For those who have switched from Celebrity to Oceania…

[Jim_Iain]

1 hour ago, ak1004 said:

 

I believe Sky Suite is 300 sqft and PH on the newer O ships is 350 sqft (excluding veranda). Celebrity suite prices never made sense to me, some of them are just absurd. But then again, even regular veranda prices are now pretty close to O, especially on a newer ships. Again, a complete absurd. Not sure who is still sailing with Celebrity.

 

Possibly their new target audience are filling the ships.    Their bookings are strong and  RCL stock prices are close to an all time high, so the market must have confidence in the RCL product.

 

The main attraction to us on Celebrity Suite and above is they are a true Suite (two rooms with a door to the bedroom).   In my humble opinion the Sky Suite is just a marketing ploy with Retreat and Luminae thrown in.    

[ak1004]

31 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

I've traveled internationally all my work life and very comfortable shopping air on my own and really don't need transfers or hotels.   I of course compare the price the Oceania prices to what I can book on my own and have not found their pricing advantageous for us.  

 

I'm sure others enjoy one stop shopping and not interested in doing it themselves.   I on the other hand, like control of my travel and enjoy the planning process.  I think I enjoy the planning anticipation as much as the cruise.

 

We are the same. But even those who don't like doing it themselves can still ask their TA to do it.

 

21 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Possibly their new target audience are filling the ships.    Their bookings are strong and  RCL stock prices are close to an all time high, so the market must have confidence in the RCL product.

 

The main attraction to us on Celebrity Suite and above is they are a true Suite (two rooms with a door to the bedroom).   In my humble opinion the Sky Suite is just a marketing ploy with Retreat and Luminae thrown in.    

 

Agree about Sky Suite.

 

But besides for the space, the main difference between X and O is that on O everyone is treated equally once outside the suite (with a few small exceptions), while on X suites are ship within a ship, with separate restaurant, pool and a completely different service. On O everyone eats the same food and gets the same service.

[Moochi]

2 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Owner's Suite

Watched a lot of cabin/ship tours on YouTube when we first looked into Oceania. That suite looks fantastic. Congratulations on booking it! I look forward to read your and Lain’s live post.

[mjfship]

1 hour ago, Jim_Iain said:

I think Oceania may be a refuge for discontent Celebrity cruisers.

That sounds about right!  We have booked our first Oceania Vista transatlantic cruise after 23 years of Celebrity cruises.  We are looking forward to the new experience.  

[Oceangoer2]

3 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Thanks... I have been doing lots of research.   We have even been considering trying out a Veranda, something we have never done on Celebrity.   Gasp....   I've read so many posts that on Oceania one receives much the same dining experience regardless of cabin type.  Even though we have always sailed in suites doesn't mean we aren't open to consider a different option and sail a bit more.

OMG  ....how could you possibly sail more without actually moving from ship to ship to ship almost all year....😉.  I enjoy following you on the X board and terribly jealous of your frequent sailings.  Considering an O cruise in the near future so I check in with this board for others' experiences.  So far, so good, and then I see the same complaints or variations of that I read on X.  Marina and Vista would be my choice but the itineraries/schedules aren't working for 2024.

[Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin]

Had to laugh at Oceangoer2's comments regarding ship to ship to ship.  That was my thought, too!  So happy that you can do that!  We board our 1st O cruise in less than 3 weeks!!!!   So excited to see VISTA in person!  I have also booked a Rome-Istanbul trip in 2025....maybe just before Jim_Iain's cruise?

Checking prices and finding that we can do O (and even get close to Regent sometimes--when you factor in air!) for the price of Haven or Retreat.  So why not branch out?

[SATaxman]

5 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Definitely saw that on the first YouTube video I watched.  The prices I've seen are about that of  a SS.   We booked an Owner's Suite, which is an incredible suite at 2,000 feet.  I'm embarrassed to say the cost was less than a recent Celebrity Suite on Celebrity.    We are more excited but it is not until 2025.

Will really be an interesting non-like-for-like comparison as we are doing 3 Cruises Cunard QM2 Queens Grill,  Oceania Vista  in the OS  Istanbul to Barcelona and finished off with Equinox  Lisbon to Rio and Buenos Aires in a RS. 

