Vineyard View

I was hoping she would stay as Marina is the only option other than small. Vista is staying North of the Mediterranean. Bitmi get what you are saying if you cruise Alaska every year.

Thank you. I have known that to be in various deck locations on ships, but the entire bow is different. Thank you for responding.

Wow. No words.

I sure hope that you were compensated in some manner. That is a HUGELY different itinerary than you paid for.

I too wish that there was this data available. It would put all this to rest. That said, I cannot imagine that the audience on these various cruise lines on CC are that drastically different in their review styles. I have to think that those who post on HAL, Viking, SB, Oceania, Azamara, etc are not so very different in their review styles. So when I follow these boards, and one that repeatedly discusses skipped ports or reduced port times, that does say something to me. I honestly read of these two issues way more on Oceania than I do on the other cruise line threads that I follow.

I am looking at an itinerary on the Vista next year. In looking at available cabins, there is one forward on deck 7. There is a large space in front of these cabins showing the bow of the ship on the deck plans. It is blank and does not show anything in this area. Does anyone know what this area is? Is it accessible to passengers or a protected area? Thank you

Agree with you! When I added in the gratuities on Oceania, and the upgraded drink package (I realize that package is optional), it narrows down that range. It does allow me to look at both lines and make a decision with more options of itineraries.

Maybe, but maybe not. I expected SB to be a lot more expensive than O, so originally I did not consider them. Maybe that is part of the reason. Maybe part is because of ship size. SB is 450-650 pax (excluding expedition ships). I can only say that when it comes to Europe balcony cabins, the two lines are often quite competitive. Europe is where I am looking for 2025. Maybe that is not the case for other regions in our world.

Hank, I genuinely look forward to your review of your upcoming voyage with Oceania. Your reviews are all ways well balanced. I also agree that, as there are with most brands, Oceania has their cheerleaders that will never find anything but excellent with that brand. For me, that dilutes credibility, as there is no perfection with any line. To the OP, I understand what you are saying with regard to the concern. I follow a few lines on CC. In doing so, yes they all have some sleep than positive reviews. Of the lines that I do follow, Oceania does seem to have more negative reviews than others, so yes, that is concerning. It is yet another reason why I look forward to Hank’s review.

I would agree that SS and Regent cost significantly more. They include more, including excursions. However, I will continue to dispute that SB always costs significantly more. I know that you prefer OV cabins, and that SB has these on only two of their ships. I haven’t compared OV pricing between the two, because we sail in balcony. Comparing balcony cabins on multiple itineraries between SB and O, I have found cases where O is more expensive per day, and I have found where they are very close. So with that being the case, itinerary becomes a bigger driver in the decision.

Seabourn is not always more expensive than Oceania. I am comparing the two on some itineraries for next year. With Viking’s included excursion in each port, post Covid, they are more expensive than Oceania and Azamara, even Seabourn, by a significant amount if you do not do ship excursions. Thank you for your review. It was well balanced and I appreciated your feedback. I believe we would want to stay away from the smaller ships on either Oceania or Azamara unless we bumped up to entry level suites for cabin sizes. Once you do that, the pricing is up there with luxury lines, so we would stay with Oceania’s larger ships.

We had no problem ordering caviar where and when we wonted to enjoy it with our champagne. DH ordered our fresh coffees every morning via the Seabourn app. He went to the square, where they were ready or close to, bringing them back to our cabin. It worked very well.

Just an FYI. They do not offer any itineraries on this promotion past 2024. last year there were a lot of sales promotions. It will be interesting to see if that is a repeat pattern this year.

Quest and Sojourn have OV with 450 passengers. Yes, older ships but we were impressed last year with the condition. If newer, larger (650 pax) is important then yes, only Verandah on those ships. Either way, you are correct, it is a difference if you are only sailing in OV and are looking at specific ships. It is really nice to have so many choices with just these two cruise lines. They provide something for such a wide range of travelers who do not want to sail on large ships.

I have a shellfish allergy. The times we sailed with Viking, I notified Chefs Table in advance (as I did with Viking pre-cruise) and they had substitutions for me. Maybe that has changed since Covid, but Viking was always cognizant of my allergies.

I am finding that British Isles itineraries are generally higher than some regions. That is why I also compared a Mediterranean cruise. I did not see a 20% difference in entry balcony cabins between the two. I did not compare OV as I am not looking to book one. The one I looked at was 8.6% higher on SB. It was just an example. I am sure there are variances out there of ranges in differences, but these are the only two out of those we are looking at on the two lines that were most comparable to one another. I will look forward to hearing your impression of SB. I did this exercise based on OP remarks on the large price increase on her booked cruise. It made me curious how that was penciling out on the ones we looked at for 2025. I do know one thing. If I was offered an upgrade by Oceania as OP was, I would jump on it! I am glad it worked out so well for them, and I hope they have a fabulous time.

