Insignia review -- Iceland/Greenland/Canada

[DavisFLSt8]

Thank you for the detailed reviews. We will be doing our first O cruise (only our 2nd cruise in 19 years) departing from Barbados on Insignia. I appreciate the time and detail provide. We are looking forward to our trip.

[cruisemom42]

3 hours ago, taylortime05 said:

Did you enjoy the evening entertainment?  I usually prefer the smaller venues over the large production shows.  

 

What others have said is largely true. There is one 9:30 show that may be a very small production with the ship's singer-dancers, or may be a guest performer -- we had singers, a musician and a comedian. Other than that there is piano music in the main bar (Martini's) and up until 9:30 there is a string quartet playing in the main atrium area.

 

It was not extremely lively but it was enough to keep me happy on port days when due to excursions most (including me) were rather tired. On an itinerary with lots of sea days, it might seem a bit tame and lacking in variety. However, that's a trade-off of most small ships and my love of a good itinerary and smaller ships trumps the need for glitzy entertainment.

[deck chair]

11 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

What others have said is largely true. There is one 9:30 show that may be a very small production with the ship's singer-dancers, or may be a guest performer -- we had singers, a musician and a comedian. Other than that there is piano music in the main bar (Martini's) and up until 9:30 there is a string quartet playing in the main atrium area.

 

It was not extremely lively but it was enough to keep me happy on port days when due to excursions most (including me) were rather tired. On an itinerary with lots of sea days, it might seem a bit tame and lacking in variety. However, that's a trade-off of most small ships and my love of a good itinerary and smaller ships trumps the need for glitzy entertainment.

Hi Cruisemom42.  I understand the tradeoffs. I am only wondering about the playing times for the pianist in Martinis.  On SiRENA in January it was a dead zone from 7;15-10.  Do you have any idea since you just returned from the Insignia?  Thank you.

Deck Chair

Edited September 5, 2023 by deck chair

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, deck chair said:

Hi Cruisemom42.  I understand the tradeoffs. I am only wondering about the playing times for the pianist in Martinis.  On SiRENA in January it was a dead zone from 7;15-10.  Do you have any idea since you just returned from the Insignia?  Thank you.

Deck Chair

 

Sorry, I don't recall. If I was on the main floor pre-dinner, I was listening to the string quartet. And I didn't save any of the Currents. 

 

Maybe you could ask someone like @bradpole who is currently aboard Insignia to look at a current Current (ha!) and respond. See this thread:

 

 

Edited September 5, 2023 by cruisemom42

[Nashna]

On 9/1/2023 at 4:53 PM, cruisemom42 said:

 

In four Greenland ports I booked tours in two of them. One of the ports we skipped (Nuuk) -- here I'd booked a whale-watching boat excursion. The other excursion I booked was in Qaqortoq to the Viking ruins at Hvalsey Church, which also involved a short boat ride and a walk to the site. The latter was the most important to me as the main reason for my interest in Greenland is the period of Viking settlement there between around 1000-1500 AD. The other two ports offered enough opportunity simply by walking around the small village area near the port -- there were a couple of museums that included some old buildings that 

had been moved, restored and were full of interesting if somewhat quixotic historic items and memorabilia.

 

Do not depend on making independent arrangements in the Greenland ports. When ships arrive, they tend to suck up all of the available resources locally. I looked for nearly half a year for some kind of independent tour to the Hvalsey Church site but couldn't find anything suitable.

 

The library -- well, a bit of a loaded question for me. I depend mostly on my Kindle for reading material when I travel as I like to have a variety of choices available that often aren't met in the kinds of higgledy-piggledy small libraries on ships. However, I did browse the library on Insignia and there appeared to be quite a large variety of materials from recent novels to biographies and history and yes, some guides.

 

It was a bit cool and windy for me on deck when at sea. On days when we did scenic cruising, I would sit somewhere with a view out and then pop out to take photos when we approached areas of interest. As we moved farther south, there were a couple of days (when in port) when some people were sitting around the pool area and enjoying the sun (which was appreciated after a series of cloudy, showery days).

 

In Iceland and Greenland, the daily highs were in the mid 50's. This crept higher as we moved south. I believe in Bar Harbor, our last port and a sunny day, it may have reached the low 70s. At night the lows got as low as the low 40s in the early part of the cruise.

 

Clothing -- I tried to bring a little of everything, since the weather in that part of the world is hard to predict. Most useful items were my rain shell with hood. It is unlined but on cooler days I would wear a sweater or fleece as a second layer underneath it. Pants that are made of material that dries quickly worked better for me than rain pants. Avoid pants that are heavy when wet like jeans or terry/fleece. My trusty silk underwear was also utilized, especially on the two occasions I was on a small boat on the water. Some said to bring mosquito netting (for the annoying small flies/gnats in Greenland in particular) but I never encountered them. I also recommend a pair of gloves and a scarf of some kind. Be careful with a hat as the wind can be strong -- on one boat tour saw a man's hat sail off into the water.

 

The ports I enjoyed most: the two-plus days I spent in Reykjavik ahead of the cruise were great. The Qaqortoq and St. Anthony stops for the Viking ruins. And Heimaey Island was a surprise -- very pretty island with an interesting story (it's where there was a volcanic eruption in the 1970s that destroyed about half the town).  And they have puffins!  😆🐧

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions.  Your answers were very helpful.  We were also considering the Whale Watching in Nuuk.  Since we have so many sea days, we hope to make that port.  I like your suggestions on clothing.  Many have said they used rain pants, but I'm not a fan.  Our first segment begins in NYC and the second ends in Copenhagen.  Normally, I don't stress about packing.  However, the various climates in this itinerary force me to seriously consider what to pack.  

