Live from the Spirit: Aegean Overtures

[ak1004]

21 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

You have just explained why, as much as I like the Oceania onboard experience, I won't sail on them again.

 

We book our cruises based on combination of itinerary, price and ship experience. 

 

We just booked 2 cruises on O for 2025, each with two overnights and two extended stays till late evening. The price was in $340-370 usd range. Similar sailings wirh SS started around $600 usd for p2p with non refundable deposit. 

 

It was an easy choice. SS misses ports too, but $1200 sea day is more difficult to swallow than $700 sea day.

 

So for us it's really case by case. I find that O and SS have more similarities than some people think and it really comes to itinerary and price. We love both.

[mancunian]

I   agree with you

[Gourmet Gal]

Just wondering about the vibration on Spirit.  Was this due to the mechanical issues on the prior cruise or is it an annoying quirk of this ship?  I’m booked on the Monaco F1 sailing next May, midship, deck 7.  Should I consider changing to a different cabin?

[Fletcher]

10 hours ago, Gourmet Gal said:

Just wondering about the vibration on Spirit.  Was this due to the mechanical issues on the prior cruise or is it an annoying quirk of this ship?  I’m booked on the Monaco F1 sailing next May, midship, deck 7.  Should I consider changing to a different cabin?

There were quite a few shakes, shudders and rattles on the Spirit and we were on a particularly smooth Med cruise.  As I wrote in my blog above, we did ask to change cabins because of it and were pleased that the vibrations all but disappeared on the port side cabin.  There was one occasion when we were coming alongside at some port that the vibrations in the Terrazza at breakfast were genuinely startling.  Glasses, plates, cups all went for a walk and my eggs scrambled themselves.  It was amazingly noisy, too.  Everyone thought it was rather funny.  We said to our waitress that we hasn't experienced anything like it before, not even on the Regent Navigator, and she said this was her first cruise and so she thought it was normal. 

 

I wouldn't worry about it, though.  Most of the time you aren't aware of it at all.  

Edited December 19, 2023 by Fletcher

[Gourmet Gal]

Thanks for your reply.  I sailed in the Med. on Spirit pre-stretch and didn’t notice vibration.  Perhaps the stretch somehow has created the issue?  

[ak1004]

On 12/15/2023 at 10:14 PM, ak1004 said:

Sorry but I don’t. And many people that we spoke on board with agreed with us. Cabins are better on SS, and you get a butler, which is useless to us. Food comparable, slightly better on Oceania in my opinion. Service comparable overall. Service in the buffet better on Oceania. Takes significantly less time to get a coffee in the morning on O. Water served almost room Temperature on SS.
 

Excursions better on SS, smaller groups. Entertainment and activities mediocre on both lines. 
 

So I’m not sure what puts SS in a different world. The fact that it’s all inclusive, but charge extra for 2 out of 8 restaurants and $29 a day for premium internet?

 

We did 4 O and 2 SS cruises so far, so the sample is pretty small, but this is my opinion based on this small sample. We are having a great cruise on the Dawn, but I’m not blown away as I’m supposed to on an ultra luxury line.

We just completed our second cruise on SS, and while it was great, I simply don’t see what puts SS in a different world from O. They ran out of some basic items like Perrier, Pelligrino, all diet cokes, cream cheese etc. And they charge extra for some things that are expected to be included on an ultra luxury all inclusive line.

 

And many people on board told us that SS misses ports too and shorten times in ports too.

 

I think SS is a great value for people who drink, like to book ship excursions, use their butlers extensively and like larger cabins. To us, not sure I can justify paying 40-50% premium.