Impressions of 1st Oceania Riviera cruise: 12/12/13 to 12/22/13

[My & Mau]

Before I begin, I wanted to share that my background in cruising is somewhat eclectic. Our family of 11 has been on a 50th anniversary Carnival cruise in 2011, which was outstanding; took a HAL cruise to Alaska; we have sailed the Mediterranean on a French yacht, a superb voyage; been on a Galapagos expedition (quite rigorous), and took several European river cruises, which albeit are different than a larger ship, they were nonetheless a charming and worthwhile way to see the world. So having shared the above, let me begin:

 

Embarkation:

 

A snap for us, and a true pleasure, as we live in Florida. I thought that there were more than adequate staff to handle the flow, and we found ourselves rather quickly onboard the beautiful Riviera.

 

General Impression:

 

1) Aesthetically, hands down the most beautiful ship we ever cruised on. The art work captured our attention, along with the serene atmosphere, which was plush yet understated (not an easy combination).

2) What we found to be the ship's very best asset however, was its staff, who willingly shared the stories of their homelands...Oceania should take pride in the worldly background of its employees...they were almost 100% a delight to talk to and to get to know!

3) What impressed us the most, even more than 1 & 2 above...and we were already impressed, was the feedback we received about our mid-cruise evaluations, (we come from a medical and engineering background and "fine-tuning" is a part of our professional backgrounds). We believed that the feedback we gave was important given we observed that the hand sanitizers weren't being utilized by many of the passengers:(. This is what I saw: The black containers were placed on black or dark backgrounds and very difficult to be seen by many who entered the eating areas. I believe that this was more an issue of the lack of contrast on the walls, and the overall need for reinforcement of sanitary standards than anything else. After writing our comments, we received a knock at our cabin door, and it was the assistant to the General Manager who expressed her appreciation of the comments - we shared our concerns, and we truly felt like we were heard...and this was not at the end of the voyage, but midway!!! Truly, our noticing the issue probably comes from our recent trip to France on Uniworld, where you couldn't get anywhere near the dining area unless you sanitized your hands;). All in all, we felt like we were heard, and in truth the newsletters in the days that followed had content in them about the need for sanitizing. The ability of an organization to self-correct and receive feedback is the hallmark of its ability to adapt and change. I was over-the-top impressed!!!

 

Stateroom:

 

We stayed on the concierge level, 9th floor, and found the room to be well cared for, and adequate in size. The access to the spa was a great perk for us, and the thalassotherapy was a delight. We also found the lounge to be somewhat of a gathering place, and the concierge herself to be very helpful and caring.

 

Dining:

 

We were very pleased, I who thrives on a mostly plant-based diet, and my husband who has a marvelous appetite for just about everything, were not disappointed. We tried all the venues, and found that the concept of working in teams was a great way to feel attended to. Red Ginger - great sea bass, soup, and unique menu; Jacques - wonderful atmosphere, felt like we were back in Paris; Polo - a welcome getaway with dark paneling and more than generous offerings; and Toscana - which unbelievingly kept serving my husband first throughout the meal...hmmm??? Waves - worked very well, good job on taking orders, getting them straight, and serving at tables GDR - we found that this was a great place to meet with couples who we had been fortunate enough to meet and befriend on the voyage, nice and relaxed service with a lovely atmosphere; and of course the Terrace Grill - salads always in abundance, with cheese choices, and baskets of crusty breads, nice breakfast options, and a grill for chops and lobster. Vegetable choices were plentiful, and I really appreciated that.

 

Ports:

 

We enjoyed them all, the Caribbean has a beauty of its own - loved the contrast of English, French, and Spanish speaking countries. Favorite trip was visiting the homes of artists in St. Martin...very unique:).

 

Disembarkation:

 

This is an area that needs Oceania's attention, and one that perhaps may not be getting any, due to its happening "after" the voyage is over. We were "Grey 6," set for approximately 8:30 AM, by 8:00 AM, passengers were lining the steps between floors 5 & 6, and there was a general sense of "Disembarkation Distress." Surely there is a way to have a more orderly process, and have an easier go of it. There were many passengers who came on board with assistive devices; it certainly must have been uncomfortable for them. One thought that comes to mind is that there needed to be more announcements to put everyone at ease and to know what to expect. I have spoken to several others post cruise who also had the same experience. There is a more gentle and well thought out way to disembark;).

 

Future Planning:

 

We are in the early stages of planning for another cruise, and yes, it is with Oceania - this time with the soon to be refurbished Regatta. Our decision typically is based on itinerary, and there is just the perfect trip next November that is speaking to us;).

 

All the best, and Happy New Year to all.

[DavidTheWonderer]

Myra's excellent post more-or-less matched my experience on Riviera's recent crossing, about which I posted a few weeks ago

 

Regarding the disembarkation for our cruise, they had some ropes up to direct the passenger flow. At one point some fools started crawling under the ropes at the bottom of the stairs , trying to come up the stairs and then under the rope at the top of the stairs to jump the line. Pandemonium ensued for 10 minutes or so until the staff gently but effectively got things back under control. By the time we were called, all was smooth as silk: maybe a dozen people in line which moved quickly. The staff should get a particular prize for their politeness in dealing with the fools. I would have given them a super-express disembarkation: over the side onto the concrete of the pier.

