Oceania Marina & Service

[RetiredandTravel]

1 minute ago, nikless said:

Your posts were intriguing until I saw that....

 

 

I'm guessing you work in a casino.  LMAO

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

3 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

Thanks.  Yes, there was some major issue there.  Dealers are surly by definition.

 

Good to hear on the service.  Oceania has some very interesting cruises in South America. 

 

We like our food & wine.  Oceania gets great reviews on food and the premium wine list ($60/day) looks good, big plus.

 

 

The booze packages’ wines are “by the glass” from a mediocre selection. The spirits in the $60/prestige package are everything but a few top shelf cognac/scotch.

You can bring your own booze for “in cabin” consumption - as many bottles as you want. But only wine can be taken to dinner or public venue and there’s a $25 corkage fee.

[RetiredandTravel]

Thanks Flatbush.

 

Someone was nice enough to send me the wines on the prestige package and I thought they were decent.  Is that your impression?  Probably better than the Seabourn & Regent "included" wines.  My hard liquor days are a distant memory, I made a funny.

 

 

 

 

[RetiredandTravel]

https://www.thepreismans.com/marina19_menus.htm

[Queen of DaNile]

We've sailed on Marina several times and have found the service to be very good. Not at the level of "luxury" lines as the CC review points out, but overall, we have been pleased.

My biggest complaint would be with the amount of time it takes to get served in the Grand Dining room.  Some of the wait times between courses for breakfast, lunch or dinner have been interminable. Now we either eat in a Specialty or the Terrace Cafe. Others may not care for the idea of a "buffet" but we love the choices offered and the ability to sample small portions of lots of things, including what is being offered in the Grand Dining Room. 

[basor]

47 minutes ago, RetiredandTravel said:

 

 

 

Heres one from 10/19  like that one?

 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=670174

 

 

Seriously I'm just trying to get peoples impressions of the Marina service.   Shouldn't be that big of a deal. This group is so defensive it makes me wonder.

I am so sorry - I was just trying to be helpful pointing outr that this was an older review and encouraged people who have cruised on Marina more recently reach out to you with their thoughts....I certainly was not trying to be defensive or making a big deal...

[RetiredandTravel]

OK me bad sorry

[Flatbush Flyer]

34 minutes ago, RetiredandTravel said:

Thanks Flatbush.

 

Someone was nice enough to send me the wines on the prestige package and I thought they were decent.  Is that your impression?  Probably better than the Seabourn & Regent "included" wines.  My hard liquor days are a distant memory, I made a funny.

 

 

 

 

The package wines are on a small menu of only about 10-12 items and it changes. Other than an occasional “loss leader,” they are mostly wines that retail in California for $10-15/bottle. I’d say maybe one each of red, white, sparkling are palatable.

We do fairly long cruises of a month +\- and would use “prestige” only for spirits. But, we no longer do since happy hour 2fers, O Club Events and officer invited dinners pretty much take care of our non-wine needs. For wine, we bring our own and replenish enroute.

[LHT28]

maybe  this one is better & more recent

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=679075

 

lots to choose from  but if only looking for the bad reviews you will not see the good ones  😉

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/getreviews.cfm?action=ship&ShipID=526

[nikless]

3 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

 

 

I'm guessing you work in a casino.  LMAO

 

You guessed incorrectly.

[alcpa1]

Our first O cruise was on the Marina from Rio to Buenos Aires in Feb. 2019. This was the last complete sailing of the Marina prior to the disrupted sailing to Lima already mentioned.

We have almost 50 cruises behind us but none on luxury 6* lines. Have sailed in everything from an inside to a Royal suite. I remember what it was like in the 80's so I think you are seeking sublime service.

The ship was clean.

For the most part the food was good.

The internet was embarrassingly bad for the 21st century.

 The officers were businesslike and were not overly friendly to new cruisers. We saw greater attention paid to long-time O passengers and those on the b2b segments. It was noticeable. 

Our cabin stewardess was particularly unpleasant.

The waitstaff was efficient and some were delightful.

By day 3 we booked another O cruise so how bad was it? It was really quite nice. We looked past those things that bothered us and appreciated the itinerary and the crew and staff that kept our ship afloat. That, after all, is what they are employed to do.

