Oceania vs Seabourn

We were on The Quest a few years ago and loved it. We went on Windstar on the Star Breeze this past summer and loved that too (although different). We are not choosing between Seabourn in Spain next September or Oceania in South America. We are mid 50s, foodies, very active, (the active part takes care of the foodie part :), experienced travelers, friendly and casual. We loved that Windstar was casual, but we wanted a bigger gym. We were amongst the youngest on both lines but the people on Windstar were the friendliest on any cruise. That was really very special. I know is the Seabourn board so we all love Seabourn. But I would appreciate opinions and insights into the experience, the fellow travelers, service, excursions? We priced out Penthouse on Oceania and V5 on Seabourn and they are virtually the same but Ocenaia is 12 days and does not include drinks

on Oceania the prices of the drinks are really outrageous ...

you partially can skip the high bar prices by buying the complete drinks package even giving you the allowance of XO cognacs ( normally charged at 25 $ + 18 % gratuity "for your convenience " - no problem to ask for a double )

and you can drink as much as you want including "house wines" all of them very basic as is the included champagne Montaudon - bar price 18.5 $ + 18 % gratuity :mad:

you have to pay gratuities on a "difficult to esape" compulsory base on Oceania in a penthouse extra for the butler

in a normal penthouse - you only do receive one bottle of welcome champagne no extra alcohols as on Seabourn

the speciality restaurants on Oceania are not bad at all some items on the menu are very good indeed - penthouses do receive priority for reservations

what is really horrible on Oceania : wine prices - usury - cheapest champagne is 102 + 18 % , and excursions are heavily overpriced and not decently organised !

and never do take an "organised airport transfer" by O : more expensive as a taxi. even a limo was cheapaer in one particular port as the O coach transfer.

the informal buffets on Oceania are not bad - i found the service in the MDR on O not very good

also terrible on Oceania are tender ports - long waiting tilme and sometimes very rude treatment by the attending staff " sit down and WAIT "

the canapes for penthouses on O can best described as functional titbits - do not expect luxury canapes !

what is very good on O : the bakery products , croissants , cakes and the ice creams for lunch and the cocktails in the Martini bar

I've always said that in order to sail on Oceania for meat has to be in a penthouse because the regular cabins are just too small. Once you do that, add in drinks etc. it usually comes to the same or more than Seabourn which makes Seabourn a no brainer imo.

Thank you Vistaman and wripro, very helpful. I just read some horrific review of Oceania in South America. Scared me a little. But then again, I read bad review of the Star Breeze and that was one of my favorite vacations

due to several reasons SB is not my favorite company anymore

the original Seabourn Legend used to be my preferred ship years ago.

however - in general - service - is a lot better on SB as on Oceania

a stupid detail - on my last O : i had a very minor wound resulting with some blood on sheets and pillow : not replaced durings the last days.

i really try to be as honest as possible

also the casino is far bigger on O

Hi twoboys, have you ever considered Seadream? There are some definate benefits for very active passengers plus it is casual. The downside is that the cabins are rather small.

and take in consideration those ships are from 1986 ...

difficult choice !!!

You are comparing a luxury product SB with O which is classed as a premium product.

In my opinion apart from the speciality restaurants, activities and the smoking policy everything else on oceania is inferior to SB.

We were on The Quest a few years ago and loved it. We went on Windstar on the Star Breeze this past summer and loved that too (although different). We are not choosing between Seabourn in Spain next September or Oceania in South America. We are mid 50s, foodies, very active, (the active part takes care of the foodie part :), experienced travelers, friendly and casual. We loved that Windstar was casual, but we wanted a bigger gym. We were amongst the youngest on both lines but the people on Windstar were the friendliest on any cruise. That was really very special. I know is the Seabourn board so we all love Seabourn. But I would appreciate opinions and insights into the experience, the fellow travelers, service, excursions? We priced out Penthouse on Oceania and V5 on Seabourn and they are virtually the same but Ocenaia is 12 days and does not include drinks

Oceania excursions IMO were vastly over priced even by cruise standards. I like the included drinks on Seabourn so I purchased a drink package on Oceania (scratch that I purchased two - as I was on a back to back the computer couldn't just sell me one for the duration I had to see the front desk grumps on multiple occasions). Even with the package it seemed that I was always whipping the card out for breaks, server changes (their POS system is so woeful that tab transfers weren't an option). Wine service in the restaurant was abysmally slow (want a drink, best BYO). Happy hours were always interesting watching people try to cram their moneys worth into that short time.

Fellow passengers: Some nice, but a lot of "Do you know who I am (biggest fish in that wee little pond)" types. Several bragged about being so good at bribing staff that they'd never have to set foot in the GDR for dinner. Others tried to sabotage crew that wouldn't take bribes. They also like to run to the front of a line even when it's not their groups turn to go, then argue with staff who just let them go. This made tendering a mess each and every time. Even disembarking while docked could become a zoofest.