On Cunard I would say a Queens Grill is between a SS and CS.

 

Our first O cruise in October on Marina was wonderful. Oceania Suite. Met people on CC in an Owners Suite. They invited a few of us first night. Pretty amazing. Enjoy all 2000 square feet of it. We have actually booked the exact same Oceania Suite on a 2025 cruise. on Marina.

[ORV]

While we haven’t been on Celebrity since May of 22 for the past 10 or 15 years we’ve found both suit us for different reasons and purposes. No reason to feel like we’ve switched. We enjoy both, but we’ve never done the suite or Retreat on Celebrity. Definitely if we’re going to spend that type of money 💰 it will be on Oceania. 

[cricketlover]

17 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

I think Oceania may be a refuge for discontent Celebrity cruisers.

We have done many Celebrity cruises over the years, and I’ve followed your posts on your Celebrity cruises. After our Celebrity cruises last year we decided to try something different and we have booked Vista for April.

[cluso]

On 1/23/2024 at 7:54 PM, Jim_Iain said:

 

   I think I have narrowed it down to either Nautica  Boston to Montreal  and Regatta Vancouver to LA.    

 

 

Hi Jim,

We booked the 2024 Sep Vancouver to LA cruise on Regatta.  It will be our first Oceania cruise but our 5th time on an R class.  Got an A2-Conciege Veranda (aft).  You get a few perks there.  Celebrity Elite+ doesn't mean much to us with all the changes nowadays.  Just got off our last booked Celebrity cruise a week ago.  We looked at each other and commented that it might be our last Celebrity cruise.  We want to downsize the crowds and upgrade the experience. Our first Celebrity cruise was in 1985 on Chandris Amerikanis before it turned into Celebrity.

Kim

[ak1004]

3 hours ago, ORV said:

While we haven’t been on Celebrity since May of 22 for the past 10 or 15 years we’ve found both suit us for different reasons and purposes. No reason to feel like we’ve switched. We enjoy both, but we’ve never done the suite or Retreat on Celebrity. Definitely if we’re going to spend that type of money 💰 it will be on Oceania. 

 

If you don't mind me asking - why you continue sailing on Celebrity after trying O?

[jonthomas]

20 hours ago, ak1004 said:

 

We are the same. But even those who don't like doing it themselves can still ask their TA to do it.

 

 

Agree about Sky Suite.

 

But besides for the space, the main difference between X and O is that on O everyone is treated equally once outside the suite (with a few small exceptions), while on X suites are ship within a ship, with separate restaurant, pool and a completely different service. On O everyone eats the same food and gets the same service.

 

that is the main reason we left C, after being elite plus....the food was unacceptable unless you were in a suite...and to pay suite prices, might as well sail O....love O...building up member status, now enjoying the silver status, that offers you so much more than elite plus on C....

[Jim_Iain]

2 hours ago, cluso said:

Hi Jim,

We booked the 2024 Sep Vancouver to LA cruise on Regatta.  It will be our first Oceania cruise but our 5th time on an R class.  Got an A2-Conciege Veranda (aft).  You get a few perks there.  Celebrity Elite+ doesn't mean much to us with all the changes nowadays.  Just got off our last booked Celebrity cruise a week ago.  We looked at each other and commented that it might be our last Celebrity cruise.  We want to downsize the crowds and upgrade the experience. Our first Celebrity cruise was in 1985 on Chandris Amerikanis before it turned into Celebrity.

Kim

 

We are still in discussions about the Vancouver to LA.   I think we are getting closer and just in discussion on type of cabin. 

 

We hit Double Zenith on our next Celebrity cruise in April -  They have devalued the Zenith program so much for Suite travelers they are useless.   All the perks of Zenith are part of the mandatory inclusion of perks with Suites.   Thus after 23 years we are looking elsewhere and finding Oceania very promising.  

 

The one perk we will enjoy is at Double Zenith we get a free 7 day Aqua Class Caribbean cruise or equivalent credit which we will apply to one of our last booked cruises.  Definitely know now we will never hit Triple.

 

[mac_tlc]

To us, it’s not a switch…. It’s an expanded menu. We are E+ on X and will never make Zenith, even if we sailed exclusively with them. 
 

