The prodigal son returns, and tries Oceania!!!!

[UPNYGuy]

Thank you so much for your excellent review. My household is leaving for our first Oceania voyage Sept 12.

 

Your analysis is particularly enlightening given the growing gap between the mass cruise lines and Oceania. Thankfully, HAL has always had a decent product which we have enjoyed from time to time.

 

Our TA indicated that Oceania is acquiring increased business, particularly from former Celebrity patrons.

 

Our household fired Celebrity two years ago due to their rapid decline in product quality, erosion of service, fixation on increasing their class system, beverage package pricing model, onboard nickle and diming etc.

 

Your photos of the room service menu is great - can hardly wait to order in just over a month.

 

There still are customers who are not fixated on the "lowest possible price" - rather on value for money and consistent delivery of a specific product

 

 

 

Oh I'm not even finished yet!!! I am glad you are enjoying this. I have some actual menus to post, as well as dailies. I will get to those ASAP :).

 

 

 

 

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[UPNYGuy]

Your photos of the room service menu is great - can hardly wait to order in just over a month.

 

if you like beef, order the filet. It is as good as what I have had in a mass-market specialty (HAL Pinnacle or NCL Cagneys). It is just the filet, no crumbly bleu or the like, but it was just as good of a cut IMHO. YMMV of course.

 

 

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[Steve Q]

We are HAL cruisers that sailed on a 10 day Riviera cruise this past March. We very much enjoyed Oceania and will consider them in the future.

As is often mentioned, the food is considerably better than HAL. There is not much of a comparison. The other thing we loved was the Horizon lounge which is the equivalent of the "Old" Crow's Nest. It is a wonderful venue with a six piece band playing during Happy Hour and then again later in the evening.

 

The negatives to us were the overpriced excursions and the live entertainment in the theatre.

 

Like most things, you need to weigh what is most important to you. We will still consider HAL for future cruises, but it is nice to have another option.

[Barrheadlass]

It is so nice to read a great review of Oceania here. My husband and I sailed on the Riviera in 2014 and said we'd not go back to HAL, which we always enjoyed. The lamb chops every day at breakfast, the lobster and filet mignon sandwiches available every day at lunch, friendly people, included beverages...I could go on and on. So, with whom did I cruise next? Hurtigruten! Then the VOV on HAL, then Hurtigruten again.

I'll probably never get back to O again as my husband no longer travels, but that's ok. I'll enjoy HAL again.

[UPNYGuy]

The negatives to us were the overpriced excursions and the live entertainment in the theatre.

 

The live entertainment has been vastly improved from what it used to be as a benefit of the Norwegian ownership with new and different shows. This was told to me by repeat O guests. One said that was the only thing that was improved, but I don't have another O cruise for comparison. I didn't have a single complaint related to quality of service, efficiency of service, condition of the ship or cabin, or apparent staff morale. I could nit-pick items like the size of the bathrooms in the cabins, but I knew that to begin with and didn't have an issue. IMHO, I would be inventing things to complain about.

[UPNYGuy]

The other thing we loved was the Horizon lounge which is the equivalent of the "Old" Crow's Nest. It is a wonderful venue with a six piece band playing during Happy Hour and then again later in the evening.

 

YES! And on the R class, it is a more inviting, more intimate venue.

[iancal]

Thanks for the data.

 

We both decided that IF we are never going to pay top dollar for a cruise it will certainly not be on HAL, Celebrity, or Princess.

 

It will be one of Oceania, Azamara, or Viking. We may pay more but our sense is that we will get much better value for our money.

 

I think the trick on any cruise line is to pick the right ship. The comments are helpful.

Edited August 2, 2017 by iancal

[G&G]

The live entertainment has been vastly improved from what it used to be as a benefit of the Norwegian ownership with new and different shows. This was told to me by repeat O guests. One said that was the only thing that was improved, but I don't have another O cruise for comparison. I didn't have a single complaint related to quality of service, efficiency of service, condition of the ship or cabin, or apparent staff morale. I could nit-pick items like the size of the bathrooms in the cabins, but I knew that to begin with and didn't have an issue. IMHO, I would be inventing things to complain about.

 

Are the shows in the showroom still start after 9:30 pm at nite?

