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Oceania vs. HAL


bellebride116

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We really enjoyed our last cruise on HAL, but are still open to cruising other lines. Actually, since this past January's disaster off the coast of Italy I'm personally a little terrified of cruising as I wasn't a HUGE fan of it to begin with - thinking of the water below really freaks me out! Anyway, we are thinking of Oceania as we really like the idea of having our airfare included in the price. There are also a number of itineraries that we love.

 

We are a husband/wife in out late 20s/early 30s. Some of cruising likes/dislikes include:

 

Likes:

- good food

- good room service menu

- comfy stateroom {we spend a lot of time in our stateroom as we love to sit on our balcony}

- good excursions {we were looking @ Regent Cruises as well as their excursions are included in the price, but we haven't determined yet if the price difference is worth it?}.

- spa {on our last cruise with HAL we really enjoyed our spa access pass we purchased that gave us access to the relaxation room, hydro-pool, steam rooms, etc for the length of the cruise}.

- the ability to get a table for 2 in the dining room

 

Dislikes:

- A lot of noise/Party atmosphere

- Children out of control and running around

- Tons of Smoking everywhere

- Buffets, but I'm pretty sure all cruises have these

 

Could Care Less On:

- Shows {we don't really go to any shows on cruises}, we live near NYC and go to Broadway often.

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Dislikes:

- A lot of noise/Party atmosphere not many party animals most people are in bed before midnight ;)

- Children out of control and running around never seen any

- Tons of Smoking everywhere only 2 small areas for smokers

- Buffets, but I'm pretty sure all cruises have these

 

Could Care Less On:

- Shows {we don't really go to any shows on cruises}, we live near NYC and go to Broadway often.

You will be on the lower end of the age scale but you can still enjoy the cruise with some more mature people ;)

I think Oceania will tick most of your likes & dislikes

Yes there is a buffet but it is much nicer than any cruise line than I have been on ..it is not completely self serve the crew will serve you from the buffet counter .(no people handling the serving utensils)

The O class ships (Marina & Riveria) have a cook to order grill section with great selection of items

You could book a PH you can be served dinner in your suite

 

Enjoy what ever cruise you choose to go with

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Given the preferences that you listed, it seems that Oceania will be a better fit for you, provided that you book at either the Suite or Concierge level, where Room Service is more expansive than in the lower categories.

IMG_1344.jpg

In a Suite, access to the Spa Deck would also be included in your fare, and particularly on the newer Oceania Class ships, the Penthouses are GORGEOUS:

oceania_oclass-penthouse-suite-b.jpgpenthouse-cabin.jpg

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Given the preferences that you listed, it seems that Oceania will be a better fit for you, provided that you book at either the Suite or Concierge level, where Room Service is more expansive than in the lower categories.
Gee, that is too bad for a line that many consider to be more upscale. Any cabin on HAL can have a hot breakfast delivered from room service. One can even write in items not on the room service menu (like eggs benedict) and they'll be delivered - but only when the MDR is open for breakfast. Everyone can also have dinner off of that nights menus delivered. I guess we'll be taking a step down from HAL in this aspect when we take our first Oceania cruise next year.
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We first started cruising HAL in 1985 when we were in our 30's. At that time the majority of the cruisers were 50+. We enjoyed ourselves immensely.

 

The cruisers on O are in the same age range and slightly older. We have never found being part of an older crowd a detriment to having a good time. As has been pointed out, don't expect a lot of late partying in the lounges. What you will get are mature people with many life experiences who will be more than happy to help you make your cruise enjoyable.

 

Oceania is definite step above HAL to the point you may be spoiled and not want to go back. Our first cruise on O was in a standard veranda suite and it was more than adequate. We have since moved to Concierge and penthouse as the price and itinerary warrant.

 

Cruising with us older folks an be a lot of fun. Enjoy! :)

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We had a nice cruise on HAL to Alaska, but the two lines really are in different classes. I know that HAL likes to call itself a "premium" line and that was what many people considered Oceania's class, but Oceania is not just one step above HAL, it is a couple of steps. We found the food on HAL to be ordinary, and the food in the specialty restaurants was not even as good as the MDR. On Oceania, the food in the MDR is good, and the specialty restaurants are exceptional (and at no additional cost!!). The overall service on HAL was good, we had no specific complaints, but it is simply better on O. The steward will be in your cabin more often to check towels, etc. And the people cannot be nicer or more friendly. Whatever you want is taken care of with a smile, it is done promptly and done well.

 

Entertainment is the one area where HAL has it all over Oceania. That is not a big item for us, and it does not appear to be one for the OP, but HAL has much better entertainment.

