LGBT on Oceania?

[GaryR6273]

Hi All, 

 

We usually cruise on larger lines/ships and wondered if anyone had any experience on Oceania, good or bad. 

 

We are looking at a voyage this January on the Riviera and are looking for a longer itinerary (longer than 7 days) and one that visits new ports for us. 

 

Just wondering if we will be sticking out like sore thumbs or worse, based on the fellow cruisers. We usually cruise on Princess, Celebrity and HAL and this would be the smallest capacity ship for us. 

 

TIA!

 

Gary 

[Britboys]

Sorry Gary, haven't cruised on Oceania but have cruised on smaller ships - taking pax around 300, 800 to 1800 pax.

I suppose I wonder why you feel you might "stick out like a sore thumb".  My partner & I cruised for many years before he died in 2012 and never experienced any problems on the ships we sailed on.  Sure, sometimes there might have only been one or two other gay couples and sometimes we might have been the only gays on the ship.  Whilst we weren't the type prone to pda's, we were always open about our relationship and to this day I have straight friends that we made on those cruises.

 

Oceania have a great reputation - especially for their food and Riviera is a nice-sized ship.  Unless you feel uncomfortable being in a largely heterosexual environment, I would say go for it!

[YVR Voyager]

I have cruised twice with Oceania--both on the Insignia--and am cruising with them again in the Baltic at the beginning of September on the Marina.  On both previous cruises I've met other gay travelers and had a good time with them and I found no "atitude" with either staff or other passengers.  It's a great line and based on my two previous experiences, I'd recommend them.

[sdbart]

We've cruised on both the Marina and Riviera, last fall for 28 days. We met a number of gay travelers, but mostly socialized with straight couples from our roll call, a number of whom I still communicate with. We never felt anyone acting weird to us and usually the first thing out of people's mouths was, "How long have you two been together." As far as I was aware, no one turned purple when we showed each other affection, either. I guess our experience was similar to Britboys. With open seating dining, we often ate with strangers, and whenever we would run into each other after that, we were always greeted with smiles and often jokes. I will say that our Oceania cruises were by far the most enjoyable we've done. I'll also encourage you to go for it.

[keithm]

On ‎8‎/‎3‎/‎2019 at 10:37 PM, GaryR6273 said:

Hi All, 

 

We usually cruise on larger lines/ships and wondered if anyone had any experience on Oceania, good or bad. 

 

We are looking at a voyage this January on the Riviera and are looking for a longer itinerary (longer than 7 days) and one that visits new ports for us. 

 

Just wondering if we will be sticking out like sore thumbs or worse, based on the fellow cruisers. We usually cruise on Princess, Celebrity and HAL and this would be the smallest capacity ship for us. 

 

TIA!

 

Gary 

Love the food on Oceania. We found the staff outstanding. We've done 2 trips on the Riviera. Entertainment is pretty blah, compared to P/C/H. I will have to admit the LGBT support is lacking. They had a meeting last Jan...right when everyone was off to dinner. We did have unsympathetic pax share a table in 2018. Not nasty, they just "clammed" up once they figured we were gay. This past Jan. a couple would not sit with us in Jacques. The woman exclaimed just before there were to be seated "Oh this is much to close to the entrance!" If we were any further from the entrance, we would have been outside the ship! The specialty rest. are the ones you "may" need to share a table. If you're in a suite, you'll be able to sit by yourselves, if you wish. Also, if you know someone, or meet someone, then you can sit with them. In the GDR, you certainly may have a table to yourselves. Don't pass up a trip on this ship because of what I mentioned. There is a pretty decent gay following. Usually the only 2 specialties that sharing is more likely is Polo Grill & Jacques. If you choose La Reserve, there is a fee(about $100PP)due to wine being served with each course. You DO have to sit "banquet" style with others. Trust me NO anti gay pax will speak up at that dinner, the other of the guests would not hear of it! It's by far the most enjoyable culinary adventure on the line!

[tv24]

We've sailed once on the Marina and spent some time with a great guy who sails regularly with"O" and his Lesbian friend.  We had several dinners together, and the 2 of them organized the CC meet and greet.  Otherwise the only other identifiable gay folks on board were the staff.  We never felt shunned, nor did we feel embraced.  We enjoyed the experience because of the extreme high quality of the food.  As Keith has detailed, come for the food, and perhaps for the beauty of the ship's interior, but forget about everything else.

