Oceania Compared to Princess

[stevenr597]

My wife and I are scheduled to do a Trans-Atlantic on Princess. We have cruised on Princess before and we do like the cruise line. Recently, some friends of ours, just finished a cruise on Oceania and they were fairly impressed. We would like some thoughts, from fellow cruisers in regards to both lines, how they compare. Thanks for the help.

[pthjudy]

My wife and I are scheduled to do a Trans-Atlantic on Princess. We have cruised on Princess before and we do like the cruise line. Recently, some friends of ours, just finished a cruise on Oceania and they were fairly impressed. We would like some thoughts, from fellow cruisers in regards to both lines, how they compare. Thanks for the help.

We are elite with Princess and have taken 3 Oceania cruises in the last few years. We love Princess. The service, food and atmosphere are top notch. Oceania is a step or two above Princess in many areas and the price reflects this. That being said, if you don't mind spending more for a cruise, Oceania is an experience I have not matched on any of the other cruise lines we have sailed. (Royal, Disney, Princess (of course) plus some now defunct lines.). The food is exceptional, especially the specialties. I can't rave enough about the dining experience. The service extraordinary. And the cabins more spacious and better appointed, at least on Marina and Riviera. We treat ourselves occasionally with Oceania but Princess remains our go to cruise line. One suggestion, the repositioning cruises appear to be a better bargain, especially because they include often expensive air.

Edited December 29, 2016 by pthjudy

[Marseydotes]

I agree with the previous post--we have enjoyed cruises on Princess, HAL, and Celebrity, but our favorite is Oceania--the O ships or the R ships. It is just a notch above in food, service, ambiance.

on our last cruise on O, I had a conversation with a woman who was very disappointed. Seems she did not do her homework on the style of O cruises. She wanted more games, movies by the pool, contests, late night bar hopping. I told her she had chosen the wrong line and offered a suggestion......

I've been reading a lengthy post discussion about what rude things people have seen on a cruise. Thankfully, I have never seen any of these complaints personally on any ship. Lots of the complaints have to do with kids. There is no kid's program on O, so very few children are aboard. Another gripe--people mishandling the tongs and serving spoons in the buffet line--will not happen on O because the staff serves! Several other places where the problems just do not occur on O--check out the whole list under "ask a cruise question!"

[Paulchili]

I agree with both above posts.

We like Princess for itineraries and our Elite benefits but Oceania is definitely a step (or two) above in all respects - including price.

They are both fine for what you pay and get in return and this is definitely an example of "you get what you pay for" - not always a case in life but it is this time :)

[Cairn Mom]

I agree with both above posts.

 

We like Princess for itineraries and our Elite benefits but Oceania is definitely a step (or two) above in all respects - including price.

 

They are both fine for what you pay and get in return and this is definitely an example of "you get what you pay for" - not always a case in life but it is this time :)

 

 

I also agree. Oceania is a step above Princess. Oceania's ships are smaller than most Princess ships. The Marina and Rivera are mid-sized,however, the others are smaller. If u get seasick, or like a bigger ship then this is something to consider.

 

 

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[Hawaiidan]

there is no even remote comparison...... your asking "how is Ritz Carlson" compared to best western......words fail me.. where would a person even start!

[Glaciers]

There’s no doubt the food is better on Oceania. We’re not big into entertainment but Princess would excel here. Oceania is very social and we enjoyed our time playing trivia and talking with others who are mostly well traveled. Shortly after trivia the needle point session started in the same venue on Oceania. It was well attended. The demographic on Oceania is older and we enjoyed being with others who weren’t always in the party mode or with numerous children. I think on a transatlantic I would miss the varied entertainment options on Princess since there would be few ports.

 

There’s some good advice in this thread. Be careful not to put too much weight on posts that are simply metaphor.

[Floridiana]

We travelled on both and prefer Oceania for its food. Our last Princess ship was not in good physical shape (warped deck planks, dirty and worn carpets, unsanitary buffet set-up, engine trouble). Oceania ships are in mint condition. The Princess ship was much larger and offered more entertainment, but it had a tiny useless library. One of the elaborate evening shows was exactly the same as on our first Princess cruise years before. We saw it when it was brand new in the Caribbean and then again for an Australian clientele down under.

[kuldalai]

Oceania generally a notch above Princess in all aspects . Both R & O class boats of oceania are fabulous .

 

Just be wary of all cruise lines. The bean counters at both Princess & Oceania have been cutting silly little things, which annoys guests.

