Celebrity cruisers considering Oceania TA

hi,

SWMBO and I are thinking of upgrading our cruises from Celebrity and are seriously considering a TA on Sirena which currently has some attractive prices.

Few questions about Oceania.

(1) I'm in my early 50s, SWMBO is in her mid 40s how does that fit in with passenger demographic?

(2) my wife doesn't drink so we'd probably go for the OBC or free excursions - how does the free excursions work - are the free ones just basic 3 hour walk round tours?

(3) if I choose to buy a drinks package can I buy it on board for part of the cruise or is it the whole cruise only?

(4) what restrictions are there about bring your own drink on board (at embarkation or during the cruise)

(5) SWMBO and i are not big into on board entertainment we are quite happy with an hour in the Casino, a one hour show and maybe catching a movie in the cabin. What are the shows on board like, is there a decent range of in room movies / tv channels and is there a cost?

Realistically, are there any negatives (c.w. Say Celebrity) to watch out for- we won't miss the art auctions and cheap watch and "precious" gems sales if they are not on board.

Many thanks

There are threads which cover each of your questions. The included tours are yours to choose and can be quite varied. Not available are tours with costs over $199.

Enjoy the cruise.

hi,

 

SWMBO and I are thinking of upgrading our cruises from Celebrity and are seriously considering a TA on Sirena which currently has some attractive prices.

 

Few questions about Oceania.

 

(1) I'm in my early 50s, SWMBO is in her mid 40s how does that fit in with passenger demographic?

You will be slightly younger, but don't over dramatize the difference. Would you feel awkward around a 35 year old, or wouldn't you notice?

(2) my wife doesn't drink so we'd probably go for the OBC or free excursions - how does the free excursions work - are the free ones just basic 3 hour walk round tours?

The Olife Excursions are not all walking tours.

(3) if I choose to buy a drinks package can I buy it on board for part of the cruise or is it the whole cruise only?

Buy into the Package whenever you wish, but when you do it must be for the remainder of the Cruise. Both people in a couple don't need to buy the Package together, but if both don't have a Package, sharing is prohibited.

(4) what restrictions are there about bring your own drink on board (at embarkation or during the cruise)

Bring on whatever you wish (some people bring cases) as long as you only drink it in your Cabin

(5) SWMBO and i are not big into on board entertainment we are quite happy with an hour in the Casino, a one hour show and maybe catching a movie in the cabin. What are the shows on board like, is there a decent range of in room movies / tv channels and is there a cost?

Sounds like the shows will suit you, but remember that on a 650 passenger ship they won't be as grand as Celebrity. TV stations are minimal and movies are via dvd. The ship will have a small assortment but if the movies matter to you, bring your own.

Realistically, are there any negatives (c.w. Say Celebrity) to watch out for- we won't miss the art auctions and cheap watch and "precious" gems sales if they are not on board.

The Casino size will probably be a detriment for you (think one poker table and two blackjack tables at varying buy in prices) Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide

Many thanks

Hope that this helped, enjoy whichever cruise you choose!

What are you trying to upgrade? Food will be an upgrade in the GDR, burger grill and buffet. Specialty restaurants (probably on par with Celebrity's) are not an extra charge but you may only be able to visit a limited number of times. Cabin, may or may not be an upgrade depending on what category. Small ship will have fewer bars and pools. Limited entertainment in the atrium compared to Celebrity. It will be much easier to visit ports on a small ship, usually way less time to get off the ship or on. Have you done a TA before? It can be very quiet compared to a port intensive cruise. So TA and small ship would be very different from 7 day port intensive on large ship. We love TAs and O, but I would not recommend to everyone unless they can do self-entertainment.

What? You don't want to buy a "prestigious" Invicta watch? :D:D:D

After 14 cruises on Celebrity we knew it was time for a change. Our first Oceania cruise was the Miami - Tahiti itinerary that started December 29, 2017. We loved it. We knew we had made the right choice after perhaps two hours aboard ship.

Just a few of the glaring differences between Oceania and Celebrity:

No aggressive photographers interrupting your dinner. (Or any other time. There are none.)

No waiters/bartenders pushing specialty restaurants or drink packages.

No paper thin towels. (Aqua class.)

No lousy website.

No "sales" that featured items available on Amazon for less money.

The food is fantastic. I would compare food in the Grand Dining Room at near the same level as Celebrity specialty restaurants.

If you enjoy frequently interacting with the captain and senior officers then you might be disappointed with Oceania. They are all business. At least they were on Marina. That's fine with us.