Food: Not everything is perfect. I think the entire time I was on I was served the not perfect meal in whatever setting, save one. In Jacques hot food came out cold, cold food came out warm. Most things came out swimming in oil. Our fellow passengers said nothing during the meal, but afterwards said it was par for the course and sending things back rarely resolved the issue. In Polo the prime rib was freezer burned. In the GDR it seemed the only way eggs could be cooked was hard boiled (a table of us ordered eggs Benedict. After setting the plates down the server stayed to watch us cut into all the eggs. His reason "The kitchen can't cook eggs"). The House of Gwai Lo, I mean Red Ginger? Might've been good if my only experience with Asian cuisine was a teriyaki steak at sizzler. Waves grill - can't cook to temperature, also usually leave off 1/2 the listed ingredients in a dish. If you're in a penthouse skip the evening canapes. The welcome ones were made the month before. The nightly ones were always room temperature. Jacques signature chicken in the GDR: Cooked once, twice and then served. Beyond shoe leather (this re-cooking the previous days food was further confirmed by an Oceania employee who jumped ship).

The one saving grace food-wise was the Wine Spectator restaurant. Yes it had an upcharge. Yes it was worth it. Easily the best food and service on the ship. My only regret was I couldn't book it every night.

I realize that other people have had far better experiences on Oceania than I have. However mine was what it was and didn't leave me with any desire to return.

I have never considered SeaDream but I will look into it. Although I have to say that Seabourn spoiled us with the big spacious cabins and bathrooms. As much as we woudl like to experience South America, we can wait for that. I think the Seabourn cruise through Spain is sounding better and better! I will share all of these posts with my husband and we shall see...Thank you

Emperor Norton,

Your review of Oceania did it for me. Poor service and mediocre food are bad enough but then add grasping and rude passengers and you have the perfect storm.

Ain't gonna happen. Not going to scan their periodic offers any longer either. What a waste of time.

On a brighter note it will be terrific to join our next Seabourn cruise. Very soon.

Happy and healthy sailing!

The majority of our days at sea have been on Oceania and we have fortunately never experienced the number of problems that Emperor Norton did. Was it always perfect, no, but nothing to the extent he encountered. Overall it has our favorite food.While O does include air, we generally book our own and take a credit. Seabourn does not include air. Our TA has always given us gratuities, and now we get them included because of our level and then a credit also. Most (maybe all) cruises now include internet which is pricey on Seabourn. Just wanted to mention these because OP doing a price comparison.

After saying all that, we were very impressed with our first Seabourn cruise last winter. Aside from the food (especially the TK experiment), which we found overall not as much to our liking as O, we found the service and staff to be superior to O. It was a friendlier vibe. The Sojourn was the smallest ship we have sailed (previously it was one of the "R" ships) and it felt more intimate. Now that smoking is banned in most places, it will be even more pleasurable. We are very much looking forward to our cruise in February on Encore.

We will continue to pick our cruises first by itinerary, but I will say that Seabourn moved above Regent in my view as having the best service of any ship we have been on.

We love Seabourn! We did Venice to Athens on Seabourn Odyssey May 2015--lovely cruise. We also love Azamara. If you get a Club Continent suite on Azamara, you can dine gratis at the specialty restaurants. Azamara includes alcohol and gratuities, but not air or excursions (just like Seabourn). Very friendly pax and crew on Azamara, Seabourn is friendly, too, just not quite as friendly.

The reason I'm bringing up Azamara is that "two boys" expressed an interest in South America and we had THE most fantastic Christmas/New Year's trip on Azamara Journey the Christmas before last. Buenos Aires to Rio and we also did the excursion to Iguazu Falls via the ship's excursion. Some great ports and adventures on the voyage. Seeing the fireworks moored off Copacabana Beach on New Year's Eve was just phenomenal! AZ only has two ships so they don't do South America every year, but when they do-- go!

Looking forward to being aboard AZ Journey this Christmas for Singapore, Indonesia and Bali. Two Boys, whatever you choose, have a fabulous time-- but I agree with other posters that you can't go wrong with Seabourn.

I think I have looked everywhere at everything at this point. Oy! We have a son in college and one starting Law School in the Fall. So we are always looking to book things (when we travel just the two us) after schools starts, not during the Jewish holidays, before Winter Break, before school ends, and taking into consideration our work schedules etc. So the timing of the cruise is one of the more important factors. The Seabourn cruise on the Encore in September and the Oceania in SA on 10.30 fit into the free dates. But after our fabulous Windstar experience, the friendliness of the people is something I want to experience again. Although I did "meet" most of those people on the roll call forum on Cruise Critic. So I am sure I can do that with Seabourn as well. Love this site!

Little comparison.

I sailed Oceania once, never again.

The food isn't good, even Celebrity is better. Jacques is a joke.

The wine by the glass isn't good and expensive.

The cabins are small and poorly designed.

Little comparison.

I sailed Oceania once, never again.

