Opinions After Our First Oceania Cruise

[ORV]

I remember when initially boarding an X ship, each passenger was offered a glass of champagne, mimosa, etc, then escorted to the cabin. Years later, no drinks and no escort...

 

Harry

The welcoming drinks are definitely still there.

[Iamthesea]

We too are trying O for the first time this April. We are elite on X and we do like the added perks we receive on X but we feel the experience is just not as enjoyable as it used to be.

 

I am an RCCL stockholder and must say I am very happy with the increase in value of my stock but it came at a price.

 

The food is no where near the quality it was when we first started sailing X. Its acceptable but more Chili's than Capitol Grille (for example).

 

For us the blaring techno music in the martini bar at night was probably the change we hated most .. and it was experienced on our last 4 cruises ...so not an isolated incident. I think they are trying to attract a new clientele.

 

this is not to say we would never sail X again ...we would if the situation was right.

 

I remember when initially boarding an X ship, each passenger was offered a glass of champagne, mimosa, etc, then escorted to the cabin. Years later, no drinks and no escort...

 

Harry

 

Yes, welcoming champagne, Mimosa or OJ still offered at boarding as well as an escort if you are staying in a Suite. Had both offered on the last three Celebrity cruises taken this past year. :)

 

Yes, Celebrity is trying to attract a younger crowd because the older crowd is dying out. Oceania will follow along , as well as other cruiselines, and will be doing the same. It's the cycle of life. Times are a changing!

 

The blaring techno music in the martini bar gets cranked up after dinner and is fun to be a part of sometimes (I especially enjoy it when cruising with my adult daughters) and easy to get away from when DH and I want something more easy listening. There are many more bars and venues on the Celebrity ships that offer a variety of music and almost never seem too crowded.

Edited February 25, 2016 by Iamthesea

[hiccups]

I remember when initially boarding an X ship, each passenger was offered a glass of champagne, mimosa, etc, then escorted to the cabin. Years later, no drinks and no escort...

 

Harry

 

We've never gotten to experience this on an ocean cruise, but we did on our river cruise last summer. We were escorted to our room by the dining manager, and he showed us around our cabin. That took approximately six seconds :D

Edited February 25, 2016 by hiccups

[Flatbush Flyer]

Yes, welcoming champagne, Mimosa or OJ still offered at boarding as well as an escort if you are staying in a Suite. Had both offered on the last three Celebrity cruises taken this past year. :)

 

 

 

Yes, Celebrity is trying to attract a younger crowd because the older crowd is dying out. Oceania will follow along , as well as other cruiselines, and will be doing the same. It's the cycle of life. Times are a changing!

 

 

 

The blaring techno music in the martini bar gets cranked up after dinner and is fun to be a part of sometimes (I especially enjoy it when cruising with my adult daughters) and easy to get away from when DH and I want something more easy listening. There are many more bars and venues on the Celebrity ships that offer a variety of music and almost never seem too crowded.

 

 

I think the big future demographic for Oceania will have little to do with age. Rather, it will depend primarily on socio-economic factors including level of education, savvy consumer practices and cosmopolitan experience.

[Wol]

I'm very surprised that any cruise line would tolerate that kind of behavior from any staff, but especially from reception--that's a passenger's first interaction on board! I'll definitely be aware of that now when we sail in March.

 

I think most people would agree that on all O ships the reception staff can be the least friendly - obviously with exceptions.

 

Overall the ships' staff are fantastic - one of the best things about Oceania - but I have seen and experienced less than comfortable reception attitudes. Possibly the reason is sometimes the origin of the staff behind the desk: what is condescending for most passengers may be normal at "home".

 

Having said that, one can see incredibly rude behaviour from some passengers - behaviour that would see me leaping over the desk and murder committed!

[ABoatNerd]

Another defector from Celebrity posting in.

 

Very much enjoyed our first Oceania cruise in January. Will consider another at some point.

 

We have left Celebrity after patronizing them since 1992. Celebrity has become a cheap shopping mall/with restaurants in the parking lot. Lots of glitz for sure, not much substance. And yes of course malls are where many younger folk hang out. The blaring noise in the shopping area aboard our last Celebrity cruise and specialty restaurant staff harassing people eating on deck (our selves included) is pathetic and sad for a once high class cruise line.