We were concerned that the ship would feel too small. It didn't.

We are in our early sixties and felt comfortable with fellow passengers. I would estimate passengers were mostly mid-fifties to mid-seventies.

We have another Oceania cruise booked for 2019 and are waiting for 2020 itineraries to be released.

We found our new home at Oceania and will never go back to Celebrity.

What? You don't want to buy a "prestigious" Invicta watch? :D:D:D

 

After 14 cruises on Celebrity we knew it was time for a change. Our first Oceania cruise was the Miami - Tahiti itinerary that started December 29, 2017. We loved it. We knew we had made the right choice after perhaps two hours aboard ship.

 

Just a few of the glaring differences between Oceania and Celebrity:

 

No aggressive photographers interrupting your dinner. (Or any other time. There are none.)

 

No waiters/bartenders pushing specialty restaurants or drink packages.

 

No paper thin towels. (Aqua class.)

 

No lousy website.

 

No "sales" that featured items available on Amazon for less money.

 

The food is fantastic. I would compare food in the Grand Dining Room at near the same level as Celebrity specialty restaurants.

 

If you enjoy frequently interacting with the captain and senior officers then you might be disappointed with Oceania. They are all business. At least they were on Marina. That's fine with us.

 

We were concerned that the ship would feel too small. It didn't.

 

We are in our early sixties and felt comfortable with fellow passengers. I would estimate passengers were mostly mid-fifties to mid-seventies.

 

We have another Oceania cruise booked for 2019 and are waiting for 2020 itineraries to be released.

 

We found our new home at Oceania and will never go back to Celebrity.

Yes, but you were on an O ship, big difference between going from Celebrity to an R ship vs an O ship. Especially in room size.

Yes, but you were on an O ship, big difference between going from Celebrity to an R ship vs an O ship. Especially in room size.

I agree but going from 2,100+ or 2800+ passengers on Celebrity to 1,250 passengers on Marina was a concern for us. After our experience on Marina, we will have no problem with the smaller Sirena next year. It looks as if the Concierge cabins on R ships are a bit larger than Celebrity Aqua cabins. I may be wrong.

I agree but going from 2,100+ or 2800+ passengers on Celebrity to 1,250 passengers on Marina was a concern for us. After our experience on Marina, we will have no problem with the smaller Sirena next year. It looks as if the Concierge cabins on R ships are a bit larger than Celebrity Aqua cabins. I may be wrong.

I think the Aqua on Celebrity are the same as their standard verandas, if that's the case then it's definitely going to be larger than an Concierge room on an R ship. Especially the bathrooms and showers. You'll need to get into a PH for a larger room.

Concierge rooms on Oceania I believe are the same size as their veranda suites, unless the Sirena, which is the only one I haven't been on, is set up differently. The only ones that might be better than normal are at the aft of the ship, that have larger balconies, but no where as large as the C1 aft balconies on the Celebrity M class ships.

If you enjoyed the O ship you should enjoy the R. We do. But those showers sure are small. But I'm a pretty big fellow.

Just to add to what other folks have said, we like both O and X, but for different reasons. X for fun and O for food and cool itineraries.

When not eating at O's specialty restaurants, we enjoy eating dinner outside up at their Terrace Cafe (the buffet) where the food is just as good as in the MDR. However, up there we can have lobster, filet mignon and/or crab legs every night plus the desserts are out of this world.

The evening shows are ok, but nothing like X. We also bring dvds with us, so we have something to watch when we're not relaxing on the balcony or going to trivia.

My DW doesn't drink either, so we usually get the OLife excursion option. We usually use the free ones to reserve the most expensive ones, then get the 25% off the rest of the excursions by booking them using the YWC option as the free ones count towards the minimum needed to get the discount.

We also book a concierge level cabin rather than a regular veranda to get the 3 free bags of laundry per leg.

We are new to Oceania. What does ywc option mean when it comes to excursions? Thanks

We are new to Oceania. What does ywc option mean when it comes to excursions? Thanks

However, when we use the YWC package in conjunction with the OLife Excursion option, we seem to do pretty good, especially when we book the more expensive ones using the "free" OLife excursion perk. One additional note as I mentioned earlier, you can include the "free" OLife excursions to your count when trying to meet the minimum number of excursions to qualify for TWC. For example, if you get 2 OLife excursions (per person) and the minimum to get TWC is 5, you only need to book 3 more to get the 25% off. Here's the details of each package:

Unlimited Passport Collection

• Enjoy UNLIMITED shore excursions throughout your voyage
  
• Choose from a wide array of excursions all for one low price
  
• Save up to 40% per person off à la carte retail prices
  
• As an added bonus, receive additional savings on Oceania Select and Oceania Exclusive excursions
  

Your World Collection

• Flexibility to custom design your own collection
  
• Select desired number of excursions from our entire portfolio
  
• Save 25% per person off à la carte retail prices, subject to a minimum number of excursions required to be reserved depending on voyage length
  

We have taken many, many Celebrity cruises. Azamara is a step up and Oceania is a big step up. Keep in mind you will not see the scale of entertainment on an R class ship but the food and service we found to be fabulous. Drinks are expensive. Consider the package.