[serendipity1499]

Thanks for your review of Oceania..We did two cruises with good Friends on Oceania's Regatta in 2007 (26 dys) & 2011(14 dys)& loved them both.. The only thing which we missed was the Promenade Deck & that is only because we normally booked outside cabins & enjoy sitting out on deck.. I'm sure if we had a balcony it would have been different..

 

The service on Oceania was beyond reproach..

 

We also enjoyed the food & never had a bad meal.. Even though we were the last ones to be able to book the specialty restaurants, we had no problems booking them, although the fact that we are late diners may have helped..

 

The crew were wonderful & I always love to tell the story about my best Friend's DH, who sadly passed away this year..He was diabetic & never ate the wonderful breakfast buns.. One day the Matre_d' asked him why he refused them.. He explained that he was not able to have sugar.. The next day, & every thereafter, she had specially baked buns just for him made with a sugar substitute.. He was more than pleased & said they were delicious! :D Even the girl who polished the handrails made it a point to say Good Morning to us every day..

 

We thoroughly enjoyed those two cruises! :cool:

 

It's good to try other cruise lines.. Although HAL is like coming home, we're trying Celebrity late this year with long time Friends.. This may be our last cruise..:(

Edited August 2, 2017 by serendipity1499

[UPNYGuy]

Are the shows in the showroom still start after 9:30 pm at nite?

 

 

 

Yes.

 

 

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[Cruzin Terri]

We have done two cruises on Oceania, one on the Insignia and the other on the Riviera. Both were great. In between we did one on the Rotterdam that was terrible. I really don't know if we will return to HAL. The Rotterdam cruise was the second unsatisfactory HAL cruse in a row that we had. Both times I wrote to HAL. The second time I did not even receive the courtesy of a reply.

We are four star mariners so it took a lot to walk away but we got tired of wasting our money.

We have another Oceania cruise booked and really looking forward to it. DH has changed his whole outlook about cruising. He wanted to know why we waited so long to make the switch to Oceania.

Terri

[sammiedawg]

We have done two cruises on Oceania, one on the Insignia and the other on the Riviera. Both were great. In between we did one on the Rotterdam that was terrible. I really don't know if we will return to HAL. The Rotterdam cruise was the second unsatisfactory HAL cruse in a row that we had. Both times I wrote to HAL. The second time I did not even receive the courtesy of a reply.

We are four star mariners so it took a lot to walk away but we got tired of wasting our money.

We have another Oceania cruise booked and really looking forward to it. DH has changed his whole outlook about cruising. He wanted to know why we waited so long to make the switch to Oceania.

Terri

 

+1

Hello Terri, maybe our paths will cross again on Oceania!

[UPNYGuy]

We have another Oceania cruise booked and really looking forward to it. DH has changed his whole outlook about cruising. He wanted to know why we waited so long to make the switch to Oceania.

 

Terri

 

 

That was something I said multiple times. Not that I felt I was wasting money on other lines (yet) per-say, but I FOR SURE knew I enjoyed O when I asked DW that exact thing. "Why did we wait so long to try Oceania?"

 

We also have two more O cruises booked, and possibly a third coming up.

 

 

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[iancal]

Price is one aspect, value is another.

 

So, when the value(to us) decreases we look for alternatives. Oceania may be one of those alternatives.

 

Not a HAL issue per sae, more to do with mass market lines in general since there are so many similarities between those mass market cruise lines in terms of pricing, service, etc..

[UPNYGuy]

Price is one aspect, value is another.

 

So, when the value(to us) decreases we look for alternatives. Oceania may be one of those alternatives.

 

Not a HAL issue per sae, more to do with mass market lines in general since there are so many similarities between those mass market cruise lines in terms of pricing, service, etc..

 

 

 

Exactly. I started understanding this when I realized the service on HAL and NCL were very similar, even though they compete for a different demographic. I can cruise in a balcony on NCL for roughly the same price as an ocean view on HAL for many itineraries, and receive comparable service. As long as I don't sail during school breaks, and stay on the Jewel / Dawn Class (or go Haven on Breakaway class), the service is good, food is good, and overall experience is comparable.

