Oceania Vs. HAL

[mike35]

We are avid fans of Oceania, a true 5-star cruise line in our opinion. We'll be sailing 12/22/06 on our first HAL cruise - the Statendam - on its New Zealand-to-Australia itinerary. We've seen HAL promotional literature, where it refers to itself as a 5-star line, and we would love to hear from those who have sailed both Oceania and HAL to get their true impressions.

 

We're in our early 60's, active, love gourmet cuisine, drink moderately, and enjoy on-board entertainment and enrichment lectures.

 

Mike

[brian_uk]

Hi Mike

 

Prior to our last 2 cruises on O we were on HAL, Celebrity and RCI. Of the last 3, HAL was in my not so humble opinion way better than the other two and compared to O it is very similar but on a larger scale (ifthat makes any real sense).

 

We just prefer the smaller Ships in the Med.

 

No doubt however that the entertainment is better on HAL but we are always just too tired and how many more times can I bear to see another " Songs from the Shows"..............zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

 

I hope that helps.

 

Brian

[dbh62ark]

I have the same opinion that Brian has. We last sailed HAL in Europe in 2004 and then Oceania in 2006, so I hesitate to make side-by-side comparisons since the trips were two years apart and the itineraries were so different. But I can tell you that we were very pleased with both and that before I sailed Oceania, HAL was my favorite in Europe (as compared to the mass market lines that we've sailed in Europe which are RCCL, Celebrity, NCL, and Princess). I think that overall we liked both lines equally even though HAL and Oceania both had different items in our "likes" and "dislikes" columns. We've sailed HAL three times in Europe and Oceania only once, so I guess I have to sail them both again to pick a favorite. :)

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[Druke I]

I did answer your question over on the HAL board, but will give a quick opinion here also.

 

Three times HAL, once on Oceania, with 2nd Oceania cruise coming up 11-27-06, Istanbul to Singapore via the Suez.

 

HAL very nice cruise line, with good food. Oceania's foodis better, in our opinion.

 

Big selling point for Oceania is the dress code, which greatly simplifies packing.

 

We were on Maasdam, sister to Statendam, and do not think that class of ship rides heavy seas well! Her former running mate, Westerdam (now Costa Europa) is a much better "rough water ship".

 

We were on Pacific Princess (new), a sister of Oceania's ships, Tahiti to Sydney, and she rode pretty well across the Tasman Sea, which does have a reputation for being rough on occasion.

 

Of course, sea state and weather is unpredictable, and can change in a moment's notice.

[digby]

3 trips on "O" and 1 on HAL's Westerdam. We think "O" is far better because of the ship size, food, service and best of all dress code!

[esther e]

We've been on both lines. HAL is a fine line. You will not be disappointed. We like the production shows and they are fantastic on HAL. Wouldn't hesitate to sail with them again. I guess our 3 favorite lines are Oceania, HAL and Regent, no in any particular order. Food on O is best of any line, bar none. Just that dreadful art auction in your face is annoying!!!!:eek: Have a wonderful cruise. One day I hope to go to that part of the world, but the long flight makes me wonder if I'll ever make it.

 

Esther

[mike35]

Thanks to everyone for the excellent comparisons. Michael, I think we shared a cruise earlier this year, and I thoroughly enjoyed your review and commentary.

 

Some of the comments on HAL's CC threads are rather scary: Pinnacle Grill extra cost versus quality, sewage problems, etc. But we've never had a "bad cruise", and I'm confident that our positive string will continue with the Statendam.

 

Esther - we're not thrilled with the long flight either, but we snagged an excellent fare on Air Pacific, Fiji's national airline. We stop in Fiji on the way to Auckland with a 1 1/2 hour layover. On the way back from Sydney, however, we have a 28-hour layover in Fiji, affording us the opportunity to spend a full day and night on an island we would probably never experience any other way.

 

Mike

[Druke I]

Yes, that flight "down under" can be a pistol. We have done it several times, either going or coming.

 

We have one almost as long, next month, when we get off the Nautica in Singapore. Singapore to HongKong, then HongKong to San Francisco. We'll be on Cathay Pacific, a great airline.