 

I concur that socio-economic factors and the interests of people will determine who patronizes which line, age is not the sole determining factor. My niece is 29 and favors the same things I do; she would not go on a Celebrity ship these days.

 

ABoatNerd

[Iamthesea]

We did not have any of that on our last Celebrity cruise in October. I will be anxious to see if things have changed when we sail this May.

Edited March 3, 2016 by Iamthesea

[curtdesilets]

Another defector from Celebrity posting in.

 

Very much enjoyed our first Oceania cruise in January. Will consider another at some point.

 

We have left Celebrity after patronizing them since 1992. Celebrity has become a cheap shopping mall/with restaurants in the parking lot. Lots of glitz for sure, not much substance. And yes of course malls are where many younger folk hang out. The blaring noise in the shopping area aboard our last Celebrity cruise and specialty restaurant staff harassing people eating on deck (our selves included) is pathetic and sad for a once high class cruise line.

 

I concur that socio-economic factors and the interests of people will determine who patronizes which line, age is not the sole determining factor. My niece is 29 and favors the same things I do; she would not go on a Celebrity ship these days.

 

ABoatNerd

 

I think they will need to redefine themselves again at some point. It seems that Celebrity does not know who it wants to be now. A striking difference, since you have been sailing Celebrity since 1992, is the Martini Bar. Traditionally we would (really) dress up for dinner, have a Martini served by the Bar Staff with that shaking demonstration and enjoy pleasant conversation with others we were dining with while perhaps listening to some not so loud classical music or similar. Celebrity's current Martini Bar experience?? Well you know.

 

I am not sure what "Modern Luxury" is suppose to be, nor do I think the visionaries of Celebrity do. But during that transition phase from the Old Celebrity to the New, I was struck by some of the long term staff on Celebrity who were equally dismayed by what Celebrity was intending to do.

 

We will sail Celebrity again, just not as frequently. Hoping our upcoming Oceania experience will mimic or surpass what we used to have in the "good old days" of Celebrity.

[maggie.1008]

Loyal X cruiser with 226 nights. Going on my first Oceana cruise on March 13th. I will be back on X in May and will compare and let you know my thoughts. Elite Plus perks on X are hard to give up and the crew have always been smashing.

[maggie.1008]

Curt, I see you were on NCL. I have never cruised with them. How was it ? Were you in Haven ? Heather

[Paulchili]

Loyal X cruiser with 226 nights. Going on my first Oceana cruise on March 13th. I will be back on X in May and will compare and let you know my thoughts. Elite Plus perks on X are hard to give up and the crew have always been smashing.

 

Does your Elite Plus perk on X include a free 14 day cruise like you get on Oceania with Platinum :D

[Christine Frances]

Does your Elite Plus perk on X include a free 14 day cruise like you get on Oceania with Platinum :D

 

Elite + perks on X are great but Zenith is more equivalent to Platinum on O

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/captains-club/membership/captains-club-tier-zenith?tab=captains_club_tier_zenith/captains-club/membership/captains-club-tier-zenith%3Fsubtab%3Dtrue

[Paulchili]

Elite + perks on X are great but Zenith is more equivalent to Platinum on O

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/captains-club/membership/captains-club-tier-zenith?tab=captains_club_tier_zenith/captains-club/membership/captains-club-tier-zenith%3Fsubtab%3Dtrue

 

Kind -a :D

7 night Carib/Bermuda cruise in veranda does not compare favorably with a 14 night cruise anywhere in the world in any category cabin (the one you cruised most achieving Plat).

Of course, I assume one spends more money achieving Plat on O than Zenith on X. How many cruises do you need to achieve 3000+ Club points?

[Christine Frances]

It is not days on a cruise but days in a category. I highly doubt that a X Zenith cruiser would tsf to O for the perks. Maybe it is only a 7 night cruise in a balcony but they have the other awesome perks that go with it.

[maggie.1008]

Christine, you will be boarding the Infinity on May 22nd when we will be getting off the ship. Happy sailing, Heather

[Christine Frances]

Christine, you will be boarding the Infinity on May 22nd when we will be getting off the ship. Happy sailing, Heather

 

Awesome!!! I really wanted to do that coastal but the pricing kept going up!! Have a geat cruise!

