GeorgiaPeach Sails the Oceania Marina

[GeorgiaPeach51]

10 minutes ago, cruisevirgin24 said:

Joanie, are you missing R's cronuts?

Aaauuuugggghhhh!  You know me well, @cruisevirgin24!  At the first breakfast I cruised the stations hopefully but ended with a tear in my eye.  Nary a cronut in sight, then, or now.  That statement almost makes me weep.  

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Some photos, as promised.

Our cabin, 10022, PH.

 

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Bathroom 

drinks list

Polo

 

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Baristas

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Library.  Nice.  Divided into four separate spaces.  Very inviting.

[GeorgiaPeach51]

The lovely foyer.  Look at that mass of cymbidium orchids!

An area I think is lovely, though the off center photo of Mary Hartman pains me visually and makes my eye twitch.

The Martini Bar, with its’ uninspired and lackluster color scheme, is certainly not inviting, but the drinks are good, and I will resist the opportunity to once again speak of the unspeakable and inedible, omnipresent trio masquerading as snacks or appetizers.  🙄

[fizzy]

Thank you so much for your ongoing review. We had a Bermuda planned and then everything shut down so it never happened for us but we're looking at one for 24.. Do you have an opinion on the overall vibe of the ship..... staff and cruisers? The NY departure is so enticing.

[GeorgiaPeach51]

@fizzy  The ship is very sedate.  Pretty quiet.  It may be that when the cruise itinerary went sideways it affected the overall mood.  Not sure, since it is our first on O and this one is missing 500 people.  To be honest, I find the people on the R ships we have been on easier to meet and more open to sharing tables in specialties in order to meet people.  We started doing that on R and really enjoyed all the people we met.  I am not saying O people are not friendly, but they are not as outgoing, so far.

 

The staff members are universally lovely.  Smiling.  They greet you when you pass them in the halls.  I can’t imagine anyone having trouble with staff doing their best to make you happy.  

[Gpilon]

15 minutes ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

@fizzy  The ship is very sedate.  Pretty quiet.  It may be that when the cruise itinerary went sideways it affected the overall mood.  Not sure, since it is our first on O and this one is missing 500 people.  To be honest, I find the people on the R ships we have been on easier to meet and more open to sharing tables in specialties in order to meet people.  We started doing that on R and really enjoyed all the people we met.  I am not saying O people are not friendly, but they are not as outgoing, so far.

 

The staff members are universally lovely.  Smiling.  They greet you when you pass them in the halls.  I can’t imagine anyone having trouble with staff doing their best to make you happy.  

Thanks for your posts and pictures. After having been on Splendor twice over the past 18 months, and with a Grandeur cruise coming up in July I just find a noticeable difference from what O offers (via your pics) as to what Regent does. I would find the O decor a bit depressing and their canapés and "cocktail treats" to be very uninspiring. Looking very much forward to Grandeur, and all her....well....grandeur.

 

I am not quite a "peach" but I do reside in Georgia!

[TheRampantSnail]

6 hours ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

Bathroom 

drinks list

Polo

 

Drinks with a price list? Not for me. That's not luxury.

[DeepFreeze63]

"We met a couple on the tour we did in Athens who are on for 33 days.  She said they were in one of the specialties and waited 45 minutes for their entrees.  At that point they stood up and left.  She said “no one cared that we left” and staff just stood and watched them go with no comment, interest or apology.  I find that pretty shocking.  We are relatively new to R but I honestly can’t imagine that happening on an R ship, based on our experience, which is that they would be full of consternation and fully stressed to have their guests walk out.  And if it did occur, I am positive that you would receive a call of apology.  This couple did not."

 

Last year on the Splendor, my wife didn't feel well but I persuaded her to join me for soup in CR.  She had soup and we started to leave. The CR staff were all over us! What was wrong? What could they do?  After my explanation, my order was delivered to our room. Way to go Regent.

[rcandkc]

39 minutes ago, TheRampantSnail said:

Drinks with a price list? Not for me. That's not luxury.

Are those the only drinks available with a package?  Not one light American beer. 

[bitob]

I have 15 cruises on Oceania. Never going back. 

No comparison to regent or silversea or even seabourn 

 

the new Vista ship is beautiful but it’s still Oceania. 
 

boarding grandeur Nov 24 for a month 

[ON cruiser]

Hello GP; you may recall that we were on the Navigator with you to Montreal last May. I entirely agree with your comments in your first post in this thread.

 

Dare I suggest that your sister and brother-in-law owe you and Rolfe a nice dinner on your return😀. 