 

IMHO if you liked HAL, you are going to love Oceania!

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Oceania is much nicer than HAL. HAL was very nice years ago prior to Carnival taking it over. O sounds like a perfect fit for you. The lowest category we have been on with O is a verandah stateroom and cud get full room service. You will love O.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Have I missed something? Surely Oceania is much more expensive and six stars?? It would appear that HAL is still very good value?

 

If you are asking my opinion, I would say no. The food and the service on HAL have been lowered to a level that I refuse to accept, and I say that as a person who LOVED HAL through the late 1980's.

na1.jpg

 

Although I had my tenth birthday party on the old-old Nieuw Amsterdam in 1971 (at which my parents no doubt smoked), I cannot live with the present HAL smoking policy.

 

They won't see me again, whatever the price.

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Which would you choose (both the same amount) for Alaska on HAL vs Oceania:

 

HAL Zuiderdam deluxe suite or Oceania concierge level veranda (a3)?

 

About us: we are a gay couple in our late 30s, won't find us in the night clubs at night, enjoy good food and relaxation

 

Thanks

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Which would you choose (both the same amount) for Alaska on HAL vs Oceania:

 

HAL Zuiderdam deluxe suite or Oceania concierge level veranda (a3)?

 

About us: we are a gay couple in our late 30s, won't find us in the night clubs at night, enjoy good food and relaxation

 

Thanks

 

 

If you can stand the smoke there really isn't any comparison to the two rooms. We had a Deluxe suite on the Westerdam a few years ago and recently were on the Oceana Marina in a Penthouse suite. The Hal Deluxe was much bigger and came with lots of nice extras. Having said that, we will not book on HAL again until they have a much more restrictive smoking policy. As far as food goes HALs was good but nowhere near as good as Oceana.

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If you can stand the smoke there really isn't any comparison to the two rooms. We had a Deluxe suite on the Westerdam a few years ago and recently were on the Oceana Marina in a Penthouse suite. The Hal Deluxe was much bigger and came with lots of nice extras. Having said that, we will not book on HAL again until they have a much more restrictive smoking policy. As far as food goes HALs was good but nowhere near as good as Oceana.

 

That was my point. I was just wondering if we'd have a better experience in a suite on HAL or a concierge balcony on Oceania as they are both the same price. Given the same payout, just wondering which offers a better experience for us.

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We have only taken 2 cruises, both within the last 6 months...now we wonder why we waited so long! We're in our 40s. FWIW we booked each cruise because they fit within my husband's vacation schedule, i.e. we didn't research/plan/schedule a year out because of a specific cruise.

 

Oceania is our favorite hands down. Of course we are by no means experts on cruising, but here are some thoughts.

 

Accommodations: We had a PH on Nautica and a Deluxe Verandah Suite on HAL's Westerdam. HAL actually wins on the stateroom because we had an aft wrap-around balcony that was fabulous!

 

Food/beverages: O's food is far superior, honestly the only memorable food we had on HAL was the steaks in their Pinnacle Grill...which requires a $25 upcharge to dine there. Oceania's specialty restaurants really were special to us. My husband can't stop talking about the crab cake at the Polo Grill! We're not fans of long buffet lines for just OK food, or for settling for whatever option had the shortest line. Oceania is more liberal about bringing your own adult beverages on board. HAL charges for sodas and bottled water...but can you blame them, people were buying up $3 bottles of water for shore excursions like it was nothing.

 

Atmosphere: We very much prefer the smaller number of guests on Oceania. We don't have kids but weren't bothered by them being on HAL, but didn't really hang out in areas where kids would be. Because of our giant balcony we didn't spend time at the pools, for example. I read HAL has restricted smoking in recent years, the main place it was a problem was in the casino/sports bar area which we expected. It became more of a problem when our disembarkation was delayed and we had to wait in a lounge near the casino...not pleasant leaving the ship smelling like smoke.

 

We also prefer Oceania's dress code. I know some folks love formal nights on cruises, but it's not for us. Though I'm not sure we were really any more dressed up on HAL's formal nights than we would have been to go to dinner on Oceania, except for my husband wearing a tie.

 

Activities: We went to a couple of the shows on Oceania but didn't go to any on HAL. We tended to eat dinner late then retire to our suite to enjoy an after-dinner drink watching the stars. HAL did have a TON of activities every day. We didn't go to the spa on either. Just before our Oceania trip I had spent almost a week at Canyon Ranch in Tucson, I was spa'd out by then.

