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Just off the Marina and Regatta - a comparison


Benita

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There have been a few threads about the larger, vs the smaller ships. My husband and I were fortunate enough to sail on the Marina in July, and returned from the Regatta yesterday, so the two cruises are fresh in our minds. We loved both and would jump on another Oceania cruise in a second, but we do have our favorite after comparing the two sizes.

A. Pros for Regatta size ( I will call it the R class) vs Marina size (call it the M class)

1.The fact that there are half the passengers, makes the experience much more intimate. There are also fewer people trying to get off at the ports, so less of a free for all atmosphere when leaving the ship.

2. The library is great - bright, with central seating conducive to reading, or a nap. The library on the M class is kind of dark, with few seats, and you would trip over somebody when you tried to pass.

3. The shows - perhaps it was because it was Alaska, with lots of ships in port, the guest entertainers were great because they could almost jump from one ship to another - on the M, we had the same husband and wife team almost every night.

 

B. Pros for M class

1. Four specialty restaurants, and as good as Toscana and Polo are, we liked Jacques and Red Ginger better. (especially Red Ginger).

2. A real theater - granted it is an auditorium, vs a cabaret, but the ability to see the stage due to the stadium seating wins out over the R class, where all seats are pretty much at the same level. Now, if only they would show an occasional movie

3. A non-smoking Horizons. We love afternoon tea, but so did the smokers on the Regatta, and smoke has never learned to stay in its own section. On the M class, there is a separate room for smokers, so we were able to enjoy the Horizons. On the Regatta, we gave up after the first couple of tries - even at the other end of the room, the smell permeated.

4. Better shops - with the long sea days, especially on cold weather cruises, we spend quite a bit of time wandering around the ship, so it was nice to have more shops and better merchandise.

5. Larger cabins - all seem to be at least 25% larger than the equivalent cabins on the R class. Although the showers are just as cramped on the Marina, it was nice having the bathtub to make the bathroom larger and less steamy.

6. Adequate laundry facilities. We tend to overpack, but it is nice to have the opportunity to do laundry - having 3 washers and dryers on each passenger deck is certainly nicer than the 4 machines in total on the R class - especially appreciated when having broken machines on the R tend to be the norm.

7. The barista - having a dedicated coffee area is self explanatory and fabulous.

8. The concierge and executive lounges - in all honesty, we found them overrated, although the "do it yourself" coffee machines were nice.

So, in this household, the M class wins out, but as I wrote at the beginning of the post, we would happily sail on either.

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Thanks for your input, Benita.

 

We sailed Marina earlier this year and will sail Regatta in November. I'm anxious to make the comparison again myself. We'd sailed Nautica in 2009, but I'm curious to see our reaction to the R ships after the Marina.

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Thank you for taking the time to write a review!

 

Wonderful that Horizons is a non-smoking venue on the larger ships.

It is not really!! they just have a glass wall separating the smoking area from the rest of the room so it does help & the ventilation seems to be much better

 

Lyn

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Benita,

 

Welcome home from Regatta...

 

I agree with you for the most part...

I noted one difference--and my guess is that the experience differs cruise to cruise...

On our recent Marina cruise, we actually had far more varied entertainment than we've had on the R-Ships...

The singers/dancers performed three main shows (plus a number or two in the "Welcome" show)...then we had five different acts with no one doing more than two shows.

 

I didn't necessarily like all of the acts (they ranged from good to very poor), but at least they were not the same act every night...Perhaps they improved in the short time between your Marina cruise and mine, perhaps it is just a cruise by cruise thing depending on who they can book. I was guessing it had something to do with having another Oceania ship or two in the same general area...easy to have an act leave a ship in Dover and fly down to Barcelona and join Mid cruise while another act leaves in Barcelona and flies to meet a ship in Rome...

 

To me, that is just one more point in Marina's favor...

But, as with you, I would not hesitate to cruise on an R-ship again...

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...2. ...Now, if only they would show an occasional movie

Actually, on our recent Marina cruise (same one as Bruin Steve), they showed 2 movies in the lounge. Casablanca (we docked there), and an Andrea Bocelli documentary. It may depend on the length of the cruise.

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Actually, on our recent Marina cruise (same one as Bruin Steve), they showed 2 movies in the lounge. Casablanca (we docked there), and an Andrea Bocelli documentary. It may depend on the length of the cruise.

 

They did show the Bocelli documentary, while we were in port. We begged the cruise director for a movie while at sea, but to no avail- only Bingo and enrichment lectures. I could understand it, if there were rehersals going on, but everytime we walked by, the doors were open and the theater was empty. There were no movies shown on the Regatta either, even though there were about 4 full days and 4 half days at sea. They do have a fabulous DVD collection to watch in your cabin, but a full screen experience would be nice to break up the day, especially on cold weather cruises, where you do not sit outside.

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I sailed the Marina in April and Regatta in June so also have recent experiences. I agree the intimacy on the R ships is a great draw whereas on the Marina the cabins (I was in a PH on both) are far superior and the addition of Red Ginger and Jacques are almost enough to make me want to sail anytime anywhere. Where I disagree is the advantage of the auditorium on Marina over the lounge on the R ships. Since the entertainment is so poor anyway I'd rather be sitting in the comfort of the lounge on the R ships than in the school like discomfort of the auditorium on Marina.

