Athens to Barcelona, Aug 3 Insignia Review

[macbest]

I wanted to provide an overview of our experience on our first Oceania cruise on the Insignia. We went as a group of 11 people (three families), all which have experienced cruising many times before. In the past, our continued favorite has been Radisson but since they sold their ship for the Med this past year, we decided to try Oceania. Here are my thoughts and impressions (and comparisons in some cases to other lines). Note that I’m brutally honest, so if you wanted a “everything is perfect” review, then you should skip mine. My intent always in providing feedback on this board (as well as to Oceania directly on board) is to provide an honest picture of the good and the bad so the line can improve and that future passengers are made aware of potential trouble spots. So please don’t misconstrue my negative comments in the wrong way.

 

Overall, I would sail Oceania again, but only if Radisson was not going to the same places that I wanted to go. Oceania has a great price point and great itineraries, and they have figured out that people in general do not want to fly from the US to Europe for a 7 day cruise given the jet lag recoup, etc. A 10 or 11 or 12 day cruise is perfect for that. When you start getting into 14 days, these become much more limiting to anyone who is still working as getting that amount of time off is sometimes difficult. Case in point, the cruise before the one we were on, a friend of mine sailed and it was 14 days. At 48, she was the youngest person on the ship. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but just a point to be made.

 

Ship

The Insignia is a beautiful ship. They really have done a fine job in decorating. The library is very inviting as well as many of the public rooms. Our only comment here was that all the rooms have low ceilings so I felt a little claustrophobic. This includes the main show theater and atrium. Even other small ships I have been on have more of a tiered show theater and a bigger atrium that makes the ship feel larger than it is. Not a big point, but an observation.

 

There is a laundry on board that uses tokens that cost 1.50 each and are purchased at the reception desk. 6 washers and dryers, and the ship’s special soap is added at the push of a button (they prefer you use there soap vs. your own). Bring dryer sheets. On board dry cleaning was efficient and well done, but note that standard service is pick-up before 9am and return the next day after 5pm. If you want it the same day, there is a 50% surcharge.

 

On at sea days, they put a note in the daily newsletter that you are not allowed to save chairs by the pool. Problem is they don’t enforce it. I got up at 7:45 at our at sea day and every chair had a book on it. It was like someone raided the library that morning and put out books on each lounge. At that time, 6 people were at the pool, and there was literally not one chaise lounge to be had. When I asked the cruise director, he said he would make an announcement, but never did. When we asked some of the staff working the area (cleaning up, etc.) they said they would never touch someone else’s stuff even though they were told they should. Clearly this area is a breakdown in communication on policy.

 

Food and Food Service

We found the Polo grill to be some of the best food we have had at sea on any line. The service was exceptional here and the variety and quality was excellent. On the other hand, we found the Toscana grill to be a disappointment. The food was mediocre (stringy lobster) and the service was not as good (rushed, argumentative, everything asked for seemed like a big deal). We ate at both alternative restaurants twice with identical results.

 

The main dining room was a bit better in the food area than Toscana, but the service was in general, not as good. This comment on service requires further explanation. I spent two sessions with the Maitre d’ letting him know of the issues encountered and I found him to be very appreciative of the feedback and I did see some improvement over the course of the cruise. But still, more work needed to be done. The service can best be described as argumentative vs. accommodative. Here are some examples. Oceania apparently has a policy (no one has mentioned this on the board!) that they don’t take special requests. Supposedly, Oceania has done studies that show that taking special requests for meals, a different sauce than what is offered (i.e., béarnaise sauce with a steak that isn’t being offered in the main dining room that night) ends up taking away from other’s dining experiences. This is very different than what I have experienced on other lines like Radisson. As such, and not knowing of their unwritten “policy”, whenever you ask for something “different” there is a lot of under the breadth comments that are made by the waiter about being able to “convince the chef” that they would do this for you. Once I asked for extra sauce with my main course that was already included, explaining that I really like sauces. The response from the waiter was, “I heard you the first time”! What a shock this was (and ironically, she did not provide me with extra sauce despite her outburst!). I of course brought this to the attention of the Maitre d’.

