lots of Covid running through the ship.  

Be prepared for river level issues and adjustments to the schedule and you will be just fine.  The route is quite beautiful along the Rhine and the Danube and we really enjoyed our time, even if we did come home with Covid.  

it really depends on which service provider you have. We have TMobile so our plan allows texts and data.  When we had ATT, we only used wi fi and turned off cellular for the entire trip ,including roaming. We used Whatsapp for communicating with folks back home and FaceTime if we needed to call (which we didn't)

We were just on a river cruise, not ocean, and masks not required, although we wore them on buses, anytime on an indoor excursion.  Difficult to avoid Covid though as we are packed in together in the lounge and restaurant, as the purpose of river cruising is really for mingling.  We were one of the unlucky ones to come down with Covid upon return.  Glad I didn't have it on the ship as I would not have liked isolating in our swan level room. 

I am hoping that those of you isolated now are only for the 5 required days and then you are free to roam with a mask.  Glad they adjusted the CDC guidance make it more reasonable.

6 hours ago, Azulann said:

I started  my paperback book reading the first nigh in cabin. I used a piece of note tablet paper for my book mark. The next day after the morning cleaning of our cabin, I  found a lovely Viking Bookmark had replaced my simple piece of paper. The book was nicely placed on my bedside table.  Attention to detail for sure. 

This happened to me also on my recent river cruise.  I had borrowed some books from the Viking library to read.  I came back to my room later to find some nice Viking bookmarks placed on top of the books for me to enjoy.

We just switched recently to TMobile to their Magenta Max plan.  We went through five counties in our recent cruise and it was seamless.  Each time we entered a new country we got a text that we had the support for texting and data.  We didn't make any calls, but the data and texting worked great.

9 hours ago, bbtondo said:

Having a wonderful time on my first Oceania cruise. Have been told there are 1100 guests. Nothing seems crowded. 

 

Red ginger has the miso sea bass. Not cod. It was yummy.

 

Jacques was delish and servers were great! 

 

Fyi Not many masks worn for those wondering.

 

My cosmos ordered in the specialty dining restaurant were included with the premium drink packing. 

 

Service has been good. Superior to viking . Passengers very friendly. 

 

Compared to my viking med cruise last November,  I vote for Oceania again!

 

 

BBtondo, thanks for your review.  As somone who has done Viking, I am considering Oceania.  What are the reasons you prefer Oceania?  I know that Oceania food is considered much better and that is a draw, definitely.

What other differences do you see?

4 hours ago, zodiacsign said:

I've done both. Obviously my views are subjective, but here's which one comes out on top in my opinion on different elements.

 

STATEROOMS: Oceania, in layout and bathroom space. (not considering balcony/no balcony issue).

APP/ONLINE INFO: Viking. (The lack of digiboards to look up the day's menus/events, and an app on board, are a downside on Oceania).

FOOD: Oceania

DRINKS: Viking. (Beer and wine included at meals, and cocktails to purchase very reasonable).

ENTERTAINMENT: Oceania (by a mile).

PUBLIC AREA DECOR: Viking

EXCURSIONS: Probably a wash. Viking does offer one "free" tour in each port. In some place these are good (like a walking tour), but in European cities there are usually "free" walking tours you can go to on your own anyway. Often Viking's included tour is just a bus tour with some photo stops. When it comes to paid excursions, I think they are similar (unsurprisingly: it's usually the same local tour companies selling excursions to all the cruise lines).

SPA AREAS: Viking. The indoor heated pool area, ice room, jacuzzis, plunge pool, sauna, etc.

 

 

Zodiacsign:  Thanks for the info.  From watching videos about the Oceania ships, it looks like the bathroom is much smaller than on Viking, probably because it squeezes in a shower and a separate tub.  I thought the Viking bathroom was quite spacious.

Does it depend on the specific Oceania ship to get a larger bathroom size?

1 hour ago, PhD-iva said:

I like that Oceania‘s pricing is à la cart. That way I can pay for what is important to me, and DIY other aspects. For example, I can bring on board bottles of wine and only pay a $25 corkage fee in a restaurant. There’s no fee if I consume it in my cabin. At happy hour I can get a cocktail (double) for the price of one. When I have an unlimited beverage package, I probably drink more than is good for my waist line. So, I like being able to consume alcohol without having an unlimited enticement.

I have heard that Viking does good shore excursions. Depending on the area visited, I might prefer to join in a private group excursion; more customized and more personalized instead of paying for it in the cruise price. It all depends on your preferences.
One thing Oceania does so much better than Viking, is the cuisine. Everything I read tells me this is true. O’s food is much better than Viking’s. For this statement, I rely wholly on the vast majority of opinions I have read on cruise critic; I have never cruised on Viking myself. Enjoy your cruise!

Thanks for info. On Viking you can bring your own alcohol on board and there is not a corkage fee, and beer and wine are also included.

It is the cuisine and the itineraries that attract me to Oceania, so hoping I can give them a try one of these days!

Hello:

I am a fairly novice cruiser, but did an ocean cruise with Viking and really enjoyed it.  I am intrigued by the offerings on Oceania, but somewhat confused and intimidated by the Oceania pricing structure compared to Viking.

Viking is pretty much all inclusive and all rooms have balconies with a minimum 270 sq feet.  Free wifi (2 connections per stateroom) and unlimited beverage package is only $20pp/day.  One free included excursion in each port with several optional paid excursions.  Many promotions come with free airfare.  

I am interested in the Oceania destinations and the focus on cuisine.  I just can't figure out the pricing structure, or why it requires so much thought.  I know that once you get used to a system, it all makes sense, but for someone on the outside, it seems a high bar to get over.

Would love to hear  how best to better understand and make sense of the way the pricing is structured.  How do I compare apples to apples?  If you have cruised both Viking and Oceania, would like to hear your experience.

(I have done some extensive searching on this forum already, but still feel intimidated by the options, so thought I would put my request out there.)

Thanks so much!  Appreciate any and all insights!

Thanks for the thread.  

I vote for moving towards less single use plastic. Having other ways to provide bottled water than one time use plastic water bottles, changing the shampoo/conditioner/body wash to a dispenser model.  

We just returned from the Grand European river cruise (I know, this is an oceans forum!)  We had a similar experience on the river cruise:  started hearing coughing from some folks, and over the course of the two weeks started hearing more and more.

We wore masks (KN395) on buses and on indoor tours, being part of the small percentage that did. We also tested ourselves before we left on our trip.  However, on a river cruise, quarters are much tighter and no room to spread out.  We are now one of those that got Covid as a result of a cruise.  Luckily, cases mild for both of us.

I figure getting Covid is just the price to pay now for being out and about in the world.  (Although I was hoping to continue my membership in the 'never had Covid' club.)

On 8/16/2022 at 12:52 PM, meg1021 said:

We just got back from Viking's Grand European Tour, which originated in Amsterdam on July 31st, and were in Amsterdam the day before the cruise.  We printed out the health declaration, as Viking directed us to do.  At Passport Control, we were told that that is no longer a requirement, and he didn't even look at it.  Everything was open.  No Covid test requirements anywhere.  Your bigger issue might be the low water levels, unless it rains substantially before you travel.  We had to swap ships in Passau, and only followed our original itinerary on 4 of the 14 days.  Many optional tours cancelled, one stop added, others shortened considerably.

Same experience here.  

meg1021, I didn’t realize we were on same cruise!  

For my last trip, I transferred over to a TA after booking with Viking..  The TA helped with selecting travel insurance and booking a pre-cruise hotel.  They did not offer any OBC or any other benefits.