Is it worth....?

[camofwilliamsburg]

Hi there. I am a avid fan of cruising but have never tried a upscale line like Oceania. When looking there are fares for inside cabin with discounts( not taking air) that will get the 2000$ pp fare down to around 1500$pp.

 

This when compared to a PCL 10 night Caribbean cruise and Oceania's on Riviera, is a big difference, around $600 pp.

 

Is cruising on Riviera worth 1200 more to cruise?

 

What are the main differences besides smaller ships?

 

What is the entertainment like? DO they hire headliners or does the staff put on high school level productions which most cruise lines do with the exception of the MSC cruises we have taken, with the best entertainment we have seen.

 

Princess does a good job with comedy and a lot of trivia and interactive games nightly. Princess also does the MUTS which is always nice.

 

What does Oceania have that sets it apart and is it worth the $1200 per couple price difference.

 

I really appreciate the insights.

[LHT28]

Hi there. I am a avid fan of cruising but have never tried a upscale line like Oceania. When looking there are fares for inside cabin with discounts( not taking air) that will get the 2000$ pp fare down to around 1500$pp.

 

This when compared to a PCL 10 night Caribbean cruise and Oceania's on Riviera, is a big difference, around $600 pp.

 

Is cruising on Riviera worth 1200 more to cruise? That would be a personal choice

What are the main differences besides smaller ships? food is better but that is subjective, sodas, decent coffee (not liquid stuff like Princess serves) bottled water included

What is the entertainment like? DO they hire headliners or does the staff put on high school level productions No headliners that I have seen

Princess does a good job with comedy and a lot of trivia and interactive games nightly. Princess also does the MUTS which is always nice.

 

Yes they have trivia & other games

What does Oceania have that sets it apart and is it worth the $1200 per couple price difference.

 

I really appreciate the insights.

 

No extra charge for specialty dining rooms, no children's programs only 2 small smoking areas with a zero tolerance policy

You are allowed to bring your own alcohol & wine on board for use in your cabin ...if you take wine to the dining venues there is a corkage fee of course

 

I would read through some of the other threads here maybe use the search feature for specific things that may be of interest to you

 

I am sure others will post their comments as well

It really is a personal decision on whether it is worth the extra $$ to you for super service

 

Lyn

[Paulchili]

Marina is a beautiful new ship with excellent dining options (MDR, 4 wonderful specialty restaurants and a terrific Terrace Cafe); if food is important to you, you simply cannot do any better.

Oceania is an adult experience - very different from most mass market cruise lines. Dress code is country club casual - no formal nights. Entertainment is adequate but not on the level of the mega ships with Las Vegas style or Broadway shows. Nightlife is on the quite side.It is not a party cruise.

You have to decide if this is what you want - you just may get "hooked" like the rest of us did after our first cruise (or not). :)

[Mura]

It didn't look like anyone mentioned the "freestyle dining" aspect (after all, Renaissance did that before NCL did). If you prefer assigned seating, then stay with Princess. (I know not all of their ships do the assigned seating, but Princess' "R" ships from Renaissance that were designed for open seating seem to be set seatings.)

 

For US, the freedom to go into dinner when we want to, and to share a table or not (usually we want to share), is supreme.

 

And the food is really good ...

 

You will have to decide for yourselves, of course.

 

For us, the extra cost is worth it. But none of us can absolutely assure you that the extra cost will be worth it to YOU.

 

Mura

[Benita]

We love to cruise - have been on about 50 cruises - 4 on Oceania, a couple on Crystal,the rest on mainly the mainstream lines, like Princess, RCL, Celebrity, and HAL. They all have their pluses and minuses - the chief minuses on Oceania being the price and the lack of decent entertainment. When the itinerary is good, with lots of interesting ports, we pick Oceania due to the phenomenal food.

When the itinerary is more mundane, like the Caribbean, where the ship itself is the itinerary, we pick the mainstream lines, because the prices are better, the cabins bigger, and there is more to do with better shows.

[hondorner]

...Is cruising on Riviera worth 1200 more to cruise?....

