I am Jumping Ship to Oceania

[iancal]

Perhaps we were fortunate. We found food on Crystal far superior to anything that we have had on HAL, Celebrity or any of the mass market lines for that matter.

 

There was just no comparison in terms of quality and overall presentation.

 

But, we have only had one Crystal cruise.

[dorisis]

We have cruise since 1968 on many many lines. They all have their good and not so good points.Try those you think you would like on short cruises. You can get a taste of what they have to offer.

 

~Doris~

[Himself]

I've wanted to try another line for a while, or at least DH has wanted to. We saw a TA on Riviera that looked appealing and we're booking it for the November TA. We're very excited to try this:):) and there are several Hal people doing the same cruise.

 

I'm worried that once we cruise with them, we might never be able to do Hal again, but we'll see.

 

Like General Mac Arthur, you shall return!

[innlady1]

I've wanted to try another line for a while, or at least DH has wanted to. We saw a TA on Riviera that looked appealing and we're booking it for the November TA. We're very excited to try this:):) and there are several Hal people doing the same cruise.

 

I'm worried that once we cruise with them, we might never be able to do Hal again, but we'll see.

 

I'm surprised to hear that it's Sam who wants to "jump ship". He was so thrilled with the wonderful service our dining stewards gave him last January on the Maasdam....with the special Indonesian entrees many nights that weren't on the menu.

[MightyQuinn]

That does sound impressive. No wonder the folks at the Regent board are confused as to why Oceania's food is better, as they are owned by the same parent company. A person on my Prinsendam rollcall who has sailed Oceania numerous times says the food is no better than on Prinsendam. Have you sailed her? I felt the food was better than on the other HAL ships. Although, I felt the food on Regent was superior!

Yes, we've sailed Prinsendam but it's been a while. In 2008, we did b2b in Western Europe/Baltics and were aboard for 28 days. We loved the ship and crew, as well as the special ambiance of a smaller vessel. But quite frankly, we did not find any substantial difference in the food compared to other HAL ships. Solid middle-of-the road. Maybe things have changed since then, but I didn't think Prinsendam was distinguished by its food.

 

We've also sailed Regent. In 2011 we were aboard Mariner for 12 days in the Caribbean. It was a disappointment in many areas, notably food and service. I did a CC member review that I titled "All Inclusive But Not Luxury" which pretty well summed up my impressions. I read the postings about Oceania on the Regent forum with amusement. The most persistent detractors have never set foot on an Oceania ship yet are full of opinions! But several posters, including me, who have actually sailed both, believe that Regent is simply no match for Oceania.

[cruisemom42]

There need to be enough at sea days to have these enrichment lectures make sense. TAs are great for these types of programs and most have informal follow up Q&A's because they generate so much interest.

 

I've taken two cruises on Voyages to Antiquity so far and one on Swan Hellenic. They both had at least 3 dedicated lecturers on board the ship and I think 1 cruise only had 1 sea day; the other two had 2 sea days.

 

While I understand these are specialty cruises, I do find it misleading that HAL advertises port lecturers but doesn't make it clear that they are apparently not on all ships. I'd settle for just one, but not having one at all in the Med, where there is so much history, art, current events, etc just seems a shame.

[LindaM]

Yes, we've sailed Prinsendam but it's been a while. In 2008, we did b2b in Western Europe/Baltics and were aboard for 28 days. We loved the ship and crew, as well as the special ambiance of a smaller vessel. But quite frankly, we did not find any substantial difference in the food compared to other HAL ships. Solid middle-of-the road. Maybe things have changed since then, but I didn't think Prinsendam was distinguished by its food.

 

We've also sailed Regent. In 2011 we were aboard Mariner for 12 days in the Caribbean. It was a disappointment in many areas, notably food and service. I did a CC member review that I titled "All Inclusive But Not Luxury" which pretty well summed up my impressions. I read the postings about Oceania on the Regent forum with amusement. The most persistent detractors have never set foot on an Oceania ship yet are full of opinions! But several posters, including me, who have actually sailed both, believe that Regent is simply no match for Oceania.