 

 

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[kazu]

We have done two cruises on Oceania, one on the Insignia and the other on the Riviera. Both were great. In between we did one on the Rotterdam that was terrible. I really don't know if we will return to HAL. The Rotterdam cruise was the second unsatisfactory HAL cruse in a row that we had. Both times I wrote to HAL. The second time I did not even receive the courtesy of a reply.

We are four star mariners so it took a lot to walk away but we got tired of wasting our money.

We have another Oceania cruise booked and really looking forward to it. DH has changed his whole outlook about cruising. He wanted to know why we waited so long to make the switch to Oceania.

Terri

 

Isn't that ironic Terri?

 

Our situation was totally reversed. O really let us down on the Riviera and Rotterdam cruise was superb with fantastic service. Over and above.

 

I have come to the conclusion that a lot depends upon the Senior Staff including the HD. The HD on our O cruise was not willing to meet to discuss anything.

 

The staff on Rotterdam were in good spirits (a definite difference to the cold, nearly rude approach on O) and went above and beyond to do little "extra" things.

 

The sad thing about any cruise line is that it seems that there are inconsistencies - whether they are mass market or premium.

 

I am glad to hear you enjoyed it as well as UPNYGuy though. Not sure if I would be able to talk DH into trying it again, but if I did, I would aim for the smaller ships I think. I'll never get him back on Riviera.

[Cruzin Terri]

Isn't that ironic Terri?

 

Our situation was totally reversed. O really let us down on the Riviera and Rotterdam cruise was superb with fantastic service. Over and above.

 

I have come to the conclusion that a lot depends upon the Senior Staff including the HD. The HD on our O cruise was not willing to meet to discuss anything.

 

The staff on Rotterdam were in good spirits (a definite difference to the cold, nearly rude approach on O) and went above and beyond to do little "extra" things.

 

The sad thing about any cruise line is that it seems that there are inconsistencies - whether they are mass market or premium.

 

I am glad to hear you enjoyed it as well as UPNYGuy though. Not sure if I would be able to talk DH into trying it again, but if I did, I would aim for the smaller ships I think. I'll never get him back on Riviera.

 

Hi Jacqui

I must admit we liked the small ship better, but liked the wider choice of restaurants on the Riviera. Both cruises were really great and our next cruise after our Tauck river cruise is on the Riviera again. We really enjoyed Oceania so much more. We left with nothing to complain about.

 

On our last Rotterdam cruise, it was a disaster. We were so disappointed. We took my brother-in-law with us. He is disabled so we booked the Pinnacle Suite to give us plenty of room. You would think they would pay attention. From the moment we embarked till disembarkation it was a disappointment.

 

The service was the worst we have ever encountered. This is the first time that we did not give extra gratuities to the staff. We just felt that it was not justified. We wrote a letter and it was never answered. DH said never again.

I always try to find something positive but this time it was hard. The cabin stewards were good but that was it. The Pinnacle Grill in the morning was the worst of all. We were just about ignored every morning and no amount of speaking up could change that. And we were not the only ones who said something. Our dinners there were also nothing special.

The dining room was not much better.

I tried to put things in perspective because the HAL cruise before that was the one where I became ill and thought that it may be the reason I was unhappy. But after the Rotterdam experience, we decided we would not sail with HAL again unless things changed for the better.

Terri

[sammiedawg]

That was something I said multiple times. Not that I felt I was wasting money on other lines (yet) per-say, but I FOR SURE knew I enjoyed O when I asked DW that exact thing. "Why did we wait so long to try Oceania?"

 

We also have two more O cruises booked, and possibly a third coming up.

 

 

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I will add onto your thoughts. Our first Oceania was lengthy and we loved the product. We booked future O cruises on board but went ahead and sailed a couple non O cruises that were already booked. One was Prinsendam and we had mechanical and cabin issues. The overall experience was meh. I kept asking myself why are we wasting time and money on this.

[iancal]

We have no issue sailing on HAL. However we limit ourselves to the newer HAL ships.

 

We have zero interest on sailing on HAL's older ships, most especially those that are either on the auction block or those that have been sold at the time of our booking. No different than other cruise line ships that we avoid. This is down to personal preferences and our desire to reduce the odds of having a less than satisfactory cabin or cruise experience. Meeting a gentleman who had been 'Veedamized" (his words) twice in nine months was enough info for us.