 

Another example was at the Tapas on the Terrace (which, don’t be fooled, sounded really cool like a little Tapas Bar in Spain, but was actually just the breakfast and lunch buffet turned into a dinner buffet). We ate here one night (as we couldn’t get into Polo or Toscana and the selections on the main dining room were very poor for us) and were disappointed. The example of the poor service was when I was walking out of the buffet and was asked to move over as a waiter was carrying some dishes back to be cleaned. On Radisson and every other line, the passenger is king and everyone always steps aside for you, with a smile and a hello.

 

More polish is needed by the wait staff in general. In talking with other passengers, the consensus was similar. Food orders were often called out (Who is it that gets the soup? Who gets the salad?) and on occasion served from the wrong side. An overall awakening to the staff of being accommodative vs. argumentative was my recommendation. My experience on other lines like Radisson is that they can’t do enough for you and it really shows. Granted, if you are running a cruise line, you can’t please everyone and have 600 different meals prepared. It is how the staff is trained to answer and make you feel like you are being treated individually and with respect that I still feel is most important. Thankfully, the Maitre d’ was willing to listen and was very appreciative of comments. Three times later on the cruise he asked to speak to me and asked if things were improving. I explained that I was happy to hear that Oceania had won some recent award (they announce it on the ship) for being the third best cruise line (behind Crystal and Radisson) and that I wanted them to do well and continue to improve so that as a passenger, so there would be more options to us frequent cruisers that go for the upper end of the market.

 

Wine

The wine onboard was a surprise. There were quite a few selections that were very reasonably priced and a nice range of different varietals. The wine staff was excellent. Only comments were the high corkage fee which has been discussed before and that when they were out of a wine, they did not mark the list as such. The first day, the first two wines I had ordered, they were both out of. This is a simple fix: put red stickers over the wines you are out of and when you replenish, peel the stickers off. There is nothing worse than spending the time to figure out a nice wine, only to find they are out of it. There were about 4-6 wines that they were out of for half the cruise prior to replenishing their stock. The wine tasting class was excellent. I would have liked a second class with more upscale wines (with an appropriate higher price) but since we had only one at sea day, it was difficult for them to do.

 

Entertainment

Frankly, we didn’t experience much of the entertainment provided as the port intensive schedule just doesn’t allow for enough energy after dinner to see a show. I will say that the entertainment in the Martini lounge was very good and the string quartet was very enjoyable. The latter often filled the small atrium with beautiful music regardless what floor you were on. They had several singers from the main troupe that sang in the Martini lounge and again, I thought they were very good. You can enjoy the music while in the casino due its proximity with the Martini lounge.

 

Activities

It has been stated that there isn’t much of these on Oceania and I would agree. One activity that they did do that for us was a lot of fun was the Team Trivia event. Since we were a larger group, this was a fun way for us to start our evening. The cruise director, Leslie, had the Martini lounge always packed for this event. 20 questions and then the answers but you got to do these as a group. It always started at 4:45 so if you were on an excursion, you had a chance to get back and participate. Nice touch.

 

The casino was very friendly and not very “tight”. Many people made money but this is always a subjective thing. I found the dealers very nice and helpful.

 

I was disappointed with one of the tour desk ladies that was handing out tender tickets as she became very rude (again, argumentative vs. accommodative) and raised the issue with adequate response.

 

In general, I found the tours on Oceania, while expensive, to be well arranged and very well done. We mixed up our trip with some Oceania excursions and some private tours. While the private tours always take more time to set up, with any size group beyond 4, you are usually much better off going private.

 

Reception and Concierge

The reception staff (Paula in particular) was the best I have experienced at sea. When ever a problem arose and you let them know, they really went out of their way to accommodate you. For example, we had some problems with our a/c in our stateroom on the first day. It took several calls to various departments to correct. Once I called the reception desk, they were all over it. I received periodic calls the next several days, or while I was walking by the reception desk or calling with another question, they would always ask, “and how is your a/c working?” Very, very impressive.