[mike35]

We flew Cathay Pacific both ways -- LA to Beijing and then Taipei back to LA -- on our cruise last March - loved the airline!

 

I have no clue what to expect on Air Pacific, but they fly 747-400's and I imagine they will do a good job, being a very small airline.

 

Mike

[Druke I]

Right about Cathay Pacific. #2 daughter, an ex-pat now living in England, was in HongKong for five years (#1 granddaughter born there, just before turnback to China), and always said Cathy Pacific and Singapore Air were among the best.

 

We've been on Singapore Air, and they were good, as is Royal Thai Air Lines.

[garykool81]

I've sailed once with HAL and once with Oceania so far. In my opinion, Oceania is not even close to being in the same "mass market" category as Holland America. Food was better, ship was far nicer, service was better and entertainment quality was better on Oceania.

 

Oceania might not have the large-scale, broadway-style shows that the larger lines have (for better or worse), but we found the actual QUALITY of the talent they employ to be much better than that of Celebrity, HAL, etc.

[garykool81]

PS -- Anytime you hear the words "luxury" or "five star" in this industry (as well as many others for that matter), they need to be taken with a grain of salt.

 

Holland America, Celebrity, Princess and even Oceania are *not* full luxury or five-star lines. Oceania, IMO, is darn close, but not quite there.

 

The only true luxury lines out there are the smaller, boutique operations of companies such as Silversea, Yachts of Seabourn, etc.

[stebul]

On a very good cruise, HAL can come pretty close to an "average" Oceania cruise. The cruise lines try hard for consistency, but there are always variables like how well the officers interact with the crew, whether the crew are happy, the executive chef, mechanical condition of the ship, and even the mood of the passengers. Crew and passengers like being in Australia/NZ, so that gives you an immediate advantage for your upcoming cruise. You really can't tell if you have a happy crew until you get on the ship, and you can't predict NV or mechanical issues.

 

Having been on both lines, we have had food on mid-sized HAL ships that was similar to Oceania throughout the cruise, and we have had some meals on HAL Vista class ships that were inedible due to overcooking. We were on the Statendam in February for a Australia/NZ cruise. The chef offered "Down Under" appetizer and main course specials every night, including Barramundi, New Zealand lamb, mussels, and kangaroo. On that cruise the dining room meals were as good as we have had on Oceania.

[garykool81]

stebul --

 

That is also an excellent observation. Quality does vary from ship to ship within a line, and even from week to week due to various factors.

 

We've noticed that the size of a ship seems to have a LOT to do with it. The best cruises we've been on were always on the smaller ships, where passengers enjoy a more intimate atmosphere and the crew gets to know you a lot more. Quality of food also seems to greatly improve (in most cases) as ship size decreases.

[Liat]

Hey Mike - we can compare notes on HAL (two cruises) when we meet in Palm Springs for dinner. We will e-mail you the week of December 4, but are thinking of Johaness' on Saturday.

Some good thoughts on this post - except for the omission of Crystal. That is a true five star cruise line [even on the 1000 pax Serenity] in our (single voyage) opinion.

 

Phil & Edith

[Liat]

P.S. I looked at the HAL site and realized that Statendam is the same class as Veendam. My review of Veendam's Western Caribbean cruise of March 2004 is on http://www.cruisereviews.com. You might find the ship's description of interest, although this was a short cruise. HAL has stated that they are beefing up thier sea day offerings on cruises of more than one week, so you may have better entertainment than we did.

Phil Haggerty

[mike35]

Phil,

 

Please e-mail me at mbrill*at*dc*dot*rr*dot*com

 

Thanks

 

Mike

[brian_uk]

I have been reading the latest threads on HAL boards and they are very interesting. It appears there has been a decline in food on the larger ships but the staff remain excellent.

 

I still think i prefer the smaller ships.

 

Brian

[hgatsawgrs]

We were on Statendam in Asia in April and 2 O cruises this year in Uk and Med.

No comparison. Statendam is an old ship that has things break down all the time we were on it(Water leaks on the S floor were horrible for the passengers in those large suites). You must have an S suite to be reasonably comfortable. That way you have the lounge for coffee in the a.m.