 

Service: We loved our butler on Oceania. On HAL we had access to their Neptune lounge...from the way some CC folks talk about it we expected angels to be singing when we opened the doors! It was a nice spot, but wouldn't be a deal breaker if we didn't have it. Though we were pleased with the service the lounge agent provided making dinner/shore excursion reservations, and arranging a dinner on our balcony (have I mentioned how huge it was!) for us and 4 other friends one night. We did most of that by phone.

 

Itinerary: Trying to compare our Oceania Mediterranean itinerary to the Caribbean ports of call on HAL would be apples-oranges. We prefer Europe, but for this recent trip my husband had only one week of vacation blocked, so it wasn't feasible.

 

Price: No surprise, HAL was less expensive. But Oceania wasn't significantly more to steer us away in the future...and well worth it to us. Keeping our eyes peeled for a good discount!

 

OK I've rambled on a bit but have been meaning to draft a 'review' anyway for friends who keep asking us to compare the two.

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That was my point. I was just wondering if we'd have a better experience in a suite on HAL or a concierge balcony on Oceania as they are both the same price. Given the same payout, just wondering which offers a better experience for us.

 

Except for the bigger room, you really don't get much more for your money in a Suite on Hal. On Oceania, the Concierge level rooms have a lounge which is has virtually all of the same amenities as the Neptune Lounge.

 

That said, being in a Suite on Oceania really makes a difference because of the Butler, the additional Specialty Restaurant Reservations, the access to the Spa deck and most importantly, the ability to "order in" and dine course by course in ones Suite.

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<snip> On Oceania, the Concierge level rooms have a lounge which is has virtually all of the same amenities as the Neptune Lounge.

 

That said, being in a Suite on Oceania really makes a difference because of the Butler, the additional Specialty Restaurant Reservations, the access to the Spa deck and most importantly, the ability to "order in" and dine course by course in ones Suite.

Please correct me if I am wrong but I thought there was a lounge for concierge only on the O-class ships. The advantage to CC on R-ships was the additional reservations that start at this level on the R-ships (but not on the O-ships. ) confused yet? :)

 

I agree that upgrading to a 'suite' makes an even bigger difference. But on O-ships the PHs do not have all the perqs of the higher level - i.e. no included bar set-up :( There are several subtle differences in this range between the two ship classes but in the end it would not steer me from one to another. I am simply so much looking forward to the overall experience of cruising in a PH 'suite' on Riviera.

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I just got off 26 days on Oceania Marina yesterday......first 14 days did the TA in a PH1, the 2nd leg was western Med. in an A3 concierge. This was my first time on Oceania. I am a 53-y-o female "solo"......I am not going to write alot of detail here as I am totally and completely braindead right now (jet lag).....

 

In my opinion, there is no comparison in regard to a HAL deluxe suite and even the O penthouse suite -- HAL is much larger, the bathroom and walk-in closets are much larger, same amenities. HAL's suite attendants are amazing (charming, upbeat, efficient) and I feel that having a butler on top of 2 suite attendants on O was just overkill....not worth the $.

 

HAL's neptune lounge is about 3 times larger than O's Executive Lounge and a world above in terms of service, food, cleanliness. I was totally surprised at how "eh" O's executive lounge was - it wasn't worth going to in my opinion.

 

In regard to room service (which I order constantly) - Oceania in a Penthouse is absolutely far superior to HAL -- you can order from O's speciality restaurants every single night and have the butler serve you an elegant dinner in your suite!!!! It. Was. Amazing. But with that said, I need to point out that the main reason I ordered from the speciality menus because the room service food was absolutely awful (in my opinion). O's buffet was the superstar of any buffet I've experienced (including Silversea) -- the quality and selection of items was five star all the way........

 

The beds are the same quality, HAL has more extensive tv programming, internet service on both HAL and O are comparable except O is more expensive (I think alot more expensive but I can't remember HAL's exact fee at this point).

 

Now in regard to the Concierge stateroom on O - it was a shock to me how much smaller it was than the penthouse I was in -- cramped small. I was hugely disappointed in the big difference in cleanliness, service, amenities (lack thereof) and overall condition of the verandah stateroom compared to the PH. A HUGE step down (in my opinion) -- if you can get a good price on a PH - go for it as the value (IMO) is totally not there in a concierge veranday. There is no way I would spend the money again for an "upgrade" from a regular verandah to a concierge -- the concierge lounge is tiny, no special coffee drinks, very very limited snacks -- and it was either totally packed or there was no one there including the "concierge". And the food, dishes did not appear to be regularly attended to -- dirty dishes stacked up (maybe it was my timing, but it grossed me out).

