Insignia Reviews

Sadly I am reading negative reviews for Insignia, I do have a theory that sometimes the disgruntled take delight in a review, and that really nothing too serious is wrong, and remembering you can never please everyone...

Cruised with a few lines ,over time, honestly have never had a cruise we didn't enjoy, mostly lengthy journeys, of varied and wonderful places. Booked on a 44 day journey in April, on Insignia. Interested in regular travellers with Oceania opinions on changes if any, of recent times.

I too am very interested in replies to this as we are on a portion of the world cruise in April too. Have only previously been on Riviera and first time on a small ship. Slightly concerned about the percentage being only in the 50's.

The big complaint I see for the R ships for people who are used to the bigger ships is the size of the bathrooms

size of cabin (not PH or suites)

entertainment

Food is subjective but on our April cruise on Regatta the food was just as good as it has been in the early years sailing on O

Some people just do not do their research when switching to a new line & are surprised they are not like the mega ships

I agree with Lyn above.

Lately there is a very large number of new cruisers to Oceania - most of them coming from mass market lines with ships that are very different (size, entertainment, etc).

This can be seen by many threads lately that start with lines like "New to Oceania", "Ready to try new cruise line", "Tired of HAL, Celebrity", etc, etc.

Many of these people read about the good food and great service on Oceania and want to try them but do not do their homework about all the other things that this change will include (different entertainment, expensive shore excursions, small cabins & BRs on R ships, lack of daytime activities, no rock climbing, etc). Then come the disappointments after the cruise.

See a similar complaint about one of Oceania's R ship Sirena:http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2412353

It turns out that most of the concerns were not substantiated by subsequent cruisers.

I would suggest that you go with an open mind and make these types of judgements for yourself.

You may not like the experience and Oceania may not be for you but at least it will be based on your evaluation and not on that of a stranger that you know nothing about.

I have no sympathy for people who complain about the size of the bathrooms or indeed any element of the ship or cruise which can be researched in advance by oneself or by one's TA. These are all statistics and facts that are out there and should be accessed before booking (unlike issues of bad service, for example.) If one is too lazy to do that one should also be too lazy to complain! jmo.

As long time sailors here on SF Bay, I'm always amazed over comments about cabin and head/bath sizes.

R ship cabins have plenty of room.

We prefer the r ships. Size matters. The smaller the better for us

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As long time sailors here on SF Bay, I'm always amazed over comments about cabin and head/bath sizes.

 

R ship cabins have plenty of room.

Many passengers are not sailors or RV'ers

so might not be used to the small w/c ;)

We prefer the r ships. Size matters. The smaller the better for us

We concur. I think the R ships are perfect in just about every way, as is Oceania. O hits our "sweet spot" for cruising.

We will be simply fine , as we prefer smaller ships , Azamara, same in every way, was a delight, Amsterdam, small and beautiful, so looking forward to it very much, and thanks for the comments. Always different strokes for different folks, so open minded we will be...!

We will be simply fine , as we prefer smaller ships , Azamara, same in every way, was a delight, Amsterdam, small and beautiful, so looking forward to it very much, and thanks for the comments. Always different strokes for different folks, so open minded we will be...!

If you like the size of Azamara ships Insignia will be familiar to you

enjoy

We do not like megaships. We like the R ships. Azamara is our favourite cruiseline. We have also cruised on Oceania, Windstar, HAL, NCL, Katarina and Louis. After all the good things we had heard about Oceania we had high expectations of a cruise on Nautica in 2014. It was disappointing. Nothing at all wrong with the cabin (an inside), but service and food lacking. This year we tried Oceania again, on Insignia this time. It was a lacklustre cruise. Again it did not come up to expectations in the food and service areas. The way they handled 4 cancelled points was also very disappointing. We were thankful we got a large price reduction after booking – it just was not worth the original price.

Nevertheless we enjoyed the cruise and I am not complaining, just observing that we have had far better experiences with other lines. Oceania would never be our first choice, but if they have an itinerary which suits us timewise (we are very restricted as to when we can travel, because of business commitments) we might consider them again.

Everyone is different! We will enjoy our trips whoever we travel with, and I am sure you will too!

I think I have been flamed. I do research before cruises. We have been over 25 years on 10 lines and over 40 cruises. We have been on Riviera twice and loved it. We are also used to small ships - in fact have been on one of these ships when Swan Hellenic owned one.

