Looking for greener grass….

[Hlitner]

5 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

We are trying SB next year, it should be fun.

 

The dress code on SS is really archaic, hopefully they will drop it at some point. I hear that even today it's enforced much less than previously.

 

And I agree about the loyalty programs. Variety is good. Loyalty is never really appreciated, and compared to the overall cruise cost, the perks are relatively small.

 

btw, Azamara was fun too. Azamazing night, white night, deck parties, officers dinners etc. And the atmosphere is much more lively than O. Less important on port intensive sailings, but still. 

The best starter, I have ever had on any cruise, was on our first Azamara cruise (its first year of operation) in Aqualina.  I ordered a cold seafood starter and the waiter brought me a big platter, filled with shaved ice.  In the ice there were large shrimp, half a lobster tail, clams, and oysters,  Very simple, but absolutely perfect in prep and presentation.

 

Hank

[1985rz1]

1 hour ago, ak1004 said:

 

Can you give some examples why SB itineraries are better than SS or Azamara, specifically in Europe?

I'm interested in any responses, because I think the rating if itineraries is subjective.  My own biases are toward smaller less frequented ports (often with limited excursions but interesting local opportinities),  others might prefer the more classic ports (with grand cities and cultural events).

 

What do you look for?

Edited June 19, 2023 by 1985rz1

[PaulMCO]

22 minutes ago, 1985rz1 said:

I'm interested in any responses, because I think the rating if itineraries is subjective.  My own biases are toward smaller less frequented ports (often with limited excursions but interesting local opportinities),  others might prefer the more classic ports (with grand cities and cultural events).

 

What do you look for?

We look for similar -- non mainstream ports.  No Santorini, Rhodes or Crete...

Azamara has some great ports, but we do not like the Renaissance class ships any longer.  Too old, maintenance issues, and less roomy.  SB definitely has interesting small ports, but we also like SS and Regent and have 14 Oceania (when we can find a decent itinerary)

 

Here are some more interesting cruises we looked at, sailed or plan in the future.  More interesting Turkey/Greece (done this past May), More interesting Canadian, Dalmatia (in the cards for 2025), Italian (maybe a future one) --

 

 

[Vineyard View]

PaulMCO - we just completed the last itinerary that you posted on SB. It was our first SB experience. We were genuinely sold on the total product. The dress code for the MDR has recently changed to allow ‘dressy jeans’. I think the problem in that falls unto the interpretation. We dined most nights in the MDR, and enjoyed TK 2x. The one formal night, the majority of men wore jackets. Not many ties. But there were those who did not. On most nights, a large percentage of people dressed similar to what we found on multiple Viking cruises where they call it country club casual. Collared shirts - many long and some short sleeve. Few jackets. The piece that had me shake my head were the small percentage that decided to wear jeans that were a far cry from “dressy” along with a shirt matching that category.  So in conclusion, we decided that we quite honestly enjoy stepping it up a bit when we go out to a nice dinner at home, we enjoy doing the same on our cruises, and we will continue to do both. 
We loved the smaller unique ports, ship, luxury of the cabins, and wonderful crew. We found value in cost  per day over Viking, because we do not use Viking included excursions, and Viking has become very expensive. 

[TonicTraveler]

13 hours ago, ShopperfiendTO said:

 

How was the food compared to O?  Is it somewhat close or not even in the same hemisphere?  I looked at some YouTube videos and they seem to be buffet style for lunch and not sure what the dinners are like in terms of offerings?  Wondering if Atlas is worth splurge for Antarctica coming from people who sail and like O.

The food is very good.  Maybe not quite as finished as Oceania cuisine but much, much better than the big ships.  Breakfast is a combo buffet and menu, lunch is a buffet that changes daily.  Dinner is off the menu and features a different region of the world each night. The biggest difference in food is not so much quality but style.  The food on Atlas is what you might expect on a yacht.  Oceania is more upscale restaurant.  If you enjoy O cuisine then you will enjoy the food on Atlas.  Antarctica rates as one of the best travel experiences of my life.

[tgg]

11 hours ago, Hlitner said:

The best starter, I have ever had on any cruise, was on our first Azamara cruise (its first year of operation) in Aqualina.  I ordered a cold seafood starter and the waiter brought me a big platter, filled with shaved ice.  In the ice there were large shrimp, half a lobster tail, clams, and oysters,  Very simple, but absolutely perfect in prep and presentation.

 

Hank

Hank, thanks for the lovely memory of Aqualina at the beginning. It was a great time to sail Azamara.

[LHT28]

10 hours ago, PaulMCO said:

Here are some more interesting cruises we looked at, sailed or plan in the future.  More interesting Turkey/Greece (done this past May), More interesting Canadian, Dalmatia (in the cards for 2025), Italian (maybe a future one) --

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paul

What line does this  cruise?

