Mediterranean cruise question

[goodvino808]

Hello everyone. I am considering trying this cruise line in the Mediterranean in late April early May. Has anybody taking a cruise on Atlas through the med? More specifically how would you compare this  Cruise line to say Seabourn or regent. Thank you very much in advance!

[Mrs f.]

I am also checking out Atlas. Is it new?  I thought I knew all the cruise lines.

Anybody been on one of their Mediterranean cruises?  Not really interested in Antarctica.

 

We usually go on Oceania. 

Edited January 28, 2023 by Mrs f.
More info

[moseley]

We are booking the May 6, 2023. I like the small ship. We usually cruise on Azamara, but this looks interesting and their special is a pretty amazing deal. We were on the first Azamara cruise took a chance or that and never looked back. We were so happy. I hope this proves to be the same experience!

[agreene]

Atlas is a brand new cruise line.  Their CEO is from Oceania.  Their ships hold about 200 passengers and started sailing to Antarctica in 22.   This is their first year for the Med.

[goodvino808]

Thank you Agreen

[vicd1969]

On 1/21/2023 at 9:38 PM, goodvino808 said:

Hello everyone. I am considering trying this cruise line in the Mediterranean in late April early May. Has anybody taking a cruise on Atlas through the med? More specifically how would you compare this  Cruise line to say Seabourn or regent. Thank you very much in advance!

I've never been on Seabourn or Regent, but based on my experience onboard Atlas, these seem to be the main differences:

 

Smaller ship on Atlas with about 150-200 passengers compared to twice the number or more in Seabourn or Regent (except for Seabourn's expedition ship but I doubt that will be used in the Med)

 

Food is more on the level of Oceania/Azamara than Seabourn/Regent

 

Pre-cruise experience (ie, booking, confirmations, support pre-cruise) is less hand-holding and a bit more "trust us, we'll let you know" until about 2 weeks before sailing.

 

You literally will get closer to the sea on Atlas - the viewing areas can be 30 feet from the sea and there should be more water-based activities. 

 

Given the ship size, less entertainment activities but a more intimate and close-knit vibe on Atlas among fellow passengers

 

Atlas has some nice discounts, but it's hard to get the clear picture on their website without calling a travel agent. One nice discount they have is that active and retired military get a 20% discount that is combinable with all other discounts you are able to get.

[LSuzQ]

I am also interested in knowing more about their Med cruises. The CEO connection with Oceania explains how I received the brochure!

[Mrs f.]

On 2/24/2023 at 10:41 AM, LSuzQ said:

I am also interested in knowing more about their Med cruises. The CEO connection with Oceania explains how I received the brochure!

Funny...we only cruise Oceania but have received no brochures. Need to see how to get one

[Linda VH]

I received a brochure in the Sunday New York Times as I subscribe (live in FL).

[Linda VH]

If I you go their website - Atlasoceanvoyages.com and scroll to the very bottom of the page it will show you brochures,  

[suewho2]

On 1/30/2023 at 1:20 PM, moseley said:

We are booking the May 6, 2023. I like the small ship. We usually cruise on Azamara, but this looks interesting and their special is a pretty amazing deal. We were on the first Azamara cruise took a chance or that and never looked back. We were so happy. I hope this proves to be the same experience!

We have taken Azamara to the Chilean Fjords and Atlas Ocean Voyages to Antarctica. Although we loved our Azamara trip, Atlas delivers so much more. Given a choice, I would choose Atlas. We are going on another Atlas trip in August to the Arctic.

[Moby Jones]

Atlas does not offer the same level of service or dining as the cruise lines mentioned. 

I'm onboard now and in my opinion they have over sold themselves on their website and promotional material. I would not expect a luxury cruise line to :-

Sail with a poor choice of beverages. Many items on the menu are not available. 

Deliver room service orders one hour after the booked time. This is currently annoying many guests onboard. We have witnessed multiple complaints being made about this at guest relations. 

There are serious issues booking the two specialty restaurants. There appears to be all kinds of communication problems between the various teams and passengers have had their reservations cancelled last minute. 

Not once has the maitre 'd visited us to introduce himself. This always happens on other luxury lines even on mainstream lines like Celebrity. 

They have no sommeliers in the restaurant and a very poor selection of wines are included. Though other bottles can be purchased separately.

The wait staff are friendly people but a little too casual for a luxury line. No one has ever asked if everything is ok during a single meal. This is standard practise in restaurants all around the world. 

The food is good but not in the same league as Regent or Oceania. The deserts are poor quality with more than one member of our party commenting on how tasteless they are. 

Buffet food is lukewarm at best. Staff are not keeping hot food, hot. The selection of food is also smaller than more upscale lines. 

In short, it's a good line. But don't for one minute think the service, accommodations and dining are on par with a true luxury line like Regent or Silversea. And they're not on par with lines like Oceania and Azamara either.  

There are some nice touches like coffee machines and kettles in the room and the mini bar is included. Though the selections we made for the mini bar online before boarding have not been fulfilled due to a lack of inventory. 

Oh and there's no bottles of water for you to take off the ship unless you bring your own. They have refillable bottles in your room, but you're not allowed to take them off the ship. Management didn't think things through there very well. 
 

[Vineyard View]

Well Moby Jones, you certainly paint a picture that I didn’t expect. Thank you for sharing. It is really important to us to have realistic expectations prior to making a decision on whom we sail. Maybe in time things will improve, but this does not sound very inviting. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

They were apparently a train wreck under the original management.  I had high hopes for the new execs because they had credible cruise experience.  Too bad it hasn't been able to make the reality match the marketing.

[Moby Jones]

On 4/23/2023 at 9:43 PM, Vineyard View said:

Well Moby Jones, you certainly paint a picture that I didn’t expect. Thank you for sharing. It is really important to us to have realistic expectations prior to making a decision on whom we sail. Maybe in time things will improve, but this does not sound very inviting. 