We are not concerned about the size of cabin and bathroom and not very bothered about entertainment. What I am querying is why does Insignia get such a low rating mark as compared to the others - is it the food or service (which are the aspects of a cruiseship that matter to us and the thing that can vary from ship to ship in a cruiseline.

Nothing at all wrong with the cabin (an inside), but service and food lacking. This year we tried Oceania again, on Insignia this time. It was a lacklustre cruise.

Granted, food is subjective but, specifically, how was the service lacking? What was missing that made the cruise lackluster rather than good/great? Specifics provide insight into opinions.

I think I have been flamed. I do research before cruises. We have been over 25 years on 10 lines and over 40 cruises. We have been on Riviera twice and loved it. We are also used to small ships - in fact have been on one of these ships when Swan Hellenic owned one.

 

 

 

We are not concerned about the size of cabin and bathroom and not very bothered about entertainment. What I am querying is why does Insignia get such a low rating mark as compared to the others - is it the food or service (which are the aspects of a cruiseship that matter to us and the thing that can vary from ship to ship in a cruiseline.

What exactly do you mean by "low rating?" Do you realize that CC posters account for a very very small portion of the overall passengers on every cruise ship? So, when you do the math, realize that, on CC, it may be something like 20% (for argument's sake). But that's 20% OF 5% of the total passengers. So, out of 100 folks, that would be 1 person, not 20. Add to that the general reality that online comments (in any arena) more often cite concerns rather than kudos.

In any case, many folks posting on the Oceania CC thread have just moved over from mass market lines. And, if they're looking for Johnny Rockets and Appleby's food on Oceania, they will be sadly disappointed. Yes, food reviews are highly subjective.

Finally, as regards Azamara: all I can say is that we attended a TA presentation by the Azamara president who, when queried about the difference between A and O, basically summed it up as "we (A) are about evening port experiences while they (O) are about food." And I have heard that same comment from every Azamara passenger I've met on an Oceania ship.

BTW, it's also interesting to hear all the former Celebrity cruisers who, on their first Oceania cruise, remark about the clearly higher quality of O food and service.

Nonetheless, to each his/her own.

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What exactly do you mean by "low rating?" Do you realize that CC posters account for a very very small portion of the overall passengers on every cruise ship? So, when you do the math, realize that, on CC, it may be something like 20% (for argument's sake). But that's 20% OF 5% of the total passengers. So, out of 100 folks, that would be 1 person, not 20. Add to that the general reality that online comments (in any arena) more often cite concerns rather than kudos.

 

In any case, many folks posting on the Oceania CC thread have just moved over from mass market lines. And, if they're looking for Johnny Rockets and Appleby's food on Oceania, they will be sadly disappointed. Yes, food reviews are highly subjective.

 

Finally, as regards Azamara: all I can say is that we attended a TA presentation by the Azamara president who, when queried about the difference between A and O, basically summed it up as "we (A) are about evening port experiences while they (O) are about food." And I have heard that same comment from every Azamara passenger I've met on an Oceania ship.

 

BTW, it's also interesting to hear all the former Celebrity cruisers who, on their first Oceania cruise, remark about the clearly higher quality of O food and service.

 

Nonetheless, to each his/her own.

I thought my question was straightforward enough. If you look on CC reviews the percentage of people who love Oceania is as follows:

Marina 77

Nautica 75

Regatta 73

Riviera 73

Insignia 58

Sirena 50

Sirena does not surprise me because this seems to be par for the course with a new ship to a line. Koningsdam (HAL) and Brittania (P&O) are exanples of this. However Insignia is not so new but does not seem as popular as other Oceania ships. I have looked at several reviews and cannot pin down why which was why I was asking for some ideas on here.

I think I have been flamed. I do research before cruises. We have been over 25 years on 10 lines and over 40 cruises. We have been on Riviera twice and loved it. We are also used to small ships - in fact have been on one of these ships when Swan Hellenic owned one.

 

We are not concerned about the size of cabin and bathroom and not very bothered about entertainment. What I am querying is why does Insignia get such a low rating mark as compared to the others - is it the food or service (which are the aspects of a cruiseship that matter to us and the thing that can vary from ship to ship in a cruiseline.

Of the last 10 reviews of Insignia, 7 were very favorable, 3 were very poor. As an example I am quoting a portion from one of the poor reviews:

We are regular cruisers but not with Oceania, we usually cruise with Celebrity but thought we'd try a smaller ship for a change. We decided to treat ourselves to this cruise as we had been told that Oceania was superb, the service was wonderful as was the food,and so on. To say that we were disappointed is an understatement!

