Comparing Azamara to Celebrity and Oceania

Having what for us has been an unusual cruising year where we managed to sail on four different cruise lines (Azamara, Celebrity, Oceania and Royal Caribbean), I thought I would take the opportunity to do a comparative review on three of them. I am not going to try to compare RCL because they are too different, not bad but simply not similar enough to be able to make reasonable comparisons.

The comparisons will be based on this cruiser's evaluation of overall value for the money and I have tried to base them on as close to equal situations as possible. Keep in mind that each person places different priority on what constitutes value to them. For me, I am willing to pay more for a similar product/experience if it is clear to me that it is worth the difference. I adjusted the base fares paid to add items such as a drink package or laundry that were not included to make each cruise line's package roughly equivalent. It isn't a perfect total, but it is fairly close and more comprehensive than anything I have seen on Cruise Critic.

THE CRUISES USED FOR COMPARISON

The Azamara cruises I am using for cost comparison are a 29-day back-to-back itinerary from Amsterdam to the North Cape in Norway followed by a European Capitals cruise ending in Southampton in a Club Continent Suite.

Our Oceania cruise was 23 days on Insignia from Montreal to Southampton in a Penthouse Suite (same cabin as Azamara as the two ships are the same size known as R-class).

The Celebrity cruises are a back-to-back-to back itinerary from Singapore to Sydney to Honolulu to Vancouver for a total of 45 days in a Celebrity Suite (second-tier suite was used to level the playing field a little) on an M-class ship.

This is a long review so I will split it into three posts.

This post will include what I consider hard facts (observations about cost and what was included in the cruises). The second post will be about the subjective things like food and service. The final post will be a summary of my conclusions/opinions.

THE HARD FACTS

COST Per Person Per Day adjusted to match included items as close as possible

CABINS

WHAT's INCLUDED WITH FARE WE PAID USING A VARIETY OF SALES/PROMOTIONS/MY MANUAL ADDITIONS

There are other inclusions, but I am listing only those with material impact

SUBJECTIVE OBSERVATIONS/EVALUATIONS

It should be noted that nothing is ALWAYS the same and there can be hits and misses between events on the same ship and between ships of the same cruise line. Many of these observations are averages based on our experience across multiple cruises on Celebrity and Azamara and one cruise on Oceania.

CABINS

FOOD

SHIPS

ENTERTAINMENT

SERVICE

SUMMARY

All three will provide you with a wonderful experience. But unless there is a unique itinerary or some other compelling reason to spend the extra money, I think Celebrity provides the best value by a good margin. We have three cruises booked with them and expect to do the majority of our future cruises with them. I should mention that the cost for this comparison included a second-tier suite and dropping to the lowest level suite (sky suite) loses only access to Michael's Club and still provides a cabin that is essentially the same size as the ones in this comparison at a cost of around $50-60 less per day, making it an even better value.

If you are looking for more elegance and an upscale feeling, Azamara provides that at a cost significantly less than Oceania with a better overall experience. In our case, that desire coupled with some really nice itineraries led us to book five more cruises with them.

We enjoyed our Oceania cruise but did not feel that it was worth the cost and, while I would not consciously avoid them, it would take an unusual set of circumstances to get us back on board.

Wow, a very thorough competitive analysis, Bob!

Thank you for choosing Azamara, and for booking 5 additional future cruises. We all thank you for your loyalty!

Completely agree with Azamara staff being sincerely friendly. Love coming back to the ship after a day of touring and hearing "welcome home". Thank you Bob.

Really appreciate the thought you put into this comparison of the three lines.

If I can ask a further question: Was there any significant difference in the demographics on each ship?

Fabulous comparison of the three products - I really appreciate the time and effort required to put this together.

I travel solo, so I find that Azamara offers good value on the cruises where the supplement is 25%, as opposed to 100% on Celebrity and Oceania. By the time you add in the drinks package on Celebrity plus the gratuities the price gets close to or exceeds Azamara, particularly when you take into account the great deals they offer (Double Upgrade, Pick Two etc).

Now I have my fingers crossed that I score the $398 upgrade so that I can enjoy the suite life :)

Thanks for the very helpful and detailed review. Our own experience on Oceania agrees with yours (interesting, since they tout their food, that it was a disappointment for both of us). Haven't tried a Celebrity suite, but next year we will be comparing an AquaClass cabin on Celebrity Constellation (Greek Isles) and an Azamara veranda cabin (Norwegian Fjords). We got good deals on both bookings. The X cruise cost $588 per day per person (with Classic Bev and Gratuities included) while Azamara cost $753 pdpp [both came with similar OBC, but X will involve some added cost items that are included on Azamara]. So Azamara starts off costing about 25% more -- in line with your analysis when you back off from a CS to an SS -- but it will be worth it to us if everything I have read about Azamara proves true.

