Should we try Oceania?

[tobique33040]

Thanks Bob. Just realized what the Curler part of your screen name means. My Aunt, up in New Brunswick, curled. 😊

So thanks for the review. The bathroom is a bit worrisome, and as we always take ship sponsored excursions, I’m a bit concerned about that aspect. But overall, it sounds good and hopefully we will be lucky with the excursions. As I mentioned before, I ( and probably countless others) appreciate all the information provided here. It really helps to make decisions and to know what to expect. Thanks again. 

[CurlerRob]

2 hours ago, tobique33040 said:

Thanks Bob. Just realized what the Curler part of your screen name means. My Aunt, up in New Brunswick, curled. 😊

So thanks for the review. The bathroom is a bit worrisome, and as we always take ship sponsored excursions, I’m a bit concerned about that aspect. But overall, it sounds good and hopefully we will be lucky with the excursions. As I mentioned before, I ( and probably countless others) appreciate all the information provided here. It really helps to make decisions and to know what to expect. Thanks again. 

You're very welcome. As in the post, we'd certainly sail an R ship again, we'd just have more accurate expectations. Re the shorex, just be sure to carefully read the "brochure" in your cabin on arrival. It will contain any changes to booked excursions, even though it just looks like a sales document. Enjoy your trip! 🍺🥌

[tobique33040]

7 minutes ago, CurlerRob said:

You're very welcome. As in the post, we'd certainly sail an R ship again, we'd just have more accurate expectations. Re the shorex, just be sure to carefully read the "brochure" in your cabin on arrival. It will contain any changes to booked excursions, even though it just looks like a sales document. Enjoy your trip! 🍺🥌

Good tip! Thanks and it’s good to know that. I have only been on Viking and Tauck,  and excursions were generally as advertised initially. We will be sure to read the up to date brochure in the cabin. 

[Psoque]

I’m sure some people here might disagree, but my advice to the OP is to look at the pricing of the Oceania itinerary you are interested, and potentially wait until the wave season sales to see how much it would really cost.  My cursory scan of the current pricing heavily overlaps with that  offered by lines considered more “luxury” than Oceania, so for the same price, you might manage to get more for your money.  Or not, depending on how the itinerary of your interest is going to be priced.

 

We recently completed a 10 night Mediterranean cruise on Riviera for a truly remarkably reasonable price, so we think we got good value on the cruise overall, though Oceania is definitely not a “luxrury” cruise line.  If you are looking at cruises on a small-to-medium ships in a luxury price point, you may want to look at other cruise lines also, including Crystal.  We have done a few cruises on Crystal before it was sold to the current ownership, and we really liked the product.

 

Oceania has some luxurity-ish features (nice large cabins, etc.) but otherwise, in my opinion, is not a luxury cruise line like Crystal, Seabourn, Silversea, etc., but as long as you find a good price, it is still a good option to consider as a mid-range+ option.

[MEFIowa]

1 hour ago, Psoque said:

...but my advice to the OP is to look at the pricing of the Oceania itinerary you are interested...

We recently completed a 10 night Mediterranean cruise on Riviera for a truly remarkably reasonable price, so we think we got good value on the cruise overall....

Yes, ALWAYS watch for O's sales!

 

We did our recent 20-night B2B on Riviera in the Med (10/30-11/19), both segments off the Extraordinary Savings Sale earlier this year. Prices were...rock bottom amazing! Doubt we'll see anything like that under SM. We did "cruise only" and were so glad the B3, for example, was only $1749 PP. The A3 only $1899.

[tobique33040]

On 12/7/2023 at 11:11 AM, Psoque said:

I’m sure some people here might disagree, but my advice to the OP is to look at the pricing of the Oceania itinerary you are interested, and potentially wait until the wave season sales to see how much it would really cost.  My cursory scan of the current pricing heavily overlaps with that  offered by lines considered more “luxury” than Oceania, so for the same price, you might manage to get more for your money.  Or not, depending on how the itinerary of your interest is going to be priced.

 

We recently completed a 10 night Mediterranean cruise on Riviera for a truly remarkably reasonable price, so we think we got good value on the cruise overall, though Oceania is definitely not a “luxrury” cruise line.  If you are looking at cruises on a small-to-medium ships in a luxury price point, you may want to look at other cruise lines also, including Crystal.  We have done a few cruises on Crystal before it was sold to the current ownership, and we really liked the product.

 

Oceania has some luxurity-ish features (nice large cabins, etc.) but otherwise, in my opinion, is not a luxury cruise line like Crystal, Seabourn, Silversea, etc., but as long as you find a good price, it is still a good option to consider as a mid-range+ option.

Unfortunately we have already booked, so the wave season pricing won’t work for this coming cruise. But perhaps we will find another cruise for 2025. Thank you for your input.

[tobique33040]

On 12/7/2023 at 12:28 PM, MEFIowa said:

Yes, ALWAYS watch for O's sales!