We were on Stat for the itinerary and that is about all we got. Embark was horribly long -no suite line although promised. The anytime dining on O is not there of course and the Pinnacle grill is not even close to the specialities on O.

The passengers are what you get in a mass market line- they are there to drink too much- not like O. Smoking in the Casino is no fun.

We had a Novo thing for 5 days on the trip(did not effect us).

We had a fire alarm on the first nite out( 9:00) that they had us stay in place for 1 hour before they found a faulty air unit was causing smoke on 3 decks. This kind of thing you get with old ships was no fun.

I will not spend time talking about how wonderful O is, you already know that. Statendam is just too old and mass market to enjoy. It is smaller than other HAL ships(we have been on 5 of them),but still the same amount of passengers per foot(inch).

If you have an S suite ( not comparable to OS or VS) it is better, but the itinerary must be the reason to enjoy not the ship.

We will never go back to HAL as long as O has the itinerary- the problem is with O you need to plan so far ahead to get and OS or VS suite that sometimes HAL or other mass market is the only choice. We always regret it unless the itinerary is wonderful.(the Asia one was and hopefully yours will be. AND you saved money- if that means something to you.

[mike35]

Help! It's too late to cancel the cruise and air, so hopefully we'll have better luck with maintenance problems. We never book NCL, Carnival, or RCCL any more, due to the usual drunk, obnoxious passengers, and all we can do is hope that those aboard our upcoming "down under" cruise won't have to many of them aboard. We know some folks who just love HAL, and at least we'll have some first-hand knowledge when we discuss our impressions.

 

Mike

[hgatsawgrs]

Mike, I am sure you will make the best of what it is and have a great time- All good cruisers do that. And down under is a wonderful place to visit.

We were on Hal Noordam because friends were on it(between two O trips this year). Brand new ship with no mechanical problems. It is ok if you can stand defined dinner tables and times and formal nites and one average specialty dining and smoking in the Casino. And too many lines.

O is just plain better. When we did not do O yet, We thought HAL was the best (with Celebrity) of the mass market lines. I can see how some are high on HAL. We were. But not after O. Economics could be the only reason to prefer HAL over O.

You will enjoy your trip though as we did the old HAL cruises since it is the time of life to enjoy everyday. Even Thanskgiving dinners with families that fight too much have a good time today. I hope.

[Hlitner]

Help! It's too late to cancel the cruise and air, so hopefully we'll have better luck with maintenance problems. We never book NCL, Carnival, or RCCL any more, due to the usual drunk, obnoxious passengers, and all we can do is hope that those aboard our upcoming "down under" cruise won't have to many of them aboard. We know some folks who just love HAL, and at least we'll have some first-hand knowledge when we discuss our impressions.

 

Mike

 

Have to laugh at Mike's post. I used to hate traveling with drunks until one year when we were on the Statendam (when it was pretty new) in the Baltic. On the first night we went to the 2nd seating show and there was about 10 passengers in the showroom which sat over 600. The comedian's very first line was "Welcome aboard to the Seniors and their parents." It was true! In fact, if I had owned the concession on walkers and wheelchairs I could have retired that day! Many cruises later (at least 40) I still haven't decided which is worse, the obnoxious drunks (who can be better entertainers than some we have seen on ships) or the cruises when everyone is sober because they are in bed by 10pm.

 

Hank

[Aussie Gal]

We have been on a number of HAL cruises and have always enjoyed them. Perhaps we have been lucky as we have always had good food, great crew and no trouble with our cabins regarding plumbing. We have not sailed on their new, bigger ships preferring the size of the S class.

 

In fact we have just finished a 34 day cruise on the Veendam which was wonderful with a fantastic itinerary and perfect weather together with a great Captain and crew.

 

We decided after that cruise though that we would prefer to cruise on the smaller ships having been on HAL's Prinsendam (700 odd) and the Tahitian Princess (680) and when we found the perfect itinerary for our next big cruise and discovered it was on an Oceania ship, we just had to book it.

 

We are looking forward to our voyage on the Nautica and hopefully it will be the beginning of many more with Oceania.

 

Jennie