New Dinner Menu in GDR

I was on the inaugural voyage of the Nautica many years ago and returned to Oceania two years ago. Though I prefer fewer passengers, I now only travel on Marina or Riviera. Why? Jacques. And I like the PH, Are they the same on the smaller ships?

Thanks! Looks like their gala second night dinner in the MDR...

Gala night :confused:

Most of the menus have great options to choose from

I was on the inaugural voyage of the Nautica many years ago and returned to Oceania two years ago. Though I prefer fewer passengers, I now only travel on Marina or Riviera. Why? Jacques. And I like the PH, Are they the same on the smaller ships?

the same in what way?

The smaller ships PH are 322 sq ft compared to O class ships at 420 sq ft

You check the deck plans on their website for photos of the cabins

dont get too wound up....the upgrade to O will still provide you with considerable wow and pleasure over the line you came from... There is much more that will also impress, low key, non nickel-dime, 1/4 the passengers, Ambiance and manners and demeanor of fellow passengers There man be changes but there will be changes too in the line from which you are switching from..... Thats life and dont get all that worked up over something that will be a wonderful new and superior experience

Returned from Riviera 8/3, 9th O cruise. Have previously experienced what you describe, but def not on this cruise. Ambiance, manners and demeanor of large number of fellow passengers was more like a “Fun Ship”. Men jumping into pool and women screaming at them as they jumped. They took over entire pool. Many families. Majority in 40’s & 50’s. On sea day, DJ spinning loud music at pool. I asked if this was the “new norm” on sea days (next O cruise has 4). He said passengers wanted pool environment “spiced up”. I completely understand younger passengers want a different experience.....maybe we have to consider a different cruise line. Seems O is marketing to families and not the usual “older passengers”. A plus was that families dine earlier and we were able to get late rez in specialty restaurants most nights. Also very disappointed that MDR closed for lunch most port days. We often returned for a relaxed lunch, especially at ports previously visited.

Does not sound good. Where was this cruise?

Does not sound good. Where was this cruise?

Athens to Barcelona

BTW, service and food still great. Just a very different atmosphere.

I paid particular attention to the number of days the GDR was closed at lunch on our recent 14 day Marina cruise as this has been brought up a bit lately. I believe it was only closed one day. Perhaps it was the itinerary. We had two sea days, and of course it wasn't open on embarkation day.

Athens to Barcelona

BTW, service and food still great. Just a very different atmosphere.

I am not surprised as we too have noticed a few changes on some of the recent cruises (though not jumping into pool with screaming or loud music poolside).

There is no question that there is new blood on Oceania which Oceania wants to attract and needs for survival.

If it becomes more like a mass market cruise line atmosphere then it may be time for some alternatives.

We have a cruise in Oct/Nov and I am anxious to see the current “state of Oceania” for myself.

So far we find Oceania to our liking but......

I paid particular attention to the number of days the GDR was closed at lunch on our recent 14 day Marina cruise as this has been brought up a bit lately. I believe it was only closed one day. Perhaps it was the itinerary. We had two sea days, and of course it wasn't open on embarkation day.

Out of 11 port days GDR was closed on 3 of them

Berlin was one day & not surprised as it was a ghost ship with people on tours

Bergen & Skagan were the other 2 days it was closed

Out of 11 port days GDR was closed on 3 of them

 

Berlin was one day & not surprised as it was a ghost ship with people on tours

Bergen & Skagan were the other 2 days it was closed

Ok, I was on an all day tour the Berlin/Warnemunde day, Skagen is the one I remember but not Bergen. We just walked around there, maybe we came back after hours. I thought I looked at the Currents everyday. I didn't have the drink package at that point so I have no excuse. I guess I'll have to start writing things down. I do remember eating in Waves at least 4 times but mainly due to when we got back on board. I did eat in the GDR for lunch whenever I could.

Ok, I was on an all day tour the Berlin/Warnemunde day, Skagen is the one I remember but not Bergen. We just walked around there, maybe we came back after hours. I thought I looked at the Currents everyday. I didn't have the drink package at that point so I have no excuse. I guess I'll have to start writing things down. I do remember eating in Waves at least 4 times but mainly due to when we got back on board. I did eat in the GDR for lunch whenever I could.

I was surprised about Skagan I would have thought they would have the GDR open then

We only managed to do lunch in the GDR once ..maybe next time I will do better :halo:

We haven't been to Skagen on a cruise (Bergen several times) but I'd be surprised if so many people were "off ship" that it didn't pay to keep the GDR open for lunch.