 

73

Lyn

[ak1004]

3 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

 

Paul

What line does this  cruise?

 

73

Lyn

SB. We are doing it next September.

[PaulMCO]

10 hours ago, Vineyard View said:

PaulMCO - we just completed the last itinerary that you posted on SB. It was our first SB experience. We were genuinely sold on the total product. The dress code for the MDR has recently changed to allow ‘dressy jeans’. I think the problem in that falls unto the interpretation. We dined most nights in the MDR, and enjoyed TK 2x. The one formal night, the majority of men wore jackets. Not many ties. But there were those who did not. On most nights, a large percentage of people dressed similar to what we found on multiple Viking cruises where they call it country club casual. Collared shirts - many long and some short sleeve. Few jackets. The piece that had me shake my head were the small percentage that decided to wear jeans that were a far cry from “dressy” along with a shirt matching that category.  So in conclusion, we decided that we quite honestly enjoy stepping it up a bit when we go out to a nice dinner at home, we enjoy doing the same on our cruises, and we will continue to do both. 
We loved the smaller unique ports, ship, luxury of the cabins, and wonderful crew. We found value in cost  per day over Viking, because we do not use Viking included excursions, and Viking has become very expensive. 

Thanks and good to hear.  We plan on booking same when the 2025's are out..  As stated we did the first and it sold me on the small port theme they have.  We are back on SS in November and waiting for some new VISTA bookings to open for our 2025 cruises.

[Vineyard View]

We are hoping the 2025 cruises open up fairly soon on SB as well Paul. We have in play another with them for 2024 - 14 day Treasures of the Adriatic - but a different Oceania itinerary - 14 day Barcelona to Rome  which has several ports we have not visited -  has our attention as well - so we are at decision time. Have requested quote from TA on Oceania. We like a Vista itinerary for next year, but it is only 10 days which is not long enough and B2B 20day too long for dog sitters. 

[ak1004]

One thing we noticed when comparing SS and O is that SS typically has longer stays in ports. Then I started looking at SB and found the same.

 

Here are two fairly similar itineraries:

 

SB:

Only 3 ports till late night, the rest 5-6pm

 

SS:

5 ports till late night.

 

Is it typical?

[ak1004]

Here is another one even more similar:

 

SS:

 

SB:

 

SS has 4 late stays, one overnight and one sea day.

SB has one late night stay, no overnights and 3 sea days.

 

SS looks like a clear winner in terms of itineraries.

[ak1004]

And here is the last SB itinerary that @PaulMCO posted:

 

3 sea days, no single stay beyond 6pm.

 

Compare to SS:

2 sea days, 5 late stays, one overnight.

[oskidunker]

Seaborn is getting terrible reviews. You shouldfread them

[ak1004]

4 minutes ago, oskidunker said:

Seaborn is getting terrible reviews. You shouldfread them

So are Oceania Silversea and Regent..

 

Some of those reviews are just ridiculous. 

[mauibabes]

I do not like the shorter stays in the ports that O is doing in the name of Saving the Planet, carbon footprint, etc, what does the extra time in ports do for you?  I am not paying O or SB or SS prices and then eat one or two meals in the ports.  Not everyone can or will do 12+ hour days in ports touring, shopping or dining. I would think there is a more reasonable balance for port time to be had and these extended port times are just making a marketing pitch sound wonderful when few travelers actually take advantage of them. JMHO.  One 4-8 hour excursion in a day and the rest of the port time is wasted on me and I am not blowing off my O dining rooms. 
Since we have not done one of these type cruises, I need enlightenment so seriously want to understand the benefits.

Mauibabes

[ak1004]

19 minutes ago, mauibabes said:

I do not like the shorter stays in the ports that O is doing in the name of Saving the Planet, carbon footprint, etc, what does the extra time in ports do for you?  I am not paying O or SB or SS prices and then eat one or two meals in the ports.  Not everyone can or will do 12+ hour days in ports touring, shopping or dining. I would think there is a more reasonable balance for port time to be had and these extended port times are just making a marketing pitch sound wonderful when few travelers actually take advantage of them. JMHO.  One 4-8 hour excursion in a day and the rest of the port time is wasted on me and I am not blowing off my O dining rooms. 
Since we have not done one of these type cruises, I need enlightenment so seriously want to understand the benefits.

Mauibabes

 

Yes and no. On our last cruise with SS we stayed in Abu Dhabi till 11pm. We took the included SS tour from 9am till 2pm. We returned just in time for lunch. Then we went to the city for an independent tour, including high tea in Emirates Palace. We came back to the ship at 9pm and still had time for dinner as some venues are open till 11pm. 

