Oceania - How "low key" is it?

[njhorseman]

It's been a while since I have cruised on Celebrity so things might have changed.

Are specialty restaurants free now (Marina/Riviera have 4 of them)? How about sodas, non alcoholic specialty coffees, Do the photographers still come around to "say hello" to you at dinner and"greet you" in every port? While the latter is not an expense, it sure is annoying.

 

I normally book suites on NCL and that plus the additional benefits I receive as a high-ranking loyalty program member for all intents and purposes means I don't pay for specialty restaurant dining, sodas and in fact even alcohol, and it also means a private dining room that actually has the best food on the ship overall...plus a good quality espresso machine in the suite that allows you to make all the coffee you want.

 

The photographers don't bother me at all, and in fact they're much less intrusive than they were years ago. A simple "no thanks" and they go away How having the option of getting photos taken and buying them if you wish is "nickel and diming" escapes me. To me "nickel and diming" is having to pay for something another cruise line might provide free of charge.

 

By the way...the newer NCL ships have more specialty restaurants than Oceania, and while we're at it...and I never mentioned this before because I didn't care to be trashed by the Oceania cheerleaders, we thought the food and service in Insignia's Grand Dining Room and the two specialty restaurants in general flat out stunk. Most dishes in the dining room were either greatly overseasoned or underseasoned and the service was spotty at best. If the steaks in Polo were prime beef aged 28 days as was claimed on the menu I'll eat my hat...and that's what it seemed we were eating. The steaks were tough and gristly with little flavor...and that was consistent across three different cuts. The steaks in NCL"s steakhouse were far superior, and were not claimed to be prime aged beef. One night in Polo we made the mistake of ordering steamed lobsters. They were inedible, with a mealy texture and off taste. Plus because we had the bad judgement to make a reservation for a late hour we were given the bum's rush by the wait staff who obviously wanted to get us out of there as quickly as possible.

 

Although some of the dishes in Toscana were a lot better, the ceremony where they wheel a cart with 10 oils and 3 three different vinegars up to your table and ask you to select what you want with your bread was a pretentious joke. Let's see...10 oils and three vinegars make 30 possible oil and vinegar combinations. Sure, I can really decide that, not even knowing how they taste in the 10 seconds you're given to select them. We actually told them to not bring us bread on our two subsequent visits, just so we didn't have to deal with the obnoxious phony ceremony and the wait staff pretending they worked at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Far more intrusive than a photographer asking to take your picture. And I won't even go into the details of the spoiled and rotting fruit I was served when ordering a fruit platter for dessert.

 

What we really liked was the Terrace Cafe and ended up eating the majority of our dinners there.

 

By the way, we have 36 night cruise booked on Marina for this coming winter. The reason is not Oceania's food and service, or the lack of "nickel and diming", and it's certainly not the below-average entertainment, it's the itinerary.

[buggins0402]

Maybe it depends on the definition of "nickeled and dimed". We've mostly sailed on Oceania for the past 15 years or so (or however long O has been in business) but we were on an NCL cruise a few years ago. I would say there was nickel and diming there, what with constant pitches for bingo and lottery tickets, the photographer always around, etc. It was long enough ago that things may have changed.

 

I don't consider it N&D-ing on O because I don't mind paying for my drinks or any shore excursions I may take. I hated the constant announcements of "fee" activities that we encountered on NCL.

 

Mura

 

Arggh...don't remind me. Our next cruise booked is an NCL (itinerary, dates and good price on a suite sealed the deal). We will have a beverage package...but, the fizzy water in the cabin will be extra. In fact, regular bottled water will be limited. Wine for the cabin will have a corkage. DH rarely drinks anything stronger than carbonated water.

 

We'll survive, if I don't get thrown off the ship for hitting a pushy photographer or strangle the CD announcing an art auction.:)

[Silver Sweethearts]

I normally book suites on NCL and that plus the additional benefits I receive as a high-ranking loyalty program member for all intents and purposes means I don't pay for specialty restaurant dining, sodas and in fact even alcohol, and it also means a private dining room that actually has the best food on the ship overall...plus a good quality espresso machine in the suite that allows you to make all the coffee you want.

