Considering Oceania, how does it compare with Celebrity?

[Hawaiidan]

6 hours ago, Queen of DaNile said:

 I haven't been on Celebity in 15 years since I was trying to decide between the 2 lines to use for South America. Upon competion of the Celebrity cruise I cancelled the one I had booked, went with Oceania and never went back. The Oceania experience is more intimate, quiet and comes with fabulous food and great itineraries.

I would agree....... I took 2 Celeb cruises and found then "engertic" and  filled with all sorts of party activities  The food was ok,  But what I  did not like,  was being on a HUGE ship of 3000 with a crew of over 1000 and it seemed like being in Las Vegas at a strip casino.     Bustling  with activity......   and two major factors...

 

First was the ship promoted a multi-class system among passengers  and Second  everything from juices to specialty meals was extra..... everything had a little price tacked to it. 

Oceania,  when I tried it, was a  100% the opposite.      First.... no class system.. everybody out of their cabin was treated the same    and Second    Everything was included but liquor..     Rather than non stop entertainment and hub-bub  people engaged in conversation and dining with others was the entertainment  .   People seemed lower key and more relaxed.  People were more well mannered and considerate of others and the ship had only 1/4 of the Celeb passengers...  ( That was more than worth it to me.. no lines no waiting....)   I felt  on Celeb that I was on a floating ant farm... you could not get away from the roar of the crowd.

In summary, I would say Celeb was like a vacation at  combination of Club-med and a Vegas  hotel/casino... Whereas, Oceania   seemed like a Wine country spa/ hotel  where ambiance and cuisine was the focus.

  

It all depends on what YOU want as  the two are different animals with a totaly different focus and and demographic market      Celeb focus on the 21- 45  age and Oceania  seemed to focus on those over 50, eho were retired and wanted a serene and romantic  ocean experience with no distractions. 

 

Thats my take after 30 days on Celeb and  some 140 days on O.......   Which for me is the fit  I am no longer 21 on spring break..     

Edited September 6, 2020 by Hawaiidan

[Kate-AHF]

1 hour ago, Ken the cruiser said:

One advantage O has over X is their longer itineraries. So if you like to go on 3-5 week cruises, O definitely has some cool itineraries to explore. They also give you a nice 5% discount off the cruise fare, at least they used to, when you hook cruises together. X gives you $100 if you hook 2 cruises together. 

 

I also have to admit there is nothing better than eating outside on an O ship up at the Terrace Cafe, especially when it's a little chilly and everyone is inside. 

 

I think this is an  important point.  One of the reasons we seem to keep booking with Oceania are the ports, and the ability to cobble together some really wonderful cruises at length on B2B's.  O ships don't tend to have a "route" for the season (except for, maybe, Alaska).  They aren't doing the same 7 or 10 days in the same ports, rinse and repeat.

[wishuponasea]

Thank you all for your responses! Right now Any cruise is just a dream, but we are hoping for better days. We are enjoying comparing cruises/ports/prices after a too long of a respite....and making lists. Stay well!

[Redtravel]

I am elite plus on Celebrity.  After taking many Celebrity cruises, we got tired of it. There were too many cutbacks.  Food was boring.  Hated the a Buffet. Too many people really was getting crowded. We looked for smaller ships with mostly adults...and better food.  We moved on to Azamara, Windstar, and Oceania. All are good.  Favorite is Windstar. Oceania is an excellent choice.  Once you try Oceania, you will be amazed at the difference. Oceania has best food.  All specialty restaurants are complimentary. No crowds.  Service is fabulous.  Ships are beautiful.  We still sail once in awhile on Celebrity with family and friends. It is not our first choice.  Oceania costs more and is worth it.

[kitty9]

We got tired of having to circle the buffet day after day hunting for a table, be it breakfast or lunch on Celebrity.  We are Elite Plus, but after giving O a try, we haven't gone back.  We also really disliked Luminae.  We thought the food was just barely OK and many of the items were downright unappetizing.  And all they seemed to do was put fancy names on basic foods. We also didn't like that the menu in there for breakfast and lunch didn't change.  It was the same thing every single day.