Well it appears that Atlas management follow these boards and a well known social media platform that contains many cruise groups as my comments were picked up within hours of my posts!

They added water bottles to our room immediately! 

They do have potential. But you'll see from the list of points I made earlier that they need to work on the basics before they can be considered serious competition to more established luxury lines. 

One thing I did learn of interest is that Atlas do not own the ships. They are all owned by Mystic Cruises and the World Navigator and World Traveler are leased by Atlas. All of the staff work for Mystic Cruises whilst wearing an Atlas uniform aboard an Atlas branded ship. 

For balance, I liked the ship. It's small and those who suffer from motion sickness really do need to take their meds with them! But it's comfortable with a very good amount of public space. There's no queing for anything etc. 

Staff are friendly and polite and work hard to please. But if you're expecting a more formal luxury dining experience you will be disappointed. 

Also bear in mind that they advertise two specialty restaurants. Aft on 7 is billed as a steakhouse. The truth is it's actually just the poolside burger bar with a different menu on an evening. It can accommodate around 18 persons per night. The ship can hold 198 passengers so on a short cruise you'll realise that not everyone will get the opportunity to try it. The food was good. But not exceptional. And again, service was very informal. 

Alma, the Portuguese restaurant is really just a BBQ / grill set up temporarily outside next to the main dining room. Our booking was cancelled and rearranged. We were notified of the changed time after it had elapsed! Again this was down to poor management and communication. 

Again,I think they have potential but they need whipping into shape if they're to be  considered a serious alternative to AZ or O for Med sailings. 

[Vineyard View]

Thank you for further updates. We will be passing on Atlas for now. Not all lines are for everyone. 
‘we are getting ready to sail on Seabourn, and are fans of Viking. Also looking at A&O for ‘24. Won’t be looking at Atlas for now. Even if they step it up in some areas, we would prefer a more elevated dining experience when we travel. It does not sound like Atlas is intending to be that - which works for many. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

6 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

Thank you for further updates. We will be passing on Atlas for now. Not all lines are for everyone. 
‘we are getting ready to sail on Seabourn, and are fans of Viking. Also looking at A&O for ‘24. Won’t be looking at Atlas for now. Even if they step it up in some areas, we would prefer a more elevated dining experience when we travel. It does not sound like Atlas is intending to be that - which works for many. 

Itinerary plus food are my top two qualifiers, so I'm with you on this.

[Vineyard View]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Itinerary plus food are my top two qualifiers, so I'm with you on this.

Check and check! 
‘plus decent wine! 

[Moby Jones]

10 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

Check and check! 
‘plus decent wine! 

Speaking as a fellow oenophile I think it's fair to say they are 100% not for you. 

On the first day we attended a wine tasting event. Half a dozen VERY poor quality wines were offered. Disappointingly the sommelier who oversaw this event never showed up at the dining room throughout the whole cruise! When I asked a waiter what I was being given during the tasting I was told "sparkling wine" and no further detail! 😀

Wine choices in the included fare are also very poor. With many of these being unavailable during our cruise. As was the 6 or so different German beers on the menu. They had also not been received during our cruise apparently. 

Wine is available by the bottle and to be fair the mark ups are not too horrendous as they can be with other cruise lines. But again, choice and quality was limited. 

Atlas needs to poach some seasoned food and beverage staff from upscale lines and have them sail as Atlas employees amongst the Mystic Cruises staff if they want to build a quality product. 

We do have time in our schedule for another cruise this year. And I did plan to consider Atlas after our sailing. And while there is a chance we'd sail with them to Antarctica, we'll be looking at Oceania if we sail in Europe again this year. They have them beaten on food, beverages and the whole dining experience quite comprehensively. 

If management are still reading, then please take this feedback constructively. You have a lot of potential but really do need to up your game in Europe. Your ships are beautiful, your itineraries well thought out and chef Rudy produced great food when it was hot! So I hope you do get there in the very near future. I truly do believe you have the potential to offer a great experience. 🙂 

[Vineyard View]

Deal is sealed. No Atlas for me. 

Thank you for your fair comparisons. 
 

I will stick Seabourn and Viking. I am also looking at Regent, Oceania, Azamara for 2024. 

 

As I said, know Viking well. Will sail Seabourn next month. Oceania, Azamara, and Regent each have a Med itinerary that interests me for April. 

Edited April 26, 2023 by Vineyard View

[scottsol]

On 4/25/2023 at 9:40 AM, Moby Jones said:

One thing I did learn of interest is that Atlas do not own the ships. They are all owned by Mystic Cruises and the World Navigator and World Traveler are leased by Atlas. All of the staff work for Mystic Cruises whilst wearing an Atlas uniform aboard an Atlas branded ship. 

To be precise, Atlas, Mystic Cruises and Nicko Cruises are all wholly owned subsidiaries of Mystic Invest Holding. Atlas’ original name was Mystic Cruises USA.

[Mrs f.]

Was thinking of booking but now I think I'll wait to see if it gets better. Too bad.....on paper they look terrific. I'll stick with Oceania. 

[dabear]

On 4/29/2023 at 8:02 AM, Mrs f. said:

Was thinking of booking but now I think I'll wait to see if it gets better. Too bad.....on paper they look terrific. I'll stick with Oceania. 

Same with us. Agree with Jazzbeau re itinerary (Med cruise caught our interest) & food. We'll stick with O, A & X with an occasional Regent  for now.

[Vineyard View]

We just sailed Seabourn and added them to our go-to cruise lines. 
I wish Oceania offered 14 day in stead of almost exclusively 10 day segments. B2B is too long for dog sitters.