 

The photographers don't bother me at all, and in fact they're much less intrusive than they were years ago. A simple "no thanks" and they go away How having the option of getting photos taken and buying them if you wish is "nickel and diming" escapes me. To me "nickel and diming" is having to pay for something another cruise line might provide free of charge.

 

By the way...the newer NCL ships have more specialty restaurants than Oceania, and while we're at it...and I never mentioned this before because I didn't care to be trashed by the Oceania cheerleaders, we thought the food and service in Insignia's Grand Dining Room and the two specialty restaurants in general flat out stunk. Most dishes in the dining room were either greatly overseasoned or underseasoned and the service was spotty at best. If the steaks in Polo were prime beef aged 28 days as was claimed on the menu I'll eat my hat...and that's what it seemed we were eating. The steaks were tough and gristly with little flavor...and that was consistent across three different cuts. The steaks in NCL"s steakhouse were far superior, and were not claimed to be prime aged beef. One night in Polo we made the mistake of ordering steamed lobsters. They were inedible, with a mealy texture and off taste. Plus because we had the bad judgement to make a reservation for a late hour we were given the bum's rush by the wait staff who obviously wanted to get us out of there as quickly as possible.

 

Although some of the dishes in Toscana were a lot better, the ceremony where they wheel a cart with 10 oils and 3 three different vinegars up to your table and ask you to select what you want with your bread was a pretentious joke. Let's see...10 oils and three vinegars make 30 possible oil and vinegar combinations. Sure, I can really decide that, not even knowing how they taste in the 10 seconds you're given to select them. We actually told them to not bring us bread on our two subsequent visits, just so we didn't have to deal with the obnoxious phony ceremony and the wait staff pretending they worked at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Far more intrusive than a photographer asking to take your picture. And I won't even go into the details of the spoiled and rotting fruit I was served when ordering a fruit platter for dessert.

 

What we really liked was the Terrace Cafe and ended up eating the majority of our dinners there.

 

By the way, we have 36 night cruise booked on Marina for this coming winter. The reason is not Oceania's food and service, or the lack of "nickel and diming", and it's certainly not the below-average entertainment, it's the itinerary.

 

That must be one heck of an itinerary to pull you away from all your benefits at NCL and stick you with all of those undesirable things Oceania offers..

[buggins0402]

Thanks everyone! We have booked the Oceania Riviera Mediterranean cruise for next May! So excited! Thanks for all the info :)

 

You picked a great itinerary. Be sure to book some extra nights in Venice, it's a special city!

[Kingofcool1947]

Kingofcool1947 - To add to Classiccruiser's information about Sirena's fitness center, we saw the following on an Oceania website. You may want to recheck the information you have:

 

Sirena Fitness Center - "Open from 6am - 8pm and features state of the art exercise machines and weights. Personal trainers and classes are available."

 

Great! :)

Thank you.

[Kingofcool1947]

Agree, all "O" ship have a gym and spa. How could someone book without checking?

 

Do you Zumba? And is that offered on Sirena?

 

Enjoy you cruise, and if God wills, grant you good health, to live and not die before your next cruise.

[Silver Sweethearts]

Do you Zumba? And is that offered on Sirena?

 

Enjoy you cruise, and if God wills, grant you good health, to live and not die before your next cruise.

 

We aren't ronriick but, while you can google all this yourself, here is the answer from another website:

 

"The Canyon Ranch Spa offers traditional massages, hair styling, manicures and pedicures and a wide range of exercise classes such as yoga, mat Pilates, Zumba and circuit training.

[Mura]

Arggh...don't remind me. Our next cruise booked is an NCL (itinerary, dates and good price on a suite sealed the deal). We will have a beverage package...but, the fizzy water in the cabin will be extra. In fact, regular bottled water will be limited. Wine for the cabin will have a corkage. DH rarely drinks anything stronger than carbonated water.

 

We'll survive, if I don't get thrown off the ship for hitting a pushy photographer or strangle the CD announcing an art auction.:)

 

I am sure you will survive despite my negative comments earlier. I would ONLY sail in a suite on NCL (and only on one of the smaller ships) ... it's not so much because of the suite itself but because of the perks we received for being "VIP"s ... their language, not mine.

