Looking for Oceania Experienced Opinion

[REDSTRIPETYPE]

In 2018 we cruised the French Polynesia on Paul Gaugin and last week we just got off the Windstar Breeze after 20 days starting in Tahiti and ending in San Diego.

Was the best cruise ever (20 plus on Celebrity).  Best food and entertainment with outstanding service.

However two other guests told us that the food on Oceania is even better (hard to fathom) and Oceania has an itinerary we are interested in booking, however we have some questions.

 

The pictures in the brochure all show the men wearing sport jackets. Is that the norm? How formal is the environment onboard.

Past guests on this forum and the brochure talk about instrumental music etc. Is there a band that performs dance music such as classic Frank Sinatra, or popular dance tunes such as the Beatles etc?

 

Any other info about the crew, WIFI, laundry,  etc would be appreciated.

 

I guess in essence what I am asking is Oceania very formal overall like Crystal etc?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LHT28]

duplicate thread

[jeanine]

Welcome Onboard!  Dress code is called Country Club Casual! My husband does not bring or wear a sport jacket! Nice slacks and shiirt with a sweater in the evening. Up in Horizons a band plays dance music, laundry room with washers and dryers also ironing boards etc! We are going to Asia in November will be our 7th cruise with Oceania

[LHT28]

https://oceaniacruises.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/

[edgee]

20 minutes ago, jeanine said:

Welcome Onboard!  Dress code is called Country Club Casual! My husband does not bring or wear a sport jacket! Nice slacks and shiirt with a sweater in the evening. Up in Horizons a band plays dance music, laundry room with washers and dryers also ironing boards etc! We are going to Asia in November will be our 7th cruise with Oceania

Be aware that if you travel on Oceania's smaller ships, known as the "R" class, there is just one self service laundry room with a few machines. Also, on R ships beware of tiny tiny bathrooms unless you are in a PH or higher cabin. If you are on one of the larger newer ships (Riviera, Marina or the soon to be completed Vista) none of these issues I mentioned are a factor. Agree that no sport jacket is necessary on Oceania, although some men do choose to wear them, especially in the specialty restaurants.

[susiesan]

I have sailed on both Windstar and Oceania multiple times on both. I would rate the food even. Because O ships are larger and have more dining options you do have more choices. If all else is equal, cabin, itinerary, and price, I'd go with Windstar. But over the last 6 months Windstar has massively increased their prices so I doubt I will be sailing with them again.

[Sny]

Depending on your cabin choice, there is free laundry.  I think it's generally 3 bags per cruise.  I think this is for PH and larger.  Leave the sports coat at home - definitely not necessary.  Food is excellent.  If you like Asian fusion, as we do, book Red Ginger early and often.  Jacques is the only restaurant that I would describe as formal; but that better describes the attire of the waitstaff and the manner of service.

[kibutzer]

21 hours ago, REDSTRIPETYPE said:

In 2018 we cruised the French Polynesia on Paul Gaugin and last week we just got off the Windstar Breeze after 20 days starting in Tahiti and ending in San Diego.

Was the best cruise ever (20 plus on Celebrity).  Best food and entertainment with outstanding service.

However two other guests told us that the food on Oceania is even better (hard to fathom) and Oceania has an itinerary we are interested in booking, however we have some questions.

 

The pictures in the brochure all show the men wearing sport jackets. Is that the norm? How formal is the environment onboard.

Past guests on this forum and the brochure talk about instrumental music etc. Is there a band that performs dance music such as classic Frank Sinatra, or popular dance tunes such as the Beatles etc?

 

Any other info about the crew, WIFI, laundry,  etc would be appreciated.

 

I guess in essence what I am asking is Oceania very formal overall like Crystal etc?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Country club casual dress. No shorts, beachwear after 6 suggested. Love O but if you are a water person, think PG and Windstar are better choices.

[RJB]

On 5/1/2022 at 2:17 PM, edgee said:

Be aware that if you travel on Oceania's smaller ships, known as the "R" class, there is just one self service laundry room with a few machines. Also, on R ships beware of tiny tiny bathrooms unless you are in a PH or higher cabin. If you are on one of the larger newer ships (Riviera, Marina or the soon to be completed Vista) none of these issues I mentioned are a factor. Agree that no sport jacket is necessary on Oceania, although some men do choose to wear them, especially in the specialty restaurants.

+ 1

[ORV]

21 hours ago, kibutzer said:

Country club casual dress. No shorts, beachwear after 6 suggested. Love O but if you are a water person, think PG and Windstar are better choices.

 Hold you point me to the Oceania statement that says no shorts suggested after 6. 

[njhorseman]

22 hours ago, kibutzer said:

Country club casual dress. No shorts, beachwear after 6 suggested. Love O but if you are a water person, think PG and Windstar are better choices.

I most often wear shorts after 6 as long as I'm having dinner in the Terrace Cafe, where they are permitted. There's nothing in O's dress code that says you can't wear shorts after 6...you just can't wear them in the GDR  or the specialty restaurants.

[edgee]

1 hour ago, ORV said:

 Hold you point me to the Oceania statement that says no shorts suggested after 6. 

In terms of dining dress code, here is the language. 

 

"Recommended on board clothing is resort or country club casual. For evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested. We request that casual jeans, shorts, t-shirts, baseball caps, or tennis shoes not be worn in the restaurants after 6 PM. Baseball caps may be worn in the Terrace Café after 6 PM. "

[edgee]

1 hour ago, njhorseman said:

I most often wear shorts after 6 as long as I'm having dinner in the Terrace Cafe, where they are permitted. There's nothing in O's dress code that says you can't wear shorts after 6...you just can't wear them in the GDR  or the specialty restaurants.