 

Smoking

One of the best things about Oceania is there smoking policy. This was a real treat to be able to sit on our balcony and not be smoked out by someone on a neighboring balcony and smoking. Similarly and unlike Radisson, only a small portion of the Horizon lounge and a small area by the pool (vs. half these areas on a typical Radisson cruise) were for smokers. As such, we non smokers were not bombarded by smoke. Given how much Europeans often smoke when we were on land, Oceania provided a welcome retreat and I really appreciated it.

 

Staterooms and Service

Our service here was as good as any at sea. We were very pleased as was all 11 of us traveling. So this was clearly consistent across the board. Your maid carries a pager so when you call, they are paged and they immediately respond. This was a great system that other cruise lines should consider. Response times are only minutes vs longer. The rooms are comfortable and the bed and linens, as others have reported, are some of the best we have had at sea.

 

There is a very distinct level of service difference on Oceania: Suites and Concierge level, and everyone else. In hind sight, we would have been better off paying the extra 400 dollars per couple to move from a balcony on deck 6 to a concierge level on deck 7 or above. The extra benefits include early boarding (which then allows you to book spa and alternative restaurant reservations before everyone else), two bookings in each of the alternative restaurants (instead of just one), and a refrigerator (with the high price for bottled water and sodas on board, brining your own and keeping them cold is a real plus). There are other perks too like a hand-held hair-dryer (the one provided in the bathroom are useless for anyone with any kind of hair) but we were able to request.

 

Sorry for the lengthy review. If there are other areas you want to know about, please don’t hesitate to ask.

[HappyMe_]

Thank you MacBest for taking the time to post your review.

 

I enjoyed reading it all and look forward to our cruise in 2006 on the Insignia.

[shoshona2]

Dear Macbest,

 

It was most interesting reading your review of your cruise, which was the one after our Black Sea Cruise which ended in Athens on August 3rd. Just wanted you to know that our cruise WAS a 12 day cruise not 14 and that your friend at 48 wasn't the youngest aboard. There were cruisers aboard from the age of six to at least late 80's or early 90's. Since this cruise has only been done once a year (in 2006 -- two), this was a very well-traveled group of people. A lot of people aboard had relatives that came from the Ukraine and since Oceania was going there, they booked this cruise. I agree that there were more retired people aboard than I have come across in all my 20 cruises. My husband and I are also still working. We traveled with Oceania in 2003 and thought that many changes were made since then. Hopefully, management will read your comments and you will book Oceania again to observe any changes, also.

 

Sheila

[shmabbies]

Macbest, Thanks for a great review with some observations that I totally concur with. There are two that really ring true with me.

 

First, that there is an "argumentative vs. accomodative" attitude prevalent. I probably would not go so far as to call it argumentative, but it's not "we are here to make your cruise the best possible experience ever even if means we have to go out of our way" attitude I've gotten on other cruise lines. And, in my case, I mean other cruise lines like Princess, not the so-called high end lines, because we are on the younger end of passenger age tendencies & for us the expense of a cruise is a big deal that is scrimped & saved for. I can only compare the attitude one sometimes encounters with what one gets from a teenager, the shoulder shrug and the "all right" in the tone of voice that indicates they'd really rather NOT being doing this!

 

And second, I totally concur with the "suites and everyone else" mentality that seems to prevail, which may actually tie in with the first point, because we stayed in an outside non-balcony cabin on our cruise, though we were traveling with another couple in a vista suite. While I would expect, and totally have no problem with, different levels of amenities with a vista suite (the butler, the full box of candy, things like that), there still to me is a basic level of service & accomodation that should be smothered on ALL passengers from the least to most expensive cabins, and I did not find this to be true.