 

Mura

[Kingofcool1947]

We aren't ronriick but, while you can google all this yourself, here is the answer from another website:

 

"The Canyon Ranch Spa offers traditional massages, hair styling, manicures and pedicures and a wide range of exercise classes such as yoga, mat Pilates, Zumba and circuit training.

 

Nice!

You , and a few other contributors to this thread have been very helpful. Especially for those of us still on the fence as to whether the Oceania experience and type of PAX are things we would enjoy being around.

Thanks.

Edited April 11, 2017 by Kingofcool1947

[Paulchili]

I normally book suites on NCL and that plus the additional benefits I receive as a high-ranking loyalty program member for all intents and purposes means I don't pay for specialty restaurant dining, sodas and in fact even alcohol, and it also means a private dining room that actually has the best food on the ship overall...plus a good quality espresso machine in the suite that allows you to make all the coffee you want.

 

The photographers don't bother me at all, and in fact they're much less intrusive than they were years ago. A simple "no thanks" and they go away How having the option of getting photos taken and buying them if you wish is "nickel and diming" escapes me. To me "nickel and diming" is having to pay for something another cruise line might provide free of charge.

 

By the way...the newer NCL ships have more specialty restaurants than Oceania, and while we're at it...and I never mentioned this before because I didn't care to be trashed by the Oceania cheerleaders, we thought the food and service in Insignia's Grand Dining Room and the two specialty restaurants in general flat out stunk. Most dishes in the dining room were either greatly overseasoned or underseasoned and the service was spotty at best. If the steaks in Polo were prime beef aged 28 days as was claimed on the menu I'll eat my hat...and that's what it seemed we were eating. The steaks were tough and gristly with little flavor...and that was consistent across three different cuts. The steaks in NCL"s steakhouse were far superior, and were not claimed to be prime aged beef. One night in Polo we made the mistake of ordering steamed lobsters. They were inedible, with a mealy texture and off taste. Plus because we had the bad judgement to make a reservation for a late hour we were given the bum's rush by the wait staff who obviously wanted to get us out of there as quickly as possible.

 

Although some of the dishes in Toscana were a lot better, the ceremony where they wheel a cart with 10 oils and 3 three different vinegars up to your table and ask you to select what you want with your bread was a pretentious joke. Let's see...10 oils and three vinegars make 30 possible oil and vinegar combinations. Sure, I can really decide that, not even knowing how they taste in the 10 seconds you're given to select them. We actually told them to not bring us bread on our two subsequent visits, just so we didn't have to deal with the obnoxious phony ceremony and the wait staff pretending they worked at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Far more intrusive than a photographer asking to take your picture. And I won't even go into the details of the spoiled and rotting fruit I was served when ordering a fruit platter for dessert.

 

What we really liked was the Terrace Cafe and ended up eating the majority of our dinners there.

 

By the way, we have 36 night cruise booked on Marina for this coming winter. The reason is not Oceania's food and service, or the lack of "nickel and diming", and it's certainly not the below-average entertainment, it's the itinerary.

 

I hope that you will enjoy your Marina cruise better than the last one.

If not, you'll know what to do :)It's nice to have choices and we all should enjoy our hard earn money we spend on a cruise to the fullest and not just make do.

[njhorseman]

That must be one heck of an itinerary to pull you away from all your benefits at NCL and stick you with all of those undesirable things Oceania offers..

 

Your post is an example of why I was reluctant to post my observations of our Oceania experience before this.

 

And it is an excellent itinerary, starting in Miami and ending in Papeete, Tahiti.

 

The only reason I will pay a premium price for an Oceania cruise is if the itinerary is one I can't readily duplicate elsewhere.

 

I see you don't list having taken any cruises on NCL, and if so you have no basis for saying anything disparaging.

[buggins0402]

I am sure you will survive despite my negative comments earlier. I would ONLY sail in a suite on NCL (and only on one of the smaller ships) ... it's not so much because of the suite itself but because of the perks we received for being "VIP"s ... their language, not mine.

 

Mura

 

Don't worry Mura, your negative comments haven't colored my expectations at all. In fact I've taken heart in the fact that I know you will look at their itineraries from time tot time.