[cindygad]

We are elite on Celebrity. We have noticed a decline in alot of areas the last few years. We gave Oceania a try in Feb to South America. We ended up having 8 extra days due to virus hitting. We had to travel from South America to Miami to deport. We attribute the care to details as to why our ship remained virus free.

 

What I liked better was definitely the food. We ate in dining room for almost all meals except for about 12 meals in specialty dining. We had a window room and were able to get a reservation in each of four specialty restaurants, We found it very easy to get more reservations if we down and checked in morning. We found the food better in all venues. We have cruised since 1979 and I agree Oceania is like Celebrity was in past.

 

We are dancers and found the big band and 2 other smaller bands much better on Oceania. We have been un happy on Celebrity you will be listening or dancing in area and then after 40 min nothing would be going on in lounge. On Oceania in 15 min another band will set up and play. We do not go to other entertainment so I can not compare.

 

We always plan ahead and due our own excursions. We did feel the online board or roll call was not as active as Celebrity.

 

liked that we had internet free when we booked our cruise for one person at a time.

 

We booked our flight through cruise line and did not like 150 deviation fee a person because we went 4 days early.

 

The price is more than Celebrity but feel the service, food make up for it and have a cruise for Oct scheduled 2021 if that happens will look forward to cruising with Oceania.

 

On our extended cruise of 8 days to get to a port that would except us we were treated with professionalism in all areas.

[Hawaiidan]

5 hours ago, cindygad said:

The price is more than Celebrity but feel the service, food make up for it and have a cruise for Oct scheduled 2021 if that happens will look forward to cruising with Oceania

 

An old adage applies   you get  what you pay for... I am willing to pay a bit more and getting so much more.

 

[ABoatNerd]

On 9/9/2020 at 4:27 PM, kitty9 said:

We got tired of having to circle the buffet day after day hunting for a table, be it breakfast or lunch on Celebrity.  We are Elite Plus, but after giving O a try, we haven't gone back.  We also really disliked Luminae.  We thought the food was just barely OK and many of the items were downright unappetizing.  And all they seemed to do was put fancy names on basic foods. We also didn't like that the menu in there for breakfast and lunch didn't change.  It was the same thing every single day.

 

kitty9, agree with your observation about the Celebrity suite restaurant.

 

It is amazing the number of Celebrity patrons who rave about this suite class only venue - it is way over rated. We did it once and not again, the food is limited, heavy, sauced and the hamburger is frankly gross. Tack on the over the top pricing for suite class on Celebrity - makes it easy to move from Celebrity to the premium cruise lines.

 

In the past Celebrity was a premium offering, they chose to downgrade the line, so now Oceania/Viking/Azamara are the Celebrity of the past.

 

A key item is the increasing Celebrity elimination of the sea - their ships are increasingly getting rid of the traditional forward viewing area etc. 

[st5310]

So, ABoatNerd, you ate at Luminae once and came to all those conclusions after that one time? 

[Classiccruiser777]

On Oceania unlimited lobster tails, prawns, steaks, chops grilled to order every night in the Terrace Cafe: 

[Kate-AHF]

10 hours ago, st5310 said:

So, ABoatNerd, you ate at Luminae once and came to all those conclusions after that one time? 

 

That wasn't my take on the post.  My take was they cruised in the Celebrity suite class for one sailing (once), and came to the conclusion it wasn't for them.

 

And one can hardly them them - one bad experience does not usually result on a second try in cruising.

[st5310]

12 hours ago, Kate-AHF said:

 

That wasn't my take on the post.  My take was they cruised in the Celebrity suite class for one sailing (once), and came to the conclusion it wasn't for them.

 

And one can hardly them them - one bad experience does not usually result on a second try in cruising.

Yes, that could be.  And I agree that a bad experience in a ship's restaurant probably will not warrant a second try.  What's the old adage... you get only one chance to make a first impression. 

 

In the case of Luminae, however, our experience has always been extraordinarily good; I do not recall "heavy sauces," or "gross" hamburgers.  It's true that the Luminae menu is limited, but you can also order off the main dining room menu, which we have done many times.  Luminae is smaller, quieter, and less frenetic and we dine there almost every night.   

[ORV]

3 hours ago, st5310 said:

Yes, that could be.  And I agree that a bad experience in a ship's restaurant probably will not warrant a second try.  What's the old adage... you get only one chance to make a first impression. 