 

Oceania have also become very hungry with pricing since the NCL takeover, some of the rates asked of Aussies per day are outrageous. Oceania are fast pricing themselves out of the market . Before of paying big $ extras for marginal value add ons like Concierge cabins - it is an absolute rip off .

 

Overall Princess offers better value for money these days, whilst Oceania is great product they are now probably overpriced and greedy .

[RCNslr]

My wife and I are scheduled to do a Trans-Atlantic on Princess. We have cruised on Princess before and we do like the cruise line. Recently, some friends of ours, just finished a cruise on Oceania and they were fairly impressed. We would like some thoughts, from fellow cruisers in regards to both lines, how they compare. Thanks for the help.

 

Both cruise lines are good, O is better (IMO) but for a transatlantic one cannot beat Cunard - QM2 which was built to take the gales and provide roomy comfort on a trip that has no port calls other than departure and arrival.:D

[ORV]

I've heard a lot of good things about Princess, some of it from people whose opinion I respect. From my own personal experience I went on one Princess cruise. I would rate it dead last, behind the Costa and Carnival cruises I went on.

 

If Oceania is only a notch or two above Princess then Princess has really, really improved in the last 9 years since we cruised with them.

[sammiedawg]

Oceania is quite a few heads better than Princess, especially the food, ships, service. Having said that I like Princess a lot, especially for their Alaska itineraries. They upped their quality as other mass markets slipped. We hope to take the extended family to Alaska on Princess soon. We've been treated royally and for the money they provide a terrific product. I don't sail any line for past passenger benefits but Princess has a tremendous elite package that is easy to attain.

Edited December 30, 2016 by sammiedawg

[janecambridge]

Oceania is a notch above Princess in certain things.Also weigh up the added costs with Princess.We have done 2 Princess cruises and each time upgraded our drinks ( non alcoholic) to get even a decent coffee,tea or soda.The regular stuff on Princess is not good.Also extras to pay for with speciality restaurants.

We found the outdoor decks on Princess far better than Riviera.There is no 'screen free' viewpoints at the front of Riviera,yet Princess has wonderful full frontal views.( This may not be relevant for trans Atlantic).We also enjoyed the movies under the stars instead of onboard entertainment.On a transatlantic I personally may want more then Oceania has to offer as there are no land tours.I would also prefer more areas to sit quietly that a larger ship provides.

But overall our one experience with Oceania was very good.

[skiladyldp]

We will be taking our 4th Oceania cruise in August. We have sailed on the Marina and the Riveria. We sailed one time on the Golden Princess to Alaska. The itinerary was great for that cruise and it sailed RT from San Francisco so living in San Jose, Ca. that meant no air plane ride. Our dear friends of 40 plus years invited us so we decided to try Princess.

 

Two weeks before final payoff our friends had to cancel the cruise. We decided to go anyway and I'm glad we did. I loved the service on Princess and found their specialty restaurants comparable to Oceania's. The main dining room and the buffet were not anywhere near as good. The entertainment on Princess was a lot better than Oceania which was good for this trip. We had way too many sea days for our liking. We had anticipated our friends being there so it was nice that Princess had lots more to do than what is found on Oceania. We had a mini suite so room size was about the same but the feel was less luxurious than an Oceania veranda.

 

I probably would not take another Princess cruise since I feel spoiled on Oceania.

[Willem Ruys]

there is no even remote comparison...... your asking "how is Ritz Carlson" compared to best western......words fail me.. where would a person even start!

 

 

LOVE your comment. Too bad CC has no "LIKE" or "I LOVE IT" button..

[caviargal]

there is no even remote comparison...... your asking "how is Ritz Carlson" compared to best western......words fail me.. where would a person even start!

 

 

I completely agree. We are Elite on Princess and top tier on Celebrity and RCI but no longer cruise with the mass market lines.

 

Our last Princess cruise 5 years ago was just awful in terms of food, nickel and diming and overall constant sales pressure. This in addition to end to end lounge chairs on deck, in our face photographers, the worst MDR food I have experienced and overall crowded and loud onboard ambiance. That was our last cruise on a large, mass market ship and we will not be back.

 

We enjoy Oceania very much and will choose this line or other luxury lines for any future ocean cruises. For us, it is almost as much about what we do not have to put up with on O as the very good food, service, beds and high standards of ship maintenance and comfort we experienced.