We are currently on Ascent in a SS and having a great time. We also booked it a year and a half ago at about $360pppd. Way back then, gratuities and $600OBC were included too. To us, it’s a good deal …. But you can’t get that deal anymore. Hence, the expanded menu.

 

We have two westbound TA’s booked on Vista and look forward to experiencing something new.

 

Will we “abandon” X ? Probably not, just be a bit more judicious with our spending. Their current prices have caused us to expand the menu much more than the onboard changes— although they are not insignificant either.

 

 

mac_tlc

Edited January 25 by mac_tlc

[cruisemom42]

I cruise on a variety of lines, but have sailed quite a bit with Celebrity in the past and have been on Oceania twice in the last year.

 

All cruise lines have pluses and minuses in my book, and they also seem to have trajectories over time. Celebrity excelled at the kind of cruises I enjoy for a decade or so, but things have taken a turn for the worse with the cutbacks of the last year in particular and the focus on suite/retreat guests, as well as the launch of their new ships that don't appeal to me.

 

That's not to say X won't come back in future -- who knows? I keep an open mind.

 

What I miss on O that I can get on Celebrity is more entertainment and more of a "buzzy" feel onboard. I'm not a "suite life" cruiser, and prefer O's philosophy of everyone's experience being more or less the same once you step outside your cabin. (Yes, I know there are a few suite amenities, but not disruptive ones.)

 

Since I have no access to Blu or Luminae, I find the food on Oceania much better. It helps that the overall cuisine is heavily weighted toward French/Continental food, which I enjoy. Forget your plain piece of salmon, I want decadent meals when I cruise, the richer the better. Taste is subjective, but I haven't found the specialty restaurants to be a significant step above the GDR -- perhaps says more about the strengths of the latter than any shortcomings in the former.

 

Oceania decor (at least on the smaller ships) is what I'd call 'upscale clubby'. There is a sort of understated luxury. Chairs are comfortable, fabrics match and complement each other. The china used for the GDR and for tea is lovely. These kinds of things I appreciate. Celebrity has their 'modern luxury', but it seems like about 90% of their chairs in public spaces since their Revolution are uncomfortable for long periods of sitting. 

 

There are a number of other differences but these are ones that strike me the most. A few other, less significant differences are that passengers on Oceania -- at least on my two cruises -- skew older, and there is not much interaction between senior staff and passengers, unlike what I often have experienced on Celebrity.

 

All of that said, I would still cruise X for the right itinerary (I have 4 BTB cruises tentatively booked in early 2025) and also cruise other lines like Azamara and HAL. Azamara has many of the same qualities as Oceania if one likes smaller ships. Of the two, I prefer the passenger mix on Azamara and the food on O.

 

Edited January 25 by cruisemom42

[ORV]

7 hours ago, ak1004 said:

 

If you don't mind me asking - why you continue sailing on Celebrity after trying O?

I’m not ignoring you, I’ll get back to this when I have more time. 

[bbqoug]

7 hours ago, cluso said:

We booked the 2024 Sep Vancouver to LA cruise on Regatta.  It will be our first Oceania cruise but our 5th time on an R class.  Got an A2-Conciege Veranda (aft). 

We are booked on the same cruise in September. The itinerary looks fun. We are in an aft A1 Concierge.

We previously cruised with Celebrity on the S class ships & had a great time. After trying Azamara & more recently Oceania we won't be going back. We love the R class ships.

 

[cruisemom42]

8 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

Celebrity excelled at the kind of cruises I enjoy for a decade or so, but things have taken a turn for the worse with the cutbacks of the last year in particular and the focus on suite/retreat guests, as well as the launch of their new ships that don't appeal to me.

 

How could I have forgotten to mention the latest reason I am not sailing with Celebrity: their penchant for charging solo cruisers MORE THAN DOUBLE to sail on an X ship. And I'm not talking about a small amount more. More so than the cutbacks, this is something I find hard to justify.

 

On the other hand, Oceania after relatively ignoring solos for years has now designated at least a few solo cabins on their ships in a small acknowledgment that we like to sail.