 

[RetiredandTravel]

12 hours ago, LHT28 said:

maybe  this one is better & more recent

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=679075

 

lots to choose from  but if only looking for the bad reviews you will not see the good ones  😉

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/getreviews.cfm?action=ship&ShipID=526

 

 

Yes the Marina reviews and dedicated clients are very impressive.  Family and Entertainment were the only categories that were low in the CC summary , neither of which are important to us on the cruise we are considering.  I was being facetious with my posting of the 1* review, one has to be careful in interpreting isolated 1* reviews.

 

I greatly appreciate the objective comments on people's experience on the Marina.   The feedback is very important in our decision making process.

 

Thanks.

[emd138]

I have not been on Marina, but the 2 cruises we have taken on Oceania had fantastic service.  Our first was a 7 day cruise on Insignia, and the second was a 10 day on Sirena (where ports stopped early due to COVID, and was one of the last cruises.)  It amazed me that there were several employees on Sirena that remembered us from our cruise on Insignia 8 months earlier.  Despite their worries about what was going on back at home and if they would even be able to get back into their home countries, they still provided great service with a smile.  I don't know how they did it.  Our prior cruises have been on mass market lines, and it was a huge difference in what we saw, in our experience.

 

[bigmjh]

Speaking from a position of having 800+ days-at-sea ... with 200+ days spent on all of the Oceania ships -

 

We have never experienced the service issues that you had with Regent. Service on Oceania, for the most part has been excellent. Yes, there is the occasional lack of a smile or long wait times in the dining room during peak hours. But countering these with a little pleasantry, on our part, will usually turn frowns into smiles. Likewise, grouchy attitudes and nasty comments from the occasional passenger (which we have witnessed) may be handed right back to them.

 

Yes, Oceania may not be everyone's cup-of-tea ... and they should move on until they find a ship that fits their needs. As for us ... Oceania fits beautifully and we're quite at home when on board.

[bigmjh]

On 7/20/2021 at 12:51 PM, shepherd really said:

Was this in April TA NY to South Hampton?  I was on that cruise and the fun the crew had the next morning having a snowball fight on the pool deck and seeing snow for the first time was a highlight of the cruise.

We were also on that cruise. Watching the crew out in the snow was a LOT of fun! And, even with the "uncooperative" seas 🤢 and weather, we had a great time. We were on all the way from NY to Rome and enjoyed every minute of it.  😊

[RetiredandTravel]

5 hours ago, bigmjh said:

Speaking from a position of having 800+ days-at-sea ... with 200+ days spent on all of the Oceania ships -

 

We have never experienced the service issues that you had with Regent. Service on Oceania, for the most part has been excellent. Yes, there is the occasional lack of a smile or long wait times in the dining room during peak hours. But countering these with a little pleasantry, on our part, will usually turn frowns into smiles. Likewise, grouchy attitudes and nasty comments from the occasional passenger (which we have witnessed) may be handed right back to them.

 

Yes, Oceania may not be everyone's cup-of-tea ... and they should move on until they find a ship that fits their needs. As for us ... Oceania fits beautifully and we're quite at home when on board.

 

Thanks.

 

Honestly if I read my review I would think maybe this guy was abrasive and the waiters responses warranted.  I assure you this wasn't  the case.  Having worked in the leisure travel industry in high school and college I fully appreciate how difficult these jobs are.  My wife and I are always very respectful and polite, if anything not demanding enough.   I certainly don't expect the wait staff to be jumping around like they are in "Singing in the Rain" but I do expect them not to be hostile.  Smiling wouldn't have improved the fact that the Mariners plumbing issue led to our (and others on the floor) toilets overflowing and the Regent response to it.  Again read the reviews from 2019.

 

 

On 7/20/2021 at 11:50 PM, alcpa1 said:

 

 The officers were businesslike and were not overly friendly to new cruisers. We saw greater attention paid to long-time O passengers and those on the b2b segments. It was noticeable. 

Our cabin stewardess was particularly unpleasant.

The waitstaff was efficient and some were delightful.

 

 

I appreciate your feedback but do wonder if your service experience is impacted by being a frequent cruiser, this would be our first Oceania cruise and we wouldn't have that luxury.

 

I have to say my research so far points to a quality product on the Marina.