Berlin I can definitely see (as I did when we were in Haifa overnight last November). Bergen -- well, that's questionable. The town is walkable and I'd think many people would be back in time for lunch. We have done longer tours there and also no tours.

I meant to keep track of when the GDR was open on our May cruise but don't think I did. Perhaps because when I looked at the menus for lunch I saw too much repetition and so we just went to Terrace or Waves. (This was on Riviera, two week-long B2Bs.) We did go to lunch in the GDR several times, just not as often as we usually would.

I think May was when the "new" menus were NEW. And we weren't very happy with them. Adjustments may well have been made since then. I don't know if we were among the few who were unhappy or if lots of us were unhappy!

Mura

Athens to Barcelona

BTW, service and food still great. Just a very different atmosphere.

Well Jane...timing is everything and late july/august in the med brings on a "Whole" different crowd, lots of europeans on vacation with their kids, Spanish, Italian and French folks can be , well very "active , aggressive and entitled" and practice the art of dumping ones kids free to run about. Drinking and party all night is a religion to those I have seen. Its the culture and the timing you experienced.

The Med is an attractive target for those folks. Its their carribean like brits at Costa Del Sol can pretty out of hand.

I would suggest not taking trips during summer /holiday /vacation time ( France all but shuts down in August and heads south to the Mad...er Med ..

All the med cruises I have taken have been before mid MAY or after September. and were not port intensive, over 14 days and on R ships.... Stack the deck in your favor......timing is the thing

Greetings, Everyone, from South Beach. IMO, no matter what changes in passenger demographics hit O, with the largest capacity ship carrying 1250 pax, these vessels will never be mass market. We have sailed NCL in top accommodations. Up there, not a mass market feel. However, everywhere else is mass everything. We didn't mind that because we knew what we were buying. For one thing, shops are bigger, and that's something. If a huge selection of bars is your thing, these ship are heaven. Rides, waterslides, gigantic casinos, all before you. For us, Oceania and Regent are currently our favorite lines. I like to see their ships sail by when I am in South Point Park. Best of all, sometimes no flights, or one only one way. In addition, if we do have to fly, Business Class in included on Regent, a mighty plus for us.

Mary

Well Jane...timing is everything and late july/august in the med brings on a "Whole" different crowd, lots of europeans on vacation with their kids, Spanish, Italian and French folks can be , well very "active , aggressive and entitled" and practice the art of dumping ones kids free to run about. Drinking and party all night is a religion to those I have seen. Its the culture and the timing you experienced.

The Med is an attractive target for those folks. Its their carribean like brits at Costa Del Sol can pretty out of hand.

I would suggest not taking trips during summer /holiday /vacation time ( France all but shuts down in August and heads south to the Mad...er Med ..

All the med cruises I have taken have been before mid MAY or after September. and were not port intensive, over 14 days and on R ships.... Stack the deck in your favor......timing is the thing

Thanks for advice but your assumptions are completely wrong. I didn’t want to call out a particular group, however as you mention “Europeans” I will tell you that the unruly, loud and often inebriated group were Americans and with a Wine Club group. Their children were very well behaved. We have been cruising summers for years due to work schedule and from beginning of O until 2 years ago virtually no children. Last 2 cruises numerous children. I have no issue with the children, though IMO they should be on a ship with child/teen amenities. Its the the adults I described we want to avoid and DJ at pool. We no longer work and can cruise anytime but these passengers can be anywhere. Wish it was as simple as scheduling.

Last 2 cruises numerous children. I have no issue with the children, though IMO they should be on a ship with child/teen amenities. Its the the adults I described we want to avoid and DJ at pool. We no longer work and can cruise anytime but these passengers can be anywhere. Wish it was as simple as scheduling.

Each sailing can be different

Our cruise in July had a about a dozen kids all well behaved that I saw

Do not recall any loud music or games by the pool so it may have been a one off (I hope) :eek:

We stayed onboard a couple of the port days so it was very quiet

Was it the CD who organized these events or the group?

I agree not the typical ambiance of an Oceania cruise you expect

Each sailing can be different

 

Our cruise in July had a about a dozen kids all well behaved that I saw

 

Do not recall any loud music or games by the pool so it may have been a one off (I hope) :eek:

 

We stayed onboard a couple of the port days so it was very quiet

 

Was it the CD who organized these events or the group?