Just an FYI, you do have the option for a lower price and no OLife perk. You don’t have to pick one

I am also thinking of switching from Celebrity to O. I have a Celebrity Solstice Alaska cruise booked for this summer and am considering switching to Oceana. Celebrity is 7 days vs 11 days on Oceana, Celebrity is a balcony cabin vs ocean view on Oceana. Have the beverage package and $300 OBC with Celerity. Looking at around $4000 on Celebrity for 2 vs $8400 on Oceana with O Life, not including airfare on either.

We recently completed a TA on the Oceania Marina and enjoyed it immensely. The experience was very close to what I had anticipated after reading CC reviews: Fantastic food, but not much going on day and night. That was just fine with us. We did indeed love the beautiful look of the ship, the excellent art (not necessarily for sale, no tacky auctions), and the lovely design. Lots of open public spaces, never feeling crowded. And the casino was fine. A small group of hard core players who got to know each other, as well as the very friendly dealers. We had fun playing cards together.

We've enjoyed one 14-day cruise on X. It was OK, but I am not running back. I got very anxious when I saw the spigots that dispensed wine like Mountain Dew.

 

We've enjoyed one 14-day cruise on X. It was OK, but I am not running back. I got very anxious when I saw the spigots that dispensed wine like Mountain Dew.

?? Are you talking about the Enomatic Wine Dispensers in Celler Masters? Some of the best wine bars have those, they keep an open bottle fresh.

What? You don't want to buy a "prestigious" Invicta watch? :D:D:D

 

After 14 cruises on Celebrity we knew it was time for a change. Our first Oceania cruise was the Miami - Tahiti itinerary that started December 29, 2017. We loved it. We knew we had made the right choice after perhaps two hours aboard ship.

 

Just a few of the glaring differences between Oceania and Celebrity:

 

No aggressive photographers interrupting your dinner. (Or any other time. There are none.)

 

No waiters/bartenders pushing specialty restaurants or drink packages.

 

No paper thin towels. (Aqua class.)

 

No lousy website.

 

No "sales" that featured items available on Amazon for less money.

 

The food is fantastic. I would compare food in the Grand Dining Room at near the same level as Celebrity specialty restaurants.

 

If you enjoy frequently interacting with the captain and senior officers then you might be disappointed with Oceania. They are all business. At least they were on Marina. That's fine with us.

 

We were concerned that the ship would feel too small. It didn't.

 

We are in our early sixties and felt comfortable with fellow passengers. I would estimate passengers were mostly mid-fifties to mid-seventies.

 

We have another Oceania cruise booked for 2019 and are waiting for 2020 itineraries to be released.

 

We found our new home at Oceania and will never go back to Celebrity.

Agree completely with the above comments, except the last one, based upon our experience on O's Marina before Oceania was bought by NCL. Looking forward to our R-ship (Insignia) cruise later this year. We have previously cruised on Azamara's R-ship, the Journey.

We are "Elite" on Celebrity and not sure if we will go back to Celebrity (the new upscale Carnival?). However, we are driven by itinerary, so Celebrity does still have a chance in the future.

?? Are you talking about the Enomatic Wine Dispensers in Celler Masters? Some of the best wine bars have those, they keep an open bottle fresh.

LOL, that is like saying that some of the best restaurants have a drive through.....:rolleyes:

I am also thinking of switching from Celebrity to O. I have a Celebrity Solstice Alaska cruise booked for this summer and am considering switching to Oceana. Celebrity is 7 days vs 11 days on Oceana, Celebrity is a balcony cabin vs ocean view on Oceana. Have the beverage package and $300 OBC with Celerity. Looking at around $4000 on Celebrity for 2 vs $8400 on Oceana with O Life, not including airfare on either.

Personally, if the money was not the issue, I would upgrade to a corner aft-facing sky suite on the Solstice so we could eat in the Illuminae, get the Go Best perk package, which is included, and be able to sit out on our big corner aft-facing balcony for $7,800 for 2. I would never recommend giving up a balcony for an ocean view when cruising Alaska. But, that's just me.