 

Plus the marine engineer who told us chapter and verse what can happensto cabin area HVAC and plumbing systems/runs when additional cabins are added at a later date in order to increase revenue.

[rkacruiser]

That was something I said multiple times. Not that I felt I was wasting money on other lines (yet) per-say, but I FOR SURE knew I enjoyed O when I asked DW that exact thing. "Why did we wait so long to try Oceania?"

 

We also have two more O cruises booked, and possibly a third coming up.

 

 

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"Why did we wait so long to try Oceania?"

 

Your comment causes me to post this, and it applies to Regent as well.

 

Nearly daily, I receive brochures of one form or another from Oceania and Regent. Yes, I asked to be put on their mailing list for information. But, given the prices charged that I see for both of these company's cruises, how much less might be charged if the excessive printing and mailing of this advertising (in my opinion, of course) might be considerably reduced.

 

This is one of the reasons why I have not cruised on either Regent or Oceania, but I have "looked".

[sandbag7]

We have no issue sailing on HAL. However we limit ourselves to the newer HAL

 

Plus the marine engineer who told us chapter and verse what can happensto cabin area HVAC and plumbing systems/runs when additional cabins are added at a later date in order to increase revenue.

 

Never gave proper thought to the HVAC issues caused by build outs; thanks for bringing it to the fore.

[sandbag7]

Hi Jacqui

I must admit we liked the small ship better, but liked the wider choice of restaurants on the Riviera. Both cruises were really great and our next cruise after our Tauck river cruise is on the Riviera again. We really enjoyed Oceania so much more. We left with nothing to complain about

 

Terri

 

I have been on 3 lines (Oceania, Windstar and Star Clipper) which had two significantly different classes of ship by size, and in each case the smaller ships had a more intimate feel and seemingly more relaxed passengers; for the cruises we take the specialty restaurants on Riviera make the difference; we try to go every night to one of our favorites, even if it means sharing a 4 top (that's as large as we will go).

As we approach our Noordam cruise I grow ever more anxious; 1900 passengers is the second largest capacity cruise I've been on and the HAL comments in general are not real positive.

[Wayfairers]

"Why did we wait so long to try Oceania?"

 

 

 

Your comment causes me to post this, and it applies to Regent as well.

 

 

 

Nearly daily, I receive brochures of one form or another from Oceania and Regent. Yes, I asked to be put on their mailing list for information. But, given the prices charged that I see for both of these company's cruises, how much less might be charged if the excessive printing and mailing of this advertising (in my opinion, of course) might be considerably reduced.

 

 

 

This is one of the reasons why I have not cruised on either Regent or Oceania, but I have "looked".

 

 

 

Like you, I have looked at Oceania and Regent several times but I keep going back to other lines due to the cost.

 

 

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[UPNYGuy]

"Why did we wait so long to try Oceania?"

 

 

 

Your comment causes me to post this, and it applies to Regent as well.

 

 

 

Nearly daily, I receive brochures of one form or another from Oceania and Regent. Yes, I asked to be put on their mailing list for information. But, given the prices charged that I see for both of these company's cruises, how much less might be charged if the excessive printing and mailing of this advertising (in my opinion, of course) might be considerably reduced.

 

 

 

This is one of the reasons why I have not cruised on either Regent or Oceania, but I have "looked".

 

 

Oceania mails you your itinerary in a glossy brochure with all your information pre-printed, with all your check-in info already filled on. They also include luggage tags with this. You don't have to go to the website to print anything off. At least this was my case. This was how HAL *used* to do it when it was a true premium cruise operator.

 

I do feel that they send out a ton of mail though. However I like the pre-cruise touches. It is how HAL used to do it.

 

 

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[Wayfairers]

Oceania mails you your itinerary in a glossy brochure with all your information pre-printed, with all your check-in info already filled on. They also include luggage tags with this. You don't have to go to the website to print anything off. At least this was my case. This was how HAL *used* to do it when it was a true premium cruise operator.

 

I do feel that they send out a ton of mail though. However I like the pre-cruise touches. It is how HAL used to do it.

 

 

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That is nice, but, for people who travel much of the year, like us, that doesn't work very well since we aren't home to get the paperwork. I'll take electronic any day over snail mail. I never print off the info from HAL - I just get a luggage tag from them when we arrive.

 

 

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