Edited January 1, 2017 by caviargal

[marylizcat]

The cabins on Oceania's smaller ships are much smaller than the standard cabins on Princess. The evening entertainment is better on Princess, though their shows are only thirty minutes long much of the time. Food is better on Oceania. We found service very poor on our one and only Oceania cruise, but others praise it, so we were maybe unlucky! But out of a dozen lines cruised, it is the only one where service was a problem. We would cruise again with Oceania for a particular itinerary, but given the choice between them and Princess for the same itinerary, Princess would win every time. And you could probably have a suite on Princess for the price of a tiny cabin on Oceania.

 

I know others would disagree, but those are my feelings.

[Marseydotes]

I've only been on two Princess cruises, one HAL, never Celebrity. We enjoy O's atmosphere, quiet, and food.

What I am wondering is this: what level cabin would you have to book on those three lines, in order to enjoy a quieter experience with better-than-average food? The choices on X and Princess are confusing!

[ORV]

I've only been on two Princess cruises, one HAL, never Celebrity. We enjoy O's atmosphere, quiet, and food.

What I am wondering is this: what level cabin would you have to book on those three lines, in order to enjoy a quieter experience with better-than-average food? The choices on X and Princess are confusing!

 

On Celebrity the people in Aqua Class have their own restaurant called Blu. I've never been in it but I've heard it's good. Biggest complaint is lack of menu change in last 8 years or so. The rooms are the same size as all the other balcony rooms on board, but you get access to a private relaxation area.

 

Sky Suites and up on Celebrity get to eat in Luminae, which is the private dining area for suites. There is also a private lounge called Michaels that is available to those in suites and people at the Zenith level. Which is basically over a hundred cruises with Celebrity

[Tarpeian Rock]

Two Princess cruises, 3 going on 4 with Oceania, which we now consider our "home" cruise line. Did Princess because of itineraries: Hawaii, Alaska land-sea. In my opinion Princess "owns" Alaska and we'd do it with them again in a minute. That said, we enjoyed the land portion (Fairbanks to Whittier) far more than the ship portion. Both Princess experiences were on the Grand, and it was like two different ships. The Grand to/from Hawaii was wonderful: terrific MDR meals & service, great lectures & shows, engaging staff. The Grand from Whittier to Vancover was extremely "meh:" MDR food so poor that we gave up after two dinners, ate primarily at Alfredo's and the International Café for dinner. We missed the companionship of dinner time, but putting up with the mysterious food and glacial service wasn't worth it.

 

And after 3 Oceania experiences, we've come to love the smaller ships, the food, the "rhythm" of life on an O ship. We're not show-gowers, not game-players, we're readers who love to sit on our verandah and watch the sea go by over the tops of our books. May sound deadly dull to others, works for us.

[Classiccruiser777]

"And after 3 Oceania experiences, we've come to love the smaller ships, the food, the "rhythm" of life on an O ship. We're not show-gowers, not game-players, we're readers who love to sit on our verandah and watch the sea go by over the tops of our books. May sound deadly dull to others, works for us."

 

Agreed. For those that want to be entertained Oceania probably isn't the most appropriate line.

[Flatbush Flyer]

My wife and I are scheduled to do a Trans-Atlantic on Princess. We have cruised on Princess before and we do like the cruise line. Recently, some friends of ours, just finished a cruise on Oceania and they were fairly impressed. We would like some thoughts, from fellow cruisers in regards to both lines, how they compare. Thanks for the help.

 

 

The easiest comparison is to look at Oceania's Sirena and what a multi-million dollar improvement has done to what was the norm when it was part of the Princess fleet.

 

 

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[Paulchili]

The easiest comparison is to look at Oceania's Sirena and what a multi-million dollar improvement has done to what was the norm when it was part of the Princess fleet.

 

 

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That's an excellent start. Then compare the service and food and you'll find that there is no comparison :D (on the other side, there is also no comparison in price :D)

[Classiccruiser777]

That's an excellent start. Then compare the service and food and you'll find that there is no comparison :D (on the other side, there is also no comparison in price :D)

When looking at price compare the total cost. We're going on a 10 day Bermuda cruise this April for $1699 which includes air, gratuities, excellent coffee, all you can eat lobster, specialty restaurants, soda, water, port fees, taxes, and on and on. Granted it will be off season but we feel Oceania offers great value compared to the other lines we've been on.

[LHT28]

Granted it will be off season but we feel Oceania offers great value compared to the other lines we've been on.

It will be great for touring Bermuda maybe not for the beach but the other ports will be hot

:D

Edited January 3, 2017 by LHT28