Edited December 29, 2013 by DavidTheWonderer

[LHT28]

Disembarkation:

 

This is an area that needs Oceania's attention, and one that perhaps may not be getting any, due to its happening "after" the voyage is over. We were "Grey 6," set for approximately 8:30 AM, by 8:00 AM, passengers were lining the steps between floors 5 & 6, and there was a general sense of "Disembarkation Distress." Surely there is a way to have a more orderly process, and have an easier go of it.

 

Just my observations

I would agree the disembarkation is a mess

Not the system but the failure of people not reading or understanding the process

We waited on the pool deck until we were called

We had many people blocking the elevator exits as well as the way to the exit to deck..when asked if they were in line to disembark they said no they were waiting to be called ..

Why not wait out of the fray then:eek:

 

As for the sanitizers we found most people did use them on our cruises but

as the old saying goes "you can lead a horse to water " ...

Oceania does try to treat it's passengers like adults ..clearly some have not made adulthood yet or did not pack their common sense

 

I did like the sanitizers on our river cruise ..you put your hands in the box & they are sprayed

 

Hope your next cruise will not be so problematic

 

Lyn

Edited December 29, 2013 by LHT28

[CintiPam]

Hi, Myra, thanks for posting your comments; I really appreciate your taking the time to post your thoughts on your first Oceania experience.

 

We are embarking in two weeks on our first Riviera cruise, which also will be our very first Caribbean cruise, so I am pleased to hear you had a good experience.

 

I do not understand the reason passengers line up to disembark. We always are happy to sleep as late as possible, enjoy breakfast and then disembark from the pool deck area at the appropriate time; certainly never lining up for the privilege!:confused:

 

Happy New Year to all the Oceania forum readers!

Edited December 30, 2013 by CintiPam

[Mura]

We had a problem leaving MARINA on December 8th in Rio. When we came out to the lobby at about 8:30 it was packed. As a result we were very late leaving the ship. Now, part of the problem was that -- and this is what I was told but I don't know how accurate the information was -- MARINA was at the last berth. We were about half a mile from the terminal and depended on small vans to take us to the terminal. So they were loading 8 people into a van, with luggage, which took time. And apparently they were loading one van at a time, rather than three at a time, which they could have done.

 

SOME said that the reason this happened was because it was cheaper to dock where we were for an overnight stay. Regent's Seven Seas Navigator was docked right AT the terminal and clearly didn't have this problem.

 

Was Oceania being cheap? Some said so. I have no idea.

 

Whatever, it took an inordinately long time to leave the ship.

 

However, a future hint ... while we were waiting for the line to clear I saw a lady come in, signal her husband and lead him away. I suspected she had discovered that it was possible to leave the ship from Deck 4. And I was right, because two members of our group did just that and were with our guide for about an hour before the rest of our group managed to leave the ship.

 

SO, if you come to Deck 5 and find a logjam ... try going down to the crew exit on Deck 4.

 

We've never had such a problem on the "R" ships, no doubt because they are so much smaller.

 

By the way, I was very impressed to see the General Manager of MARINA out there helping to load luggage into the vans.

 

Mura

[globevest]

Thank you for your thoughtful and well presented review. Enjoy your next Oceania cruise.

[DavidTheWonderer]

We had many people blocking the elevator exits as well as the way to the exit to deck..when asked if they were in line to disembark they said no they were waiting to be called ..

Why not wait out of the fray then:eek:

 

Lyn

 

When we are stressed, we act in stupid ways. Disembarkation is stressful for some, because WHAT IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG?

 

The same phenomenon exists in airports, where people line up at the gate for amazingly long periods of times and block access to the plane. This is despite the fact that the plane will not be leaving any earlier or later no matter how long they stand there. Again it is stress that causes the irrational behaviour.

 

Sadly, as we age the phenomenon of middle-aged angst can lead us to think of lots more THINGS THAT CAN GO WRONG, which in turn can lead us to act ever-more stupidly.

[LHT28]

When we are stressed, we act in stupid ways. Disembarkation is stressful for some, because WHAT IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG?

 

 

Travelling is stressful for some I agree

But some of these people were not middle aged IMO ...I know I am but some were a lot younger ;)

 

I am already stressing about flying out of YYZ on the 12th but I am not about to go line up now :D

 

It is more the herd mentality

like when they call for those in Business class or those that need assistance to board your flight.. the whole of the gate area see a line & they have to get in it :eek:

we usually are one the the last to board ..even though we are in BUS class because cannot stand the chaos on the plane ..we lose out out on the overheard storage near us :(

but by then most people are settled in their seats

[Paulchili]

The same phenomenon exists in airports, where people line up at the gate for amazingly long periods of times and block access to the plane. This is despite the fact that the plane will not be leaving any earlier or later no matter how long they stand there. Again it is stress that causes the irrational behaviour.

 

I think part of this has to do with airlines charging for luggage and more and more people do not check their bags because of this. Thus getting on early in order to have overhead space for your bags becomes a priority - what a mess!

[LHT28]

I think part of this has to do with airlines charging for luggage and more and more people do not check their bags because of this. Thus getting on early in order to have overhead space for your bags becomes a priority - what a mess!

 

Another one of my pet peeves :eek:

 

Just add the darn $25 into the ticket price..1st bag free charge for others;)