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Enjoyed your thoughts and your very comprehensive review.  We will be trying O in October, on the Marina, and you filled in some gaps in my understanding, and certainly helped with adjusting expectations.  I appreciate you taking the time to share your cruise thoughts.

 

Joanie

[FeliciaLee]

49 minutes ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

Enjoyed your thoughts and your very comprehensive review.  We will be trying O in October, on the Marina, and you filled in some gaps in my understanding, and certainly helped with adjusting expectations.  I appreciate you taking the time to share your cruise thoughts.

 

Joanie

As someone who has appreciated your cruise review posts many times, I'll just add my little bit of an opinion and hope it helps you, since your posts have helped me so much.

 

Oceania was a lot like Regent for us, minus the alcohol and excursions. We liked the food and cabins better on Regent, but the super friendly passengers and crew better on Oceania.

[sunlover12]

3 hours ago, deck chair said:

Hi Cruisemom42.  I understand the tradeoffs. I am only wondering about the playing times for the pianist in Martinis.  On SiRENA in January it was a dead zone from 7;15-10.  Do you have any idea since you just returned from the Insignia?  Thank you.

Deck Chair

Generally speaking, there is no live music from 7:00 - 9:30. I can't speak about Insignia but I was just on Nautica.  The majority of passengers are eating dinner at this time so it wouldn't be worthwhile for the pianist to be playing in Martinis or for any other live music being played. 

[cruisemom42]

45 minutes ago, sunlover12 said:

Generally speaking, there is no live music from 7:00 - 9:30. I can't speak about Insignia but I was just on Nautica.  The majority of passengers are eating dinner at this time so it wouldn't be worthwhile for the pianist to be playing in Martinis or for any other live music being played. 

 

I don't think that was true on Insignia's previous cruise.

 

Edited to add:  Ah, I found a Current stashed away with a few other papers. 

 

Okay, the times varied a little day by day from what I recall, but here is the schedule for the one Current I found:

 

The pianist played sets in Martini's from 5:00 to 5:45; 6:00 to 6:45; 8:15 to 9:00 pm; and 10:15-11:15 pm.

 

The string quartet played sets from 7:45 to 8:30 and from 8:45 to 9:15 pm.

 

Keep in mind schedules may vary but I think there is some coverage by one or the other most nights from around 5:00 to 9:30.

 

Edited September 5, 2023 by cruisemom42

[GeorgiaPeach51]

@FeliciaLee  Awww, thanks so much!  I appreciate your perspective, having found that there is no such thing as a perfect cruise line.  We always try to go in with basic expectations and really enjoy the wow factor when it pops up here and there.  
 

Joanie

[deck chair]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I don't think that was true on Insignia's previous cruise.

 

Edited to add:  Ah, I found a Current stashed away with a few other papers. 

 

Okay, the times varied a little day by day from what I recall, but here is the schedule for the one Current I found:

 

The pianist played sets in Martini's from 5:00 to 5:45; 6:00 to 6:45; 8:15 to 9:00 pm; and 10:15-11:15 pm.

 

The string quartet played sets from 7:45 to 8:30 and from 8:45 to 9:15 pm.

 

Keep in mind schedules may vary but I think there is some coverage by one or the other most nights from around 5:00 to 9:30.

 

Thank you.. I do hope we meet so I can buy you a drink.

Deck Chair

[bradpole]

8 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Sorry, I don't recall. If I was on the main floor pre-dinner, I was listening to the string quartet. And I didn't save any of the Currents. 

 

Maybe you could ask someone like @bradpole who is currently aboard Insignia to look at a current Current (ha!) and respond. See this thread:

 

 

Perfect timing!  I am in martini’s and the pianist is about to start!  He plays 5-5:45; 6-6:45; 8:15-9; 10:15-11:15

[LHT28]

1 minute ago, bradpole said:

Perfect timing!  I am in martini’s and the pianist is about to start!  He plays 5-5:45; 6-6:45; 8:15-9; 10:15-11:15

That has been our experience on the cruises  & the  string quartet  played inbetween his sessions

[bradpole]

6 hours ago, sunlover12 said:

Generally speaking, there is no live music from 7:00 - 9:30. I can't speak about Insignia but I was just on Nautica.  The majority of passengers are eating dinner at this time so it wouldn't be worthwhile for the pianist to be playing in Martinis or for any other live music being played. 

I just listed the pianist hours, the quartet plays 6:45-7:30; 7:45-8:30; 8:45-9:15 in the upper hall. 

[bradpole]

20 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

Did you enjoy the evening entertainment?  I usually prefer the smaller venues over the large production shows.  

The evening entertainment is about normal for Oceania…nothing special. There is a show each night except tonight (the last night). I have not gone to any of them, my hubby went two a couple of them. The first night was the typical “welcome aboard” variety show. There was an “acoustic sessions” with the band and the singers, a comedian twice. There were also two “production” shows. One thing to note at the production shows there were only singers, no backup dancers. Given the small stage and lack of ceiling height in the lounge the lack of dancers didn’t lessen the show according to my dh.  Tonight instead of a show there is a movie at 9. Sadly there doesn’t seem to be the typical “salute from the crew” tonight. 

[bennybear]

@cruisemom42 thank you, we have been considering O for awhile now.     Hope to meet you onboard some ship one day!