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I agree with you about the theatre on Marina. Far less intimate and if you are late to get a seat in the body of the auditorium and have to sit at the rear (port of starbord) people are constantly walking in front of you and even stand in front of you in the aisles leading in and out of the theatre. Bigger to accomodate the double number passengers on Marina but certainly not as good as the R ships theatres. IMO.

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Thanks Benita. We are taking our first Oceania cruise on the Marina in a Vernada cabin. I had this concern that once I had been on the Marina I would not want to go after that on a R ship as the non-suite cabins look so much smaller. Perhaps I would still like the R ships from what you have said. Can anyone tell me more of how the cabins on the two types of ships compare?

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Can anyone tell me more of how the cabins on the two types of ships compare?

The cabins on the R-ships are smaller (165 sq ft) but IMO more functional in some ways

There is no tub, the closets are in the hall, the drawers you can actually put clothes in to lay flat

The safe you can actually see in it even if you are not 5'11"

The sofa is a bit larger on the O class ship (Marina) more room around the bed

shower has an actual door (no curtain to attack unsuspecting people)

but I think the shower on the R-ships is a bit roomier even with the curtain

They both have good things & bad features

I would sail on any of ships

even better if they could find a place for a Barristas on the R-ships ;)

Lyn

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Thanks Benita. We are taking our first Oceania cruise on the Marina in a Vernada cabin. I had this concern that once I had been on the Marina I would not want to go after that on a R ship as the non-suite cabins look so much smaller. Perhaps I would still like the R ships from what you have said. Can anyone tell me more of how the cabins on the two types of ships compare?

 

We were in a B4 on the Marina this pass May and previously saliled 3 times on the R ships in verandah cabins. The Marina cabin may be larger but not as functional as the R ships. There is a refrigerator on the Marina and I believe they are also now on the R ships.

 

The closet on the Marina is held shut by a magnet which doesn't work all that well. If the closet is open a light goes on so you often get light if the closet doors open on their own. Access to closet is very tight and awkward with not much room between the bed and the closet and the night stand. The drawers are very shallow.

 

The bathroom is beautiful and although much larger but the extra space is taken up by the tub. The shower actually appears smaller than the R ships but with a class door.

 

I like the reading lights by the bed on the Marina.

 

Overall, I like the R ships better. No wait for tenders and a more intimate feel.

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The cabins on the R-ships are smaller (165 sq ft) but IMO more functional in some ways

There is no tub, the closets are in the hall, the drawers you can actually put clothes in to lay flat

The safe you can actually see in it even if you are not 5'11"

The sofa is a bit larger on the O class ship (Marina) more room around the bed

shower has an actual door (no curtain to attack unsuspecting people)

but I think the shower on the R-ships is a bit roomier even with the curtain

They both have good things & bad features

I would sail on any of ships

even better if they could find a place for a Barristas on the R-ships ;)

Lyn

 

Ditto to all of the above.

The square footage of the Marina cabin may be larger than the R ship's but in reality that increase is in the BR and of that most of it is in the tub - useless to me. The cabins and BR on the Marina are very nice, as they should be on a brand new ship, but the cabin on R ship is more functional.

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We were told by the cabin stewardess that quite a lot of the passengers were using the tub for storage of their luggage. True!

 

Excellent idea since our 2 pieces of luggage was a tight fit in the closet and would not fit under the bed. I would be concerned that the luggage would get damp from the steam from the shower. We threw the life vest in the tub and used the shelves for storage.

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Speaking of tenders!!!

I hate hate hate the ones on Marina, they are the most uncomfortable tenders I have been on

I will go down with the ship rather be stuck on one of those with 100 other people :eek:

 

Lyn

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Speaking of tenders!!!

I hate hate hate the ones on Marina, they are the most uncomfortable tenders I have been on

I will go down with the ship rather be stuck on one of those with 100 other people :eek:

 

Lyn

 

Forgot all about those. You are 100% right on. Those tenders are awful.

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Thanks Benita. We are taking our first Oceania cruise on the Marina in a Vernada cabin. I had this concern that once I had been on the Marina I would not want to go after that on a R ship as the non-suite cabins look so much smaller. Perhaps I would still like the R ships from what you have said. Can anyone tell me more of how the cabins on the two types of ships compare?

 

The Penthouse suite on the Marina is fabulous - much larger than the Regatta, with a walk in closet, The regular cabins and veranda cabins are larger on the Marina, but have a weird configuration, with the closet parallel to the bed. It is nice not to have the closet door interfere with the bathroom door, but when the door to the closet on the Marina is open, the light goes on, which can interfere with somebody's sleep if their partner opens the closet. The bathroom is much larger on the Marina, with granite tops. The bathtub does make the room bigger and less steamy, but does not have a curtain or a shower head. It does have a retractable clothesline, which makes a great place to hang wet swimsuits or items that have been washed.

The showers on the Marina have doors, instead of curtains, but are as small as, or if possible, even smaller than the ones on the Regatta. There is only one soap dish, instead of the two on the Regatta and when the soap or shampoo falls on the floor, can be quite comical to pick it up.

I personally like the extra size on the Marina, so I would give the non-suite cabins a higher grade than on the Regatta, but no great difference. The Penthouse suites are far superior on the Marina, and you get the use of an executive lounge, where there is a self serve expresso/latte machine.

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