We booked Concierge class and expected to have fresh fruit, flowers, canapes etc. like we always have on Celebrity Aqua class -- but no! That's only for suites guests. The cabins were smaller, too. The cabin staff were wonderful and we had no complaint about the restaurants. The food was good and the staff were excellent.

Unfortunately we had rough weather for most of the voyage and it was a regular sight to see seasickness bags at the elevators. Even when the weather was OK, we could feel the engines running something we are not used to, even on smaller ships like Azamara and Le Soleil.

Our captain decided to cancel our visit to Hobart as the weather was going to be too bad. Unfortunately, we had already made arrangements to visit the wonderful MONA museum of modern art by ferry which was not offered by the ship. When my husband mentioned this to the tour desk person he was told that, if he didn't book the tour through the desk, then it was too bad! He was not happy! Eventually he spoke to the concierge who phoned MONA and arranged for a refund however we don't think that the attitude of the staff member at the tour desk was very good at all.

I have a mobility scooter and the cabin was so small that I had to collapse it each time it was brought into the cabin as there was no room for it otherwise. When I wanted to go onto the deck or some places on the ship, I had to get off my scooter so that my husband could lift my scooter up the ramp and put it onto the higher area. This is really very unfortunate!

You can make up your own mind about these complaints - I have

I think it helps to read the actual reviews and see why people complained rather than just the percentages.

Just to add to Paul's comments

You can clearly see some people did not research the ship to see what they actually get ...EG cabin sizes & amenities

When I read the reviews I see that people did not have a clue what they were booking

JMO

I thought my question was straightforward enough. If you look on CC reviews the percentage of people who love Oceania is as follows:

Marina 77

Nautica 75

Regatta 73

Riviera 73

Insignia 58

Sirena 50

 

Sirena does not surprise me because this seems to be par for the course with a new ship to a line. Koningsdam (HAL) and Brittania (P&O) are exanples of this. However Insignia is not so new but does not seem as popular as other Oceania ships. I have looked at several reviews and cannot pin down why which was why I was asking for some ideas on here.

Since the time she came back to O she has done almost a year of World Cruises. I'm sure many on those cruises loved it, but didn't bother to write a review and score her. Perhaps it's because many of her itineraries were so different, that they appealed to the type of cruiser that has been everywhere and is less likely to write a review...so the negative nellies just make up a higher percentage of people bothering to review?

Just to add to Paul's comments

You can clearly see some people did not research the ship to see what they actually get ...EG cabin sizes & amenities

 

When I read the reviews I see that people did not have a clue what they were booking

 

JMO

People also seem to hold the cruise line responsible for weather and or the ports. We took the Regatta's Bermuda cruise this past April and, due to weather, missed going to Norfolk but stayed an extra day in Bermuda. That was fortuitous for us but really had nothing to do with Oceania, other than the master's judgement, with which we agreed.

I thought my question was straightforward enough. If you look on CC reviews the percentage of people who love Oceania is as follows:

Marina 77

Nautica 75

Regatta 73

Riviera 73

Insignia 58

Sirena 50

 

Sirena does not surprise me because this seems to be par for the course with a new ship to a line. Koningsdam (HAL) and Brittania (P&O) are exanples of this. However Insignia is not so new but does not seem as popular as other Oceania ships. I have looked at several reviews and cannot pin down why which was why I was asking for some ideas on here.

I do think some people have pointed out to you why. It's a number of factors, but basically you have some people doing parts of the World Cruise(and others) that haven't been on Oceania before and have unrealistic expectations, or are comparing it to Mass Market ships. They also didn't take the time to learn what Oceania is about.

People also seem to hold the cruise line responsible for weather and or the ports. We took the Regatta's Bermuda cruise this past April and, due to weather, missed going to Norfolk but stayed an extra day in Bermuda. That was fortuitous for us but really had nothing to do with Oceania, other than the master's judgement, with which we agreed.

True & after the bumpy ride from Nassau to Hamilton I was glad to stay in Bermuda the extra day :D

Was reading the AZA forum one person is upset with O for not having the World Series on the ship ...no mention if Aza has it on their ships ;)

How awful for them & not even a Cubs fan to boot

Now if the Jays were in the finals & I was on the ship I might be upset :D