 

We did our recent 20-night B2B on Riviera in the Med (10/30-11/19), both segments off the Extraordinary Savings Sale earlier this year. Prices were...rock bottom amazing! Doubt we'll see anything like that under SM. We did "cruise only" and were so glad the B3, for example, was only $1749 PP. The A3 only $1899.

Oh golly. Those are crazy prices. Well I guess we will keep waiting and watching for sales like that. Compared to Viking, the price we got on our Baltic sailing was quite good so we were pleased. 

[Vallesan]

1 hour ago, tobique33040 said:

Oh golly. Those are crazy prices. Well I guess we will keep waiting and watching for sales like that. Compared to Viking, the price we got on our Baltic sailing was quite good so we were pleased. 

Keep watching the sales for the price of your cruise and  any added perks. Oceania should honour the change in price before full payment.

[LHT28]

5 minutes ago, Vallesan said:

Keep watching the sales for the price of your cruise and  any added perks. Oceania should honour the change in price before full payment.

even after   you can still get  OBC or FCC in some cases

[PhD-iva]

24 minutes ago, Vallesan said:

Keep watching the sales for the price of your cruise and  any added perks. Oceania should honour the change in price before full payment.

Not always. It depends on several factors, one of which is whether your cabin category is still available or sold out.

[susiesan]

2 hours ago, tobique33040 said:

Oh golly. Those are crazy prices. Well I guess we will keep waiting and watching for sales like that. Compared to Viking, the price we got on our Baltic sailing was quite good so we were pleased. 

With SM, you will never see those prices again. At a minimum, all prices now are $800 more per person. You have to cover the cost of the beverages package and shore excursions that you may or may not want.

[tobique33040]

Crikey! Lots of good information. I will keep my eye on the website and see what eventuates. Thanks much. 

[tobique33040]

Btw I was a wine specialist before retiring, and although the business changes yearly if not much more often, I still drink wine and know what I prefer.  I’ve read lots of information about the wine offerings on Oceania. My understanding is that if you don’t have a beverage package ( and we have simply more) you have to pay for all beverages. Simply more includes any wine by glass? Anybody want to comment on the Simply More beverages. I like mineral water and generally French wines. Thanks in advance. 

[Woofa]

All non alcoholic beverages ( exceptions maybe for certain non alcoholic beers or mocktails,) are included.  With SM you also get wine with lunch and dinner in the restaurants.  Need to move up to the paid package for liquor and of course If you don't care for the wine choices you can pay for bottles of wine or bring your own on board and pay the $25 corkage fee in the restaurants.

[1985rz1]

1 minute ago, tobique33040 said:

Btw I was a wine specialist before retiring, and although the business changes yearly if not much more often, I still drink wine and know what I prefer.  I’ve read lots of information about the wine offerings on Oceania. My understanding is that if you don’t have a beverage package ( and we have simply more) you have to pay for all beverages. Simply more includes any wine by glass? Anybody want to comment on the Simply More beverages. I like mineral water and generally French wines. Thanks in advance. 

Simply More includes thae basic beverage package: wine (including sparkling) by the glass and beer at lunch and dinner in the dining venues only.  There is a menu of wines that are available by the glass.  Other wines are by the bottle only and are not included in any package.  Water and coffees, and all non alcoholic beverages are include in the cruise fare, except for a few specialty non-alcoholic beers and wines.  Maybe someone can post the current list of wines by the glass.

[tobique33040]

8 minutes ago, 1985rz1 said:

Simply More includes thae basic beverage package: wine (including sparkling) by the glass and beer at lunch and dinner in the dining venues only.  There is a menu of wines that are available by the glass.  Other wines are by the bottle only and are not included in any package.  Water and coffees, and all non alcoholic beverages are include in the cruise fare, except for a few specialty non-alcoholic beers and wines.  Maybe someone can post the current list of wines by the glass.

Ok thank you. That should satisfy me. I drink almost exclusively with meals these days so paired with lunch and dinner is sufficient. My friend is not as particular as I, and even though I’ve been fortunate enough to sample the finest of wines, I’m definitely not a wine snob. I should be able to find a good glass. And I always enjoy a nice sparkler! Looking forward to this. Thank you again. 

[BAMA_BOY]

Wine list from Riviera Oct 16-Dec 4

[Vallesan]

1 hour ago, PhD-iva said:

Not always. It depends on several factors, one of which is whether your cabin category is still available or sold out.

Yes. I just didn’t want to complicate things. It’s always worth a phone call they can only say ‘no’!

[PhD-iva]

4 minutes ago, Vallesan said:

Yes. I just didn’t want to complicate things. It’s always worth a phone call they can only say ‘no’!

I felt that some readers might get the wrong impression from your post, and then be offended or upset if they are not able to get their cruise repriced at a lower sale price. So, better to say “ Oceania might honor the change in price before full payment.”