I think it’s important, at least for me. Itinerary is right up there and is the swing us for sure. That is an awesome deal that you have! Enjoy every moment, and congratulations on your major milestones!

Wow. That is pretty incredible. You really lucked out. Have a great trip! Not such great news for those looking to book in the future. I just checked at two itineraries we are looking at for May 2025 in the Mediterranean and British Isles. We are trying to decide between Seabourn and Oceania. So I just took a quick Look to compare. Oceania ~ 11 day London to London on Vista (I know, new ship pricing) including gratuities and upgraded drink package, B4 cabin not including excursion credit of $600 $1,200/day for two Seabourn - 14 day Jewels of the British Isles on Sojourn includes all but excursions, V1 cabin $1,153/day for two Oceania - Barcelona to Rome on Marina including gratuities and drink package not including $600 excursion credit $926/day for two Seabourn - Barcelona to Rome on Ovation including all but excursions $1,071/day for two These are not identical itineraries, but they are in the same regions. So - Some people like excursion credit, some not. Some people like larger ships, some do not. Some like unlimited caviar, some do not. Some like the layout of an entry verandah suite with walk in closet, some are very happy with Oceania Verandah cabins (no negative connotation). Some like this or that, others do not. My point was that with the price increase, Oceania and Seabourn are much closer in cost per day. Viking started doing this price jumping post Covid. They include an excursion in every port. Those of us who don't do ship excursions are not enticed by that. They are now more expensive than Seabourn and Oceania by a significant amount. Those who do excursions might find a price value in Viking. I found this exercise helpful for me. Maybe it will be for others. What it says to me will be different than to others. Itineraries certainly drive our choices, so I think we will continue to look at both.

Azamara and Silver Seas have not pulled theirs either. If there were no penalty to cancel, or a very small one, I think i would consider canceling myself and making new plans. Of people are locked in on large sums of monies on these cruises, it seems completely wrong to keep people hanging when it’s fairly obvious that sailing there in the near future is too dangerous and therefore irresponsible. I think it is wise of Viking to cancel, and to make people relatively whole (can’t speak to airfare), but I a, surprised that it took so long to do so.

And what I meant by that was that the included excursions are satisfactory and enjoyable by many. So that changes the equation. I didn’t exactly state it how I meant to.

I would suggest that it can depend on a few different factors. Having sailed Viking several times, we looked to do so again for our first cruise post Covid. We do not find value in ship excursions, so the costing with Viking that includes this is not of value to us. We all know that pricing post Covid is crazy across the board, but when I penciled out total cost per person per day on Viking (adding in gratuities and silver spirits) I decided to look around. We landed at Seabourn last year visiting ports in the Mediterranean that we haven’t been to, that Viking does not sail to. SB pricing includes everything except excursions. Their pricing was less pp/pd so we decided to try them. It was a great experience, and we would not hesitate to sail therm for the right itinerary/price point. Same with Viking. We felt that Viking exceeded at some things over SB (spa, promenade), but that SB was a higher level experience…for us. I am looking at next year, May/June for a special anniversary. Mediterranean or British Isles. Since we have sailed to most of the ports in the med with Viking, I compared British Isles. Same outcome. SB is again less pp/pd than Viking - once I add in extra costs. Same for the Mediterranean itineraries. That said, if ship excursions were important to us, and the included excursions with Viking were satisfactory, then the balance would not be the same in total cost pp/pd.

Was that only on Sea Days? We do not like buffets either. When in port we are off the ship at lunch. We often ordered cooked breakfast off the menu outside the Colonnade, and that was lovely.

Thank you. I appreciate any tips. We have sailed on Viking multiple times, and yes, like other lines, last minute deals are often very good. Plus, regarding Viking, unless you have another cruise booked, PIF dates are incredibly far in advance so it avoids that piece. Incorporating last minute booking though, with international airfare usually isn’t a great deal.

That is a bit sad to hear. Cruise lines operating under the rules imposed on them have to charge high prices. We looked at a few options a number of years ago and quite honestly didn’t see the value proposition. If I am spending that kind of money, I don’t see the value in where they sail. we also looked at Viking Great Lakes expedition cruises. While I feel there may be more value in where they visit, for us, not enough to justify the price point. That said, others may not view it the same through their lenses, and that is just as valid as my opinion.

I look forward to your impression Jon. We always enjoyed our meals on Viking. The service and the variety were usually extremely good. I think I would agree with FoggyEthan on his summary of ‘safe’ in most venues, however Chefs Table does pick it up in creativity. We truly had no complaints about the food. Our first cruise on Seabourn was last Spring. We felt that the cuisine and presentation was better, so I will be interested in your thoughts. Enjoy Viking. It’s a great line to sail on.