Just off the Marina

[Nicho99]

Just back from the Marina on a Baltic cruise. The following must be considered as only my opinions. Others have different opinions and everyone is entitled to a voice of their own.

 

The all important food: We had 2 good meals, 3 very good meals and all the others were excellent out of 36. We were on a 12 day cruise so that is an 86% percent rate on excellent. After many cruises on Crystal, Regent and Seabourn, not a bad percentage. My only issue is the number of times you can dine in their specialty restaurants but that is a capacity issue not a slam on Oceania. Simply put, they compete or exceed anything at sea and many on land.

 

Another important category: Cocktails and wine. We did not opt for any beverage package. In reality, few do. I asked a wine steward how many do. He stated that unless it was sold along with the cruise (which I was led to believe, is often in the UK) only 30 or 40 per cruise. Be warned that unless you are on a beverage package, the pours on wine are around 5 per bottle and the cocktails are a miniscule 1 ½ ounces. I personally saw the pours from the bartenders and questioned them on it and even they were embarrassed by their own system. That barely fills a quarter of a cocktail glass. And at 9.50+ USD, you feel a little abused. Having said that, we bought alcohol on shore and enjoyed our own happy hour in our cabin. The captain’s cocktail hour is one of the most generous at sea. It starts at 6:30pm until 8pm. Only the most expensive single malts and brandies are excluded. At that event, no shot glasses were used!

 

The staterooms: You get more for your money on Oceania. Apples to apples, bigger staterooms for the money. We were in a category B3. A 282 square foot balcony stateroom that was very clever in their storage space and general layout. Bathrooms were more than adequate. We both are shower folks and I know they would get serious complaints if they did not include a tub (with an additional shower, I might add) but what a shame to waste all that space for non use.

 

Entertainment and enrichment: If this is an important part of any decision you make on whether or not Oceania is a good fit, I would recommend you book elsewhere. When the best show by far was put on by the cruise director, in this case a very capable Ray Michaels, you probably get my point. I personally talked to a dancer who has auditioned for a couple of years in New York and this was her only offer for work. No knock on her, she was delightful to talk to, but it does tell a story. Enrichment on our cruise was one gentleman who was knowledgeable but lacked the ability to really keep you awake for his next word. Again, only my opinion.

 

My last note will be on the beauty of the ship. My, how can anyone complain. Millions have been spent on her furnishings and artwork. I do not know how it could have been done better.

 

Would I sail on her again. In a New York minute. I would consider the itinerary but the positives far out weigh any so called negatives

Edited August 16, 2014 by Nicho99

[Queen of DaNile]

Thanks for posting. Will be interested to see how things compare with our trip next week.

[sitraveler]

Glad to hear. My brother just boarded for 7 days. I wonder how they get 4 specialty rest reservations in.

[portofrome]

Thanks for sharing your opinions.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[hypercafe]

Thanks for taking the time to wright a review. I had the same opinion of the drink service. We also were pay as you go drinkers.

[Travelcat2]

Great review -- it certainly will help people new to Oceania a lot - especially the section on "Cocktails and wine". By describing the drink sizes, it explains why we purchase the alcohol package:)

[LHT28]

Here the legal serving is 1 1/2 oz of alcohol not sure what it is in other Countries

I am not sure it a free pour ..they must have to make money somehow

[findacruise]

Glad to hear. My brother just boarded for 7 days. I wonder how they get 4 specialty rest reservations in.

 

Marina and Riviera have 4 specialty restaurants and he would be are entitled to 1 reservation in each restaurant. It may not be at his preferred time, or number of people in the group, but does give a chance to try each one. Hope he enjoys his cruise.

[Ronniewales]

We were on Marina in the Baltic in 2013 and our butler had no problems getting us to dine twice in each of the 4 speciality restaurants on a 14 night cruise.

[irishwench69]

Thanks for your review. We were on the same cruise! We had the premium drinks package (included in our deal, didn't pay extra for it), not sure we would get it again.

 

We'd certainly travel on Oceania, and specifically the Marina again.