 

[goofysmom99]

I have a PH2 booked for Vista Nov 2025 TA, 14-nights out of Barcelona. Booked early - good fare.  I am resigned to needing a scooter going forward (cannot have the new knee), so I'm booking cabins accordingly.  I detest scooters in the hallways and don't plan to be one of those.  A PH2 minus the stools at the foot of the bed will work just fine so figured I'm good to go.  Then two nights ago, while checking out solo fares on the competition, I noticed an accessible premium veranda (50% solo supplement) for Silver Ray (2024 build, 728 pax) Nov 2025 TA, 13 nights out of Lisbon, $552/night all inclusive.  Factoring in gratuities and cocktails on O, Vista is $709/night solo.  I really like the looks of the PH2 cabin, the bathroom (no bathtub), dining table, and large balcony.  All I know about the Silver Ray accessible cabin is that it's comparably big (veranda cabin layout but wider) without the extra balcony length.  So is Vista going to be worth it?  I had my TA put a hold on the Silver Ray cabin for a week while I research O vs SS.  Since Ray isn't out yet, I'm using Silver Nova for comparisons to Vista.  

 

Any recommendations?

 

Guess I should add, I'm a Celebrity refugee.  My Celebrity comparison for the above ships is Nov 2025 TA on Ascent (2023 build, 3260 pax), accessible sky suite, $883/night.  Really hard to justify that price for just a sky suite.  Whichever cruise I choose, I'll be making my own flight, hotel, and transfer arrangements.  

[Vallesan]

I think the Ray might just be a better option. I think it may just be more scooter friendly which may be more important if you’re travelling solo. I’m guessing it will be a folding type travel scooter?

 

I’ve not travelled on the Vista but have on the Riviera. I use a rollator or crutches and not all doors open automatically or have push buttons. I saw a ‘walk through’ video of the Nova and it looks really wheelchair/scooter friendly. I’ll try and find the link for you.

 

Room size won’t be an issue on either ship. If I had to choose, apart from the price point, I would probably go for Silversea. The Nova is far more relaxed than the classic ships from what I hear. We sailed on the Dawn in the last summer and really enjoyed the service. It wasn’t stuffy and the formal nights were very mixed. Not sure they have formal on the Nova.

 

Ask the same question on the Silversea page.

[Vallesan]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laSYNXGSq9M

This link isn’t the one I was looking for but may just help.

[maggie.1008]

Hi Jim,

 have always followed along with your travels. So glad you are considering Oceania. I light their O class ships. I plan on booking the Vista next year. I am a light sleeper so hopefully the thin walls won’t be a problem. 
I only have one more cruise on Celebrity booked for this summer in Alaska. 
I will also look into the Regent Grandeur. 
I still hold out hope for Celebrity after 35 cruises with them. 
We were in. CS suite las month and had great butler and service. 
Only downside is we don’t care for the menu in Luminae and enjoy Blu more. 
Cheers, Heather 

[Treasure Hunter]

Yes,we don’t care for the Luminae menu. And it’s a real problem on Edge class ships as you can’t order from the MDR menu. No more Celebrity. We are booked on NCL Encore Haven, a Princess suite ( will eat in a few specialty restaurants ). Trying Crystal for the first time and the new Oceania Allura. Unless you are in a Royal suite ( prices are outrageous) and can eat around the ship, I don’t recommend Celebrity anymore.

[ak1004]

2 minutes ago, Treasure Hunter said:

Yes,we don’t care for the Luminae menu. And it’s a real problem on Edge class ships as you can’t order from the MDR menu. No more Celebrity. We are booked on NCL Encore Haven, a Princess suite ( will eat in a few specialty restaurants ). Trying Crystal for the first time and the new Oceania Allura. Unless you are in a Royal suite ( prices are outrageous) and can eat around the ship, I don’t recommend Celebrity anymore.

 

I wanted to try Crystal too, but the prices are insane. Paying over $600 per night per person for a 210 sqft Ocean View cabin on a 20-25 years old ship is not my definition of good value for money. Can sail for the same money on Silversea in 310 sqft cabin on 2-5 years old ships, and the price includes excursions.

[Treasure Hunter]

I always wanted to try Crystal. So we shall see. Supposedly both ships have been totally renovated and the itinerary is just what we wanted.