Oceania vs Azamara

[sabrefan]

Have cruised on Oceania 4 times, last time two years ago. We are at Elite level on Celebrity. Just cruised on our first Viking ocean cruise. We came away feeling that we preferred Oceania to Viking. We are trying our first Azamara cruise in February. Interested in hearing from cruisers who have been on both Oceania and Azamara regarding how they compare.

[ORV]

I would normally ask if you had tried searching, but since I know it's not working right now it's a moot point. This subject has been discussed here quite a bit. The people that prefer AZ will tell you it's the best, conversely the Oceania fans will say the same.

 

I have no idea, but I imagine they're both pretty good.

[bitob]

We do not care for Azamara. Do not like the ambiance and the food in our opinion is far inferior. You will find many cruisers who love Azamara. We won’t consider the line but you need to try for yourself

 

 

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[hiccups]

I have had one cruise on each line--Riviera on O and Journey on AZ. I preferred O--nicer ship, although it's not really fair to compare an O and R, I suppose. Food was much better on O, and I liked that the specialty restaurants were included. The included drinks on AZ were nice, but I'm not much of a drinker so I probably didn't get my money's worth out of the higher cruise cost. People on the AZ board talk about their wonderful, friendly staff and officers, but we didn't experience that. They also enjoy AZ's entertainment more than O's, but we are early to bed people, and the in-room entertainment options on O are much better than on AZ. We did really enjoy the Azamaring Evening, though. We have another AZ cruise scheduled for next year, because it was a great price, and it's a PerryGolf cruise so my husband gets his golf fix. I'd sail on either line. In the future we'll continue to check out offerings from both and see where we can get the most bang for our buck.

[Flatbush Flyer]

We do not care for Azamara. Do not like the ambiance and the food in our opinion is far inferior. You will find many cruisers who love Azamara. We won’t consider the line but you need to try for yourself

 

 

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We attended a presentation by the Azamara CEO about a year ago. When asked about the A and O comparison, his reply was that A is about overnights in ports while O is about food.

 

 

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[Paulchili]

We attended a presentation by the Azamara CEO about a year ago. When asked about the A and O comparison, his reply was that A is about overnights in ports while O is about food.

 

 

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True

We enjoyed our A cruise but definitely prefer O

[wripro]

Another lawsuit thread --- one cruise line vs. another. And like the court room depending on which board you post that cruise line will be the defense and the other will be the prosecution. It usually ends in a hung jury!

[bitob]

Another lawsuit thread --- one cruise line vs. another. And like the court room depending on which board you post that cruise line will be the defense and the other will be the prosecution. It usually ends in a hung jury!

 

 

 

Plus 1. Only way to know is to try for yourself

 

 

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[Cahpek]

Have cruised on Oceania 4 times, last time two years ago. We are at Elite level on Celebrity. Just cruised on our first Viking ocean cruise. We came away feeling that we preferred Oceania to Viking. We are trying our first Azamara cruise in February. Interested in hearing from cruisers who have been on both Oceania and Azamara regarding how they compare.

 

That's interesting that you preferred Oceania over Viking. We have been on Oceania several times but thought we will try Viking Ocean next "for a change", and have booked it to go on the Viking Star.

 

Can you perhaps give us some idea why you preferred Oceania to Viking?

How is the cuisine offering on Viking compared to Oceania? Is the Viking dessert offering not quite as sumptuous as with Oceania?

 

We have been on Azamara some years back. Their cuisine was good but not quite as good as Oceania. However, with Azamara, the senior officers from the Captain down, they are some of the friendliest ever. They are often so approachable. The Azamara Captain usually gives you a warm feeling that you are a "guest" on "his" ship, rather than a customer on a floating hotel albeit a luxurious one! That is something which Oceania could take note. So often, the captains and hotel managers on Oceania ships, in our opinion, they shy away from passengers and kept their distance (there was one exception on our last cruise on the Riviera when the French hotel manager actually took the trouble and stood around greeting passengers and talking to them on a regular basis - and we appreciated that, and we even thanked him. However, the captain on that cruise, he was still as aloof as other captains on previous Oceania cruises).