 

We've cruised on NCL before, prior to discovering O...in lesser cabins than a suite. And, actually our favorite trip (that includes our many land trips) was a NCL Holy Lands cruise. This will be an around the horn SA in February...a month that O never does SA itineraries.

 

Now, if they surprise me when the itineraries come out for 2019...who knows....

[Mura]

Further to the comment that a TA said most passengers are in bed by 9pm ... now that I think about it, when we go to the shows that start at 9:30 or 9:45 (despite all our Oceania cruises I never remember exactly when they start), if you get there a few minutes before curtain, it's hard to find a seat. So clearly not everyone goes to bed that early!

 

And Horizons doesn't close that early either ...

 

If you want to do "something" later in the evening, the odds are that you'll find companions. Maybe not a lot of them. Maybe not people looking for a riotous evening! But people.

 

Mura

[Kingofcool1947]

Do you Zumba?

 

Enjoy you cruise, and if God wills, grant you good health, to live and not die before your next cruise.

 

Never mind. I found the answer.:):p:p:p:)

[MarkieMarkNYC]

Your post is an example of why I was reluctant to post my observations of our Oceania experience before this.

 

And it is an excellent itinerary, starting in Miami and ending in Papeete, Tahiti.

 

The only reason I will pay a premium price for an Oceania cruise is if the itinerary is one I can't readily duplicate elsewhere.

 

I see you don't list having taken any cruises on NCL, and if so you have no basis for saying anything disparaging.

 

I happen to love your posts.

While I love Oceania and will generally choose it over other lines, I don't think it's perfect.

I was smiling when I read your comments about the presentation of olive oils. It's utterly pretentious and a simple observation of the faces of neighboring diners when this occurs suggests that it's a practice that could be retired.

I also find the experience in Jacques to be typically underwhelming. It hardly provides a true French experience.

But - I do enjoy the casual vibe and the friendly crew and passengers.

 

Different lines offer different experiences - it sounds like you can appreciate a nice balance.

[travellerin1984]

We are in our thirties and went on a Oceania cruise on our honeymoon. 7 nights in the Med. Great cruise, food was amazing (still miss the fresh berries at the breakfast) but the weakest point was the entertainment. It was boring after couple of nights and almost noone at the bars after 9 PM. The shows werent that exciting either. If you want to stay up late and have fun after the dinner I would choose Celebrity, Royal or some other bigger cruiseline. If you dont mind going to bed early and enjoy food, calm atmosphere (and nice pool deck) go for Oceania!

[NewbieCruiserNL1234]

Thank you very much for your reply! We have now book the Oceania for next may! If there are few people out and about, we will have to just have to have a few drinks alone :) I am looking forward to the terrific food and great sights:) Thanks again, I really appreciated it!

[Paulchili]

I also find the experience in Jacques to be typically underwhelming. It hardly provides a true French experience.

.

 

Jacques is my favorite restaurant on O.

You apparently know more about authentic French cuisine than JP who was the private chef for 3 (or maybe even 4) French presidents, He is very particular about every detail at Jacques. BTW, we've had several young French men and women serving us at Jacques - not bad for a cruise ship. They were very polite and knowledgeable - so you are right - it may not be a true French experience :D

As for ambience, it is impossible to compare eating on a ship with eating in a bistro in Paris or a cafe in Provence no matter what you do,

[MarkieMarkNYC]

Jacques is my favorite restaurant on O.

You apparently know more about authentic French cuisine than JP who was the private chef for 3 (or maybe even 4) French presidents, He is very particular about every detail at Jacques. BTW, we've had several young French men and women serving us at Jacques - not bad for a cruise ship. They were very polite and knowledgeable - so you are right - it may not be a true French experience :D

As for ambience, it is impossible to compare eating on a ship with eating in a bistro in Paris or a cafe in Provence no matter what you do,

 

Not sure why you needed to make a personal dig just to counter my opinion.

I would never presume to know more about French food than Jacques Pepin. I don't think that this particular venue meets the standard of fine French cuisine and the overall ambiance has never lived up to what I've experienced in nice French restaurants in France or NYC.