[Christine Frances]

Kind -a :D

7 night Carib/Bermuda cruise in veranda does not compare favorably with a 14 night cruise anywhere in the world in any category cabin (the one you cruised most achieving Plat).

Of course, I assume one spends more money achieving Plat on O than Zenith on X. How many cruises do you need to achieve 3000+ Club points?

 

Not number of cruises but how many nights in a specific cabin category. Eg you can reach Zenith much faster sailing in suites.

[curtdesilets]

Curt, I see you were on NCL. I have never cruised with them. How was it ? Were you in Haven ? Heather

 

We just did a local Mexican Riviera Cruise in January. Stayed in a mini-suite, which was lovely. Got a good deal with extra perks. Not quite a (old) Celebrity or Oceania experience, but quite good. A bit crowded at times though.

[greatlake30]

I'm going next week as a solo. Did you ever feel uncomfortable being there alone? I'm bringing books to read and intend to just relax, but wasn't sure how I would feel at the meals. I have two nights at specialty restaurants booked alone and two nights at a share table.

I would appreciate your thoughts so I can manage my expectations. This is my first Oceana Cruise.

Thank you so much!

[Mura]

Greatlake, I haven't sailed as a solo ever. (At least not yet.)

 

I have seem people complaining that Oceania is not friendly to solo travelers but I haven't seen that for myself. I have noticed on many cruises that the ship organized get togethers for solo passengers so that they could meet each other. I won't say that I have seen that on every cruise, but if nothing is listed in Currents I would suggest that you go to the Concierge and ask if one could be arranged. It may depend on how many passengers are traveling solo. If you are the only one :( ... but I doubt that you would be!

 

And I would actively look to share tables at meal time. If you prefer dining alone, fine. But if you would rather meet other people I would always ask to share.

 

Are you on a roll call for your cruise? When I have noticed that someone on my roll call is dining alone, I have asked him or her if they wanted to join us for dinner. (The last time I did so the gentleman in question had already found a girl friend on the cruise!)

 

If you are concerned about sharing a table in the specialties that you have already booked -- well, that CAN be a concern. Generally when we have shared with strangers we've had a wonderful time. The worst was a civil evening with people we didn't really connect with, but that has been rare.

 

I remember a dinner in the GDR with two other couples and it turned out we were all musicians and had much in common. This was one of the special dinners I remember from all of our cruises, and we had all told the maitre d' that we preferred to share ... so we didn't know each other in advance.

 

Good luck, and have a great cruise.

 

Mura

[greatlake30]

Thank you so much for your thoughts and words of advice. I really appreciate it. I'm looking forward to a great cruise.

[Mura]

I'm glad if I can be of help.

 

I should perhaps add that I am a shy person. I don't look forward to traveling alone but I may have to in the near future because my husband is having vision problems that may mean that he just doesn't want to travel any more. But I do!

 

There have been times when I had to dine on my own because Howard wasn't doing well -- mainly because he took advantage of all the food and over did! And I always had good luck sharing tables with strangers.

 

Mura

[LHT28]

Thank you so much for your thoughts and words of advice. I really appreciate it. I'm looking forward to a great cruise.

I agree with Mura if you like to dine alone that is ok but I would certainly try to share with others

I know on our last cruise they had 20+ solo passengers & arranged a dinner so they could meet up

 

They usually have a solo gathering as well if you wish to attend

 

Join the roll call for your cruise & make some friends, share tours etc...

 

We met a couple of solo ladies on a cruise & turns out she knew one of our good friends ...her husband (now passed) & our friend were in a band together ...so you never know who you will meet

Just start chatting

 

Enjoy the cruise

 

Lyn

[curtdesilets]

I remember on Crystal, they had "Ambassadors" or such that would dance with single women and accompany them. I think it should be great to cruise alone. If someone just lost a loved one or went through a divorce, what greater way to reflect than to be out on the ocean? Alternatively, some people just like to travel alone. For years before I met my wife, I traveled all over the world by myself. There is no greater freedom than that.

 

Bottom line: One should never be hesitant in cruising or travelling alone.

 

One caveat though: A single woman in certain parts of the world should pair up when exploring. I'm thinking things like the Bazaar in Istanbul or the Pyramids of Giza, that sort of thing. Or make sure you are in a secure group.