[wripro]

10 hours ago, tv24 said:

We've sailed once on the Marina and spent some time with a great guy who sails regularly with"O" and his Lesbian friend.  We had several dinners together, and the 2 of them organized the CC meet and greet.  Otherwise the only other identifiable gay folks on board were the staff.  We never felt shunned, nor did we feel embraced.  We enjoyed the experience because of the extreme high quality of the food.  As Keith has detailed, come for the food, and perhaps for the beauty of the ship's interior, but forget about everything else.

Unfortunately, the feedback (np out intended) on the food on Oceania recently is that it has deteriorated, choices have been reduced and quality declined. 

[tv24]

31 minutes ago, wripro said:

Unfortunately, the feedback (np out intended) on the food on Oceania recently is that it has deteriorated, choices have been reduced and quality declined. 

This is bad news.  I will admit that it's been almost 2 years since we sailed on the Marina.  The food was great, but I also admit that it was the major reason to sail "O", otherwise it's not all that distinguishable from several other lines.  And the cost is somewhat higher than competitors.

[wripro]

On 8/20/2019 at 9:40 AM, tv24 said:

This is bad news.  I will admit that it's been almost 2 years since we sailed on the Marina.  The food was great, but I also admit that it was the major reason to sail "O", otherwise it's not all that distinguishable from several other lines.  And the cost is somewhat higher than competitors.

Personally I would never sail on Oceania except in a penthouse or larger since the regular cabins are claustrophobic to me. By the time I book a PH, add alcohol and gratuities etc I am spending more than on Seabourn. 

[tv24]

39 minutes ago, wripro said:

Personally I would never sail on Oceania except in a penthouse or larger since the regular cabins are claustrophobic to me. By the time I book a PH, add alcohol and gratuities etc I am spending more than on Seabourn. 

Our one time on "O" was in a Penthouse, as recommended by several friends.  The stateroom was spacious enough, but you are correct.  We added in a drinks package and had to pay for gratuities, so it was quite an expensive crossing.  We have been lucky to find better buys on Seabourn.  But we did love the cuisine on "O" and found it generally better than Seabourn.  However, with your comments, I now wonder if I will consider "O" again, as cuisine quality would be my motivation.  I guess it would depend on itinerary.

[wripro]

21 hours ago, tv24 said:

Our one time on "O" was in a Penthouse, as recommended by several friends.  The stateroom was spacious enough, but you are correct.  We added in a drinks package and had to pay for gratuities, so it was quite an expensive crossing.  We have been lucky to find better buys on Seabourn.  But we did love the cuisine on "O" and found it generally better than Seabourn.  However, with your comments, I now wonder if I will consider "O" again, as cuisine quality would be my motivation.  I guess it would depend on itinerary.

It's not just my comments. Seems to be a general trend on the Oceania board that food choices and quality have deteriorated. 

 

My other problem is that I find the main restaurant on Marina and Riviera very uninviting, more like a catering hall in Dubai than an elegant space. 

[tv24]

2 hours ago, wripro said:

It's not just my comments. Seems to be a general trend on the Oceania board that food choices and quality have deteriorated. 

 

My other problem is that I find the main restaurant on Marina and Riviera very uninviting, more like a catering hall in Dubai than an elegant space. 

Never been to Dubai;  it's not on the top of my list.  I would compare the Marina's dining room to a big conference room at a Marriott hotel.

[wripro]

21 hours ago, tv24 said:

Never been to Dubai;  it's not on the top of my list.  I would compare the Marina's dining room to a big conference room at a Marriott hotel.

That's another good comparison.  But not one that speaks well of a high end cruise line. I've always avoided dining there at all costs.

[Ghibli2000]

We love Oceania!!  It is our favorite line! 

[Tarwood3]

We are going on Oceania for the first time in July on Marina for a Baltic cruise.  We thought we would try them for the food and it’s mid level price range....we normally cruise Silversea, Seabourn etc...but occasionally throw in a Celebrity for something different.  We arent particularly loyal to anyone, we like to sample.  Hoping that there are some friendly gays...our last cruise on Crystal, the gays were pretty snobby.  I hear the ship is pretty nice..hoping for the best!