 I agree, its always worth asking!

[PhD-iva]

15 minutes ago, BAMA_BOY said:

Wine list from Riviera Oct 16-Dec 4

@tobique33040,

I’d be interested to know your opinion on the wine list. Thx!

[basor]

1 hour ago, susiesan said:

With SM, you will never see those prices again. At a minimum, all prices now are $800 more per person. You have to cover the cost of the beverages package and shore excursions that you may or may not want.

This is not true - we had 3 different cruises booked under OLife in 2023 and 2024 and on 2 of the cruises the price was lower under SM and 1 was the same..,,and these were previously booked under a sale offer.  

[MEFIowa]

Just now, basor said:

This is not true - we had 3 different cruises booked under OLife in 2023 and 2024 and on 2 of the cruises the price was lower under SM and 1 was the same..,,and these were previously booked under a sale offer.  

How many sales has O already had in 2023? Is it 6? 7? 8? So many "sales", some far, far better than others. Some barely serious sales at all.

 

The key is to look at the actual price for the cabin to start.  Everything after that is a different issue with different value for people. We enjoyed "cruise only" and find SM and OLife and the like worth mere pennies on the claimed dollars.

[tobique33040]

4 hours ago, PhD-iva said:

@tobique33040,

I’d be interested to know your opinion on the wine list. Thx!

I think it’s perfectly good, and I see a few wines that I would happily drink. I lived in SoCal from age 9 until my late 20s, and drank a lot of California wine, but I must admit it’s not my favorite. The wines offered are mid range and decent in their categories. The Chilean wines provide considerable value so they are worth a try. Personally, if this is the wine list presented to me, I would go with the Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc, because I love NZ wine and that is a good producer. If I wanted a Chardonnay, I’d choose the Mâcon Villages because there’s a good chance it will be unoaked. And having lived in Spain ages ago, I have enjoyed the Albariño from the beautiful region of Galicia. 
I am drinking more white than red these days, but of the ones offered, I choose the Côtes de Rhône because it’s from a good producer and I like the Rhône blends. I don’t know all of the producers, but if you are choosing a wine, the more specific the appellation the better in general. So rather than a general California designation, as Line 39 Merlot, choose the Wente Cabernet Livermore. But the sommelier can probably assist, or if you like a Merlot ( and not Cab for example)and the general California appellation is all that’s available, it will be fine. I love wine and lived in that world for decades, but I try not to take it too seriously. Most people have neither the time nor the interest in acquiring all the information I did as a career. So order a glass and enjoy. You can probably have a taste before you commit to the glass, and if you don’t like it try something else. I’m happy to see the list, because that list or something close will be fine for me and for my travel companion. There are many good choices. And depending upon the travel area, you can bring wine on board apparently. So on a Viking cruise we took last February, we began in Greece, and I love Greek wines, especially the whites of Santorini. So we could buy wines there to enjoy on board. Hope this helps and thank you for the sample wine list. 

[PhD-iva]

8 hours ago, tobique33040 said:

I think it’s perfectly good, and I see a few wines that I would happily drink. I lived in SoCal from age 9 until my late 20s, and drank a lot of California wine, but I must admit it’s not my favorite. The wines offered are mid range and decent in their categories. The Chilean wines provide considerable value so they are worth a try. Personally, if this is the wine list presented to me, I would go with the Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc, because I love NZ wine and that is a good producer. If I wanted a Chardonnay, I’d choose the Mâcon Villages because there’s a good chance it will be unoaked. And having lived in Spain ages ago, I have enjoyed the Albariño from the beautiful region of Galicia. 
I am drinking more white than red these days, but of the ones offered, I choose the Côtes de Rhône because it’s from a good producer and I like the Rhône blends. I don’t know all of the producers, but if you are choosing a wine, the more specific the appellation the better in general. So rather than a general California designation, as Line 39 Merlot, choose the Wente Cabernet Livermore. But the sommelier can probably assist, or if you like a Merlot ( and not Cab for example)and the general California appellation is all that’s available, it will be fine. I love wine and lived in that world for decades, but I try not to take it too seriously. Most people have neither the time nor the interest in acquiring all the information I did as a career. So order a glass and enjoy. You can probably have a taste before you commit to the glass, and if you don’t like it try something else. I’m happy to see the list, because that list or something close will be fine for me and for my travel companion. There are many good choices. And depending upon the travel area, you can bring wine on board apparently. So on a Viking cruise we took last February, we began in Greece, and I love Greek wines, especially the whites of Santorini. So we could buy wines there to enjoy on board. Hope this helps and thank you for the sample wine list. 

I greatly appreciate your response! I hope to meet you onboard someday! Thx!

[tobique33040]

5 hours ago, PhD-iva said:

I greatly appreciate your response! I hope to meet you onboard someday! Thx!

My pleasure. Yes it would be fun to meet!