 

If it were not for the fact that Oceania features innovative itineraries that we can't get anywhere else in anything approaching our price range, I would probably not sail with them again, because I don't get the level of welcome & appreciation for my patronage that I get elsewhere. However, we are sailing again in a few weeks, the first time back on Oceania since 2003, so I'll be interested to see if anything has changed (except we are now in a balcony cabin so maybe we'll garner a little more respect, haha). I would say based on your review that the positives are still positive but the negatives haven't improved much. We're approaching it with an open mind! Thanks again for an impartial assessment. :D

[muddsmom]

Well, as a newcomer to this cruise line and only having sailed twice before, this has given me something to think about. I may rethink this cruise. We have always done land travel in Europe and picked Oceania because it seemed so upscale without the dreaded formal nights and forced seating at dinner. Hmmm, I glad you wrote such a frank review. This is a lot of money to spend on a so-so situation.

[jfb128]

I appreciated the time it took you to write your review of your recent cruise aboard Insignia. You and your party were on the cruise following ours.

 

However, I am really having trouble with some of the comments you made about the food and the wait staff aboard the Insignia. Your experience was totally different than ours. I at times asked for special requests in the Grand Dining Room and was always allowed to do so without any problem. There was never an argumentative side to our waiters. The wait staff also was not so cavalier as to ask who had the salad or the soup. They had written down the items ordered and delivered them appropriately. Was it flawless -no. But then I have eaten in Le Cirque in NY and had them give me someone's else's entree and recently had a top notch restaurant here in Los Angeles (Cafe Pinot) reverse my order with my wife's. Instead of complaining about it we just quietly said the reverse was true and they immediately fixed it.

 

We sailed with Oceania on their second cruise in 2003 and have been on cruises in 2004 and 2005. We will be aboard our fifth cruise soon and have a sixth scheduled aboard Nautica in 2006. We love the open seating and lack of formal nights. The improvements that have been made in the service and the product delivered are significant.

 

To:Muddsmom this is not a so so line and the money we have spent has been more than worth it. And if I read Macbest review there are many positives in that review. Don't focus on the wait staff review since that experience is far different than many others.

[digby]

We spent 17 days on the Insignia last winter and had a much different experience as far as dining in the Main Dining Room. Our 'special' requests were never questioned, and I can remember no mistakes in the service. I thought the food generally was the best we have had on any cruise. We have booked two more Oceania cruises - one in Asia and one in Europe.

[brian_uk]

I too am having difficulty in understanding some of the problems out forward in an otherwise excellent review.

What height should a ceiling be................they certainly were not low, we were on June 12-26th Insignia and doubt that the ship has shrunk in the heat. The ceiling heights were normal and I think the review is somewhat pernickerty on this point.

 

As for complaining that the wrong meal was served, that happens everywhere and its a simple matter to switch..............such a small point that it really is not worth mentioning.

 

I could go on.....but at the end of the day the real question is.....would you go on Oceania again........and YES we certainly would.

 

Maybe Radisson and Crystal are better but we do NOT want to wear Tux etc and we love the freedom to eat when and where we want which is a HUGE plus pont.

 

The Waiters and all the staff can have bad days too and after serving 680 people constantly day in and day out I guess they can occasionally be argumentative, but hey they are people too with real feelings and not automatons.................we found no problems and occasionally ignored small lapses.....we were on holiday and we enjoyed it tremendously.

 

Brian

[HotlantaCruiser]

While I appreciate when anyone takes the time to do a review, I have to discount this one heavily.

 

Asking a cruise line dining room for some other type of prepared sauce is a bit off the chart, if you ask me.

 

Additional sauce that is being served with the entree, fine, asking for (and expecting) a (non-luxury) cruise line dining room to whip up a different sauce, please,

[macbest]

Please? First off, how is it that you consider Oceania to be not an upscale cruise line? Being the 3rd highest rated, I'd say they are upscale. How is it that asking for extra sauce for what they are serving already on the dish is asking too much? How is it that asking for a bearnaise sauce (which Oceania claims is "always avaiable") on their own menu is out of the ordinary? Hotlanta cruiser does not speak from experience on Oceania.

 

My point of my review is to provide information both positive and constructive to those that would like to hear. Half empty, half full. Giving an honest, unbaised observation of an experience is what is most important in my mind and what I have come to expect from this board. If you want to hear only positive feedback, go read the brochure.