[Beagle5]

On 12/27/2019 at 11:41 AM, Tarwood3 said:

We are going on Oceania for the first time in July on Marina for a Baltic cruise.  We thought we would try them for the food and it’s mid level price range....we normally cruise Silversea, Seabourn etc...but occasionally throw in a Celebrity for something different.  We arent particularly loyal to anyone, we like to sample.  Hoping that there are some friendly gays...our last cruise on Crystal, the gays were pretty snobby.  I hear the ship is pretty nice..hoping for the best!

 

We did a Baltic cruise on the Marina this past July 2019. It was our second Oceania cruise and we have a B2B booked on the Riviera in the med this coming July 2020.

On our first Oceania cruise we made good friends with a couple of guys from Florida - we just started talking to them while in the line at Waves Grill. On our second cruise (the Baltic one) there were quite a few LGBT but we only spoke to one guy who approached us. He was traveling with his Dad and going slightly crazy. LOL.

There are no organised FoD events. If we meet other gays that's great, but if we don't that's fine too.

Oceania is usually pretty quite after about 10pm - however they did have an ABBA night as we pulled out of Stockholm which kicked on and the dance floor in Horizons was packed.

Oceania is the highest price point cruise line we have been with. Compared to Cunard, RCL and Princess, we love the food, the included specialty restaurants, and the general ambiance. 

Try to lock in a night at La Reserve if you can - we met some fun people there.

[Tarwood3]

7 hours ago, Beagle5 said:

 

We did a Baltic cruise on the Marina this past July 2019. It was our second Oceania cruise and we have a B2B booked on the Riviera in the med this coming July 2020.

On our first Oceania cruise we made good friends with a couple of guys from Florida - we just started talking to them while in the line at Waves Grill. On our second cruise (the Baltic one) there were quite a few LGBT but we only spoke to one guy who approached us. He was traveling with his Dad and going slightly crazy. LOL.

There are no organised FoD events. If we meet other gays that's great, but if we don't that's fine too.

Oceania is usually pretty quite after about 10pm - however they did have an ABBA night as we pulled out of Stockholm which kicked on and the dance floor in Horizons was packed.

Oceania is the highest price point cruise line we have been with. Compared to Cunard, RCL and Princess, we love the food, the included specialty restaurants, and the general ambiance. 

Try to lock in a night at La Reserve if you can - we met some fun people there.

Great insight !! Thanks so much!!

[ryndam]

On 12/26/2019 at 6:41 PM, Tarwood3 said:

We arent particularly loyal to anyone, we like to sample.  Hoping that there are some friendly gays...our last cruise on Crystal, the gays were pretty snobby.  

 

We were following your posts on the main Crystal CC page. Sorry to hear that you encountered less-than-friendly folks onboard during your cruise. We've met some really nice people on Crystal, and have also met (and then subsequently avoided) others that shared a different agenda than ours. 

 

In general, at least in our Crystal experiences, the least friendly folks tended to come onboard with their own entourage/family/friends/etc., traveled as a pack, and were usually not interested in meeting/conversing/interacting with any others than their own pre-arranged group. Of course, that type of entourage behavior could be observed with any group of people, on any particular ship or resort.

 

We've never sailed Oceania (nor Azamara, btw), primarily because we do not care for the physical layout of their smaller R-class ships. We have several good friends that are long-time Oceania loyalists and are very pleased with the product. We'll be interested to hear your perspective after your cruise next summer.

 

Smooth sailing and Happy New Year!

[ronrick1943]

Nothing special, but you do meet other Gay's.  Everyone is OK Jon the ship--we don't look for people but we always have a good time on the cruise.  We moved over to Regent now and like the line----It's OK to be Gay on the ship, no one cares---just a lot of fun.

[retafcruiser]

On 8/3/2019 at 10:37 PM, GaryR6273 said:

We are looking at a voyage this January on the Riviera and are looking for a longer itinerary (longer than 7 days) and one that visits new ports for us. 

 

Did you decide to go? January is here - happy new year (all).

[OceaniaLGBT]

Join the Oceania LGBT Page on FB.  Just search for Oceania LGBT in the search bar on there.