Unfortunate switch to Princess.

[Ken the cruiser]

32 minutes ago, dog said:

 

I'd like to do it but am booked on the Oceania Sirena Oct 2020 from Lisbon-Canaries-Morocco-Barcelona cruise.

 

That sounds like a pretty cool cruise too. We were on the Sirena last year and had a great time going around Cuba.

[need2cruisesoon]

Ken, hope you have a good cruise on the Grand.

I see you have been on other Grand Class ships so you know what to expect.

 

I was on the Grand a couple years back and just not a fan, 7 days was a stretch for me on this ship.

[Mura]

Has this thread turned into Princess from Oceania?

 

I CAN see how it migrated given the topic title ...

 

Mura

[1985rz1]

44 minutes ago, Mura said:

Has this thread turned into Princess from Oceania?

 

I CAN see how it migrated given the topic title ...

 

Mura

Agree.  This is not about not Princess ships or cruises.

[Go-Bucks!]

1 hour ago, need2cruisesoon said:

I was on the Grand a couple years back and just not a fan, 7 days was a stretch for me on this ship.

 

While I was sailing on the Grand in December, 2015, there was a fire that destroyed the port side engines as we neared Hilo, Hawaii. It was pretty scary until they got the fire out...plus my area of the ship had no electricity for 12 hrs.

 

A year or two later, one of the tender doors fell outward (toward the sea) and the ship started taking on water.

 

After these incidents, this is the only Princess ship I won't sail on again...JMHO.

Edited September 19, 2019 by Go-Bucks!

[need2cruisesoon]

16 minutes ago, Go-Bucks! said:

 

While I was sailing on the Grand in December, 2015, there was a fire that destroyed the port side engines as we neared Hilo, Hawaii. It was pretty scary until they got the fire out...plus my area of the ship had no electricity for 12 hrs.

 

A year or two later, one of the tender doors fell outward (toward the sea) and the ship started taking on water.

 

After these incidents, this is the only Princess ship I won't sail on again...JMHO.

 

Hear you, I remember that.

 

We had plumbing issues on our cruise (see photo) water buckets every where to catch water drips on aft roped off.

[dog]

8 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

9 hours ago, Mura said:

Has this thread turned into Princess from Oceania?

 

I CAN see how it migrated given the topic title ...

 

Mura

 

8 hours ago, Go-Bucks! said:

 

While I was sailing on the Grand in December, 2015, there was a fire that destroyed the port side engines as we neared Hilo, Hawaii. It was pretty scary until they got the fire out...plus my area of the ship had no electricity for 12 hrs.

 

A year or two later, one of the tender doors fell outward (toward the sea) and the ship started taking on water.

 

After these incidents, this is the only Princess ship I won't sail on again...JMHO.

A fire would be scary!

8 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

Agree.  This is not about not Princess ships or cruises.

The OP, started this thread titled "UNFORTUNATE SWITCH TO PRINCESS", in the OCEANIA FORUM, and that is why members are discussing the 3 sister Princess ships: STAR, GRAND & GOLDEN.

 

[dog]

10 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

That sounds like a pretty cool cruise too. We were on the Sirena last year and had a great time going around Cuba.

 

I am new to Oceania and have my research to do. I'm very impressed by the video recently posted in this forum. I chose my Oct 2020 cruise on the Sirena for the ports. Did not wish to embark in Southampton with fewer ports, so this is ideal. My first time in Lisbon too.

Edited September 19, 2019 by dog

[Mura]

2 hours ago, dog said:

A fire would be scary!

The OP, started this thread titled "UNFORTUNATE SWITCH TO PRINCESS", in the OCEANIA FORUM, and that is why members are discussing the 3 sister Princess ships: STAR, GRAND & GOLDEN.

 

As I referenced in my post I was well aware how the thread started and of course SOME discussion would be had of the merits (or lack thereof) of Princess cruises.  What I was trying to get at in my comment was that suddenly there was a very detailed discussion of various ships, restaurants and the like.  I myself have been guilty at times of digressing from  the subject matter of a thread -- as have most of us, I think.  It can happen quite easily.

 

But it really did feel like we were now a Princess board, not an Oceania board.

[Ken the cruiser]

2 hours ago, dog said:

 

I am new to Oceania and have my research to do. I'm very impressed by the video recently posted in this forum. I chose my Oct 2020 cruise on the Sirena for the ports. Did not wish to embark in Southampton with fewer ports, so this is ideal. My first time in Lisbon too.

We usually book one of the aft-facing veranda cabins when we're on one of their R ships. We also very much enjoy eating outside up on the Terrace Café (their buffet). Great food too!! You'll have a great time!