 

(Just a thought: The captains on Azamara are very fluent in English, but on Oceania, some of their captains, usually Italian (?), they may not be so comfortable in mixing with others, or making announcements and speeches, speaking in English. Perhaps Oceania could in future, when they recruit captains, ensure that one of the pre-requisites is that they are fluent in English, as the majority of their passengers on board speak English as their first/only language, and are from English-speaking countries. And that they enjoy and are relaxed with meeting clients - it does not help being shy in the hospitality industry!)

Edited November 23, 2017 by Cahpek

[Noxequifans]

I’ve never sought to engage in conversations with the O senior maritime staff. I just like to be confident that they have the prerequisite skills to safely get us from port to port.

[LHT28]

I’ve never sought to engage in conversations with the O senior maritime staff. I just like to be confident that they have the prerequisite skills to safely get us from port to port.

For some people it is a special thing :evilsmile:

 

for me I am happy just to be on an Oceania ship

 

I do not care for the "herd evenings" ashore either

 

to each their own

[Flatbush Flyer]

I’ve never sought to engage in conversations with the O senior maritime staff. I just like to be confident that they have the prerequisite skills to safely get us from port to port.

 

 

 

Plus 1.

What is it about folks who need to see (or be seen with) cruise ship officers?

 

 

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[orchestrapal]

Plus 1.

What is it about folks who need to see (or be seen with) cruise ship officers?

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Ditto, let the staff just be competent just to get us from place to place safely. We have never excepted the much praised “dinner with the Captain” invitation.

[Cruseforme]

I’ve never sought to engage in conversations with the O senior maritime staff. I just like to be confident that they have the prerequisite skills to safely get us from port to port.

Add another in agreement.

DH and I were looking into an Azamara Cruise, but after reading the CC forum, decided not to. They have massive pre boarding web problems. Example, problems figuring out what time you actually arrive in port and port length regularly. Also, see often where some asks a question, and their live monitoring person, says “oops, yup can’t do that, it doesn’t work, or yup, there is a workaround, or no, you cannot do that” even though it is published. Also had many cruises changed or just canceled out from underneath them, due to charters. Nope, staying with what we are comfortable with (O). Also, we don’t drink, so their included adult beverages doesn’t appeal to us. To each their own. Only way to decide is do research and try it. That’s why there are so many different cruise lines, something for everyone!

[sabrefan]

I appreciate the responses so far. Really looking for recent information and different opinions is okay. In response to Cahpek the Viking cruise that we just took was the Viking Sun, a transatlantic from Lisbon to Miami. This was the 5th cruise that the Viking Sun has done. With all the raving reviews about Viking I felt the wait service at both pools was very inconsistent. The buffet, especially at breakfast was very disorganized. I suppose that this crew will improve with more experience but the customer should not be the provider of that experience. The first night that we ate dinner in the main dining room, we ate at a table for 6 and all our appetizers were wrong or delivered late. Wait staff was totally screwed up. Now the next night we had dinner in the main dining room everything was perfect and it should be noted that we ate in a different area of the dining room.

 

Our cabin steward was excellent, the ship is beautiful. The cabin was comfortable and the heated bathroom floors were very nice. The entertainment is better on Oceania. Food is better on Oceania, no contest. I like the option of a casino, no casino on Viking. We knew this before we booked.

[Cahpek]

I appreciate the responses so far. Really looking for recent information and different opinions is okay. In response to Cahpek the Viking cruise that we just took was the Viking Sun, a transatlantic from Lisbon to Miami. This was the 5th cruise that the Viking Sun has done. With all the raving reviews about Viking I felt the wait service at both pools was very inconsistent. The buffet, especially at breakfast was very disorganized. I suppose that this crew will improve with more experience but the customer should not be the provider of that experience. The first night that we ate dinner in the main dining room, we ate at a table for 6 and all our appetizers were wrong or delivered late. Wait staff was totally screwed up. Now the next night we had dinner in the main dining room everything was perfect and it should be noted that we ate in a different area of the dining room.

 

Our cabin steward was excellent, the ship is beautiful. The cabin was comfortable and the heated bathroom floors were very nice. The entertainment is better on Oceania. Food is better on Oceania, no contest. I like the option of a casino, no casino on Viking. We knew this before we booked.