That comes to $60 per day per person. When you factor in cost for specialty restaurants for at least 2 nights, costs for sodas, good cappuccino, ship photographs (no photographers on Oceania) and other extra costs, you're starting to eat into that difference. Factor in some intangibles like a very restrictive smoking policy, excellent food, smaller ship size and fewer people, combined with open dining and country club casual dress code, and Oceania has easily built a loyalty base envied by just about all the other cruise lines.

 

On the other hand, the target demographic is essentially people from age 50 to 70, well traveled, who appreciate the quieter ambiance of Oceania. Probably 90% are in bed by (or before) 11 PM.

[camofwilliamsburg]

We do fit the age demographics. My husband would love to get to bed earlier than I "allow" him to on other ships...just too much to do! BUt that said he was bored to death on HAL Eurodqam which we tried in January.

 

On PCL there is open seating too and we really loved it. Yes food is important but we did enjoy a lot of the food on PCL. CAbin size does not really matter to us.

 

We really like pretty ships. We like to look at art throughout the ships. We like good service too.

 

WE do not spend anything on drinks ( PCL allows wine, and the other cruises, we sneak some in: YES DO NOT FLAME).

 

We usually do not do specialty restaurant for an extra charge since we like the MDR. WHen we started to not like the food on RCI we tried a new cruise line. We do enjoy PCL food much more than RCI.

 

We do not cruise for the spa, DH is a alternative medical practioner who also specializes in massage ...so I get them at home anytime.

 

I like to meet interesting people and have something to do aboard the ship during the day for sea days. I love laying around the pool (IS there adequate area for sunbathing?

 

Thanks for all the info. I think we are closed out already of inside cabins for the cruise we were considering..... but there will be others. SAving money on each cruise allows us to cruise again....

[canuck.qc]

Benita said it well...while cruising the Caribbean the larger ships will offer you more to do & better entertainment, but if you plan a cruise for the itinerary & excursions the smaller ships of O are far more user friendly. Getting off a smaller ship on your early excursions days is easier than the larger ships, plus Oceania often tenders where the larger ships cannot. The open, casual dining is a great advantage especially after a long day of sightseeing. I asked all the same questions years ago and I have now sailed on each of Oceania's R ships and am booked on the Marina for next summer...you won't regret choosing Oceania, you will regret not having sailed with them sooner!!!!!!

[TKS]

We do fit the age demographics. My husband would love to get to bed earlier than I "allow" him to on other ships...just too much to do! BUt that said he was bored to death on HAL Eurodqam which we tried in January.

 

On PCL there is open seating too and we really loved it. Yes food is important but we did enjoy a lot of the food on PCL. CAbin size does not really matter to us.

 

We really like pretty ships. We like to look at art throughout the ships. We like good service too.

 

WE do not spend anything on drinks ( PCL allows wine, and the other cruises, we sneak some in: YES DO NOT FLAME).

 

We usually do not do specialty restaurant for an extra charge since we like the MDR. WHen we started to not like the food on RCI we tried a new cruise line. We do enjoy PCL food much more than RCI.

 

We do not cruise for the spa, DH is a alternative medical practioner who also specializes in massage ...so I get them at home anytime.

 

I like to meet interesting people and have something to do aboard the ship during the day for sea days. I love laying around the pool (IS there adequate area for sunbathing?

 

Thanks for all the info. I think we are closed out already of inside cabins for the cruise we were considering..... but there will be others. SAving money on each cruise allows us to cruise again....

 

Sounds like you're a good fit for O. O offers good to excellent food, high quality, friendly service by staff, open seating in the restaurants (reservations needed for specialty restaurants though), no up-charges for the specialty restaurants, no problem bringing alcohol aboard for consumption in your room (you are charged a corkage fee if you choose to take a bottle of wine to dinner) and interesting art and people on O. The people are generally a well-travelled group from all walks of life; the people are one of the big positives about sailing O, IMHO. And yes, there is plenty of room for sunbathing on deck (also lots of little niches for some private time aboard). The R ships are lovely, but if you want a beautiful ship and lots of really different types of art Marina (and probably Riviera, when she is launched) is my choice in this category.

 

Good luck. Hope you enjoy O as much as we do.