 

On dining reservations, we were in a non-concierge veranda room, and got a table for two in the speciality restaurants for all but 2 nights (one when we didn't want one, as we were off the ship for an evening in SPB). And the grand dining room is so nice, it hardly feels like a let down to eat in there!

 

IW x

[globevest]

Thank you for your report. Very similar to our experience especially the food.

[Fairfield Nana]

Great review -- it certainly will help people new to Oceania a lot - especially the section on "Cocktails and wine". By describing the drink sizes, it explains why we purchase the alcohol package:)

 

Sounds like the folks who published extremely helpful review were saying just the opposite -- that the "drinks packages" were not worth the price, and only a few folks buy them. I guess it is one of those individual things I've heard about. Guess it is probably more attractive a deal on cruises with a few sea days and not so much for the port-intensive ones.

[Travelcat2]

Sounds like the folks who published extremely helpful review were saying just the opposite -- that the "drinks packages" were not worth the price, and only a few folks buy them. I guess it is one of those individual things I've heard about. Guess it is probably more attractive a deal on cruises with a few sea days and not so much for the port-intensive ones.

 

You're right -- it depends upon how many sea days you have and also how much you drink. Apparently some people that live outside of the U.S. find a 1 1/2 ounce pour the "norm" (which is why I don't order cocktails in Canada or Europe). A martini in the U.S., for example is usually 2+ ounces. We have been sailing on Oceania's sister cruise line for many years where they serve drinks as weak or as strong as you wish. I personally would rather have three mild drinks than 1 very strong one. But, on Oceania, I would pay around $30 plus tip for my three "mild" drinks.

 

I've been told that Oceania passengers drink less than on Regent which is certainly a possibility. I do find it interesting how crowded it is when there are free drinks or at happy hour on Oceania. Also, there seems to be a lot of interest in taking alcohol on board with you to drink in your cabin. Just an observation.

 

Fortunately, there are many choices - whether it be on Oceania or other cruise lines. On our next Oceania cruise there will be alcohol and wine provided in the suite and we have purchased the alcohol package. This will make it easy to have a cocktail in a lounge or when we have people in our suite. For us it is not about the quantity of alcohol that we drink but the convenience of having the alcohol package. Before negating the alcohol or wine package, I'd calculate how many glasses of wine, beer or alcohol you truly would have in a day -- add the 18% tip and make your decision.

 

Getting back to the review, I definitely agree about the entertainment (or lack thereof). It seems that there are not many people that sail Oceania for the entertainment. The food, ambience and service is the draw for us.

[LHT28]

You're right -- it depends upon how many sea days you have and also how much you drink. Apparently some people that live outside of the U.S. find a 1 1/2 ounce pour the "norm" (which is why I don't order cocktails in Canada or Europe).

 

Just an FYI the standard in the USA is the same as Canada

[Travelcat2]

Just an FYI the standard in the USA is the same as Canada

 

You and I seem to be talking about two different things. In your previous post you mentioned "legal serving" in Canada. My response was martini pours in most restaurants in the U.S. are 2 ounces. The "standard" pour in the U.S. is 1 1/2 ounces (and you can order a double) but it is not the "legal" serving (there is no legal serving -- the only limits are how much alcohol can be in your system when you operate a vehicle).

 

Note: Many restaurants "free pour" -- they simply eyeball the amount of alcohol going into the glass (or do the "count").

Edited August 16, 2014 by Travelcat2

[LHT28]

You and I seem to be talking about two different things. In your previous post you mentioned "legal serving" in Canada.

Just going by the CDC standard serving size

What is a standard drink in the United States?

A standard drink is equal to 14.0 grams (0.6 ounces) of pure alcohol. Generally, this amount of pure alcohol is found in

 

12-ounces of beer (5% alcohol content).

8-ounces of malt liquor (7% alcohol content).

5-ounces of wine (12% alcohol content).

1.5-ounces or a “shot” of 80-proof (40% alcohol content) distilled spirits or liquor (e.g., gin, rum, vodka, whiskey).

