Land & Sea - LIVE from Spain as we sail & compare HAL to Oceania

Well, the time has come... We are just about all set for our cruise on Oceania Riviera so I have set up the live thread on the Oceania board - here is the link - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2277650

The live thread will be done on the O board of course, but for those interested, I will be doing some comparisons between O and HAL here on this thread.

I also plan to post some things that might be of interest to a newbie on O (as it compares to HAL) & some of the differences and our experiences. So, I am setting this thread up now so I can add to it :)

The regular live thread will be on the O board.

We do have a few regular HAL cruisers on board (we are all newbies) so I am hoping I can convince them to post here and share their experiences as well so that you don't get a "subjective" view.

I will be posting some things I have already discovered - thanks to a bit of research & the help of our roll call and the wonderful O board :)

But first... a bit more packing ;)

Kazu, I'm sure you will enjoy the Riviera! We were on board this past August after a one week cruise on Queen Victoria, and Riviera is head an shoulders above QV! We love Oceania, having sailed on four of her five vessels in the past four years, and would gladly do so again.

The ship is beautiful, and the staff and food are all exceptional. One of these days we will sail O again if our retirement funds don't run out before we do. ;)

Our next cruise is back on HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam as you can see in my signature, and we are looking forward to sailing her again, as well.

Safe travels! Very excited to read your reports. :)

Looking forward to heating all about it. Have a wonderful cruise and safe travel!

I will look forward to hearing all about it.:) Have a safe journey to your embarkation port. Hope you are not affected by the work stoppages in Europe.:(

Looking forward to heating all about it. Have a wonderful cruise and safe travel!

I will look forward to hearing all about it.:) Have a safe journey to your embarkation port. Hope you are not affected by the work stoppages in Europe.:(

thank you :) We are on Lufthansa going across the pond ( I like that airline) and sadly the air flight attendants walked off on Friday & Saturday in Frankfurt. We fly into Munich but it could be affected on Monday (our flight date).

Lufthansa diverted all their intercontinental flights on Friday & Saturday and I was told they would probably do the same thing so I am hopeful :)

Of course, we still have to get to Bilbao and Lufthansa is key to get there.

Aeroplan (yes, we have reward flights) have told me that Lufthansa takes very good care of their passengers if this happens so we are very hopeful and have not changed our flights :eek:

Kazu' date=' I'm sure you will enjoy the Riviera! We were on board this past August after a one week cruise on Queen Victoria, and Riviera is head an shoulders above QV! We love Oceania, having sailed on four of her five vessels in the past four years, and would gladly do so again.

 

The ship is beautiful, and the staff and food are all exceptional. One of these days we will sail O again if our retirement funds don't run out before we do. ;)

 

Our next cruise is back on HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam as you can see in my signature, and we are looking forward to sailing her again, as well.[/quote']

 

thank you :) George'sGal - we have booked EVERYTHING and we are trying everything from Privee, Reserve, Specialty Restaurants & Culinary Classes so we are doing the full meal deal.

 

and I hear you on the "if our retirement $ don't run out."

Hope you have a wonderful time. I look forward to reading more.....Bon Voyage!:)

Looking forward to your "live from" posts and your Oceania/HAL comparison.

Enjoy your cruise to the fullest and make sure you taste as many of those Spanish and Italian wines as you can ;)

Cheers, Salud & Cin cin :D

Looking forward to your "live from" posts and your Oceania/HAL comparison.

 

Enjoy your cruise to the fullest and make sure you taste as many of those Spanish and Italian wines as you can ;)

 

Cheers, Salud & Cin cin :D

no Italian ports on this one - emphasis is Spain & Portugal :)

DH will pick up the reds - me, I'm looking forward to the white Riojas they do have some nice ones :)

And our findings in the Basque country and then in Murcia :)

I am pretty sure I will find some good ones thanks to some guidance I have had ;) & past experiences.

Merci Louis y Saludos

I am looking forward to your comparison. Just turned 4 star on HAL late last year but for a number of reasons we are thinking of Oceania in mid 2016and 2017. Looking forward to hearing about their restaurants including specialty and overall service levels. Thank-you in advance for posting your thoughts between the two lines.

Looking forward to your "Live Comparisons".

Looking forward to your "Live Comparisons".

Yes so am I. Our TA has recommended O to us so I will be interested in your thoughts.

Bon Voyage.

I will also be following your adventures on Oceania. Happy sailing!

Oh yeah, I will eagerly await your reviews and comparisons.

Thanks for sharing and here's hoping your flights are smooth as silk with no disruption.

All 4of4 say a hearty Bon Voyage and safe travels.

Hope your flights go smoothly.

With single supplements as they are, I will likely never cruise on Oceania but it will be interesting to hear about the differences. Anyway, I always enjoy your "Live threads" and have bookmarked this one.

Have a wonderful time!

Jacqui and company, I hope you all have a wonderful sailing across the pond.

I will be thinking of you next Saturday from the " Queen of Horns"[emoji3][emoji3][emoji568]

Travel safely and enjoy.

If you are going to compare, don't forget cost.🤓

Looking forward to reading all about your adventure.

Have a great time.

I thought you might be interested in some of the differences I have discovered already.

The Riviera is one of O’s larger ships (about 1200 passengers).

O offers some things that HAL does not – on this ship they have 4 specialty dining rooms. Everyone is guaranteed at least one reservation and there is no charge to eat there. BUT, unlike HAL, none of the specialty restaurants are open for lunch.

However, my understanding is that the Dining Room is open every day for lunch unlike HAL along with the Waves & Terrace.

All non-alcoholic drinks are free, including specialty coffees in Baristas.

Boarding procedure is different from HAL. Those in the upper suites board at 11:00 AM. Those in PH (Penthouse Suites) board at noon, Concierge, balconies, all board later.

Drinks are MUCH more expensive than HAL. They do have a type of wine package you can order though and when I take into account the 50% I get off on HAL, it is not that much higher.

O has a package similar to the Signature Beverage Package on HAL. There is no restriction on the cost of a drink on it but you do have to order wine by the glass. Ironically a couple of brands that HAL carries are on their list. It’s $60 per day per person. Uggh! Both people do not have to order it though if they don’t want to.

O’s rules on alcohol say one thing and are worded so that it can be put in effect if necessary. It’s an established fact on the boards (and our roll call) that O lets you bring all the liquor, wine, whatever you want on board. Liquor must stay in the cabin and if you want to use your wine in a public room then the corkage is $25. Seems like a fair deal to me.

Waves is supposedly incredible. Try that surf and turf sandwich for me! :)

Waves is supposedly incredible. Try that surf and turf sandwich for me! :)

just one? :p

just one? :p

Well you have to save room for that Asian restaurant abd their lido made-to-order grill that offers lobster, steak, crab, etc!

Well you have to save room for that Asian restaurant abd their lido made-to-order grill that offers lobster, steak, crab, etc!

someone has definitely been reseraching.

I will post a bit of stuff tomorrow from the airport - assuming our flights are still going.

Two hours on the phone today as our flight was showing cancelled and now it is back on. It seems the Union has nicely decided to do Sunday and disrupt all the families that are retuning from home despite their previous statement.

Just praying that our flights are o.k. tomorrow.