 

 

Thanks for your reply and answering about your views on Viking. Oh dear, we may have to be prepared with the less good food and less good entertainment on our next Viking cruise, two rather important issues for us. Might even "jump back" to cruising with Oceania again after that and appreciate it more! We'll see. Have to say having no casino on Viking is a "plus" for us, but that is not a deal breaker. Oceania is not perfect, no cruise line ever is, but we have to admit it is very, very good, and quite hard to beat. (That does not mean it cannot still improve further, mind !:))

[ChucktownSteve]

I will say our experiences on O & AZ were both excellent. Each has it's pluses and minuses.

 

The Azamazing evening at the Russian Philharmonic was the most incredible symphony performance we have ever experienced. White Night was a lot of fun. The Hotel Director had arranged for Lech Walesa to address all the guests on board the ship while visiting Gdansk. We were invited to dinner the following night with the Hotel Director and two other couples. At dinner, he presented the women personally autographed books from Lech. This was our first Azamara cruise so I don't know exactly why were we selected. Those things made the cruise our most memorable and unexpected sailing to date.

 

On our Oceania Marina cruise I felt the senior staff was very stand offish. However a minor hiccup with a passing comment to the Concierge, was met with an over compensation by the F&B Manager (not in a financial way). On O we loved the cuisine, cabin and general staff attitude.

 

I look for quality and value. So for us, both cruise lines are winners. As others have pointed out, you'll just have to try it to see if you like it. Although currently, I will admit, O is offering better value for itineraries with our preference.

Edited November 23, 2017 by ChucktownSteve

[tv24]

Somewhat interesting thread. We've had 4 very good crossings on AZ where the entertainment and food were good, but not spectacular, and where we very much enjoyed the company of our fellow passengers. Also noted the extraordinary visibility of the senior staff, although that was not super-important to us. We board the O Marina for the first time in 10 days and are looking forward to a crossing with great food. We will see...

[TrulyBlonde]

I’ve never sought to engage in conversations with the O senior maritime staff. I just like to be confident that they have the prerequisite skills to safely get us from port to port.

 

Best quote on here. Have cruised with both AZ and O. AZ is a smaller version of Celebrity. O is much more refined and our preference by far.

[MarkieMarkNYC]

I think some people need to get a warm and fuzzy vibe from senior staff to feel important. Some egos need to be stroked more than others.

[ORV]

Thanks for your reply and answering about your views on Viking. Oh dear, we may have to be prepared with the less good food and less good entertainment on our next Viking cruise, two rather important issues for us. Might even "jump back" to cruising with Oceania again after that and appreciate it more! We'll see. Have to say having no casino on Viking is a "plus" for us, but that is not a deal breaker. Oceania is not perfect, no cruise line ever is, but we have to admit it is very, very good, and quite hard to beat. (That does not mean it cannot still improve further, mind !:))

 

I'm a little confused why not having a casino is a plus. If I'm not interested in something that a line has I just don't go there. Or don't pay attention to it. I can see how not having one could be a negative for some folks though.

[LHT28]

I'm a little confused why not having a casino is a plus.

Maybe would work for someone with a gambling addiction

 

maybe some people do not have the will power to resist some temptations

[wripro]

Maybe would work for someone with a gambling addiction

 

maybe some people do not have the will power to resist some temptations

In which case there should be no bars onboard either. Or restaurants for those who are food addicted.

[YoHoHo]

In which case there should be no bars onboard either. Or restaurants for those who are food addicted.

I missed where someone said there should not be a casino. The poster stated not having a casino was a plus for them.

[Paulchili]

I have two things to add to the conversation here:

1 I do not need to engage the officers in conversation nor do I need my ego stroked. However, I would like to be greeted or at least acknowledged by a passing officer - even if it is just a subtle tilt of a head. This usually does not happen on Oceania but always does happen on Azamara.

2 We spent an incredible Azamazing evening in Ephesus when we had a private evening concert in the amphitheater. There is nothing like being the only group in Ephesus and having the whole place to ourselves.

All that said, we definitely prefer Oceania to Azamara when all things are considered.