Despite the differences from Regent, wishing you an ongoing nice cruise. Thanks for doing this thread. Most informative as well as entertaining.

 

As for us, we board Mariner in just over 2 weeks for a combined 7 & 10 day Caribbean cruise. As we’re experiencing sleet this evening in Toronto ( all the southerners can look up “sleet” then join us in an empathetic shiver), we are looking forward to some warmth and sunshine. 😀

 

 

[forgap]

Another Georgia not-peach weighing in….we were on Marina in 2014 which cured us on Oceania.  Now almost platinum on R.  We were cruising around spain and did not have a drink package (although we bought Spanish wine for in cabin consumption).  Because spain imposed a tarif on alcohol consumed within a certain mileage from the border,  cost increased by 10%.  So a coupe of champagne, plus mandatory tip and tarif was about $20.  Hence, bars were dead at all hours!

[rcandkc]

I’m from Texas and we know sleet very well…just not in November. 

[GeorgiaPeach51]

10 hours ago, ON cruiser said:

Hello GP; you may recall that we were on the Navigator with you to Montreal last May. I entirely agree with your comments in your first post in this thread.

 

Dare I suggest that your sister and brother-in-law owe you and Rolfe a nice dinner on your return😀. 

Despite the differences from Regent, wishing you an ongoing nice cruise. Thanks for doing this thread. Most informative as well as entertaining.

 

As for us, we board Mariner in just over 2 weeks for a combined 7 & 10 day Caribbean cruise. As we’re experiencing sleet this evening in Toronto ( all the southerners can look up “sleet” then join us in an empathetic shiver), we are looking forward to some warmth and sunshine. 😀

 

 

I absolutely do remember you!  So nice of you to post!  We seemed to have most of our conversations in the little casino.  😜. We have yet to sail on Mariner, but it is on our list.  I don’t blame you for wanting to escape sleet.  We actually do know what that is!  And I am not a fan.  If it’s gonna be cold and wet, then go on and snow, please!  We do get snow about once a year in the mountains where we live, and everything comes to a screeching halt, we all revel in how beautiful it is and it is normally gone the next day.  
 

I hope you have a wonderful trip!  
 

Joanie

[GeorgiaPeach51]

Last night we had our first truly delicious meal, and it was in Jacques.  That is the restaurant O, in its’ infinite wisdom, has done away with on Vista.  Based on our wonderful meal last night I would say that is ill-advised.  We did not have a reservation but were told to show up at 6:30, and they seated us at 7.

 

Service was excellent.  Food was truly yummy.  I got a lobster gnocchi appetizer that was perfect, light and fluffy.  You know who got half of it.  True French Onion soup that I wanted very much to finish but could not if anything else was going to be enjoyed.  Pork something or other with apple and a lovely sauce.  Delicious potatoes.  Every single thing was really good, and the portions were small, so you could enjoy without having to waddle out the door.  For dessert, having learned my lesson, I got the pistachio crème brûlée AND the chocolate mousse, and the chocolate mousse was the only disappointment….it was just a touch salty and had the consistency of that old package whipped pudding, the name of which escapes me.  Readi-whip?

 

Rolf got the escargot, which he loved.  Then he had Coquille St. Jacques, which he did not…scallops were not tender and there was no sauce to speak of.  He pronounced my version at home to be much better.  So he got half of my pork.  He didn’t want to bother with ordering something else.  The waiter was certainly concerned that he didn’t enjoy it.  We are in Jacques again tonight and looking forward to it.  Our favorite so far.

[GeorgiaPeach51]

13 hours ago, rcandkc said:

Are those the only drinks available with a package?  Not one light American beer. 

Those are some of the drinks.  I will take some bar photos for you today as we travel around.  It is a sea day, so I’ll be back with photos and will post if I can keep hold of Wi-Fi, though I am having to share with about 800 others.  You know how that goes.  For the most part internet has not been too bad.  I have gotten very good at just giving up when it is appropriate, lest I give in to temptation to sail this iPad right off the balcony into the briny deep.  Kind of like trying to parallel park on a steep hill when you haven’t done it in ages.  After three attempts and everyone on the street stopping to watch you humiliate yourself, best to just call it a day and drive away as they shake their heads and laugh.  
 

One unexpected consequence of our changed itinerary….my other half calculates port or starboard cabin choice on the ship’s route, based on when the sun will be on the balcony because we don’t enjoy the sun blasting in all day.  But that is, annoyingly, exactly what we have every day.  Small annoyance.

