food on the oceania

[6663KS]

My husband and I are going to be on the Bangkok to Rome cruise on March 31st. This is our first time with this cruise company and we are looking forward to a different line. My question, is how does the food compare to other lines like Celebrity, HAL and Princess? Are the desserts in the buffet pretty much the same or do they have real yummy ones that I should TRY and resist, haha.

Also, not being used to a smaller ship, I was wondering if you feel a bit claustrophobic.

Thanks.

Sheila

[Seabat]

Hi Sheila,

 

My wife and I have been on only one previous Oceania Cruise aboard Marina back in 2011. However, we are slated to go to FP in April on the same ship.

 

We found the food to be much better than all the other ships we have tried and that includes not only the ones you referenced, but also Holland, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian.

 

Our favorite has to be the buffet surprisingly. We enjoyed the selection which included steaks fixed to order, king crab legs, sushi along with all the regular fare. We found ourselves skipping the dining rooms and going to the buffet. There is a seating area just outside the buffet doors on the Veranda that we loved. It is at the back of the ship (Marina) and offers a fantastic view.

 

Again, we have not found better food or a better selection as we have on Oceania. Also the speciality restaurants are included in the cost of the cruise and we found those to be better than the rest as well.

 

Have fun and Bon Appetit.

[Mura]

So far you cannot really compare the buffet on the older "R" ships -- Regatta, Insignia and Nautica -- to the buffet on the newer "O" ships -- Marina and Riviera. The upcoming refits will increase the buffet-ability on the "R" ships, but there just isn't the space available on the 684 passenger ships that exist on the 1250 passenger ships.

 

The food is still awfully good! Lately I've been seeing some negative comments about the food, primarily on Riviera, I think but I could be wrong -- but we had absolutely NO complaints on our November 20th cruise leaving from Barcelona on November 20th.

 

Claustrophobic? Not even on the smaller ships. More intimate, yes.

 

However, if you're in one of the bottom-end cabins ... I suppose that might be possible. We have only been in the Deck 7 and 8 veranda cabins on the "R" ships, which are quite comfortable (especially the PHs on Deck 8). The square footage in all cabins is still much better than what you encounter on most river boats. In fact, our first QE2 cruise -- we took all of two -- was in a 128 sf cabin. The "R" ship cabins are rather larger than that.

 

I have found lovely desserts in the buffet restaurants on all ships ("Terrace"), but do have to say that the average is higher in the specialty restaurants and the Grand Dining Room.

 

Some people complain about the food and service in the GDR, but we've generally preferred it -- partly because of the greater variety of choices which change nightly. (If you're on a long cruise you'll see a repetition of the menus; I think they repeat every 2 weeks or thereabouts.) The specialty restaurants have set menus.

 

Breakfast and lunch in the GDR are pleasant and leisurely. Those meals in Terrace can be more frenetic. We will check the menus when they are posted and make our decision then. The buffet restaurant, of course, has many more choices. They also tend to have "theme" meals ... and if you don't like Mexican food, then you wouldn't want to go to that luncheon.

 

For casual food -- burgers and such -- Waves is an excellent choice. It's also open later (until 4pm) so if you get back late from a tour, you can get lunch. You can also order from room service if you're that late. Terrace lunch usually closes at 2, GDR at 1:30 or 2, I forget exactly.

 

Most O passengers rate the food as higher than you will find on the lines you mentioned.

 

Mura

[LHT28]

Food is very subjective so what is good to me may not suit you

 

Try & resist the chocolate croissants at breakfast the scones at afternoon tea

they are terrible for your waistline

Many of the little cakes & pastries can also be hazardous to your health

[JimandStan]

My husband and I are going to be on the Bangkok to Rome cruise on March 31st. This is our first time with this cruise company and we are looking forward to a different line. My question, is how does the food compare to other lines like Celebrity, HAL and Princess? Are the desserts in the buffet pretty much the same or do they have real yummy ones that I should TRY and resist, haha.

Also, not being used to a smaller ship, I was wondering if you feel a bit claustrophobic.

Thanks.

Sheila

 

The food on Oceania is miles ahead of HAL and Princess, and generally superior to Celebrity, although particularly as regards the Celebrity Specialty Restaurants those differences can be nip and tuck.

You'll find the buffets less elaborate than on larger ships with thousands of passengers, and mealtime desserts tend more toward the classic than those "miles of fondant" displays from the Mass Market lines,

but the gorgeous, elegant High Tea, served daily at 4 in Horizons (the Observation Lounge) is sure to satisfy anyone's sweet tooth. Think oodles of pastries, cookies and cakes, plus those gorgeous scones with jam and clotted cream.

The Nautica itself, though small by today's Cruise ship standards, does not feel claustrophobic in the least, the ceilings are high, there is plenty of space per passenger and the public rooms seem numerous.

Enjoy your cruise!

[deadzone1003]

My past experience is with Princess, Carnival, Holland America, & Royal Caribbean. Oceania is in a different league. Breakfast is probably the most competitive (except for the coffee) and it goes downhill from there. Dinner is where the biggest difference occurs. For the small ships, the main dining room is much superior. Their appetizers are so much better than the other cruiselines and their portions are generally larger that when you get around to desserts you are either full or room enough to just try one. Oceania uses less sugar in their desserts as they are never as sweet as their competitor's. We generally sail Princess and the only thing better on Princess is their pizza and their hashbrowns during breakfast. For lunch don't forget to try the surf and turf sandwich at Waves, it taste much better than it sounds. When the miso seabass is available in the main dining room, you must try it - probably the best tasting item on the menu and I'm not even a fish lover. Just don't gain too much weight on your cruise!

