Oceania vs. RSSC - comparison?

[Leejnd4]

I've been scouting around for cruises to take in '06, and while I was originally looking at RSSC, I'm considering branching out to other lines. I haven't seen anything on Silversea or Seabourne that looks good, but there are several Oceania itineraries that look great -- right time frame, right price, right length, etc. I'm trying to read everything I can about this line and their ships, but what I could really use is a true apples-to-apples comparison of this line vs. RSSC, from those who know both lines and can offer a true comparison between the two.

 

I've been on several mass-market cruises, and finally upgraded to RSSC this past year, with my fantastic Med cruise on the Voyager. I was SOOO thrilled to get away from the classic mass-market irritants -- I can't imagine going backwards at this point, and I don't want to. But I'm looking for a longer cruise (at least 10 days, or more) in some area where I haven't been before, and Oceania has some great itins.

 

The areas I'm most concerned with are the following:

 

Staterooms -- the lowest category is significantly smaller than on Voyager, and we tend to go with the smallest so we can get the most cruise for our budget. Given my spoiled state on Voyager, am I asking for trouble going with such a small stateroom?

 

Dining -- how does the food compare, really?

 

Service -- will I feel pampered like I did on Voyager?

 

Entertainment -- I've read little about the entertainment on Oceania, how is it, and does it compare? From what I've seen on the Oceania web site, it appears the entertainment may be a little too sedate for me -- the only music they spoke of is classical, and while I love classical music, you can't exactly dance to it. Is there any dancing on these ships? Are there any "fun" evenings where we can let down our hair and share some laughs?

 

Overall feeling of luxury -- is it there?

 

Nickel & Diming -- I realize that this is not an all-inclusive line, and wine is not included with dinner, so I have to factor that into my budget. But will I feel nickel & dimed like I did on Celebrity or RCI? Is there any obvious "selling" going on? What IS included, what's not, and how are prices?

 

Activities -- I'm looking at some pretty long cruises, with multiple sea days. I've read quite a bit about RSSC's sea day activities, and they sound right up my alley -- fun and interesting but low-key and classy, rather than the kind of, um, *stuff* we saw on the mass-market lines. (We didn't have a single sea day on my Voyager cruise, so I haven't experienced RSSC's firsthand.) What does Oceania do on sea days?

 

Alcohol -- I've been a bit troubled by some stuff I read here about their drink prices and alcohol policies. First off, I DO like to drink on my cruises, but I don't want to have to blow my budget on it. I also like to bring things onboard -- I like to have before-dinner martinis in my room, or a late-night single-malt Scotch as I'm relaxing before bed. I also love to drink wine, and can't imagine a nice dinner without it -- I know wine, I collect it, and I like to buy interesting wines ashore and try them on the ship. Do they really enforce this $20 corkage fee? That seems really steep to me. And how are their wine prices?

 

If anyone knows the two lines well and is willing to take a crack at this, I'd be eternally grateful!

 

LeeAnne

[talyanka]

Hi LeeAnne,

We also cruised on a few RCCI ships including Voyager class. Last year we tried Oceania’s Regatta first time and were quite happy with our decision to switch the line.

There are many posts on this board which compares Oceania with other cruise lines and if you have time to go through them you will find a detailed answers for all your questions.

Which line is better depends on what you are expecting from the cruise. You should keep in mind that Oceania ships have a lot of great very port intensive itineraries and mostly oriented for the cruisers who wants to see places and like casual atmosphere. Small ships can visit small ports where huge ships won’t fit. It’s especially important when you travel in Europe. So if your primary interest is exploring things on the shore you will like Oceania.

Everything else is secondary. Regatta has good size cabins in all categories. Food is much better than on RCCI – better selection and better quality. We found during last two cruises on RCCI that they are cutting on food. You can choose from 4 restaurants where to dine, 2 of them require reservation but no extra charge. We never bought wine in the dining room and prices there looks kind of high. Oceania ships also do not have a liquor stores on board as RCCI ships do, but they allow you to bring on the ship any wine from the shore. We did it in every port in Mediterranean. But because we never brought this wine to the dining room I am not sure how strict they are with the corkage fee. In general we found the service on Regatta very good and we felt pampered.

Regatta has some entertaining, mostly classic music, small casino. If you want a lot of entertaining on the ship and a lot of fun Oceania ships will probably disappoint you after Voyager. No special huge theatre with shows, no skating ring, no rock climbing wall or mini golf course. And very limited programs for days at see like art auctions and wine testing. So if you considering Atlantic crossing on Oceania ships it looks that you will be bored and disappointed.

Regatta has a swimming pool, spa, few bars. They will charge you pretty much for every extra service as the other ships do. Their shore excursions are not cheap but in many cases you can explore ports on your own or arrange a private guide for a small group of people that may be more efficient way to see places.

So there is no universal approach in looking for the cruise line. Everything depends of what you are looking for. Because we never used a lot of fun part on RCCI we never missed it in Oceania. We were tired enough after the day on the shore and wanted to have a quiet night. But we loved small ports in Italy which we visited and could never visit them with any of RCCI giants. And we loved casual atmosphere with no formal nights. So sort your priorities and it will help you to choose the right line for you.

Tatyana.

[Leejnd4]

Tatyana,

 

Thanks for your analysis. Unfortunately, it's not RCCI I'm comparing to, it's RSSC (Radisson Seven Seas). I should have spelled it out, because the initials are so close! Radisson is considered one of the luxury lines, so they are completely different from Royal Caribbean. Radisson is mostly inclusive, meaning no charge for freely-poured fine wine and other alcoholic beverages at dinner, and no charge for sodas, bottled water, or any of those other little extras. They also put two bottles of premium liquor of your choice in your cabin, along with any bar mixers you request, at no charge. The ships are much smaller too -- RSSC's Voyager only carries about 700 passengers, and other ships of theirs are even smaller. They are known for outstanding shore excursions, at very reasonable prices. They are definitely not "fun" ships like Carnival or RCCI -- they do not market themselves to families, and have little if anything for children (you don't see too many of them on RSSC cruises).

 

I have no doubt that Oceania is worlds about Royal Caribbean and other mass-market lines (I've cruised them as well). I have no interest at this point in going back to the mass-market lines, for many reasons. What I was looking for is, how do they compare to the luxury lines. But thanks for your response! I've decided for now to stick with RSSC for my next cruise, but I'm looking at Oceania for possible cruising in 2007, so I'm still interested in input comparing the two lines.

 

LeeAnne