The food isn't good, even Celebrity is better. Jacques is a joke.

The wine by the glass isn't good and expensive.

The cabins are small and poorly designed.

My thoughts exactly.

I wanted O and Az to be good, as their itineraries are very nice, but they were both mediocre at best im afraid.

I'm afraid that most people on this board wil disagree with me completely, but i happen to think Oceania offers a very good product. We have sailed with them 5 times and loved it. The food on O is very good and even the standard menus in all venues has lobster, jumbo shrimp, dover sole and filet mignon on it. I missed that on Seabourn although you can always ask for these things. What we love about Seabourn is the small yacht feel, extremely attentive service and all inclusive concept. Depending on the price and itinerary I would sail both of them. It's really something special and memorable.

I'm afraid that most people on this board wil disagree with me completely, but i happen to think Oceania offers a very good product. We have sailed with them 5 times and loved it. The food on O is very good and even the standard menus in all venues has lobster, jumbo shrimp, dover sole and filet mignon on it. I missed that on Seabourn although you can always ask for these things. What we love about Seabourn is the small yacht feel, extremely attentive service and all inclusive concept. Depending on the price and itinerary I would sail both of them. It's really something special and memorable.

I completely agree with you. We have sailed on Oceania 6 times and every time was wonderful. We have also sailed several times on Celebrity and there is no comparison. The food on Oceania is the best we've had at sea. The staterooms and service are excellent. We will be sailing on SB for the first time next Oct and are looking forward to it but I cannot agree with some of these Oceania reviews but that's my opinion.

We have 13 cruises on Oceania with 4 more booked. We love it. But now we have two cruises booked on Seabourn and one on Crystal. Spreading our wings. We also occasionally sail Celebrity in top suites. We know how to enjoy that too.

As for Azamara, for us never again. "Mediocre" is generous

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Just got an email from my TA and the cost for Seabourn went up by almost $2000 per person! and they will not combine AMEX Platinum with any offers from the TA. So thats seems ridiculous! I will give it a couple of days and check in again. But then in terms of cost Oceania, with a Penthouse Suite and special offers is a longer cruise that is MUCH cheaper

We have been on both. Seabourn several times and Oceania Marina once last year. We travel a lot, but mostly by land so take this into consideration with my feedback!

We liked both a lot for different reasons. Seabourn was terrific for small, more personalized service and all inclusive. We loved our suite and thought the food was pretty good. Although it lacked the variety of a number of specialty restaurants. The negative for us was MDR closed most days for lunch, even on sea days. We did not like lunch in the crowded buffet area. Very busy and it was not very relaxing. But we really liked it and are going again.

Oceania Marina had a great choice of restaurants with better food we thought in their speciality restaurants. We found if we were flexible on time we could eat there most nights and their MDR was open for all meals every day! We loved their Oceania suite as well. Very comfortable and nice added benefits. But.....we hated signing for drinks every night despite the drinks package! And we were on -an 18 night cruise and were limited to 6 bottles of wine in our room ( we are wine drinkers not cocktails). The butler could only bring us glasses after we finished the 6 bottles despite buying the drinks package. We thought that was crazy and a hassle for him as we had dinner in the room on a number of nights with a glass before dinner on others.

So we thought both had their pros and cons. I don't think we would like the smaller Oceania ships as the main draw was the suite and the multiple specialty restaurants. We back on Seabourn in December for the iten. For us it would be about the ports since we also travel by land frequently. I would consider either based on iten!

Just got an email from my TA and the cost for Seabourn went up by almost $2000 per person! and they will not combine AMEX Platinum with any offers from the TA. So thats seems ridiculous! I will give it a couple of days and check in again. But then in terms of cost Oceania, with a Penthouse Suite and special offers is a longer cruise that is MUCH cheaper

O should be cheaper than SB, as i have said before you are comparing a premium line with a luxury one. SB has been underpriced for a long time now.

Isn't it nice we all have so many choices! A great "problem" to have. And food is so subjective. What one person may think is great, another person may not like. If you do want space, unless you go to the upper levels on the small O ships, then you won't find it and the showers are cozy. You have to make friends with the shower curtain, or should I say, it makes friends with you. The bathrooms on the Marina and Riviera are much larger, with both a shower and a tub, that can be used as a shower, too. The PH on those 2 ships is lovely.

They both have their pros and cons and if you're not a loyalist to either one, then you just have to decide what is most important. (after itinerary)

One other thing to remember about Oceania. It has the greatest probability of changing ports, skipping ports and shortening the amount of time in ports of any cruise line I have ever sailed.

I am very surprised at the negative reviews of Oceania. I enjoy the larger 2 ships and have been on the Riviera twice in the last 8 months. Once in PH and once in Extended balcony. Ate in all restaurants and food and service smashing. I have also sailed with Regent, Crystal, Windstar, Azamara, and Silver Seas. I would say the food on Oceania was better. I look forward to my first SB cruise next year. My expectations will be high as I have heard such wonderful things.