 

In the case of Luminae, however, our experience has always been extraordinarily good; I do not recall "heavy sauces," or "gross" hamburgers.  It's true that the Luminae menu is limited, but you can also order off the main dining room menu, which we have done many times.  Luminae is smaller, quieter, and less frenetic and we dine there almost every night.   

Of course some posters accounts you can take to the bank. Some you have to take with a grain of salt, or perhaps a shaker. If you have seen the regular history on this board in the last 10 years or so then it makes it easier. 

[Doubt It]

3 hours ago, st5310 said:

Yes, that could be.  And I agree that a bad experience in a ship's restaurant probably will not warrant a second try.  What's the old adage... you get only one chance to make a first impression. 

 

In the case of Luminae, however, our experience has always been extraordinarily good; I do not recall "heavy sauces," or "gross" hamburgers.  It's true that the Luminae menu is limited, but you can also order off the main dining room menu, which we have done many times.  Luminae is smaller, quieter, and less frenetic and we dine there almost every night.   

 

Thank you st5310, for your comment.

The point is, I am not paying suite prices to order off the MDR menu on a routine basis. The Luminae menu is limited and heavy with meat and the hamburger is very, very dense, not sufficient juice to really savour.

 

Guess it depends what one is looking for in food - love California and Med cuisine with meat and carbs and fab tastes and colour etc. Did not get that in Luminae, so no more.

 

Oceania had a way better and more varied menu that allowed more customization - but at a very high price price.

 

Rather just cook at home or go to the many restaurants in my region - way better food at a much better price.

 

[st5310]

2 minutes ago, Doubt It said:

 

Thank you st5310, for your comment.

The point is, I am not paying suite prices to order off the MDR menu on a routine basis. The Luminae menu is limited and heavy with meat and the hamburger is very, very dense, not sufficient juice to really savour.

 

Guess it depends what one is looking for in food - love California and Med cuisine with meat and carbs and fab tastes and colour etc. Did not get that in Luminae, so no more.

 

Oceania had a way better and more varied menu that allowed more customization - but at a very high price price.

 

Rather just cook at home or go to the many restaurants in my region - way better food at a much better price.

 

I read you loud and clear, Doubt It, but I must ask... if you'd rather cook at home or dine out locally, why go on a cruise at all?  For me a major perk of cruising is that I DON'T have to cook.  Or clean up.  And I can eat dishes I would not normally make at home.  The price of a suite on Celebrity covers a lot more than just Luminae.  And I do think it's worth it. 

[AnnemarieC76]

Than you for starting this post!  We have recently been cruising on Celebrity and today I just booked an Oceania cruise for June 2021 for our honeymoon!  I am so excited - we love Celebrity but felt like we wanted to try something different - from what I am reading we will not be disappointed   

[Aloha 1]

We are Elite with Princess and started sailing with them when they were NOT part of Carnival. Experience totally changed after that and not for the better. First sailing on X was on the old Horizon when Michel Roux was the Executive Chef. Food and service then were top shelf. We are also Elite+  on X but until Luminae came along, they couldn't hold a candle to O's food. In 2014 we took our first O cruise and never looked back. Amazing food( blows away Luminae), wonderful cabins, and a nice relaxed atmosphere. Also, O is more port intensive so if your goal is to actually see the world and not just your cabin, O is the choice.

 

A caveat, we prefer the O class ships, Marina and Riviera, over the former Renaissance Cruises ships ( the R class). More room, more dining options, roughly the same size as the Millennium Class on X but with half the passengers. Give it a try. Only you can determine if it's for you but you'll never know if don't try it.

[Hawaiidan]

51 minutes ago, st5310 said:

I read you loud and clear, Doubt It, but I must ask... if you'd rather cook at home or dine out locally, why go on a cruise at all?  For me a major perk of cruising is that I DON'T have to cook.  Or clean up.  And I can eat dishes I would not normally make at home.  The price of a suite on Celebrity covers a lot more than just Luminae.  And I do think it's worth it. 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder....as they say   What the price of Celebrity, at any level can not compensate for is the massive size of the ship and the general mass of people you have to endure,  unless yo stay in your cabin.   For me its the overt class system of "us and them" ... and you pay to keep the others at bay....   Not for me.. some may want that..that is why they offer it

[ldubs]

On 9/5/2020 at 8:47 PM, alcpa1 said:

We have accumulated status on Celebrity after leaving RCI (with status too) so we are probably aware of the differences.

