Venice /Greece -Celebrity or Oceania

Chose Celebrity over Viking- maybe Oceania?

So many people helped me with my previous question, I just had to get opinions again. We booked the Venice/ Greek isles trip with Celebrity, 10 days on Constellation for August 2018 Aq aft balcony 1140. Itinerary is Depart Venice, Dubrovnik overnight, sea day, Crete, Mykonos, Athens , santorini, katakolon, at sea, Venice. We liked the idea of the two sea days, and Viking did not stop in Santorini(an island I really want to visit ). I thought I was pretty decided, then saw the itinerary for Oceania! Overnight and leave from Venice, Dubrovnik , kotor, argostoli? Santorini, Rhodes, Mykonos, and Athens. The ship arrives in Dubrovnik at noon, appreciate sleeping in a little, leaves at 11pm. Santorini 12 to 9p. We could swing a balcony cabin, and have heard so much about the food. So all you that have experienced the two ships, any suggestions?

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http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=52873903

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Oceania of course ;)

Do not have any idea what you like or is important to you but for me I prefer the smaller ships with less passengers

If money is the deciding factor then choose Celebrity

Enjoy whatever cruise you choose

Its a series of trade offs...and we all can give you our fervent opinion but that only applies to us.

AND...we are not YOU

Celeb will be cheapest with the largest crowds everything costs more nothing included but cabin.:(

Viking...more expensive...new to the market smaller crowd nice food some things included:)

Oceania same cost as Viking.., Almost everything included, smallest crowds, finest meals at sea.:hearteyes:

With many ports requiring tendering... being on the smallest ship will be A BIG HELP.

What do you want?:confused:

Since this is port intensive, rest and relaxation after touring would be welcome. Like the idea of having a lovely dinner in Dubrovnik, late lunch in Santorini, dinner late. Food is definitely a priority. My husband at most will have a couple of glasses of wine with dinner. Like the fact all non alcoholic beverages are included. We appreciate good service. Also, the timing would allow us 4 days in Venice pre cruise, a couple days in Athens post cruise.

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I can't advise on which cruise line to take but Venice precruise is about as good as it gets and cruise brochures feature Santorini for a reason. I don't think you can take a bad picture there. Are you locked in to August? Athens and Greek isles can be extremely hot.

The Celebrity and Oceania itineraries look very nice. The key stops for us were Santorini, Mykonos and the little visited Rhodes. We have been on the Celebrity Eastern Med itinerary and loved it. I would take Oceania for the win. Not a fan of Athens but the rest are worth the visits.

While you could dine on shore, our one and only cruise on Oceania Riveria was a foodies delight. With the exception of a drink and a snack, I would not eat my meals ashore :).

Since this is port intensive, rest and relaxation after touring would be welcome. Like the idea of having a lovely dinner in Dubrovnik, late lunch in Santorini, dinner late. Food is definitely a priority. My husband at most will have a couple of glasses of wine with dinner. Like the fact all non alcoholic beverages are included. We appreciate good service. Also, the timing would allow us 4 days in Venice pre cruise, a couple days in Athens post cruise.

 

 

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There you go....the fit is right.... If you have never been on O, you have a sunrise... on Marina you will have 6 restaurants, 7 counting the Waves grill all serving outstanding food The terrace you might want to consider for evenings rather than eating in port...its outdoors and the food will be far beyond that you could get ashore....and without health risk that come with local meals... you will have plenty of time pre and post cruise to eat local...

I can go either month. It's just when the itineraries are offered. I believe it is the Riviera. The main reason I thought of dinner in Dubrovnik is because of the time we are there -12 noon til 11pm. Seems time consuming to go back to the ship to eat dinner, then try to go back out to get in a couple more hours before sail away Santorini I would arrange a later dinner on ship because it leaves at 9p. I know we would be back on ship by 8, maybe a good night for the terrace.

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Chose Celebrity over Viking- maybe Oceania?