[GeorgiaPeach51]

@DeepFreeze63  Last year on the Splendor, my wife didn't feel well but I persuaded her to join me for soup in CR.  She had soup and we started to leave. The CR staff were all over us! What was wrong? What could they do?  After my explanation, my order was delivered to our room. Way to go Regent.

 

I LOVE that story.  Yep, that’s the Regent we know.  I have to repeat one of our favorite R experiences……my husband decided he wanted to see if the MDR could make a traditional New England lobster roll for him, so he requested it two or three days prior.  We were gone all day on a tour the next day and when we came back to the room there were no less than three anxious phone calls from CR asking what is this lobster roll?  Is it hot?  Is it like sushi?  When we went to dinner that night we were barely seated when out came two kitchen emissaries, anxiously asking for him to tell them what this was and how to do it and full of apologies that they were not yet able to honor his request.  I just sat and watched how very sincere and precious they were and truly, had to blink a few times lest someone see me getting emotional over a lobster roll….but they just touched my heart…they were so very endearing and earnest to honor his request….in the end it didn’t matter whether he got it or not because their efforts were the story.  
 

That is why, when the passenger said no one cared or interceded as they left, it was so shocking to me, because I really believe R staff might actually politely chase you across the dining room and into the hall, wringing their hands the whole way, in order to find some way to make things right.  If you are an O fan and you think this is a gross exaggeration, I assure you, it is not.

 

Joanie

[kjbacon]

17 minutes ago, GeorgiaPeach51 said:

Last night we had our first truly delicious meal, and it was in Jacques.  That is the restaurant O, in its’ infinite wisdom, has done away with on Vista.  Based on our wonderful meal last night I would say that is ill-advised.  We did not have a reservation but were told to show up at 6:30, and they seated us at 7.

 

Service was excellent.  Food was truly yummy.  I got a lobster gnocchi appetizer that was perfect, light and fluffy.  You know who got half of it.  True French Onion soup that I wanted very much to finish but could not if anything else was going to be enjoyed.  Pork something or other with apple and a lovely sauce.  Delicious potatoes.  Every single thing was really good, and the portions were small, so you could enjoy without having to waddle out the door.  For dessert, having learned my lesson, I got the pistachio crème brûlée AND the chocolate mousse, and the chocolate mousse was the only disappointment….it was just a touch salty and had the consistency of that old package whipped pudding, the name of which escapes me.  Readi-whip?

 

Rolf got the escargot, which he loved.  Then he had Coquille St. Jacques, which he did not…scallops were not tender and there was no sauce to speak of.  He pronounced my version at home to be much better.  So he got half of my pork.  He didn’t want to bother with ordering something else.  The waiter was certainly concerned that he didn’t enjoy it.  We are in Jacques again tonight and looking forward to it.  Our favorite so far.

We loved Jacques when we were on Riviera last year and couldn’t agree with you more … we are on Vista next year and think the absence of Jacques is the worst!

 

If you enjoy salad at all, they have a Boston Lettuce Salad appetizer with Roquefort cheese that is one of the best dishes that I’ve ever had on a ship. While it is “only a salad” it is perfectly prepared and the flavor combination is absolutely delicious. Enjoy Jacques and the rest of your trip!

[GeorgiaPeach51]

@kjbacon  Thanks for the tip!  I will try the salad tonight.  👍🏻👍🏻

[GeorgiaPeach51]

16 hours ago, rcandkc said:

Are those the only drinks available with a package?  Not one light American beer. 

Here is the best I could do with the full bar menu.  I hope it is legible.

[RetiredandTravel]

Great information.  Thank You.  I'm not very impressed with the listed wines, especially for $60 each a day.  If I recall correctly Oceania's connoisseur wine list is quite a bit more expensive than Regents.

[Gpilon]

16 hours ago, ON cruiser said:

Hello GP; you may recall that we were on the Navigator with you to Montreal last May. I entirely agree with your comments in your first post in this thread.

 

Dare I suggest that your sister and brother-in-law owe you and Rolfe a nice dinner on your return😀. 

Despite the differences from Regent, wishing you an ongoing nice cruise. Thanks for doing this thread. Most informative as well as entertaining.

 

As for us, we board Mariner in just over 2 weeks for a combined 7 & 10 day Caribbean cruise. As we’re experiencing sleet this evening in Toronto ( all the southerners can look up “sleet” then join us in an empathetic shiver), we are looking forward to some warmth and sunshine. 😀

 

 

This "Southerner" knows what sleet means/is. Of course, being originally from Montreal and having lived in TO for 18 years, I "vaguely remember" experiencing it!