 

What is the bottom line in my review? I would sail Oceania again. What more can I say. I hate it when nit pickers want to only hear good news and nothing more. Look at the overall review and balance it accordingly.

[HotlantaCruiser]

Simmer down there.

 

I acknowledged that asking for more of a sauce that was being served that night was fine. I have no problems with that.

 

I do consider Ocenia upscale, but below Radisson, which you referred to in your original post. Oceania is considered upscale, but not in the "luxury" class as RSSC, Silversea, and Seabourne. As such it is priced accordingly. Also, reviews of Oceania from people with experience on those lines, often fail to put the review in context of the product offered and the price point offered.

 

Your original review did not indicate that "Bernaise sauce is always available" is printed on the menu. That puts the situation in context, and if as you state, should have been a simple request.

 

No one is asking for only good reviews.

[sterling9]

Thank you so much for that great review. We are traveling on your exact itinerary (except in reverse) in November and your comments were very insightful. It is helpful to hear the good and the bad, and anticipate. I have someone in my party who is always asking for changes to the menu, and whether or not she can have a little of each entree, etc. She is always accomodated very well on other cruiselines, but it is good to know so that we can avoid starting off on a bad note.....I may have to tell her to just be a little less complicated when she orders!

 

I have two questions. Could you elaborate on the shore excursions. We've got a group of 8 and want to book some private excursions....could you share some info about any private groups you used? If you don't want to post feel free to email me at lsa123@yahoo.com.

 

Also, how did disembarkation go? Because you weren't in concierge or suite class did you find yourself waiting for a long time?

 

Thanks again for sharing your thoughts.

[macbest]

Sterling9:

 

Disembarkation was a breeze. We got up and went to breakfast in the main dining room at 8:15 which stops serving at 8:30. We finished around 9:10 and most everyone was off the ship at this point. We purposely took our time as we knew we had two days in Barcelona and there was no big rush to get off. Given the small number of people aboard this type of ship, they were very efficient.

 

As for shore excursions, here is what we did:

 

Mykonos: we did on our own. Several of those traveling with us took a day boat to Delos from the shore (vs. through the cruise line). They said Delos was one of the most interesting excursions of the trip.

 

Santorini: went with santorini tours (http://www.santorinidaytours.com) which we thought was fantastic. Everything others have said on the Europe board on this company was true. Let me know if you would like more details.

 

Katakolon: We walked around in town, then hired a taxi to Mercury winery the same one that ship charges $79pp for. The winery is only 15 minutes from the port and the cab cost us $30 and stayed with us. Real treat.

 

Rome: we had been there before, but we decided to go into town via train. Very easy to get to and figure out. Took a taxi to our favorite restaurant and back to the ship. Total transportation cost was 60 euros for 4 people.

 

Florence: We hired a private driver for 7 of us, the same one that we used two years ago. He is incredible! Since we had done Florence two years ago, we went outlet shopping and then to Montregionni, a 13th century castle where we had lunch; Then to two wineries for personal winetasting and tours. Best part was we just told our driver what we were thinking and he did all of the arranging and monitoring of time. His name is Maurizio at http://www.mauriziobellini.com. Few time is someone so good that you end up using him again. We were very impressed both times. He speaks great english and is very knowledgeable.

 

Portofino: we just walked around and took the city bus to Santa Margarita and walked around there. Very easy to do and you can cover it all easily.

 

Monte Carlo: took the Oceania excursion to Nice, Eze and Monte Carlo. It was much better than we expected, but alas, expensive. I would highly recommend this trip.

 

Marseille: again took the Oceania excursion to Avignon to the palace of the popes (very interesting and a fun town to check out), Les Baux (gorgeous hilltop town). Would again recommend.

 

Hope that give you an idea. Let me know if you have other questions.

[HappyMe_]

Hi MacBest,

 

When in Barcelona, did you do any tours? We are thinking of the monastery tour in Monsteraat. Planning on arriving Barcelona day before cruise, but since cruise is not leaving til 8pm, we would try to do this tour early in am.

