Alaska 2013- Oceania Regatta or Celebrity Solstice? Seeking advice/opinions

[HopeEverlasting]

Hello, Cruise Critic forum members- Seeking a bit of advice based on your cruising experience.

 

My husband and I are considering our first cruise and are torn between two cruise lines. We are hoping for comments/input from those who have had experience sailing not only on both lines, but both ships- The Celebrity Solstice and the Oceania Regatta.

 

 

We are considering a cruise to Alaska next year and have narrowed our choices to these two ships. However, we are still torn between the two options. We are looking at a 7 day cruise on Celebrity Solstice with an Aqua Class Suite, versus a 10 day cruise on the Oceania Regatta with an Inside Cabin. (We would like to cruise out of Seattle and return to Seattle; thus, these two ships are our options for these cruise lines.)

 

 

Things that are important to us: Having quiet, non-hectic /not super-crowded places to relax, non-hectic dining (no huge lines, huge crowds of people, etc.), ability to see the scenery while cruising, pleasant service, and good food (meaning at least a step above chain restaurants that one might find near a mall), and a non-smoking environment. Prefer an adult crowd to one that focuses on children. Visiting a lot of ports is not our main goal, rather, relaxing at sea (both cruises offer three sea days). Hope to soak up the scenery and to read a lot. We are rather quiet people.

 

 

Due to our non-smoking preference and the desire for good food, we narrowed our choices for our first cruise to Celebrity and Oceania, based on comments on this forum. However, are struggling at deciding between the two. The Aqua–class Suite and Blu Restaurant that are offered by Celebrity are very appealing to us; however, the size of the Solstice (almost 3,000 passengers) is a huge concern. We have read comments by many that say that the ship has many spaces for relaxing; so, it does not feel as big as it is. We would love feedback about the size and feel of this ship.

 

 

The size of Oceania’s ships appeal to us, although we know that we might be giving up some quality in the area of entertainment, have fewer activities on board, etc. We would be looking at an inside cabin with 160-ish square feet, or maybe an obstructed view cabin of only 145 square feet. Looking for those that have had experience on Oceania in the inside cabins/smaller cabins without the verandas. Also, thoughts about how easy/difficult it is to find spaces to relax (sit and read, etc.) while onboard.

 

 

For your first cruise, which would you choose? The suite on Celebrity on a super-big ship, or the smaller, more modest room on Oceania’s Regatta?

 

 

(Note: The cost per day is actually almost the same for the two cruises; although the overall cost for the Oceania cruise is a bit higher due to the fact that there are three additional days of the cruise. Also, the Celebrity Cruise would be in May or September, and the Oceania Cruise in early July.)

 

 

Thanks!

 

 

P.S. I will be posting this thread on the boards for both Oceania and Celebrity. Thanks in advance for your comments.:)

[Benita]

Tough choice- you won't go wrong with either. We were on the Celebrity Eclipse last Thanksgiving (sister ship to the Solstice) in an Aquaclass cabin and we were on the Oceania Regatta last September to Alaska. Our Alaska itinerary was 14 nights roundtrip from San Francisco and the Eclipse was to the Caribbean.

Solstice class pluses - you will get a balcony and the scenery is beautiful. Blu is an excellent restaurant - rivals the main dining room on Regatta. We did not even bother with the specialty restaurants on the Eclipse as Blu was so good. As there is no fixed seating, it is similar to the Regatta. You will have much better entertainment on the Solstice. You may have better berthing times- the Regatta came late to the game last year, so we were forced to be the only ship to tender or arrive in some ports at off hours. If you have been with Celebrity or Royal Caribbean often enough, you will have the perks, like free internet, etc.

Regatta pluses - much fewer passengers and a more intimate experience. Fewer kids (subjective plus, but if you are not traveling with kids, it is a nice plus). If you are traveling with children, stick to Celebrity - practically nothing offered for kids on the Regatta.

Main Regatta negative - smoking. They allow smoking in a section of the Horizons and we were never able to enjoy afternoon tea as the smoke did not know to stay in that section. We have been on all the smaller Oceania ships and only in Alaska did we have that problem. Don't know why the itinerary attracted all the smokers, but it did and from following posts on cruise critic, our experience was not isolated.

Main Solstice negative - May and September can be quite chilly - July is a better time weatherwise. Also, 10 days trumps 7 days anytime.

So, in summary - both have pluses and minuses. The smoke on the Regatta and the lack of view being in an inside cabin are big negatives, but the longer cruise and better month are big positives.