LOL, that is like saying that some of the best restaurants have a drive through.....:rolleyes:

Some of the best wine bars I’ve been to in Italy and France have them. It’s a great way to have more of a selection by the glass. There’s a place in Chianti that probably has 200. I would hardly compare it to a machine serving Mountain Dew. :o

We were on the Riviera for an Eastern Caribbean cruise (Feb 6th departure). I was more interested in the ship than the itinerary as I had read such wonderful reviews. The Riviera is a beautiful ship-I love the decor and especially the extensive art collection! One of the crew members (Josh??) put together a ‘scavenger hunt’ game where you’d have about 60+ pictorial clues of paintings etc...of which you’d have to find hidden in the paintings. This was not an easy task but it was truly a very fun activity and allowed my husband and I to become very familiar with every corner of the ship! We actually won first place (maybe my being a former h.s. Art teacher had something to do with it!!). Anyway, it took us several days to complete and we both found it soooooo much fun!! I’d like to see that offered on the HAL line!

Over the past five years since we’ve been retired, we have begun cruising once a year, at least. Most have been on HAL (Nieuw Amsterdam; Noordam; and the ‘new’ Konningsdam). We liked all three experiences but I’d say the Konningsdam was our favorite. It is a beautiful ship and we thought the food was very good although the specialty restaurants cost extra. We especially love the Tamarind (comparable to Red Ginger on the Riviera) and the Pinnacle Grill (comparable to Polo Grill). The food on the Riviera was just wonderful.....everything was fabulous except for the rib steak I had (on my birthday, no less). It was inedible (I tried!) and in retrospect I should have sent it back (dumb move).

The Terrace Grill we used primarily for breakfasts (great selection) but I would have loved to eat more in the Grand Dining Room-it is absolutely lovely and of course, the food is outstanding as it is in all venues on the Riviera. What was really special is that this ship had FOUR speciality restaurants (1250 passengers) compared to the three on Konningsdam (2250+). So for the size of the Riviera, they offered more food diversity!

The staff on both ships were outstanding and super friendly! The fellow passengers were engaging and soooooo interesting on the Riviera but we found them to be, generally, a little older than those on the Konningsdam. Ninety-nine percent of the passengers we met on the Riviera were retired professionals and avid Oceania cruisers. My husband and I are not spring chickens (68/72) but there were more wheelchair/walkers on Riviera than we found on Konningsdam. That didn’t bother us in the least...it’s the people we found to be so engaging....regardless of their handicaps. We’re all human, right?

Would I book another cruise on Riviera or her sister ship, Marina? Absolutely! Would I book on HAL’s Konningsdam or their newer ship? Absolutely!

The stateroom we had (A-4 Congierge) was lovely albeit a smidge short on storage. We solved that problem by storing our suitcase under the bed and open to serve as another two drawers. Yes, the shower was a bit cramped but we managed fine. We could always use the bathtub/shower combo but we didn’t. We had room 9003 so our veranda was configured differently which gave us a bit more room!

On the Konningsdam, the shower was huge but no bathtub (no biggie). The room was slightly roomier but the beds weren’t quite as comfy as the Riviera. ON the Konningsdam, the tv was across from the bed, making it only possible to watch the tv while in bed....a bit uncomfortable. THe closet was difficult to get into on the Riviera and more accessible on the Konningsdam. So, there are pros and cons to both ships. We love both ships as these little things are not critical to us....we manage.....we were thrilled to be cruising!!!!

In conclusion, Riviera probably, in our eyes, has a slight edge up versus the Konningsdam.....

But, both are lovely!!!

There are threads which cover each of your questions. The included tours are yours to choose and can be quite varied. Not available are tours with costs over $199.

Enjoy the cruise.

I'm looking for a thread on which of the $199 and lessor excursions are talked about. I'm going on the Ionian passages which included the Greek Isles, plus Venice, Montenegro, Croatia. Can you direct me?

I'm looking for a thread on which of the $199 and lessor excursions are talked about. I'm going on the Ionian passages which included the Greek Isles, plus Venice, Montenegro, Croatia. Can you direct me?

Are you looking for detailed info on each of the O excursions on your cruise or CC threads on personal experiences on each of those excursions? If you're looking for the latter, you may what to do a search of CC Reviews for that cruise and look to see if anyone has posted excursion comments on those you are interested in. However, if you are looking for detailed descriptions of each one on the O website, that's an easy find.