[dog]

15 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We usually book one of the aft-facing veranda cabins when we're on one of their R ships. We also very much enjoy eating outside up on the Terrace Café (their buffet). Great food too!! You'll have a great time!

 

I booked a  concierge VE3 for my cruise on the Sirena. I have quite a few trips planned before this one so have not spent any time on the Oceania board until this thread.

 

I value the input of everyone who posted and am learning quite a bit re: Oceania vs Princess Grand class ships, which is the reason the OP started this thread. Since the OP mentions he is a "foodie", restaurant details seem relevant in this thread.

 

I am looking forward to trying the wonderful food options on Sirena. Thanks, Ken the cruiser.

dog

[keithm]

On ‎9‎/‎19‎/‎2019 at 7:51 AM, dog said:

A fire would be scary!

The OP, started this thread titled "UNFORTUNATE SWITCH TO PRINCESS", in the OCEANIA FORUM, and that is why members are discussing the 3 sister Princess ships: STAR, GRAND & GOLDEN.

 

Yeah. What happened? I started it as a lament of having to switch to Princess(my spouse's choice)I totally know the differences between the lines. A cruise is what you make of it, but overall I know the Star will in no way come close to the ambience & style of the Riviera. There's always the next time, however!

[dog]

Maybe they expected it to be posted on the Princess board?

 

Anyway, I'm sure you and your spouse will make the best of it. Enjoy your cruise.

 

[dog]

On 9/9/2019 at 8:28 PM, Go-Bucks! said:

No, Princess isn't in the same class as O but it doesn't mean that it's like staying in a Motel 6 and eating at Golden Corral either.  😉

 

I've had 8 cruises on Princess, all in minisuites or full suites, with a 2 month long one coming up this January/February. I've enjoyed them all but I'm not a foodie or a high maintenance person. Service has always been great and the food very good, IMO.  I've also spent quite a bit of time on O recently but am still looking forward to my upcoming Princess cruise. 

 

I liked the Club Class extra food choices but they weren't so good that I'd pay extra for them (I was in a full suite so didn't pay extra). What I did like was that we could show up anytime and never wait...but that wouldn't be worth paying extra for, in my estimation. 

 

Some people complain of "nickel and diming", but no one harasses you to purchase anything. Because the cruisefare is much cheaper than O fares, it's obvious that not as many "perks" are included...but with a cheaper fare you can afford to buy things such as a coffee card (for lattes, cappuccinos, and other special items) or a soda card. I think full suites are a good deal because they include many of the perks that others must pay separately for.

 

Personally, I think a cruise is what you make it...so go with a positive attitude and don't compare it to O because they won't be the same, although you can have a great time on either. I hope you enjoy your vacation and the lovely Hawaiian islands!  😎

 

Excellent post! Great advice!

Isn't it wonderful to be able to share first hand experiences with cc members. I am not the OP, but am learning a lot from the variety of comments in this thread, which really started out as

 

[Gnoelj]

On 9/11/2019 at 12:04 AM, JPR said:

Princess (as opposed to Oceania) should at least be a great cruise if you’re trying to lose some weight!

 

We have been on Oceania several times, and Princess once. Sure, the cuisine on Oceania may be somewhat better, but our Princess cruise was not so bad. We remembered, the quality of the food improved towards the end of the cruise. That was quite curious. In the buffet,  the cruise ship buffet had mountain-loads of smoked salmon (dare we say, it was better than in Oceania, where the smoked salmon sometimes looked as if they had been in the fridge/freezer for too long and looked a bit "discoloured" and did not taste that fresh - we had to ask them to be changed) and huge amounts of Super-Duper KIng sized prawns  The only thing which we found strange on Princess (Regal Princess) was the poor quality of their pastry - both for savoury and sweet dishes - they tasted like cardboard! The cakes, pastries and desserts on Oceania were definitely superior, but then, we did not pile on so many calories on Princess as we did on Oceania !!!  Dare we say, we found the shows on our Princess cruise was actually BETTER than on any of our Oceania cruises. 

 

So, there are many things which Oceania does better , or very well, but Princess is not that bad. You will enjoy the cruise. Besides, your hubby will be happy because the $$$$ money he would have saved on a Princess cruise!!!

 

PS: We have been on  8 cruise lines/companies. On almost every cruise with different cruise lines, they were of varying degrees of quality, but we never actually starved or felt the food wanting. The only exception perhaps was on the P&O Ventura, when one of us actually LOST WEIGHT after the cruise because the food was that poor. (These days, whenever we read on the CruiseCritics.com board under P&O and someone described themselves as "foodies", it made us grinned !!!) 