... and Viking did not stop in Santorini(an island I really want to visit ). I thought I was pretty decided, then saw the itinerary for Oceania! Overnight and leave from Venice, Dubrovnik , kotor, argostoli? Santorini, Rhodes, Mykonos, and Athens. The ship arrives in Dubrovnik at noon, appreciate sleeping in a little, leaves at 11pm. Santorini 12 to 9p.

If Santorini is big on your list then O might be a good choice.

We visited Santorini on O a couple of years back. We were thankful we arrived early as the line to go up the cable car to Fira was slow though not too long and while standing in hot sun with no shade time expands.

However by afternoon we saw that more ships arrived so planned an earlier time to descend than originally considered and glad we did. It seemed even slower (or course not) . Would NOT want to be in a queue up there worrying about missing 'all aboard' time. So I like that noon to 9 pm time.

Plus the 9 pm sail away could be an opportunity to visit Oia for reportedly amazing sunset (we had to leave too early so no first hand experience)

We did that cruise on "O" and enjoyed it-but we like "O". It's really what your going o be happy with. I know you can't go wrong with "O", but the other lines are good if they offer what you want.

If Santorini is big on your list then O might be a good choice...

Plus the 9 pm sail away could be an opportunity to visit Oia for reportedly amazing sunset (we had to leave too early so no first hand experience)

That would tip me to the Oceania cruise. Have been to Santorini twice the always had to get down the hill way to early for sunset.

Thank you everyone for your input, we cancelled with Celebrity and booked with O! Booked 7111 with that extended balcony. Super excited!

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Glad you booked with O, I'm sure you'll enjoy the cruise -- although I always worry about total strangers who advise others "you will love Oceania". Maybe yes, maybe no!

But I'm responding to an earlier comment that Rhodes is rarely visited. It is? That's news to me! (I could be wrong.)

We were in Rhodes in February 2000 on our second Renaissance cruise and will be returning in May 2018 ... In looking at itineraries it has always seemed to me that Rhodes is frequently on the list. But I wasn't looking for itineraries that features Rhodes, so as I said, maybe I'm wrong.

We enjoyed our day there very much. We got waylaid by a taxi driver for a tour which was worth the $30 we paid back then. We visited the Greek Orthodox Cathedral right by the port and then had a general drive around. Of course we ended up at a big shop where we bought nothing. The driver dropped us off at the Grandmaster Palace and we spent a lot of time there. We walked back to the ship.

One highlight was when we left the Palace -- someone had parked his motorcycle across the street and three cats had taken occupancy. Got a nice photo of that ...

]Mura

No need to worry. I've wanted to try Oceania but always thought the price would be out of reach. I actually had a coworker who sailed on Oceania to the Mediterranean and she raved about her cruise and the quality of the food and service - not a complete stranger! We have three cruises booked in the future now, one on Viking, this one on the Riviera, and one on the Edge. I like the fact that each cruise provides a different experience!

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No need to worry. I've wanted to try Oceania but always thought the price would be out of reach. I actually had a coworker who sailed on Oceania to the Mediterranean and she raved about her cruise and the quality of the food and service - not a complete stranger! We have three cruises booked in the future now, one on Viking, this one on the Riviera, and one on the Edge. I like the fact that each cruise provides a different experience!

 

 

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Oceania is full of former Celebrity passengers who've never looked back.

Just got off Riviera and a 24 day mix of TransAtlantic and Med, which stopped at Zakynthos, Santorini, Rhodes and Mykonos and finished in Athens. As usual, excellent food and service. One caveat however: if it's Greek antiquities you're after, head to Sicily.

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I can go either month. It's just when the itineraries are offered. I believe it is the Riviera. The main reason I thought of dinner in Dubrovnik is because of the time we are there -12 noon til 11pm. Seems time consuming to go back to the ship to eat dinner, then try to go back out to get in a couple more hours before sail away Santorini I would arrange a later dinner on ship because it leaves at 9p. I know we would be back on ship by 8, maybe a good night for the terrace.

 

 

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My humble opinion is that 1/2 day doing a walkabout in Dubrovnik (behind the walls) is sufficient. You would still have plenty time to get back for a reasonable hour for dinner.