[Kathy with a K]

Oceania was voted Best Dining according to the Cruise Critic 2013 Editors Picks. Looking forward to our first Oceania cruise in June. The Baltics have been on our bucket list for awhile and the Oceania reviews on Cruise Critic convinced us Oceania is the way to go. Enjoy your cruise. I know we will.

 

Kathy

[dorisis]

The food on Oceania is miles ahead of HAL and Princess, and generally superior to Celebrity, although particularly as regards the Celebrity Specialty Restaurants those differences can be nip and tuck.

You'll find the buffets less elaborate than on larger ships with thousands of passengers, and mealtime desserts tend more toward the classic than those "miles of fondant" displays from the Mass Market lines,

but the gorgeous, elegant High Tea, served daily at 4 in Horizons (the Observation Lounge) is sure to satisfy anyone's sweet tooth. Think oodles of pastries, cookies and cakes, plus those gorgeous scones with jam and clotted cream.

The Nautica itself, though small by today's Cruise ship standards, does not feel claustrophobic in the least, the ceilings are high, there is plenty of space per passenger and the public rooms seem numerous.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

And the passengers are much older than in those brochure photos. But no cruise lines I have been on have better food or service. That goes for the O ships and the R ships.

[Mura]

And the passengers are much older than in those brochure photos. But no cruise lines I have been on have better food or service. That goes for the O ships and the R ships.

 

 

On average that is true. But I noticed many younger people -- even a fair number of 20 and 30 somethings -- on our Barcelona-Rio de Janeiro TA in November. There was a much bigger mix of ages on that cruise than I've noticed before. Even more unusual because it was an 18 day cruise at a time of year that isn't particularly holiday or vacation time.

 

Mura

[MVPinBoynton]

I won't have my first Oceania cruise for another year; but have been on the Tahitian Princess and Azamara Quest, which are the same basic ship as the Oceania R ships. They are a very nice size ship. Claustrophobia is definitely not an issue. The rooms are very roomy and comfortable, but it just takes less time to go from one end of the ship to the other. If you don't feel claustrophobic when you walk into your home, you won't have any problem with the Oceania ships. :D

[JimandStan]

And the passengers are much older than in those brochure photos.

 

The Ageism which springs from comments like that is something that I don't think we need to engender. :mad:

[deadzone1003]

On a 35-day cruise, the cruiseship will be full of older clientele no matter which cruiseline you chose. I must say that Oceania clients tend to be more active and more mentally alert despite their ages - definitely young at heart. In my last cruise I met 2 93-year old ladies on 2 separate occasions (I'm 65). Though one was in a wheelchair, she definitely was mentally alert, still quite sharp for her age. The other was quite active, she was climbing over chairs to get to other chairs - I hope I'm as active and alert when I'm 80, much less 93. Well, you may get bored with Oceania's entertainment, but you won't be bored with their clientele, and, definitely, not bored with their food - try their Kobe burger!

[GeorgesGal]

Kathy with a K, excellent choice of line, ship and itinerary! Did that one this past September, had excellent weather throughout except for Warnemunde, and a wonderful way to cross off a bucket list item!

[ORV]

And the passengers are much older than in those brochure photos. But no cruise lines I have been on have better food or service. That goes for the O ships and the R ships.

 

Hmm, I'm younger than most of those people.

[RJB]

And the passengers are much older than in those brochure photos. But no cruise lines I have been on have better food or service. That goes for the O ships and the R ships.

Yes, Very true. Much older than the pictures. We are on Marina now and most are pretty old, but no problem. Very nice people. Food great in every resturant.

[smj]

You will be very happy with the food on Oceania. The quality is much better than on HAL, Princess or Celebrity. I think every Oceania meal is comparable to the Celebrity Speciality restraunts.

[MVPinBoynton]

You will be very happy with the food on Oceania. The quality is much better than on HAL, Princess or Celebrity. I think every Oceania meal is comparable to the Celebrity Speciality restraunts.

 

We can't wait till next year to try out O food. Thinking about doing an O cruise in a couple months

[wripro]

The people in the brochures are also better looking than most passengers. What does that have to do with anything?

[Travelcat2]

Agree with Mura. Based on the photos of the buffet on the smaller ships, you cannot compare them with the buffets on the Marina or Riviera (assuming that the Marina has the same size buffet as the Riviera). While buffet dining is not my thing, there were plenty of options on the Riviera.

 

In terms of quality, it makes sense that Oceania, being a upper premium cruise line would have better quality food than on main stream cruise lines (except perhaps in the specialty restaurants on main stream). By the same token, we were not surprised to see superior quality on luxury lines (with the exception of Oceania's specialty dining venues).

[MVPinBoynton]

With all this talk of food, I couldn't wait till next March for our first O cruise, so we booked one for April. I think we can wait 2 months. :)

[traveler916]

With all this talk of food, I couldn't wait till next March for our first O cruise, so we booked one for April. I think we can wait 2 months. :)

 

Haha - it's true, it's hard to wait!!!