 

Practically speaking I agree in terms of enforcement. However, in Q and A on O website, interesting that suggestion of no shorts in evening does not seem to differentiate between Terrace and other dining venues.

 

"Recommended on board clothing is resort or country club casual. For evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested. We request that casual jeans, shorts, t-shirts, baseball caps, or tennis shoes not be worn in the restaurants after 6 PM. Baseball caps may be worn in the Terrace Café after 6 PM." 

[ORV]

2 minutes ago, edgee said:

 

Practically speaking I agree in terms of enforcement. However, in Q and A on O website, interesting that suggestion of no shorts in evening does not seem to differentiate between Terrace and other dining venues.

 

"Recommended on board clothing is resort or country club casual. For evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested. We request that casual jeans, shorts, t-shirts, baseball caps, or tennis shoes not be worn in the restaurants after 6 PM. Baseball caps may be worn in the Terrace Café after 6 PM." 

Somewhere there is a statement that specifically says that shorts are allowed in Terrace. No where is there anything banning them after 6 as many lines do. If I went to a show I would wear slacks. If I were just hanging out around the pool area after 6 or eating in The Terrace there is no prohibition against shorts. 

[njhorseman]

12 hours ago, ORV said:

 Hold you point me to the Oceania statement that says no shorts suggested after 6. 

 

11 hours ago, njhorseman said:

I most often wear shorts after 6 as long as I'm having dinner in the Terrace Cafe, where they are permitted. There's nothing in O's dress code that says you can't wear shorts after 6...you just can't wear them in the GDR  or the specialty restaurants.

 

10 hours ago, edgee said:

In terms of dining dress code, here is the language. 

 

"Recommended on board clothing is resort or country club casual. For evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested. We request that casual jeans, shorts, t-shirts, baseball caps, or tennis shoes not be worn in the restaurants after 6 PM. Baseball caps may be worn in the Terrace Café after 6 PM. "

 

10 hours ago, edgee said:

 

Practically speaking I agree in terms of enforcement. However, in Q and A on O website, interesting that suggestion of no shorts in evening does not seem to differentiate between Terrace and other dining venues.

 

"Recommended on board clothing is resort or country club casual. For evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested. We request that casual jeans, shorts, t-shirts, baseball caps, or tennis shoes not be worn in the restaurants after 6 PM. Baseball caps may be worn in the Terrace Café after 6 PM." 

 

10 hours ago, ORV said:

Somewhere there is a statement that specifically says that shorts are allowed in Terrace. No where is there anything banning them after 6 as many lines do. If I went to a show I would wear slacks. If I were just hanging out around the pool area after 6 or eating in The Terrace there is no prohibition against shorts. 

Permitting shorts in the Terrace Cafe is not just a matter of enforcement.  It's part of the written dress code published in Currents . 

[edgee]

1 minute ago, njhorseman said:

 

 

 

 

Permitting shorts in the Terrace Cafe is not just a matter of enforcement.  It's part of the written dress code published in Currents . 

Oceania needs to update their Qs and As which should be consistent. Its especially weird that Q and As specifically state that ball caps are permitted in the Terrace in the evening but make no other differentiation between the Terrace and other restaurants.

[ToxM]

I saw shorts after 6 in the Terrace on Sirena (a transatlantic, where I think things were more relaxed anyway) and on Marina last week (which was port intensive). 

 

Personally I don’t have a problem with longish smart shorts there. I think I might raise an eyebrow in the GDR or a speciality. 

[Roccaforte]

They not only raise an eyebrow.  I’ve seen men turned away at the GDR for arriving in shorts.  This was on the Riviera.  

[LHT28]

4 hours ago, ToxM said:

I saw shorts after 6 in the Terrace on Sirena (a transatlantic, where I think things were more relaxed anyway) and on Marina last week (which was port intensive). 

 

Personally I don’t have a problem with longish smart shorts there. I think I might raise an eyebrow in the GDR or a speciality. 

maybe because shorts are allowed in the Terrace  anytime  even after 6pm  just not in the other dining venues

[rbtan]

This is on Riviera: No sport coat required, though some like us, bring one. Mostly for the specialties. Food is excellent. Generally more so in the specialty rest. Dress overall, is what is referred to country club casual...Nice shirt/slacks(no jeans at night, except in Terrace). Day time you'll see shorts etc. which is typical. Entertainment is pretty decent. We saw little of it on our Jan. cruise on Riviera due to covid among the staff. They generally have a string quartet roaming around the ship. You'll see this during tea time.

[rbtan]

On 5/1/2022 at 7:14 PM, Sny said:

Depending on your cabin choice, there is free laundry.  I think it's generally 3 bags per cruise.  I think this is for PH and larger.  Leave the sports coat at home - definitely not necessary.  Food is excellent.  If you like Asian fusion, as we do, book Red Ginger early and often.  Jacques is the only restaurant that I would describe as formal; but that better describes the attire of the waitstaff and the manner of service.

You get 3 bags as well for Concierge guests.

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, rbtan said:

They generally have a string quartet roaming around the ship. You'll see this during tea time.

Not seen the quartet Roaming around ...is this  a new thing?

 

Usually at Tea time then in the Grand bar in the evenings

[rbtan]

9 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Not seen the quartet Roaming around ...is this  a new thing?

 

Usually at Tea time then in the Grand bar in the evenings

Other places as well.

[sunlover12]

11 hours ago, LHT28 said:

Not seen the quartet Roaming around ...is this  a new thing?

 

Usually at Tea time then in the Grand bar in the evenings

They were performing in Martinis one evening when I was on the Regatta. 

[LHT28]

 usually they are out by the  shops  probably better in Martinis on the R ships