Riviera vs smaller Oceania ships

[CintiPam]

I have not been able to get my spouse even to look at any of the smaller ship itineraries since his first sailing on Riviera. He loves the extra specialty restaurants, the larger bathrooms, the beauty of the common areas, and the much larger and nicer pool.

[StanandJim]

I have not been able to get my spouse even to look at any of the smaller ship itineraries since his first sailing on Riviera. He loves the extra specialty restaurants, the larger bathrooms, the beauty of the common areas, and the much larger and nicer pool.

 

Which is one reason why EVERYBODY, ALWAYS builds bigger.

The economy of scale is infinitely seductive.

 

We say that we love the intimacy of small ships, but somehow we love our bells and whistles more.

[RJB]

Which is one reason why EVERYBODY, ALWAYS builds bigger.

The economy of scale is infinitely seductive.

 

We say that we love the intimacy of small ships, but somehow we love our bells and whistles more.

Right on. Like bells and whistles. In our nature. Pretty pictures Thanks

[oldpharmguy]

Thanks to all who have responded to my original post. Because we are nearing the end of our cruising days, I think we will go with something that we know we will enjoy and stick with the larger Riviera. I wish we had tried Oceania earlier in our cruising life, then we would know first hand. However, we have been blessed to have spent many wonderful days on the water and experienced things so many people have not been able to . So for that I am grateful. Thanks again to you all and the CC Forum

[HeatherInFlorida]

Just seeing this thread now as I drop back in on CC as we near our next Riviera cruise and I think you've made a choice you'll be happy with. I echo many other comments regarding restaurants, pools, etc., so no reason to repeat.

 

We began cruising on Oceania in January 2013 and never looked back. We were in a PH on Riviera and fell in love. Well ... I did. DH doesn't care about the cabin, but like Mura, I do and while I loved the PH cabin on Regatta, I missed the Riviera bathroom and definitely the walk-in closet. Still, I did enjoy the wall to wall windows and table placement on Regatta.

 

We've been on 2 Riviera and 2 Regatta cruises. I've reviewed one of each here on CC. I had thought we would prefer Regatta based on our early sailing days on smaller ships. But after the 2nd Regatta cruise this past April we decided we prefer the Riviera by far. It doesn't feel large, we meet just as many people and the staff and service is so stellar on both that other than running into the CD, the Captain and other officers more often on Regatta, we felt no difference in the "feel".

 

Our February Riviera cruise may be our last depending on how our little dog does while we're away this time (April turned into a nightmare for our poor dog sitter friends) so we can't wait to enjoy Oceania luxury once again. Enjoy your cruise and I hope you're not as near the end of your cruising days as you think:)

[oldpharmguy]

Thanks Heather for your reply to my post. Enjoyed the pictures of your 2013 Riviera cruise. Hope your pooch problems get cleared up. Keep sailing as long as possible and savor each & every moment as your memories will last for the rest of your life.

[HeatherInFlorida]

I know that so well. We've been cruising since 1982 so we've got lots of great memories. I just noticed you cruised on the Seawind Crown in 1995. I need to look up the year we were on her; had a great time on that ship sometime in the 90s ... a far cry from the Riviera but a great time. We are a little funny about our dog; she's kind of the center of our lives and rules the roost. But I think she'll be OK and we'll have a few more cruises before we put the bags away for good😃