Nautica Istanbul to Rome August 2021 Questions

[donaldsc]

I am looking at the August 2021 Istanbul to Rome cruise.  I have never cruised on Oceania before as most of my recent cruising has been on Azamara.  I like the R class ships so I know that I will be comfortable on the Nautica.  I do have several questions on the ship and also on the cruise itself.

 

1) The Nautica has gotten a lot of mixed reviews recently which basically say that it is showing its age.  Any thoughts on this.  The Nautica is scheduled for a major refurb in 2020 so any problems it has now may be gone when I cruise on her in 2021.

 

2) One thing that I like about Azamara is that the crew is very friendly and welcoming.  Some recent reviews have said that the crew on the Nautica was a bit stuffy and not welcoming.  I find that hard to believe.  Does anyone have negative feelings about the crew.

 

3) We would get a bunch of free excursions on this trip.  Are the excursions any good or would I be better off setting up my own excursions.  I don't like to be herded around on a 40 passenger bus with 40 of my new best friends.

 

4) Some people have said that if you do not take one of the Oceania tours, they don't let you off the ship until all the Oceania tours have disembarked.  Is this true and does it present a problem.

 

5) This is the itinerary which looks pretty good to me.  Very good port times and almost no sea days.  I hate sea days.  I will admit that I do not know about some of the ports that we will visit. The cruise is available for booking on August 21 and I suspect that it will book fairly quickly since it is a unique cruise.  Any thoughts positve or negative on any of the more obscure ports?

 

Day 1,  Board in Istanbul

Day 2.  Nessebur, Bulgaria.  8 AM - 6 PM

Day 3,  Constanta, Romania.  6 AM - 6 PM

Day 4.  Odessa, Ukraine.  9 AM - 11PM

Day 5.  Cruising the Bosphorus Strait and Dardanelles

Day 6.  Bozcaada (Troy), Turkey.  8 AM- 6 PM

Day 7.  Ephesus (Kusadasi), Turkey.  8 AM - 11 PM

Day 8.  Bodrum, Turkey.  8 AM - 11 PM

Day 9.  Santorini, Greece.  8 AM - 11 PM

Day 10.  Mykonos, Greece.  8 AM - 7 PM

Day 11.  Athens, Greece.  8 AM - 9 PM.

Day 12.  Santorini, Greece.  8 AM - 7 PM.  This is a return to Santorini.  Wonder why.

Day 13.  Rhodes, Greece.  8 AM - 5 PM.

Day 14. Paphos, Greece.  8 AM - 4 PM

Day 15.  Jerusalem (Ashdod) Israel.  6 AM - 10 PM

Day 16.  Jerusalem (Haifia), Israel.  6 AM -

Day 17.  Jerusalem (Haifia) Israel.  -10 PM.  

Day 18.  Cruising the Mediterranean Sea

Day 19.  Heraklion, Greece.  8 AM - 6 PM

Day 20.  Gythion, Greece.  8 AM - 6 PM

Day 21.  Zakynthos, Greece.  8 A M - 6 PM

Day 22.  Cruising the Ionian Sea

Day 23.  Catania, Italy.  7 AM - 5 PM

Day 24.  Sorrento/Capri, Italy.  8 AM - 6 PM.

Day 25.  Rome.

 

I would appreciate any comments on Oceania and on the cruise.

 

DON

 

[LHT28]

2)  this cruise is 2 yrs away  you never know what/who the crew will be by then

 

3)if you do not like bus tours  then suggest you skip the ships  excursions & book private guides

 

4) usually in tender ports the ships tours go off first  but  they do also allow independents off  if room on the early tenders you must go to the lounge & get a tender ticket  & when they call your number/colour  head directly to the tender platform

 

5)if you want to do this cruise  I agree it will book up quickly .. I would give your TA (preferably one familiar with Oceania)  a couple of cabin options  before the 21st  so they can get  your booking done early on the day it opens up

JMO

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

Don

 

The reason you see two Santorini stops is because this cruise is composed of two segments (called an "extended journey") with the changeover day in Athens. For whatever reason, the O website is currently showing the two segment "extended journey" and the first segment (but not the second segment) as an individual cruise.

 

We disembarked Nautica in early July. Though it had not yet gone through the complete NEXT redecoration (incl tech upgrades and total makeover in the cabins) you will find when you board, the ship was clean and classic. Food and service were great (as always) and the crew was as friendly and helpful as we have always enjoyed.

 

As for officer "friendliness," it varies from ship to ship and itinerary. On Oceania, a lot of the officer interaction has to do with the tone set by the General Manager (and, of course, the Captain). Cruise Directors can also make a significant difference.

 

Oceania regulars have their favorite crew and officers. And, of course, they often move across the six ship fleet on different contracts. That said, my ideal leadership on an Oceania cruise would be Captain Giulio Ressa, GM Claudio Melli and CD Ray Carr.

 

We mix private and ship tours and, in our experience, Oceania seldom has a bus based tour where there are more than two dozen folks assigned to a single guide.

 

I've posted many items on CC  regarding the "ins and outs" of cruising on Oceania, including suggestions on which O Life perk works best in which situation. As a newcomer, you may want to review some of them.

[LHT28]

16 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Don

 

The reason you see two Santorini stops is because this cruise is composed of two segments (called an "extended journey") with the changeover day in Athens. For whatever reason, the O website is currently showing the two segment "extended journey" and the first segment (but not the second segment) as an individual cruise.

 

 

Yes it does 

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/Mediterranean-cruises/istanbul-to-athens-NAU210826/?sr=%2Fcruise-finder%2F%23sailDates%3D2021|09%2C2021|08%23ships%3DNAU

 

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/Mediterranean-cruises/athens-to-rome-NAU210905/?sr=%2Fcruise-finder%2F%23sailDates%3D2021|09%2C2021|08%23ships%3DNAU

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 hour ago, LHT28 said:

Yes it does 

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/Mediterranean-cruises/istanbul-to-athens-NAU210826/?sr=%2Fcruise-finder%2F%23sailDates%3D2021|09%2C2021|08%23ships%3DNAU

 

https://www.oceaniacruises.com/Mediterranean-cruises/athens-to-rome-NAU210905/?sr=%2Fcruise-finder%2F%23sailDates%3D2021|09%2C2021|08%23ships%3DNAU

 

Oops -my mistake. I had only picked August 2021 in the search. Thanks for the correction.