 

That's it from me for the moment - I wanted to address the OP's question quick as I had struggled with spending the $$ on O and was very attuned to comparisons with a HAL deluxe suite. The beauty of O's Marina wowed me -- the quality of decor goes above the 2 HAL ships I've sailed and I really enjoyed the pax that were on my O cruises.

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Now in regard to the Concierge stateroom on O - it was a shock to me how much smaller it was than the penthouse I was in -- cramped small. I was hugely disappointed in the big difference in cleanliness, service, amenities (lack thereof) and overall condition of the verandah stateroom compared to the PH. A HUGE step down (in my opinion) -- if you can get a good price on a PH - go for it as the value (IMO) is totally not there in a concierge veranday.

OH dear How disappointing for you

You will not want to even sail on the R-ships then

We spent 18 days in a veranda cabin on Marina it was just fine for us

 

But then again you could fit my whole house in an Oceania suite ;)

 

Hope you enjoyed some of the trip

 

lyn

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If you plan to spend all your time in your suite then obviously the HAL deluxe suite is the way to go. If you plan to leave your suite at any time during the cruise then Oceania is far better in every regard.

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In my opinion, there is no comparison in regard to a HAL deluxe suite and even the O penthouse suite -- HAL is much larger, the bathroom and walk-in closets are much larger, same amenities. HAL's suite attendants are amazing (charming, upbeat, efficient) and I feel that having a butler on top of 2 suite attendants on O was just overkill....not worth the $.

 

Comparisons between the two Lines might get muddied at this point, because what HAL now calls a Penthouse Suite is comparable to an Owners Suite on Oceania, and an Oceania Penthouse would relate to a HAL Superior Suite. (I'm comparing HAL Vista Class to the Oceania Class ships, here).

34381_10.jpgo-staterooms-3d-ph1.jpg

 

The Square footage of that type of HAL Suite varies from 372 to 384 sq. ft. (including the veranda), while the Oceania Suite (also with veranda) measures 420 square feet. The HAL Suite has double sinks, but the O Penthouse has a walk in Closet.

 

It is true that the Suite Passenger Lounge on HAL is larger and more elaborate than the Executive Lounge on Oceania, but it should be noted that guests in a Superior Suite DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO IT.

 

Even if you upgraded to a larger HAL Suite, in order to get access to their Lounge, my gripe is that they still expect the guest to trot down to the Neptune Lounge in order to pick up their "Suite Amenities". :mad:

 

 

In a Suite on Oceania, the Butler does all that legwork, so the Lounge is a supplement not the necessity that it is on HAL.

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Quote:

In my opinion, there is no comparison in regard to a HAL deluxe suite and even the O penthouse suite -- HAL is much larger, the bathroom and walk-in closets are much larger, same amenities. HAL's suite attendants are amazing (charming, upbeat, efficient) and I feel that having a butler on top of 2 suite attendants on O was just overkill....not worth the $.

 

 

Comparisons between the two Lines might get muddied at this point, because what HAL now calls a Penthouse Suite is comparable to an Owners Suite on Oceania, and an Oceania Penthouse would relate to a HAL Superior Suite. (I'm comparing HAL Vista Class to the Oceania Class ships, here).

 

I was strictly comparing the HAL Deluxe Suite (not Superior) with the Oceania Penthouse as I have only experienced these two types of accommodations and for the prices I've paid, they were almost exactly the same price.....

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We went on a HAL Alaska cruise last year accommodate my 83 year old mother's dream of going to Alaska. I found the food to be ordinary at best. In fact there were a couple of meals in the main dining room that I found to be just plain bad food. I'm looking forward to stepping up to Oceania. I would go on another HAL cruise because food is important to us.

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I wanted to book with Oceania but my partner was firmly against it. We are in our late 30s and he said if we do the "best" now, then he has nothing to look forward to when he gets older. Interesting view point but I can understand where he is coming out.

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I wanted to book with Oceania but my partner was firmly against it. We are in our late 30s and he said if we do the "best" now, then he has nothing to look forward to when he gets older. Interesting view point but I can understand where he is coming out.

Yeah, that's kind of the response my other half said about the Queens Grill on the QM2. Once he found he could go off menu at any time(he's a chef)then every thing changed. Cunard is drastically trimming it's Caribbean trips. Fall/Winter/early Spring are when we travel(work restrictions)We now are looking at other lines. With us being real "foodies" Oceania or possibly Celebrity are what we're looking at now. I just hate throwing away all the perks of frequent travel on Cunard. With them cutting back in this part of the world, I guess we have no choice.

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