 

I hope to sail Oceania in the future so I will be able to compare!! Have to admit we have met people who were not totally impressed with Regent. We like the all inclusive for the Caribbean, but don't think it's worth the extra bucks for Europe as we like to do our own thing there.

 

I can only compare Prinsendam's food with Amsterdam---it was noticably better. I have friends who have sailed other HAL ships who felt the food was nothing special and a disappointment.

[mamaofami]

After much thought, we decided not to jump ship just yet. We booked a TA on N. Amsterdam that had a much better itinerary. We'll try Oceania sometime in the future.:)

[SwissMyst]

After much thought, we decided not to jump ship just yet. We booked a TA on N. Amsterdam that had a much better itinerary. We'll try Oceania sometime in the future.:)

 

We did the same thing after seeing the Oceania TA in a brochure and then compared it to HAL TAs at the same time -far better deal with the Maasdam - and it was exceptional trip. No comparisons really itinerary wise. Plus we had the covered Lido sun room area on the Maasdam during the long November sea days, which we would not have had on the Oceania ship.

[innlady1]

After much thought, we decided not to jump ship just yet. We booked a TA on N. Amsterdam that had a much better itinerary. We'll try Oceania sometime in the future.:)

 

I'm so glad you and Sam will be joining us...it'll be fun! I figured when you showed Sam the itinerary, you'd be in trouble. ;)

[Ship's Wake]

After much thought, we decided not to jump ship just yet. We booked a TA on N. Amsterdam that had a much better itinerary. We'll try Oceania sometime in the future.:)

 

Your waistline will thank you for passing on Oceania.:)

[LindaM]

Your waistline will thank you for passing on Oceania.:)

 

I know you were being funny, but that is an important point. I do not want the food to be THAT good where I feel I HAVE to eat every last morsel on my plate. I am seriously not going to book Princess again because I couldn't leave the pizza and other menu items alone and am still paying for it!

 

I don't blame the OP for choosing the bargain. That's why we keep sailing Prinsendam---the same itinerary on Regent (including shore excursions and drinks on HAL) would be close to twice the cost!

[kazu]

After much thought, we decided not to jump ship just yet. We booked a TA on N. Amsterdam that had a much better itinerary. We'll try Oceania sometime in the future.:)

 

 

I, too have looked at Oceania, but her itineraries for what we were interested were no match to the Prinsendams. Can't blame you one bit:D

[mamaofami]

 

I don't blame the OP for choosing the bargain. That's why we keep sailing Prinsendam---the same itinerary on Regent (including shore excursions and drinks on HAL) would be close to twice the cost!

 

I didn't chose the bargain since we're paying about the same. I chose the itinerary and 21 days .

[MightyQuinn]

After much thought, we decided not to jump ship just yet. We booked a TA on N. Amsterdam that had a much better itinerary. We'll try Oceania sometime in the future.:)

 

... I chose the itinerary and 21 days

I think you must be doing a HAL Collectors Voyage since the transAtlantic crossings on both Riviera and Nieuw Amsterdam are 14 days with only 3-4 ports each. But the itinerary does get more interesting on a longer Collectors Voyage. It's also possible to do this on Oceania by adding a cruise either pre or post the crossing. Oceania doesn't market them as Collectors Voyages like HAL does, but there is a discount. I think 5% per segment. We recently did a 14-day TA on Riviera and received an offer to add the 12-day cruise before it at a significantly discounted rate. The offer came shortly before sail date, but we already had FF flights in place and couldn't take advantage. We would have seriously considered it if we had taken Oceania "free" air!

 

I hope you do try Oceania sometime in the future.

[sail7seas]

After much thought, we decided not to jump ship just yet. We booked a TA on N. Amsterdam that had a much better itinerary. We'll try Oceania sometime in the future.:)

 

I'm so glad you and Sam will be joining us...it'll be fun! I figured when you showed Sam the itinerary, you'd be in trouble. ;)

 

I think you'll likely be happy you switched, Carol.

You can try Oceania when it is an itinerary you like better. It's great to have the choices and go with what suits you for each trip.