That has been my experience. I'm very happy that you are enjoying it and I believe you are certainly entitled to your opinion. Although given the tone of your response I wonder if you really understand what a sophisticated experience is.

[Paulchili]

Jacques is not meant to be a 3 star Michelin restaurant but a French bistro. What in your opinion would make Jacques a "true French experience"?

BTW - as for understanding a sophisticated experience, I have eaten at a number of 3 star Michelin French establishments both here in the US and in France. I don't think that is the image Jacques tries to replicate.

Edited April 11, 2017 by Paulchili

[MarkieMarkNYC]

Jacques is not meant to be a 3 star Michelin restaurant but a French bistro. What in your opinion would make Jacques a "true French experience"?

Your very question assumes a complete lack of understanding of what a good, authentic French restaurant is. It isn't necessarily a 3-star Michelin restaurant.

In my experience, an authentic experience includes a particular knowledgeable "attitude" (not meant in a derisive way) from the staff, subtle flavors (I find the food at Jacques to often be overly salty and not imaginative), a greater attention to quality over quality (some of the portions are almost comically large and not particularly good), and an overall calmer experience than what is sometimes offered by the hurried staff.

[Paulchili]

Your very question assumes a complete lack of understanding of what a good, authentic French restaurant is. It isn't necessarily a 3-star Michelin restaurant.

In my experience, an authentic experience includes a particular knowledgeable "attitude" (not meant in a derisive way) from the staff, subtle flavors (I find the food at Jacques to often be overly salty and not imaginative), a greater attention to quality over quality (some of the portions are almost comically large and not particularly good), and an overall calmer experience than what is sometimes offered by the hurried staff.

 

OK - that is your opinion and you are certainly entitled to it.

[Kingofcool1947]

Not sure why you needed to make a personal dig just to counter my opinion.

I would never presume to know more about French food than Jacques Pepin. I don't think that this particular venue meets the standard of fine French cuisine and the overall ambiance has never lived up to what I've experienced in nice French restaurants in France or NYC.

That has been my experience. I'm very happy that you are enjoying it and I believe you are certainly entitled to your opinion. Although given the tone of your response I wonder if you really understand what a sophisticated experience is.

 

WOW. Kind of rude, and harsh reply, don"t you think?

[MarkieMarkNYC]

WOW. Kind of rude, and harsh reply, don"t you think?

My reply was completely appropriate to the post to which I was responding.

[Mura]

No matter how important something is to you as an individual -- whether it's food, activities, etc. -- I regularly reiterate that you can't count on your cruise being exactly the same as someone else's. Sometimes it's true the you can make generalizations about certain itineraries (like Caribbean versus further off destinations or port intensive versus lots of sea days). But no two cruises are the same because unless you are doing the whole RTW cruise, the passengers are going to change regularly. (And of course since the RTW cruise isn't limited to people doing the whole itinerary, that component will still be changing at least for a portion of the passengers.)

 

Regarding comments or inquiries about "no or few" activities, even on the "R" ship that isn't necessarily true. Of course a megaship is going to have more to do than a 684 passenger ship will have available! But that does NOT mean there won't be anything to do other than look at the ocean and count the waves. Depending on the cruise we've had several lecturers on board (sometimes more than on other cruises but mostly at least two and who usually are very good), cooking demos (which are entertaining and educational even though the "shthick" of the two chefs insulting each other can wear very thing very quickly, spa appointments for those who like them, exercise classes, or just sitting on deck and reading.

 

On two cruises in 2016 we encountered a fine Greek pianist who besides his evening performances did a talk on his experience with bringing classical music to third world areas that have had no prior experience with classical music.

 

I adore the library on the smaller ships ... except when that lady on one cruise would arrive and promptly fall asleep with her book in her lap. If only she hadn't snored so loudly ... But I have to admit that those overstuffed chairs are so comfortable that it's easy to suddenly get sleepy ...

 

So go with an open mind. If you are a person who really wants all the varied activities the huge ships can offer, than Oceania will NOT be a good fit. These mid-ship size ships just don't have the space for lots of venues, although of course Marina and Riviera at 1250 passengers have quite a bit more than the 684 passenger "R" ships do.