 

 

 

[PhD-iva]

In June 2016 my husband and I did experience one or two service issues on Marina. To me the only issue which I felt reflected v poorly on Oceania was our extremely long wait in red ginger to place our order. My memory on the exact details at this point is not very good.  I think we were probably seated for 20 or 25 minutes before we were acknowledged with anything besides water served (no orders taken). I think the first course probably took 45 minutes to arrive since time we were seated. All the while, almost the entire service crew were visibly in the kitchen having a birthday celebration for one of the servers or staff. They were having a private party in the kitchen instead of serving during normal dinner hours. This one issue over a period of 10 days did not spoil my experience on Oceania. There were a few other little nitpicky things that my husband zeroed in on, but that’s his personality.

[RetiredandTravel]

58 minutes ago, RetiredandTravel said:

 

 

I appreciate your feedback but do wonder if your service experience is impacted by being a frequent cruiser, this would be our first Oceania cruise and we wouldn't have that luxury.

 

 

For someone that started their career as a Fortran programmer its amazing how technically un savvy I am.  This part of my comment was intended for "big" using "Alc" quote as support.  "Alc" quote should have been at the bottom.

[basor]

6 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

 

Thanks.

 

Honestly if I read my review I would think maybe this guy was abrasive and the waiters responses warranted.  I assure you this wasn't  the case.  Having worked in the leisure travel industry in high school and college I fully appreciate how difficult these jobs are.  My wife and I are always very respectful and polite, if anything not demanding enough.   I certainly don't expect the wait staff to be jumping around like they are in "Singing in the Rain" but I do expect them not to be hostile.  Smiling wouldn't have improved the fact that the Mariners plumbing issue led to our (and others on the floor) toilets overflowing and the Regent response to it.  Again read the reviews from 2019.

 

 

 

I appreciate your feedback but do wonder if your service experience is impacted by being a frequent cruiser, this would be our first Oceania cruise and we wouldn't have that luxury.

 

I have to say my research so far points to a quality product on the Marina.

 

 

 

Unlike some other cruise lines, there is no way for crew to know if this is your first cruise or your 100th cruise on Oceania(no color coded cruise cards indicating your loyalty level)....we were treated the same on our first Oceania cruise as our 20th cruise....

 

[RetiredandTravel]

 

 

2 hours ago, basor said:

Unlike some other cruise lines, there is no way for crew to know if this is your first cruise or your 100th cruise on Oceania(no color coded cruise cards indicating your loyalty level)....we were treated the same on our first Oceania cruise as our 20th cruise....

 

 

Thanks Basor.  

 

I drink a good deal of water every day.  I understand Oceania has moved to Vero water.  How do you like the water and is it readily available.

 

ty

 

[ORV]

3 hours ago, basor said:

Unlike some other cruise lines, there is no way for crew to know if this is your first cruise or your 100th cruise on Oceania(no color coded cruise cards indicating your loyalty level)....we were treated the same on our first Oceania cruise as our 20th cruise....

 

I'm not saying you're wrong, but I can't completely agree with this either. Maybe we could discuss it over a beer someday. 

[basor]

54 minutes ago, ORV said:

I'm not saying you're wrong, but I can't completely agree with this either. Maybe we could discuss it over a beer someday. 

I do know that Oceania makes sure that some of their most frequent cruisers are known prior to boarding but for most the crew does not know if this is your first cruise or 5th cruise by simply looking at your cruise card......we would never turn down an offer to enjoy a libation or two with any Oceania cruiser.

[ORV]

26 minutes ago, basor said:

but for most the crew does not know if this is your first cruise or 5th cruise by simply looking at your cruise card.

I do agree with this, but I've ran into many of the crew multiple times on different cruises and they generally remember us. 

[basor]

2 hours ago, ORV said:

I do agree with this, but I've ran into many of the crew multiple times on different cruises and they generally remember us. 

That is one of the best aspects about Oceania cruise.....the crew!!!!   You are absolutely correct.   I guess I was trying to make the distinction that there are no outward signs of your loyalty level like you find on other cruise lines and then have crew treating people differently based upon the color of their cruise card.  We do enjoy that special smile and "Hello" when we board and find an old friend from the crew.

[DENIE]

New to Oceania here (first sailing is 6/2022), but have been on Celebrity most recently (3 cruises), and MSC (out of Florida).  I love to read the reviews, but have decided to "balance" what I read there versus actual board forums.  Many reviews seem to be written by people who can't wait to get off the ship and write about a bad experience.  I think I heard that regardless of the product, many more people will write bad reviews whereas the people who were happy will not write a review.  

 

My DW and I always board with the anticipation of a great cruise, and that expectation has always been met.  Our opinion is that any day on a cruise ship is better than just about any place else.  🙂