 

It's also fun you and Sheila will sail together.

Have fun......

 

Three weeks on NA will be wonderful.

 

[innlady1]

I think you'll likely be happy you switched, Carol.

You can try Oceania when it is an itinerary you like better. It's great to have the choices and go with what suits you for each trip.

 

It's also fun you and Sheila will sail together.

Have fun......

 

Three weeks on NA will be wonderful.

 

 

It is, Judy...this will be our fifth cruise...twice on the Noordam from NYC and twice on the Maasdam....and to think we met on Cruise Critic!

[innlady1]

I didn't chose the bargain since we're paying about the same. I chose the itinerary and 21 days .

 

That's the 1st thing I look at, too. And, I'm "comfortable" with Holland America so this is a good choice.

[aliaschief]

Carol, Welcome back too Dam Country!:)

[lovetocruise2020]

Good choice,

A TA without a covored pool, I would never do it.

 

To think, we only considered Oceania on TA because I can't keep up with the port days, and there would be more restful days, and I never thought that they would not have a covored pool, as they are so new.

 

HAL has us spoiled.

 

Look what you learn on CC!

[kazu]

Good choice,

A TA without a covored pool, I would never do it.

 

To think, we only considered Oceania on TA because I can't keep up with the port days, and there would be more restful days, and I never thought that they would not have a covored pool, as they are so new.

 

HAL has us spoiled.

 

Look what you learn on CC!

 

There is one HAL ship that does NOT have a covered pool - the Prinsendam - and I happily will do another TA on her:D

[Dutch Explorers]

This Oceania menu looks an awful lot like the HAL menus we just enjoyed for the past 50 days - more fanciful descriptions and calligraphy do not change the basic offerings. Having the Oceania "Light Menu" as a stand alone is a plus and hope HAL follows suit with a similar option and not just the individual "spa cuisine" items. I would love to just be handed a "light menu" package on HAL and forgo making individual choices, so I hope they are listening.

 

Basically all cruise ships, Crystal included, offer mass produced banquet food and it looks like Oceania fall into the same category - meat, vegetables, salads, pasta, grains .... what are ya gonna do serving thousands of meals all day long on the high seas relying heavily on non-perishables.

 

http://www.oceaniacruises.com/documents/menus/oclass/gdr/03-GDR-Dinner-Menu.pdf

 

 

We sailed on both HAL and Oceania and in my opnion Oceania offers far better cuisine than HAL. If you look at the budget spend on food on Oceania compared to HAL it is clear that Oceania only goes for the finest products and this you will taste definitely.

[sail7seas]

We sailed on both HAL and Oceania and in my opnion Oceania offers far better cuisine than HAL. If you look at the budget spend on food on Oceania compared to HAL it is clear that Oceania only goes for the finest products and this you will taste definitely.

 

Is Food the only difference?

Is that enough.......?

I'm not sure for me that better food would be so heavily weighted so I'm interested what else people consider better on Oceania than HAL.

 

Thanks if you can make some comparisons. :)

[lovetocruise2020]

There is one HAL ship that does NOT have a covered pool - the Prinsendam - and I happily will do another TA on her:D

 

But she is the Elegant Explorer, and she would be my exception as well. :)

[SwissMyst]

I always calculated if the only real difference was the "food quality", how many land-based meals could I enjoy for the same extra cost the other cruise line would charged, which would be only upgrading the on board dining experience a little. And after many days sailing, one can only eat so much food.

 

So food quality is important, it is not the deal maker or breaker for me. I would rather spend the money dining ashore than on board if I had to make a choice. HAL meets our own dining needs very adequately. And I consider myself a "foodie", do a lot of research on special dining spots and post frequently on a local restaurant critic blog.

 

After itinerary I got to thinking that what matters most when all is said and done is the gracious and courteous attitudes of the staff whether you meet them randomly in the hallways or depend upon them for any particular service. I figured that is why we never really see the stains in the carpet or wear on the stair treds, because we have been distracted by the continually nice people we always are in contact with on HAL ships.