ak1004

I don't disagree with you regarding O tours (or any cruise company tours). But as you mentioned, for many cruisers it doesn't matter. They were booking O tours before SM and they will continue doing it with SM. For them it's real savings. That said, we prefer booking private tours too, but sometimes it's not possible, or we don't feel comfortable due to different reasons etc. For example, someone who is Jewish might feel uncomfortable booking private tours in Muslim/Arab countries. Sometimes private tours are fully booked because it's a small port and many ships on that day. There are dozens of reasons. So even people who prefer private tours might book 2-3 tours from the ship. Also, for people who drink, and having 1-2 glasses of wine at meals is enough, it's a real benefit. before SM they were buying drinks package, now they don't. Personally, SM doesn't work well for us, but it does work for some people. They fact is that dozens of people reported on CC that they switched the same cruise from OL to SM and it was cheaper for them.

So it's really not "just a price increase". For some people SM is a real value. And the prices increased by less than the combined value of those two benefits (plus the second Wi-Fi).

We love O, but those reports are really concerning to us. We travel to see the world, not to be on the ship. That said, on our recent SS cruise we spoke to several people and they mentioned that they had similar issues on their SS sailings. There are also reports on social media about cancelled ports on other lines, including SB and SS. So at this point, I'm not convinced that O does this more than other lines - but if indeed it does, we will be looking for alternatives, even if we have to pay more.

We asked our guide the same question. In addition to what you mentioned (only 2 berths, and already booked), she explained to us that there are couple of bridges that have to be lifted in order to let the ships to pass, and there are limitations how many times per day they can do (obviously locals are not happy to be stuck in traffic to let the ships to pass). Not sure if this is the case, but it makes sense. And yes, on our previous cruise we spent almost 4 hours in the bus. But our next one in 2025 Vista docks in Bordeaux and stays overnight!

When it's Le Verdon they say Bordeaux (Le Verdon). When they say Bordeaux I believe it's actual Bordeaux. Take a look: https://www.cruisemapper.com/ports/bordeaux-port-3813?month=2025-06#schedule June 6 is Oceania Vista.

This is so true, and this is why it's so important to do your home and know what to expect. O is not RCI, although I wish they had more guest lectures. But I guess it also depends how port intensive the cruise is. How many sea days in total do you have?

I'm not a big fan of R ships (small cabins, limited dining options etc), but our experience was completely different. We never had a problem to find our waiter anytime we wanted, never had a problem with ice (got it every evening from the cabin attendant as requested on the first evening), and our cabin was spotless (and we were in one of the lower cabins, not owner suite). The ships was in a great condition. Regarding the bed and the mattress - even O critics agree that O has one of the most comfortable and high quality mattresses and beddings. I do agree about entertainment, but this is nothing new and totally expected.

Money doesn't buy manners..

HAL older ships are just under 2,000 guests and the newer ships are 2,650 guests. Celebrity Edge and Apex are 2,900, so not a big difference. We sailed on the Koningsdam which is 2,650 guests and 100 ton. It was nice, but it's not Oceania. It is still a big ship, space/passenger ratio is 37 compared to 53 on Oceania newer ships, so still feels much more crowed. But entertainment was much better on the Koningsdam, probably one of the best we had.

That makes sense. In this case booking on board is even more beneficial. Before the $150 admin fee was introduced, one of the benefits was that you could make one change and still keep the on board booking perks. Now you can still do the change within the same period of time (before the penalties start), but you also avoid the $150 admin fee.

That's what they say. Some guests say that it's not entirely correct. And in any case, you cannot redo everything 100%. And the entry level cabins are still small.

I wanted to try Crystal too, but the prices are insane. Paying over $600 per night per person for a 210 sqft Ocean View cabin on a 20-25 years old ship is not my definition of good value for money. Can sail for the same money on Silversea in 310 sqft cabin on 2-5 years old ships, and the price includes excursions.

Well, we started with lines like Costa and Carnival, then "upgraded" to Celebrity, Princess and HAL, but in the last 5 years it's small ships only. Not going back to big ships. Funny you mentioned Seabourn Quest - we will be on it in September, our 13th line. But our smallest ship was Uniworld, 130 guests (and only 87 on our sailing). But yes, this is why I'm not a big fan of R ships. 700 guests on a 30 ton ship is a bit too high, give you space ratio closer to mainstream ships. The Quest has one of the highest space ratios in the industry.

I think Bronze to Silver was never a big deal. Each level is an incremental improvement that makes you feel good, but when you are paying $400-500 per day (more for PH), is an extra $18 really going to have a material impact on your decision? In fact, I would argue that even a free cruise after 20 cruises is not a big deal - it's basically like applying a 5% discount on all previous cruises. I cruise on a line because I like it, not for the loyalty perks. Just ask Celebrity loyalists who found out after 20 years that their loyalty perks have been dramatically devaluated. Personally I will never book a cruise just to reach certain level of loyalty, but that's just me. No loyalty for me. We sailed on 12 different lines and will continue booking different lines based on the value we get.

This quote was from an FCC before they introduced the $150 admin fee. I assume it's worded differently now. We used another FCC in October. Were able to combine it with 5% early bird discount, so save just over 10%. Somehow cruises we book never go on sale. If this one will and the savings are larger than the FCC savings, we will switch. But I think there is still value. And the one time switch is still valuable.