 

So it really depends on the port. We don't usually do 9-10 hours tours, but we do come back to the ship and after a short break can go back to explore the place on our own.

 

This is even more relevant with overnight stays.

[Woofa]

I have to wonder why Oceania has not marketed the Eco stuff more?  I have read this is real but one would think if they were doing it they would push themselves as trendsetters to that market.  Maybe I just am not seeing it.

[iaae22]

We are new to the O and will be on our first O cruse this fall. We did get a great deal on it and was hoping to find new 'home' with O. Now I am reading all those post and not sure it well be a case. We do book cruise only in balcony stateroom. So my question to @ak104 is -  for all those compare you provided what is the price deference? I maybe not looking correctly or selection right options but from what I can see I’ll have to pay almost double for SS, SB or Regent. It that the case?

[basenji56]

4 minutes ago, iaae22 said:

 but from what I can see I’ll have to pay almost double for SS, SB or Regent. It that the case?

That has been what I have seen too in general.  I'm sure there are some deals available but not many.

[JDincalif]

On 6/18/2023 at 9:52 AM, JDincalif said:

We've been on seven Oceania cruises, two Viking cruises, and one Regent cruise. For our personalities and interests, the Viking shipboard experience is a notch up from Oceania's. Regent appeals to us for itineraries where we want to have more comprehensive assistance and guidance.

Corrected for accuracy. Thanks to all for some interesting options.

[ak1004]

51 minutes ago, iaae22 said:

We are new to the O and will be on our first O cruse this fall. We did get a great deal on it and was hoping to find new 'home' with O. Now I am reading all those post and not sure it well be a case. We do book cruise only in balcony stateroom. So my question to @ak104 is -  for all those compare you provided what is the price deference? I maybe not looking correctly or selection right options but from what I can see I’ll have to pay almost double for SS, SB or Regent. It that the case?

 

So there are a lot of moving parts and obviously it will depend on the region, the category you book, when you book etc.

 

Our typical cruise is around 10-12 nights in Europe in Ocean View (don't really need the veranda and don't use it).

 

Typical OV on Marina/Riviera is around $450/night (all prices are in Canadian dollars). On the Vista it's French balcony, and average is around $500/night.

 

Now lets look at SB:

 

 

Many sailings are around $600-650/night, sometimes slightly less.

 

So the difference is around 30-40%.

 

And now SS:

 

 

 

 

So pretty similar, around $600/night, but SS includes excursions.

 

Now, those are among the cheapest sailings, most are more expensive, but definitely not double.

 

So depends what are you looking for, sometimes there are great deals.

 

For examples, we were booked on Vista for next May at $4,500 for 10 nights cruise. We booked last May when itineraries just came out, now it's $5,000. Few months ago we found a better itinerary on SS for $5,500, also 10 nights. When you account for all inclusions, SS was actually cheaper. It was an easy switch.

 

Those deals are not common, but if you monitor the prices, you sometimes can sail with SB or SS at prices pretty close to O. SB had a sale a few months ago - 15% discount on all sailings. Many European sailings were under $6k CAN for 10-11 nights, great deal.

Paying 30-40%+ more might be worth for some people to get more inclusions, bigger cabin, unlimited black caviar etc. For us, O was still the best deal till now because we don't drink and paying that kind of premium was usually not worth it, unless there was a great deal like our next May cruise.

 

It remains to be seen how much O hikes the prices on July 1st when drinks are included, but it might become a much closer call to book on SB or SS.

 

Edited June 19, 2023 by ak1004

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, basenji56 said:

That has been what I have seen too in general.  I'm sure there are some deals available but not many.

 

For a solo, pricing of "luxury lite" (like O) versus true luxury lines can be an interesting thing and worth comparing. At least in the past O offered very few "low supplement" sailings and most solos paid 200% of fare.  If you compare that with the lower supplements of 125% or so on luxury lines (more common), it can be a minimal difference in cost -- and sometimes with much more included.

 

[basenji56]

33 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

For a solo, pricing of "luxury lite" (like O) versus true luxury lines can be an interesting thing and worth comparing. At least in the past O offered very few "low supplement" sailings and most solos paid 200% of fare.  If you compare that with the lower supplements of 125% or so on luxury lines (more common), it can be a minimal difference in cost -- and sometimes with much more included.

 

Good to know!

[ak1004]

4 hours ago, PaulMCO said:

Thanks and good to hear.  We plan on booking same when the 2025's are out..  As stated we did the first and it sold me on the small port theme they have.  We are back on SS in November and waiting for some new VISTA bookings to open for our 2025 cruises.

Just got an email that Regent published their 2025 itineraries. I hope SS and SB will follow soon.