Edited September 23, 2019 by Gnoelj

[Gnoelj]

3 hours ago, Gnoelj said:

 

 

So, there are many things which Oceania does better , or very well, but Princess is not that bad. You will enjoy the cruise. Besides, your hubby will be happy because the $$$$ money he would have saved on a Princess cruise!!!

 

 

 

When I said that, I was referring to keithm rather than JPR. Apologies .

[keithm]

22 hours ago, Gnoelj said:

 

We have been on Oceania several times, and Princess once. Sure, the cuisine on Oceania may be somewhat better, but our Princess cruise was not so bad. We remembered, the quality of the food improved towards the end of the cruise. That was quite curious. In the buffet,  the cruise ship buffet had mountain-loads of smoked salmon (dare we say, it was better than in Oceania, where the smoked salmon sometimes looked as if they had been in the fridge/freezer for too long and looked a bit "discoloured" and did not taste that fresh - we had to ask them to be changed) and huge amounts of Super-Duper KIng sized prawns  The only thing which we found strange on Princess (Regal Princess) was the poor quality of their pastry - both for savoury and sweet dishes - they tasted like cardboard! The cakes, pastries and desserts on Oceania were definitely superior, but then, we did not pile on so many calories on Princess as we did on Oceania !!!  Dare we say, we found the shows on our Princess cruise was actually BETTER than on any of our Oceania cruises. 

 

So, there are many things which Oceania does better , or very well, but Princess is not that bad. You will enjoy the cruise. Besides, your hubby will be happy because the $$$$ money he would have saved on a Princess cruise!!!

 

PS: We have been on  8 cruise lines/companies. On almost every cruise with different cruise lines, they were of varying degrees of quality, but we never actually starved or felt the food wanting. The only exception perhaps was on the P&O Ventura, when one of us actually LOST WEIGHT after the cruise because the food was that poor. (These days, whenever we read on the CruiseCritics.com board under P&O and someone described themselves as "foodies", it made us grinned !!!) 

We're doing a Club Balcony. So we're really saving very little money. The pastry/desserts on Princess is bought from the likes from Sysco/US Foods. We thought the desserts to be really poor on Princess, exception were the Norman Love desserts. He forced them to use decent ingredients, in order for his name to be attached.

Edited September 24, 2019 by keithm
additions

[Gnoelj]

On 9/24/2019 at 11:10 AM, keithm said:

We're doing a Club Balcony. So we're really saving very little money. The pastry/desserts on Princess is bought from the likes from Sysco/US Foods. We thought the desserts to be really poor on Princess, exception were the Norman Love desserts. He forced them to use decent ingredients, in order for his name to be attached.

 

 

Sorry to hear you did not "enjoy" the desserts on Princess. Once in a while, when their pistachio bavarois come out in their buffet restaurant, it is quite nice, but I would agree with you the quality of the desserts are nothing compared to Oceania.

 

If desserts and pastries are important to you, apart from Oceania, Viking Ocean Cruises do sometimes have good quality desserts and pastries.

 

They have a eatery called Mamsens, their : Suksessterte (success cake) Fyrstekake (prince's cake) and waffles, are quite amazing....dare I say , the quality is comparable to those yummy things you find for afternoon tea on Oceania.

 

For me, Oceania especially on the Riviera and Marina , they have the best specialty restaurants. The cuisine in the speciality restaurants on Viking Ocean, in our view, were not as enjoyable as those on Oceania.

Edited September 25, 2019 by Gnoelj

[keithm]

On ‎9‎/‎25‎/‎2019 at 8:51 AM, Gnoelj said:

 

 

Sorry to hear you did not "enjoy" the desserts on Princess. Once in a while, when their pistachio bavarois come out in their buffet restaurant, it is quite nice, but I would agree with you the quality of the desserts are nothing compared to Oceania.

 

If desserts and pastries are important to you, apart from Oceania, Viking Ocean Cruises do sometimes have good quality desserts and pastries.

 

They have a eatery called Mamsens, their : Suksessterte (success cake) Fyrstekake (prince's cake) and waffles, are quite amazing....dare I say , the quality is comparable to those yummy things you find for afternoon tea on Oceania.

 

For me, Oceania especially on the Riviera and Marina , they have the best specialty restaurants. The cuisine in the speciality restaurants on Viking Ocean, in our view, were not as enjoyable as those on Oceania.

Really enjoyed the Riviera. I pretty much think we'll be back next year. 

[stevenr597]

We are booked on both Oceania and Princess.  Both lines are different, and we enjoy them in different ways.