We never had any issues booking SD. If we cannot book at home at day and time that suits us, they will always book you or change while on board. But you are right, entertainment is not among the strengths of O. And the ships are pretty much dead after 10:30-11:00. But as you mentioned, this is really much less important on port intensive cruises. With excursions you only get a modest credit that is typically enough for 2-3 excursions on a 10 day cruise. The rest you are free to book private tours. As I always say, it's important to come with right expectations. We come to O (or other small lines like SB or SS) for great service and food, no lines, no crowds, no (or almost no) children, no loud music and much more. It's like staying in a boutique hotel compared to a big chain like Marriot or Holiday In. Just compare space ratios and Crew to Passenger Ratios. And yes, we are not loyal to any brand either. We are sailing on O, SB, SS, Azamara or any small ship that provides good itinerary at reasonable price. Not going back to big ships.

Thank you for the review. Couple small comments: "The bottom line for us is the lack of consistent servers who get to know your food preferences, allergies, etc. is a major negative." - there is absolutely no issue to request to have the same waiter in the MDR if there is someone you like. "On O, there is one show nightly and it is at 9:30." - same on all small ships. On large ships they have to have two shows to accommodate all guests, but on small ships there is only one. No different from SB, SS or other lines. And they need to accommodate people who have dinner at different times, so cannot have the show earlier than 9:30. It's just a fact that you need to accept when you go on a small ship. Also, one major thing missing on this review is pricing. I priced few random 10 nights sailings on Vista and some of the X new ships in summer 2025. The prices for PH and Sky Suite are fairly similar. However, SS starting price is for non refundable deposit and no amenities. refundable deposit can add another 10-15% to the price. Also PH is 350 sqft and SS is 300 sqft (excluding veranda). So please tell me who in their right mind would pay 10-15% more for the privilege to sail on a mainstream line with 3,000+ guests vs. premium line with 1,200 guests, and cabin which is 15% larger? Plus on X you still pay extra for all drinks (including soda, specialty coffees etc), specialty restaurants and Wi-Fi. Not to mention that O has butlers in PH, SS doesn't (a big factor for some people) Choice is always good. This is why different lines exist. We have friends who sailed exclusively with Celebrity for over 20 years. Last year we convinced them to try O with us. They were very impressed. A few weeks ago they went back to Celebrity for a cruise that was booked 2 years in advance. On the third day she texted me: "Beyond is a beautiful ship, but it is harder to to enjoy fully after Oceania experience. We are in the specialty restaurant now. On Oceania everyday is like that." Do I need to say more? But I always glad to read reviews like this one. It means more Oceania for us..

We asked to extend. They didn't agree so we canceled for a full refund.

This is taken from my future cruise certificate that we got in May 2023 (so prior to the recent changes): "Once applied to a voyage, guests may utilize their one-time change-of-sailing prior to the cancellation penalty period of the voyage selected."

I think it's all about expectations. Someone who complains about small cabins and bathrooms clearly did not do their homework. If cabin size is important to you, book PH or book another ship. Someone who expects the entertainment on O to be on par with the big ships clearly lives in a fantasy world. This will never happen. However, we did not notice any decline compared to pre Covid when it comes to service and food. Still among the best, in par with SS in our opinion (and much cheaper). So I would really take the reviews with grain of salt.

"we thought the Seabourn were the marginal winners of our affection due to some small details where we felt more cared for" We came to similar conclusions after 4 O cruise and 2 SS cruises. To me, SS was a very small step up compared to O, definitely not a different league that justifies different league prices. We will be on our 3d SS cruise in May which was an excellent deal, but with current SS prices, I find a hard time to justify sailing with them again.

Sorry, can you please clarify regarding the 181 first days - is it 181 days after you book, or up to 181 days prior to sailing when standard penalties start? Also, I understand that OBC is less for future cruise certificate compared to booking a specific cruise, but does one change still apply?

My wife doesn't eat seafood. Why should we subsidize the lobster other people eat? I don't like Asian food. I think they should start charging for Reg Ginger so I don't have to subsidize people who eat there for free. We also don't use two Wi-Fi accounts. I think they should revert to back to one account so we don't subsidize those who use all the bandwidth. We usually eat our lunches on shore, I'm really mad that I have to subsidize those who choose to have lunch on the ship. We don't use the gym or the spa. My wife doesn't swim. They should start charging for gym so we don't subsidize those who use it. I may go back to Celebrity where I have to pay for everything separately.

I thought that you can select any excursion with the excursions credit. Am I wrong? So you won't book O that now includes alcohol at meals and some excursions credit, but will book Regent that includes alcohol anytime, ALL excursions and flights for thousands dollars more? And I guess Regent excursions cannot be cancelled because of sea conditions because you paid for all of them? Makes perfect sense.

I don't know which ships, regions and categories you are tracking, but here is an example of we track. Before SM was introduced, I recorded prices for few Vista Med cruises for 2024. Average price for FV (B5) was 5,000 CAD for 10 day cruise, or $500 CAD per day.($370 USD). When SM came into effect, same sailings increased to $5,500-$5,600 CAD ($550-560 CAD per day), so about $400 USD, which is exactly the excursions credit. So you got the drinks for free, plus one extra internet for free. When 2025 sailings went for sale in October, we booked 2 sailings on the Vista: June 3-15 2025 London to London at $5,890 CAD for 12 nights or $490 CAD per day Oct.29-Nov.9 2025 Rome to Istanbul $4,892 CAD for 11 nights or $444 CAD per day Those prices included 5% early bird discount. The prices now are a bit higher, but still average Vista sailing is around $540-550 CAD per day. So the prices for 2025 stayed essentially the same compared to 2024 (both with SM), but you could book for 5-10% less in the first few months. This compared to most other lines that increased the prices by at least 10-15% (look at SS, Crystal and others). Those are the facts. Numbers don't lie.