 

http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm#standDrink

 

If your bartender chooses to pour more that is something different

 

Other sites suggest the same for serving sizes as the standard

http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/standard-drink

 

YMMD

Edited August 16, 2014 by LHT28

[hypercafe]

I think you missed the point in the review. If you have a drink pack the bartender just free pours the drink. I also observed this. If you pay as you go the bartender uses a shot glass and from experience the server is eager to sell you a double which is also double the price.

[CintiPam]

Thanks very much for taking the time to write and post your review. It is good to hear a cruise veteran's opinion of the "O" ship experience.

[Travelcat2]

I think you missed the point in the review. If you have a drink pack the bartender just free pours the drink. I also observed this. If you pay as you go the bartender uses a shot glass and from experience the server is eager to sell you a double which is also double the price.

 

Interesting as I have only seen them use a shot glass. Yes -- we ordered doubles in order to make the martini's the size we are used to -- they still used the shot glass. Perhaps it was just the bartender.:confused:

 

LHT28: I am not disputing a standard drink. It is the "legal serving "that I am disputing -- there is no "legal serving" in the U.S." In your first post you said: "Here the legal serving is 1 1/2 oz of alcohol not sure what it is in other Countries I am not sure it a free pour ..they must have to make money somehow".

 

Not trying to argue -- just do no want it to sound as if the United States has some kind of limit. Actually, I'm surprised to learn that Canada does -- I thought it was just a "standard pour" rather than a "legal serving".

Edited August 16, 2014 by Travelcat2

[LHT28]

Not trying to argue -- just do no want it to sound as if the United States has some kind of limit. Actually, I'm surprised to learn that Canada does -- I thought it was just a "standard pour" rather than a "legal serving".

 

well maybe legal was the wrong choice of word to use

[Expat...]

I free pour very generously in my stateroom, drop by anytime!!;)

[Nicho99]

Allow me to jump back in here. I might have misled some on specialty dining. We indeed got our 4 reservations at all the venues plus 1 additional on the first day. Being greedy, I just wanted more. It's Oceania's fault. If they weren't so darned good, there would be no complaints at all! I found the main dining room and the Terrace delightful. On this cruise there were no missteps in the service of the main dining room.

 

Another side note that may be important to some but not us. If having the crew call you by your name is a big deal, you might be disappointed. Also, if you like a lot of interaction between the guests and the officers, you will suffer the same fate. The only time I saw any officers in public spaces they were hanging together. Fine by me.

[luv2travel100]

Hi Nicho,

 

Thanks for the review.

 

We leave next week for a Marina Baltics cruise. How was your weather, did you use your balcony, anyone in the pool or sunning themselves, and any tips on packing, clothes in particular?

 

Did you find yourself needing to hit any ATMs in the ports of call? Did you use dollars anywhere?

 

Any other thoughts or suggestions would be great!

 

Dave

[Nicho99]

Hi Nicho,

 

Thanks for the review.

 

We leave next week for a Marina Baltics cruise. How was your weather, did you use your balcony, anyone in the pool or sunning themselves, and any tips on packing, clothes in particular?

 

Did you find yourself needing to hit any ATMs in the ports of call? Did you use dollars anywhere?

 

Any other thoughts or suggestions would be great!

 

Dave

 

Dave,

 

The weather and seas could not have been better. Day temps were in the mid 70's for the most part. I took 1 long sleeve shirt and no jackets or sweaters. Felt totally comfortable. On most days you couldn't even feel any ship movement. Never seen it that good. Lots of people around the pool and a few people in for a swim. Used the balcony on several occasions with a cocktail in hand just looking out on the beautiful deep blue sea. Beds were as advertised. Why can't I sleep like that at home?

 

I did hit the ATM's 3 times. Exchange rate was terrific....much better than the exchange I got at my bank before the cruise. You're better off using a credit card that does not charge an international fee for your purchases instead of trying to use dollars although it seems to me a few ports would accept them but I doubt the exchange would be in your favor.

 

Side notes: Best time for that extra night at a specialty restaurant is the first day on the ship. My hit dish of the cruise was that wonderful spicy duck watermelon salad in Red Ginger. Still dreaming about that one.

Edited August 17, 2014 by Nicho99