Oceania has two classes of ships. The smaller vessels are R class with about 690 passengers. The two larger ships carry 1250. Both sizes are easy to maneuver. The R class ships, up to the penthouse category have smaller cabins with even smaller bathrooms than any Celebrity ship. Storage is good however and the cabins are comfy. On a Med cruise you won't have much cabin time anyway if you are on a R class ship.

The cuisine is, for the most part, better than Celebrity and far better than RCI. There are a few hits and misses but you can have that on any cruise. On the larger ships you have 4 specialty restaurants with bookings staggered depending on your cabin class. Restaurant bookings begin about 90 days before sailing for suites and then concierge levels and so on. Once onboard you can request additional bookings if available. The R class ships have a couple of specialty restaurants. The Terrace Cafe is an open seating venue that once upon a time was buffet style. On our February cruise food was served by staff at each station. I presume this will continue. There is also a outdoor grill with more than burgers and dogs. 

Because we are itinerary driven cruisers, and older ones at that, we appreciate the ambiance of Oceania. We will continue to book Celebrity and Azamara (all three ships are the same R class) and Oceania, of course.

 

Good info.  On the larger ships is it difficult to book the specialty restnts once on board?  

[ldubs]

On 9/6/2020 at 7:04 AM, ORV said:

 And yes, Celebrity is quite the party atmosphere compared to Oceania .

 

That is hard to imagine. And, I'm far from a party hound.  But, I might forget myself and laugh out loud!  😄😄😄

[TrulyBlonde]

44 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

That is hard to imagine. And, I'm far from a party hound.  But, I might forget myself and laugh out loud!  😄😄😄

With Celebrity, it all depends on the itinerary. NO for the islands. However, we did an Asia cruise with them, Australia and New Zealand, all longer itineraries.  The clientele on those cruises is similar to O, but maybe with a bit more energy 😉   Not a party animal either. However, we do cruise in Suite Class only with them. 

As for Luminae, we enjoy the quiet breakfast and nice lunch. We typically go to the specialty restaurants on board for dinner and pay the additional fee. Of course, when in a top Suite, they are free.

[ldubs]

54 minutes ago, TrulyBlonde said:

With Celebrity, it all depends on the itinerary. NO for the islands. However, we did an Asia cruise with them, Australia and New Zealand, all longer itineraries.  The clientele on those cruises is similar to O, but maybe with a bit more energy 😉   Not a party animal either. However, we do cruise in Suite Class only with them. 

As for Luminae, we enjoy the quiet breakfast and nice lunch. We typically go to the specialty restaurants on board for dinner and pay the additional fee. Of course, when in a top Suite, they are free.

 

We have done very few, but I suspect that Caribbean cruises are more boisterous across the board.  

 

While I've read about it a lot, we have yet to experience Luminae.  Sounds nice.   

[st5310]

3 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder....as they say   What the price of Celebrity, at any level can not compensate for is the massive size of the ship and the general mass of people you have to endure,  unless yo stay in your cabin.   For me its the overt class system of "us and them" ... and you pay to keep the others at bay....   Not for me.. some may want that..that is why they offer it

I'm confused.  You're criticizing the size of the Celebrity ships and complaining about the "general mass of people you have to endure," then in the next breath complaining about "us versus them" and paying to "keep others at bay" that you state is not for you.  This makes no sense.

[kitty9]

We have done more than 35 cruises on X, all in suites, and were assigned Luminae when they first opened that option.  Before that, we always dined in their specialty restaurants such as SS United States, Normandie, Ocean Liners and Murano.  All were outstanding, probably the best at sea, at the time.  But when they transitioned and got rid of those venues (on deck 3, if I remember correctly, on the M class ships), we were assigned Luminae and really didn’t care for it at all.  The food, and section, wasn’t nearly as good.  And like Blu, the tables were so close together.

 

Aboatnerd, I completely agree that the hamburger was truly bad. The meat was very greasy and there was a flavor that was really nasty. 

[wishuponasea]

Thank you all for your impressions. Stay Well.