The demographics were more similar than I would have expected. On the Oceania cruise, I would say that it was slightly older. And I assume that, on average, there were more affluent passengers partly due to the fact that about 10% of the people on board were doing the full 180-days and another 10-15% were on a 50-day "Grand Voyage" from Miami to Barcelona.

I chose to compare a Celebrity Suite on X because to use a lesser category would make the cost difference too great to be a realistic comparison.

Jazzbeau, your cost figures make me feel very good about the deals we found. And what I read on Cruise Critic had our expectations a mile high for the food and it just didn't reach the mark.

And I did not factor in any loyalty benefits because we had none on O and get significant benefits on X and AZ. I was trying to compare only what a first-time passenger could expect. With our loyalty perks, that is just another reason that O is not likely in our future even though it is also a very good experience.

Really appreciate the thought you put into this comparison of the three lines.

 

If I can ask a further question: Was there any significant difference in the demographics on each ship?

So appreciate all the time put into the review! Have sailed a number of lines as we are destination oriented, but we loved Azamara and Seabourn. Think Celebrity also has a nice product, we were on the Constellation (I think, without looking it up) a number of years ago, but prefer the smaller size ships offered by Azamara and Seabourn. Not interested in Oceania (unless they come up with the itinerary and deal of the century) given the reviews on CC as heir ships being not very warm and friendly. Can you eat whenever you want on the Celebrity ships these days (assuming you don't have a reservation for a specialty restaurant)? Being not pinned down to a specific dining time is a huge plus for us, in fact, it's become almost a must. Thanks again for a well-thought out and comprehensive review! Happy sailing!

Thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed and well balanced review.

Having also sailed on all three cruise lines I would agree with your conclusions.

However, for me the "best value" of a cruise is not just the per diem cost, but is based on how much I enjoyed the cruise. No doubt then, that for me, Azamara wins hands down! :D

Thanks Bob. A thoughtful comparison. For me perception of "value" is a tricky one. I've thought before as to why I'd prefer to sail on Azamara than Celebrity. You've covered two areas and that is service and food. There's another and that is where the ships go to and more importantly where they dock. Azamara are often much closer to the action and this is more sharply focused in some ports than others. It gives one a real sense of cruise involvement and coupled with a more flexible and less regimented approach on the ship is a winning combination that personally I find difficult to define purely as monetary value.

Just a small correction. There is unlimited select alcohol and all sodas on Azamara, rather than just beer and wine.

Phil

Bob,

Your review was fantastic and very helpful. I have not yet sailed on Oceania although the beauty of Marina and Riviera attracts me.

I think Celebrity is very good and would book them happily if the itinerary and price was right. However, one of the ways I describe Azamara is the cruise line that likes to say yes. During my many lovely cruises with them they have never turned down any reasonable request and seem positively thrilled to do something to please one of their passengers.

This in no way is meant to denigrate Celebrity crew who I have always found very gracious, but going that extra mile makes Azamara my cruise line of choice at the moment.

The demographics were more similar than I would have expected. On the Oceania cruise, I would say that it was slightly older. And I assume that, on average, there were more affluent passengers partly due to the fact that about 10% of the people on board were doing the full 180-days and another 10-15% were on a 50-day "Grand Voyage" from Miami to Barcelona.

 

Thanks for your assessment.

Thanks Bob. A thoughtful comparison. For me perception of "value" is a tricky one. I've thought before as to why I'd prefer to sail on Azamara than Celebrity. You've covered two areas and that is service and food. There's another and that is where the ships go to and more importantly where they dock. Azamara are often much closer to the action and this is more sharply focused in some ports than others. It gives one a real sense of cruise involvement and coupled with a more flexible and less regimented approach on the ship is a winning combination that personally I find difficult to define purely as monetary value.

 

Just a small correction. There is unlimited select alcohol and all sodas on Azamara, rather than just beer and wine.

 

Phil

Hi, Phil.

I didn't touch on the difference in itineraries/large ship-small ship as I had to draw the line somewhere or this would have been a novelette and I felt that those differences would be more obvious to those who cared about that.

One thing we did note - I read on Cruise Critic that Oceania seems to park in the less desirable spots in a port and saw that first hand. In several ports we were parked further from the terminal than another ship or even with nobody else there. Only in Reykjavik did we have an obviously better spot and that was due to circumstances. We arrived the afternoon before we were scheduled to and had to wait until 3:00 for another ship to depart before we could dock and ended up closer to the terminal than an Aida ship.

And I was probably remiss not to note that Azamara has about the best policy for solo travelers among the three. But since I don't know all the rules on all three, I decided not to mention it.