[dorisis]

I have cruised on both ships and enjoyed both of them. but it was the Caribbean and not Alaska. From what you have said it certainly is a difficult choice. Personally I would opt for the inside or oceanview cabin on the Regatta (I have been in both and was happy with both)I have also stayed in a Sky Suite on a solstice class ship and that was nice and roomy with a few perks. No big deal. I believe you will find the food and service better on Oceania and since they have no children's program and a no smoking policy, it would be a quieter more upscale cruise. And since they include airfare and fewer onboard extras charges plus 3 more days, the cost might actually be less.Whichever you choose, I hope you have a grand cruise. ~Doris~

[HopeEverlasting]

Benita-

 

Thank you so much for the post for this truly has been a tough choice for us to make, especially with it being our first cruise.

 

Thanks for the comment about the smoking in Horizons. The afternoon tea on Regatta sounded quite pleasant; but smoke in the area would be a problem for us.

 

Regarding the larger Celebrity Eclipse- Were you able to find quiet spaces to sit and relax? Or, could you tell that nearly 3,000 people were traveling on the ship with you? (My concern is not being able to find a seat/chair/table to sit and relax, etc.)

 

FYI: We will not be traveling with children; so those activities are not a factor for us.

 

Thanks again for the post,

 

-HopeEverlasting

[HopeEverlasting]

Doris- Thank you for the info. Quiet and relaxation are on the top of our list for our cruise experience. Oceania seems to offer that in abundance. Like you and Benita suggested, both cruises would probably be great. It is just difficult to select your first cruise. LOL

Thanks again,

-HopeEverlasting

[caviargal]

I have booked my first cruise with Oceania after choosing not to take an ocean cruise for 5 years due to my disenchantment with what most lines have become. I have cruised extensively and am Elite with Celebrity.

 

We are headed to the Med and Ionian Sea next year and are going to once again try ocean cruising. I looked at an option on Reflection, the sister ship to Solstice in Aqua Class. I would only go Aqua Class as my last dining experiences on Celebrity in the main dining room were not only mediocre food wise but the service was not like it used it to be and I grew tired of misbehaving children running around as if the dining room was their personal play room.

 

Even though the price per day for an inside on the Riviera was comparable to Aqua Class on X, we chose Oceania. The lack of nickel and diming for things like specialty coffees and bottles of water; the lack of sales everywhere and pushing to buy things that we experienced more and more on X; the lack of kids; the much fewer number of passengers; the cuisine; the intimacy of their ships versus the monolithic size of Solstice were all reasons we did not move forward with X. It is really everything we grew not to enjoy about cruising and we are just not willing to go that route again.

 

We look for a sophisticated, adult atmosphere, great food and service, lack of lines and regimentation, lack of kids, lack of constant sales pressure, lack of nickel and diming and personal service in a cruise. We are looking forward to our first Oceania cruise and hope it is what we are anticipating and very far removed from main stream cruising.

[HopeEverlasting]

Caviargal-

 

Thanks for the response and comments. The sales push is one activity my husband, in particular, would like to avoid. I have read on the boards that this occurs much more often on X than on Oceania.

 

In addition, it is good to know about the experience of lots of kids in the MDR on Celebrity. We like kids, but unattended children would be a big negative for us. Plus, again, we really like things relaxed and quiet. A perfect day for us would be sitting and dividing our time between looking at beautiful scenery and reading a good book, followed by a good meal. We know that everyone is not looking for such a quiet and calm experience; but that is our goal for our vacation.

 

Thanks again for your advice.

 

-HopeEverlasting

[pacheco18]

I sail both lines. I like them both. I love the s class ships. They do not feel crowded. I love the R ships most of all.

 

U will have kids on Oceania in Alaska as they are offering kids programs on some Alaska cruises

 

 

I would not do an inside cabin to Alaska. Too much beautiful scenery.

[orchestrapal]

I sail both lines. I like them both. I love the s class ships. They do not feel crowded. I love the R ships most of all.

 

U will have kids on Oceania in Alaska as they are offering kids programs on some Alaska cruises

 

 

I would not do an inside cabin to Alaska. Too much beautiful scenery.

 

I totally agree..children on a small R ship will be more noticeable

than on X.

Go for the line on which you can afford a balcony. We spent much of our Alaskan cruise on the balcony or by the doors when it got cold.:)

[Jancruz]

I will put my 2 cents in..to many things to see in Alaska to have an inside cabin..we have watched all kinds of sea creatures from our balcony and that is a big part of cruising in Alaska..

Jancruz1

[Benita]

I actually had more private areas on the Eclipse than on the Regatta. There are far fewer passengers on the Regatta, but far more places to hang out on the Eclipse, plus in the Aquaclass you have a balcony in which to take in the great scenery - although May and September might be too cold to appreciate it. What I love about the Solstice class is Blu - it is a great compromise between the regular Celebrity experience and the Regatta, because the food is great and the atmosphere lovely - you need to be over 18 to be in an aquaclass cabin and they only hold two, so the only kids you may find in Blu are those staying in suites who are allowed in if space is available - have never seen a kid there, however.

The only thing that would stop this from being a no-brainer is the time of year and the fact that the Celebrity cruise is three days shorter.

[cbb]

I would also encourage you to go for a veranda. Just seeing the beauty of Alaska from the quiet of your room would be wonderful.

 

I do disagree with the poster who did not like Alaska in September. Perhaps we were lucky but our weather was lovely then and in September most children are back in school so the ports are not nearly as crowded. A Fairbanks native told me she tells her family to come up in September.

 

I love everything about O and have sailed 10 times with them but for me crowded ports are a deal killer so we sail May and September. I guess I'd go with Celebrity given what your parameters are.

[cruzmaven]

Keep in mind that O is introducing its children programs on selected Regatta Alaska sailings next year. So there may be more children than usual, taking up more venues and making their presence known in the dining rooms, on the Regatta. IMO, it won't take that many children on board to make a significant difference in the ambiance on the ship. Since the children's programs are new, we don't know what venues on board are going to be used for children's activities and therefore won't be available as "quiet spaces".

 

The Aqua Class cabins are restricted to 2 persons per cabin so are less children friendly than the other parts of the ship, which will influence the makeup in Blu.

 

Before making a final decision you should confirm whether the new children's programs are going to be offered on your sailing.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Note that September will not have the long days of early summer, and weather is probably more predictably dreary. But then I think the weather in Alaska is always hit or miss.

 

We didn't use our balcony much in May in Alaska--it was too windy, cold and rainy. So that's a consideration, although it's nice to have the view, even inside the room--I personally would never book an inside cabin, but that's a personal decision.

[caviargal]

We also have always had a balcony in Alaska. Our favorite Alaska cruises were with HAL as they do not attract many kids and the atmosphere is low key. Our best weather was during June and we did use the balcony quite a bit, more so than in May and September.

 

I would not choose to cruise with X on such a large ship though, but that is personal preference.

 

The point I was trying to make is that we did make the choice for our cruise next year (in October so hopefully no kids will be aboard) to book an inside on Oceania versus an balcony on X. A cruise is more than a cabin for us, and a balcony is just not as important as our other priorities.

 

If the balcony on Oceania was affordable, we would have chosen one and will continue to watch the rates to see if the price drops.

 

We look to our balcony mostly as a refuge from the crowds/kids on the big ships but with the space to guest ratio on the Riviera and the demographic we are expecting, as well as the very busy itinerary, I am unconcerned about not having one as we are not ones to hang around in our cabin.

[HopeEverlasting]

Thank you all for your comments and advice.

 

Thanks for pointing out the addition of children's program for O's Alaska sailings in 2012. We will look into that...

 

And, in a perfect world, we would get a cabin with a veranda on O; but, waiting to see if the prices drop over the next few months.

 

Aqua Class and Blu on X, though, have been of interest to us as well.

 

Also, sounds like for those that hate crowds, we need to consider not only the size of the ship and the passenger/space ratio, but how busy the ports will be. Thanks to those who pointed out the busier times of the season for the ports.

[Oceans&Rivers]

Main Regatta negative - smoking. They allow smoking in a section of the Horizons and we were never able to enjoy afternoon tea as the smoke did not know to stay in that section. We have been on all the smaller Oceania ships and only in Alaska did we have that problem. Don't know why the itinerary attracted all the smokers, but it did and from following posts on cruise critic, our experience was not isolated.

 

I don't think the itinerary is what attracted smokers, unless it brought a lot of people from far away. (There seemed to be a lot of Aussies onboard, though I have no idea whether they smoke.) Californians smoke very little, especially Northern Californians.

 

Having said that, Benita, I don't think I mentioned this before, but on our cruise to Alaska where you and we were next-door neighbors, there was someone who I would describe as "one of the last living heavy chain smokers in the San Francisco Bay Area" onboard, and I would guess he spent a lot of time in Horizons, since he was in the Vista Suite one deck away. He was very nice and extremely intelligent, and we shared a dinner table with him twice, once at the Captain's Table and once at the Patio Dinner. He was not able to get through the Patio Dinner without getting up 2 or 3 times during dinner to cross over to the smoking area to smoke mid-meal, even though the weather was very blustery.

 

I mention these details because it is quite possible that he contributed greatly to the smokiness of Horizons, as he needed to smoke frequently, and would likely have done it there.

 

Are officers allowed to smoke in Horizons, to anyone's knowledge? I have a picture of a female officer that I captured for her friendly smile—not in Horizons, by the way—but noticed later that she had a pack of cigarettes in her chest pocket.

 

So, to the OP, I would suggest that if indoor forward viewing without smoke is one of the top things you want, then you should consider Celebrity, although for better weather, you may have more luck cruising in July.

 

Better yet: OCEANIA, please curtail all smoking in the Horizons Lounge, at least Regatta and Nautica.

[Oceans&Rivers]

Also, sounds like for those that hate crowds, we need to consider not only the size of the ship and the passenger/space ratio, but how busy the ports will be. Thanks to those who pointed out the busier times of the season for the ports.

 

Here's where you can find out which ships, how many, etc. will be in port with you. The schedule up now is for 2012, but you can bookmark the website and visit it later on for the 2013 schedule:

 

http://www.claalaska.com/

 

The above is the main page. To go directly to the 2012 schedules, organized by port of call, bookmark the following:

 

http://www.claalaska.com/schedules2012.html

[neepawa]

HopeEverlasting

 

Oceania rarely if ever drop their prices closer to the sailing date. If you want a specific cabin or category of cabin, book it now.

 

Cheers,

 

Don

[avalong]

I have booked my first cruise with Oceania after choosing not to take an ocean cruise for 5 years due to my disenchantment with what most lines have become. I have cruised extensively and am Elite with Celebrity.

 

We are headed to the Med and Ionian Sea next year and are going to once again try ocean cruising. I looked at an option on Reflection, the sister ship to Solstice in Aqua Class. I would only go Aqua Class as my last dining experiences on Celebrity in the main dining room were not only mediocre food wise but the service was not like it used it to be and I grew tired of misbehaving children running around as if the dining room was their personal play room.

 

Even though the price per day for an inside on the Riviera was comparable to Aqua Class on X, we chose Oceania. The lack of nickel and diming for things like specialty coffees and bottles of water; the lack of sales everywhere and pushing to buy things that we experienced more and more on X; the lack of kids; the much fewer number of passengers; the cuisine; the intimacy of their ships versus the monolithic size of Solstice were all reasons we did not move forward with X. It is really everything we grew not to enjoy about cruising and we are just not willing to go that route again.

 

We look for a sophisticated, adult atmosphere, great food and service, lack of lines and regimentation, lack of kids, lack of constant sales pressure, lack of nickel and diming and personal service in a cruise. We are looking forward to our first Oceania cruise and hope it is what we are anticipating and very far removed from main stream cruising.

 

Caviargal:

 

I would have sworn you were going to go with Azamara. What tipped it for Oceania?

[caviargal]

Caviargal:

 

I would have sworn you were going to go with Azamara. What tipped it for Oceania?

 

We were leaning towards Azamara but the price on the sailing we chose could not be beat. Azamara was more than twice as much and the amenities on the Riviera were very appealing. We could not see paying double for same dates and such a similar itinerary. While ACC has more inclusions, I booked a block of cabins on O and got good amenities included as well.

 

Also, the least expensive cabin on ACC was so much less inviting than the same category on Riviera.

 

We do prefer small ships so the Riviera is a stretch for us but I have always wanted to try O and this was too good to pass up!

[avalong]

We were leaning towards Azamara but the price on the sailing we chose could not be beat. Azamara was more than twice as much and the amenities on the Riviera were very appealing. We could not see paying double for same dates and such a similar itinerary. While ACC has more inclusions, I booked a block of cabins on O and got good amenities included as well.

 

Also, the least expensive cabin on ACC was so much less inviting than the same category on Riviera.

 

We do prefer small ships so the Riviera is a stretch for us but I have always wanted to try O and this was too good to pass up!

 

Ah. So at least I wasn't crazy in my assumption. :) Sounds like you made a great choice!

[aohkay]

Are officers allowed to smoke in Horizons, to anyone's knowledge?quote]

 

Yes, officers are allowed to smoke in both smoking areas.

 

BTW, when we were on Insignia, I didn't even realize smoking was permitted in Horizions until the end of the cruise (I didn't notice the smell of smoke). Perhaps with the good weather, all of the smokers were outdoors?

[HopeEverlasting]

Thank you all for your input, opinions, and advice. It really does help to hear from those who have cruised to Alaska, as well as from those who have traveled on X and Oceania.

 

My husband and I will be reading over your comments, as well as checking into info regarding the children's programs on O to Alaska this coming year. We will also be doing a bit more research on the ports. We will see if we can agree on a choice. :)

 

Thank you again for your advice.

 

-HopeEverlasting

[Oceans&Rivers]

 

Yes, officers are allowed to smoke in both smoking areas.

 

Don't they have their own Officer's Club in which they can smoke?