 

Also, I saw where you mentioned having been to Rome before. Have you stayed in hotel there? Any recommendations? I have read a great deal here and Europe board, but many I have investigated, are rather expensive. I saw where Steve said, staying in the Piazza Navona area is good idea and am wondering if you or anyone else has some suggestions. Hoping for price range of $200 US to 250. Thank you

[muddsmom]

I know you weren't addressing me, but we stay in Rome twice a year and I can recommend a wonderful hotel near Piazza Navona. It's actually on the square where the wonderful Pantheon sits, which is my favorite ancient building in Rome, but Piazza Navona is nearby. Many of the rooms across the front of the hotel have spectacular views of the Pantheon. The hotel is the Albergo Del Senato and many regular's from the Rome Travel Boards stay there, including myself. www.albergodelsenato.it.

 

Sharon

[HappyMe_]

Hi Sharon, thank you for your reply. All suggestions welcome.:)

 

I have looked at that hotel, but I am afraid it is far too expensive for us and the other couple who are travelling with us. I just loved it too, from the website, but from my calculations it was around $450 per night. While only one night is needed, not sure that place would fly with the rest. Now if you know of a place where I can get a better price there, I am all ears, or eyes LOL. Price I was quoted was direct from their web.

[macbest]

As for tours of Barcelona, we ended up doing the Bus Tourista, which is a hop on hop off tour bus. The one day price is 17 euors and two days is only 21 euros. We found this a great way to see the city in two days (which is really about enough). As I posted on the Europe CC board, be extra careful with everything in Barcelona. Many pick pocketers (some very agressive with driving up on a sidewalk on scooter to steal a woman's purse -- right in front of us). Never like to scare anyone, but this was a huge wake up call to us. Be aware and hide everything.

 

While in Rome, we rented an apartment for the three days we were there. It was a block or two from the Piazza Navona and even though it was very cheap, I would recommend staying in a hotel that has a/c. We nearly died from the heat while there. Also, since we couldn't close our windows, you hear all of the outside noise which gets very loud at night when everyone starts coming out!

[DREUX]

Hello Wayne,

 

First of all, thank you for your interesting and lengthy review. Why have you not posted it in the REVIEWS section of the cruisecritic board where many other will have a chance to read it long after this thread is forgotten? I have booked my first Oceania cruise for this November and was looking quite forward to it until I read your review but I have decided to take your review with a grain of salt. I am although somewhat perplexed; by your signature I notice that the majority of your cruises have been on the budget to middle of the road(at best) mass market cruise lines: Dolphin, Carnival, NCL, RCCL. I wonder where what appears to be a somewhat demanding and might I say arrogant nature and sense of entitlement comes from? With this said I can't understand why you would cruise such middle of road cruiselines, certainly they were not able to copmpletely please somone of your stature. And I also notice that you toured Barcelona on the dreaded "Tourist Bus". with all the "rifraf" in Barcelona, crime and pick pockets et al., I am surprised you did not hire a private limosine, certainly this would have sheltered you from said rifraf.

 

If the dining rooms on Radisson are full of people requesting every imaginable thing NOT ON THE MENU, I am surprised anyone gets a decent meal. If this sense of entitlement is what is bred on Radisson, I don't think I will be sailng with them any time soon. Having been on 25+ cruises on several cruiselines I find I am partial to Celebrity & Cunard but have decided to try Oceania's product. I believe that from what I have read of others' experiences onboard the Oceania ships I will be able to find items on their menus that will be satisfactory without having to have multipe "sessions" with the maitre'd about the food and service. But I am sure if I do he or she will listen and be just as "appreciative of my feedback" as he was of yours. Just out of curiousity, do you find it necessary to have sessions with the maitre'd of the land based restaurants you dine at if they don't feel like or caanot honor your demanding special requests?

 

Again, thank you for your "informative" review and so sorry if my comments seem "AGRUMENTATIVE vs ACCOMMODATIVE".

 

Doug