I agree with your issues with Oceania. After my cruises with them I avoid them like the plague and refer to them as the "Cant and or won't do cruise line"

Thanks for your comparisons. Very interesting reading. We continue to evaluate Oceania for a future experience.

Thanks for your comparisons. Very interesting reading. We continue to evaluate Oceania for a future experience.

Do it... We have had 13 wonderful, if not always perfect, cruises on Oceania with 32 days more booked.

Here are some quotes from a recent Regent thread about Oceania food (Compass Rose is the main dining room on Regent ships and in our opinion is comparable to Discoveries in quality; La Veranda is Regent's buffet for breakfast and lunch, and is used as an Italian restaurant at dinner):

"We will not eat in Oceania's MDR (except occasionally for breakfast). Regent's Compass Rose is much better. The Terrace Café on Oceania is the worst dining experience we have ever had. This is a good time to note the fact that food is very subjective. Most Oceania cruisers love the Terrace Café while we avoid it. We had to wait 20 minutes one night to get pasta "cooked" in cold water on Oceania. Another time a "cook"? tried to pry open a clam that was not hot enough to open. IMO, this is a very dangerous thing to do in terms of poisoning guests. So, if you enjoy these dining venues, I'm not certain what you will think of Regent (less offerings on La Veranda's buffet because the ship is so much smaller than the Riviera.)"

And:

"Having cruised once on Oceania (and my husband refuses to go on them again) and many times on Regent, the things we love about Regent are the true all inclusiveness with no showing your card for drinks or anything else. I am not a fan at all of the buffet on Oceania. I hated trying to get the servers to make my salad to my liking. And the main dining room on Oceania is awful. Very poor service and food is mediocre. In contrast, I enjoy La Veranda and Compass Rose."

So enjoyed reading your well-balanced and to-the-point comparison. We love Oceania and have sailed with them 13 times (never found them "unfriendly" or saying no to a request); however, they have pretty much priced themselves out of our budget. We have sailed Celebrity 5 times - S class only - and enjoyed what they offer at an excellent price. We have sailed Azamara once and are booked on the Quest next summer. We are looking forward to sailing with them again. We love the R-class ships. Thanks again.

Do it... We have had 13 wonderful, if not always perfect, cruises on Oceania with 32 days more booked.

We have had 3 wonderful O cruises with 32 days on 2 more for 2016. Riviera is my favorite ship and I just love dining al fresco at the Terrace Cafe in the evening with the grilled lobster, shrimp, filet and grilled veggies. Helps me stay skinny and healthy. The O "R" ships are the same but smaller than the Riviera and immaculate and stunning too. I think you should try it!

We have sailed...and continue to do so...on all 3 lines. I so appreciate your time/effort and sincere evaluations of your time spent on each one. To me...they each offer something special..price/food/staff etc....you covered it all. Thanks again...for being such a great CCer to provide this type of quality review!! LuAnn

Here are some quotes from a recent Regent thread about Oceania food (Compass Rose is the main dining room on Regent ships and in our opinion is comparable to Discoveries in quality; La Veranda is Regent's buffet for breakfast and lunch, and is used as an Italian restaurant at dinner):

 

"We will not eat in Oceania's MDR (except occasionally for breakfast). Regent's Compass Rose is much better. The Terrace Café on Oceania is the worst dining experience we have ever had. This is a good time to note the fact that food is very subjective. Most Oceania cruisers love the Terrace Café while we avoid it. We had to wait 20 minutes one night to get pasta "cooked" in cold water on Oceania. Another time a "cook"? tried to pry open a clam that was not hot enough to open. IMO, this is a very dangerous thing to do in terms of poisoning guests. So, if you enjoy these dining venues, I'm not certain what you will think of Regent (less offerings on La Veranda's buffet because the ship is so much smaller than the Riviera.)"

And:

 

"Having cruised once on Oceania (and my husband refuses to go on them again) and many times on Regent, the things we love about Regent are the true all inclusiveness with no showing your card for drinks or anything else. I am not a fan at all of the buffet on Oceania. I hated trying to get the servers to make my salad to my liking. And the main dining room on Oceania is awful. Very poor service and food is mediocre. In contrast, I enjoy La Veranda and Compass Rose."

Wow! That's an example of both how subjective food can be and my comment about two contrasting reviews making you wonder if they were on the same cruise/ship/cruiseline. While we did not find the food to be as outstanding as it has been described so often here on CC, it was certainly never terrible.

And to show how there is no solution that is perfect for everyone, I prefer not to have alcohol included as I don't drink and paying just for my wife is a good thing.

Also prover the point that anyone can find and cherry pick another posters comments to attempt to prove their opinion.

Also prover the point that anyone can find and cherry pick another posters comments to attempt to prove their opinion.

Or perhaps just posting recently-posted opinions of others in an effort to be helpful in answering the OP's request.:rolleyes: