How does Oceania Rate?

[KeepCruizen]

I have recently came across Oceania and asked my TA what she thought she said she would not book without insurance and felt it was just a step above Princess Cruise line I like the Lux liners thought RSSC was just ok Crystal was great so if anyone who has been on other Lux liners can give me some feed back I would greatly appreciate it!

Thanks,

Denise

[FinelyCruising]

I wonder why the comment about insurance. I always take insurance, many others do too, but does your TA feel this line is unstable financially to be so first and foremost about it, if you will?

[Jane110]

I'd never go on ANY cruise without taking insurance. What makes your TA think that Oceania warrants insurance while other cruiselines don't? Booking a cruise and not taking insurance out it very risky IMO.

 

I've been on Oceania and on Princess and Oceania is certainly a step above Princess.

I have not been on Crystal or RSSC so can't compare.

 

Jane

[spindrift]

Well, as far as insurance goes--I don't quite understand your TA's remark, but that is between you and the TA.

 

I've been several times on Silver Seas, several times on Crystal, several times on Princess, and I LOVE Oceania.

 

Joe Watters, former CEO of Crystal and Frank Del Rio (who I must admit I have not had the privilege of knowing) have joined "brains," and have met us in the middle providing us with a very upscale line with amenities to be enjoyed by all, at least those of us who enjoy superb service at a reasonable rate without giving away the ship.

 

I have 3 more booked on her after our South American cruise. no, I am a "regular" traveler--not an agent, not paid by Oceania (wish I were) nor any other agency. I hope you will experience their superb customer service.

 

Okay, so I am finished on my soap box.

[mike35]

Keep Cruizin -- hey that's the longest sentence I've ever seen on a Critic Board:D

 

About a year and a half ago, when I first thought about booking an Oceania Cruise, my TA also suggested I take insurance, as the line was new and its financial viability was in question. Since then, however, the line has proven to be an absolute winner, and they are bringing a third ship (the Nautica) on board in a couple of months. Frank DelRio is a constant reviewer of comments on this board, which affirms his dedication to making his line "the one to beat".

 

We sailed the Insignia in April, and we absolutely loved it. As you can see from our sailing history below, we've been on RSSC, Crystal, Princess, etc. I would rate Oceania above RSSC (staff, cuisine, cruise length and ports, entertainment) and a notch below Crystal (especially in the entertainment and enrichment areas). We've never been on a cruise with friendlier fellow passengers; perhaps the "no formal nights" attitude contributes to this aura.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Mike

[frankpc]

We have to agree with Mike's comments with regards to Oceania's passengers. To take nothing away from the management, staff and crew - the passengers are quite an interesting bunch. The casual, open seating dining really makes these trips special.

 

Frank

[aaannnthony]

Denise, my wife and I have sailed Seabourn, Crystal, Radisson and Oceania. My comments are included in the "Luxury Cruise Group of Four...." thread.

[KeepCruizen]

Thanks everyone, I think the TA comment was due to the fact of the previous cruise line that owned the ships (what that has to do with Oceania who knows) and also being a new company I don't think she has ever been on this line that is why I am asking cruisers that have been on this line and some of the others I have been on.

 

Thanks all!

Denise

[mike35]

Actually, Denise, it had a lot to do with the initial trepidation of the viability of Oceania. The Oceania ships were previously part of Renaissance, which declared bankruptcy and left many passengers stranded in foreign ports. Frank Del Rio, previously a Renaissance "honcho" and Joe Watters, from Crystal, were able to rescue two of the ships from bankruptcy, refurbish them, and start the Oceania line. Renaissance wasn't particularly "TA friendly" to say the least, and that built in some TA hesitation. Bottom line - Oceania has turned out to be a great cruise line and appears to be financially viable.

 

Mike

[digby]

I wonder why the comment about insurance. I always take insurance, many others do too, but does your TA feel this line is unstable financially to be so first and foremost about it, if you will?

 

 

And ask her WHY she feels that way!

[KeepCruizen]

My TA did have to reimburse some of her customers after Reniassamce did not that could be the bad feelings as for the insurance I have been known to take insurance and also take the gamble which I now see was dumb.

 

Thanks,

Denise

[Liat]

We have taken 16 cruises and buy insurance from one of the independent insurers - NOT the cruise line. The reasons? (1) You can pick your amount. You do not have to add up air fare and cruise fare. In fact you can insure for less than the cruise cost and get what you really need insurance for - lost, stolen or delayed luggage; illness and medical transportation.

(2) You also will be able to cover losses on non-cruise line excursions [we do a lot of those] and trips before and after the cruise, since you pick the coverage dates at no extra cost. The cruise line insurance only covers their time span. (3) You will be certain that you are dealing with a company covered by US insurance laws.

Now - about Oceania. We loved our one cruise on Insignia and have booked a second. We have sailed on most lines except Crystal [but are booked on Serenity for November], Radisson and the super luxury Seaborne and SilverSeas ships. We like the size of Oceania, its lack of formality, the food and service, the low key but pleasant entertainment, the programs

and, at least on our Amazon cruise, the sophisticated level of our fellow cruisers.

We were not thrilled by their shore excursions, nor the level of communication with the home office, although we actually had no real problems in that regard. There is a moderately annoying tendency to "nickel and diming" connected with on board charges, but this is a growing trend on all cruise lines. We think the ships themselves are beautiful, and models of convenience and design. For comparison with other lines, Oceania and Celebrity are very close, with the smaller size of the Oceania craft, and the open rather than assigned dinner seating being the most obvious differences. You can't go wrong with either of these two cruise lines in our experience.

Phil & Edith

P.S. We have extensive reviews of all our cruises on: http:cruisereviews.com for

Celebrity's Infinity (2), Galaxy (2) Mercury

and Millennium; Insignia; Sun Princess, Regal Princess and Diamond Princess, HAL Veendam and Zaandam; RCCL Radiance of the Seas and Sun Princess.

[FinelyCruising]

Have been on Millenium, Galaxy and back in the day, Meridian in reverse order. Here's to hoping that Regatta will be far above my last Celebrity experience which was on Millenium, albeit four years ago now.

[KeepCruizen]

Lait, how do you rate the food on Oceania with RSSC? We went on our 1st RSSC last March and felt the food in the dining rm to be not very good but we loved everything else.

 

Thanks for feedback!

Denise

[aaannnthony]

Travel and Leisure magazine just rated Oceania third in the "large" ship category, behind Crystal and Radisson, probably should have been an easy second, but, somehow, Radisson has a strong, loyal following.

 

I'll bet Oceania finishes above Radisson in 2006!

[aaannnthony]

Yikes, my 666th post!

[drwong]

And ask her WHY she feels that way!

 

Last spring, Travel Guard struck Oceania from the cruises that it would insure, based on the past history of other smaller cruise lines (and probably smarting after covering Renaissance's default). But Oceania quickly cleared things up and it's been smooth sailing since then.

 

As a matter of fact, we're using Travel Guard on our upcoming cruise on the Insignia - they'll cover up to $200 of expenses if you suffer a trip delay (for any reason - weather, missed flight, etc.) of as short as 6 hours - in contrast to other carriers, who won't reimburse you until you've been delayed for a minimum of 12 hours, and some won't go into effect until there's been a total cessation of service.

 

If you go to http://www.tripinsurancestore.com, you can compare the coverages provided by various policies. They've narrowed down the companies to the five best, having done most of the research for you.

 

Just remember to buy your insurance with a couple of weeks after booking your cruise in order to be covered for pre-existing medical conditions and trip cancellations. Of course, you can buy the policy later, but the benefits may not be as generous.

[drwong]

Travel and Leisure magazine just rated Oceania third in the "large" ship category, behind Crystal and Radisson, probably should have been an easy second, but, somehow, Radisson has a strong, loyal following.

 

I'll bet Oceania finishes above Radisson in 2006!

 

I participated in that poll, but I wouldn't have placed Oceania into the "large ship" category, considering the significantly larger passenger capacities of the other ships. It's much nicer travelling with 684 passengers instead of twice or triple that number, especially when it comes to shore excursions, boarding/disembarking at each port, and getting to know your fellow passengers.

[KeepCruizen]

drwong, which of the Travel insurance co. do you like the best?

 

Denise

[Fblack]

My TA also recently had a negative comment on their financial condition. I have been on 28 cruises on most of the cruise lines. I never went on Ren because of their policies and shakey financial condition. My sister in law barely survived the Ren fiasco. Yes you can buy insurance. But try getting home from Malta or Turkey if the cruise line shuts down. It's the extra aggrivation that I am trying to avoid. Often if the officers of a company file for bankruptcy once they will not hesitate to file again. They have nothing to lose. I intend to check up on them further before I would book. If they are a public company, they must file reports.

[Guest Jancruz]

None of the officers of Oceania were officers of Ren when they filed bankruptcy and Oceania is a privately held company with no financial problems..I am sorry to say your agent is not aware of what is going on in the industry if she warned you about one of the most popular cruise lines in the industry and one that is making a lot of money!!

Jan:)

*****

[meow!]

We all understand the agony of a cruise suddenly terminated at an inconvenient location when a cruise line files for bankruptcy. Having said that, we should also know that cruise line owners are there to make money, not to persistently lose it. So, the probability of termination is determined by whether the company is making or losing (a lot of) money.

 

Oceania got its ships (at least the first two, the Regatta and Insignia) at rock bottom auction prices (even if they were just leases, as long as it still lasts for a good while to come) and minimal interest rate (at the bottom of the world financial cycle). So the capital cost is low. What it needs is for revenue to reasonably exceed costs (salaries, food, fuel, payments, etc.)

 

As I have no information other than what is readily available on the web, so I read what I can, and my general impression is that the average cabin occupancy rate seems to be high (those posting on this board seem to report close to full ships), and there appears to be few "under the table" discounts (most customers pay within 5-10% of the "true published rates" -- after deciphering for the nominal "fake discounts" such as two-for-one and free air, etc.) That being the case (unlike the former Renaissance which had numerous cut-throat internet "bidding sales" etc.), the present Oceania should (at least apparently) be making money (and their ability to increase fares and still fill their ships also seem to show their market strength). With the ever increasing oil prices, I will not be surprised if some time down the road, they may tag on some fuel surcharge, as some other cruise lines (and many airlines) are already doing.

 

No one knows for certain, and world situations can change very quickly, particularly if there are tragedies. All one can say is that bankruptcy for Oceania looks unlikely for the foreseeable future.

[drwong]

drwong, which of the Travel insurance co. do you like the best?

 

Denise

 

As mentioned above, Travel Guard seemed to fit most our needs, covering the situations we were most likely to encounter (e.g., travel delays and missing luggage). We haven't needed emergency medical treatment yet, nor an unexpected evacuation. We've also purchased AccessAmerica, TravelInsure, and CSA for other cruises, and haven't had to use the policies once, knock on wood.

[Fblack]

Actually, the fact that they are a privately held corporation in Florida should make you more concerned. They do not have to report earnings numbers or file regulatory statements like a public company. Just because they are full and reservations look good, does not mean they are making money and can remain solvent. Just look at Delta Airlines. I have noticed in the past, once companies start offering special deals and give-aways, like free air, two for one, hotel stays, an underlying problem may exist. Be very wary if they start promoting more hotel days before or after the cruise and cut down on the actual length of the cruise. And get insurance from an outside company.

[meow!]

They started offering "two-for-ones" and "free air" from the very beginning, these are what I call "nominal fake discounts". (And as per a recent poll in this column, half or more passengers used their included air, so this seems to have been an effective enticing feature all along.) When you look beyond these sales pitch facade, the fact is their actual nett fares have increased substantially in the last year and a half. (They also have "fine splitted" the categories to increase, not decrease fares, using it more or less as "yield management" mechanism.) On the whole, the per person fare for the typical two week voyage has increased by some $1,000. So there is reason to suggest that they are making money.