 

I agree not the typical ambiance of an Oceania cruise you expect

Believe it or not Lyn but I asked Peter(our CD) how many guests we had under 20. I didn't expect him to know but he said he was also curious and had checked. There were 41.

What is gala night? Should we eat in the mdr that evening and not book a specialty venue? We are out of Venice 10/26/18

Thanks very much:)

Believe it or not Lyn but I asked Peter(our CD) how many guests we had under 20. I didn't expect him to know but he said he was also curious and had checked. There were 41.

That is amazing I saw maybe 5 under 10

I wonder where they hid the others :evilsmile:

Thanks for advice but your assumptions are completely wrong. I didn’t want to call out a particular group, however as you mention “Europeans” I will tell you that the unruly, loud and often inebriated group were Americans and with a Wine Club group. Their children were very well behaved. We have been cruising summers for years due to work schedule and from beginning of O until 2 years ago virtually no children. Last 2 cruises numerous children. I have no issue with the children, though IMO they should be on a ship with child/teen amenities. Its the the adults I described we want to avoid and DJ at pool. We no longer work and can cruise anytime but these passengers can be anywhere. Wish it was as simple as scheduling.

A Wine Club huh? Where have I seen postings about that before?

So, it's the last night of our cruise and I've been happy with the food overall, but not thrilled with the GDR menus. We finally had foie gras (not pate) last night as well as caviar. Only had the Red Ginger sea bass one night and other RG items were not on the menu. Someone who has been on Oceania several times previously commented that she felt items were missing. I've collected the menus for each night and will scan and post them when I return.

We've eaten in The Terrace most nights. The food there has been very good but to be honest, I've eaten mainly sushi and lamb chops there. The GDR menu items served there haven't been all that appetizing or hot. GDR service has been very slow, which is why we ended up there.

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There was one night of a dance party by the pool, an official Oceania activity, on our NYC Bermuda cruise on Insignia in August. Music, dancing, line dancing. Not to my taste but not offensive either. I walked the track and watched from above. Few kids in evidence. No drunk and disorderly.

There was a special-kids sail free offer but it was capacity controlled and, at least when I booked with 12 year old twin boys, only Concierge and Suites were available. Small number of kids. One person who had a suite tried to add a teen girl but was told that the program was at capacity. I talked to the concierge and he said there had been no complaints about children. When I went to tea in the afternoon on sea days, the boys stayed in the cabin and watched Jacques Pepin or Jurassic Park DVDs that they got from reception and ordered pizza from room service. It was a port intensive cruise so most days we spent the day on shore. Overall, the clientele seemed older than usual and more east coast folks, often people who had done this particular cruise previously and loved it.

Food was great, staff very attentive. The GDR menu seemed pared down but still plenty of options. One of the boys ordered dover sole in Toscana and the quality was much better than when I ordered it a few days later in the GDR.

I'm wondering if the change in ambiance people have reported is due to more mainstream cruisers trying out the larger ships.

Mary

I know exactly what you are saying MisterBill99, but the world is changing and even though -in "our" day- it was considered savvy to scan, even research, every Restaurant menu on the ship to find those "special" items; the waste and waist conscious passengers of today are drawn to simpler foods, beautifully prepared.

Oceania's many port intensive Itineraries also feed into it, foie gras and caviar may not be the best choices when early morning excursions with only sporadic lavatory access, loom. :halo:

Caviar? What’s wrong with that? The vodka or champagne you consume with it?

Everything in moderation...

I know exactly what you are saying MisterBill99, but the world is changing and even though -in "our" day- it was considered savvy to scan, even research, every Restaurant menu on the ship to find those "special" items; the waste and waist conscious passengers of today are drawn to simpler foods, beautifully prepared.

I love how you more or less admit that I am correct, then launch into standard Oceania apologist mode. FWIW, I think your comment/excuse is a load of hooey (that's the nice way of putting it since this is a family board). There is NO EXCUSE for Oceania simplifying their menu when they make such a big deal about having the finest cuisine at sea. And plenty of people still like to look at menus in advance. Sadly, very few people actually post them (I have been guilty of this in the past even after asking for them).

BTW, I walked across 12th Avenue today with luggage. It was a 6 lane avenue with walk and don't walk signs, not that 12 lane highway you suggested it was in an earlier thread.