Should we try Oceania?

[tobique33040]

My friend and I are looking at a cruise next summer on Sirena. This will be my fourth ocean cruise (all others on Viking) and she has been on one Viking and a lot of Caribbean cruises  years ago. We have seen a lot of bad reviews and dissatisfaction with Oceania recently in reviews and on the boards. The specific itinerary and time frame on Oceania suit us, so we are reaching out to get feedback from those who have experience with this line. Thanks very much.

Edited November 27, 2023 by tobique33040

[shepherd really]

15 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

My friend and I are looking at a cruise next summer on Sirena. This will be my fourth ocean cruise (all others on Viking) and she has been on one Viking and a lot of Caribbean cruises  years ago. We have seen a lot of bad reviews and dissatisfaction with Oceania recently in reviews and on the boards. The specific itinerary and time frame on Oceania suit us, so we are reaching out to get feedback from those who have experience with this line. Thanks very much.

Go take a look at the negative reviews of Viking or any other goods or services you are familiar with.  Then you'll realize that negative reviews by people you don't know are of absolutely no value in making a decision on anything.

 

 

[tobique33040]

Hmmm. Well if there is a preponderance of bad or good reviews, or if a certain aspect of the cruise line is commented upon often enough, that at least to me, is worth considering. I’m hopeful some people will have some helpful comments. Thank you for your input. 

[MEFIowa]

25 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

My friend and I are looking at a cruise next summer on Sirena. ... The specific itinerary and time frame on Oceania suit us, so we are reaching out to get feedback from those who have experience with this line.

My wife and I did our very 1st cruise ever, on Oceania on Riviera 12/2021 in the W. Caribbean. We loved it so much that while on board we signed up for another 10 nights, but this time on Sirena, 11/2022, in the E. Caribbean. We loved it so much that we signed up for 20 nights on Riviera, 10-11/2023, in the Med from Athens & Istanbul all the way to Rome & Barcelona. Turned 60 shortly before we started. Just completed it last Wednesday. Loved it!

 

AND we've got 22 nights booked on Sirena in the Baltic for 8-9/2024. Can't wait.

Edited November 27, 2023 by MEFIowa
Typo

[tobique33040]

1 minute ago, MEFIowa said:

My wife and I did our very 1st cruise on Oceania on Riviera 12/2021 in the W. Caribbean. We loved it so much that while on board we signed up for another 10 nights, but this time on Sirena, 11/2022, in the E. Caribbean. We loved it so much that we signed up for 20 nights on Riviera, 10-11/2023, in the Med from Athens & Istanbul all the way to Rome & Barcelona. Turned 60 shortely before we started. Just completed it last Wednesday. Loved it!

 

AND we've got 22 nights book on Sirena in the Baltic for 8-9/2024. Can't wait.

Oh yippee! Glad to hear this. We are looking at a  Baltic cruise beginning end of August for 12 nights. It’s a very interesting itinerary. Thank you very much.

[shepherd really]

3 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

Hmmm. Well if there is a preponderance of bad or good reviews, or if a certain aspect of the cruise line is commented upon often enough, that at least to me, is worth considering. I’m hopeful some people will have some helpful comments. Thank you for your input. 

You're welcome.  Honestly, most people here skew toward being fans, so you have to take everything with a large Ocean of salt.  I like the product but don't like how they operate their on-shore operation.  That said, it does not affect my enjoyment of the product.   Are they perfect, no.  You've got to pay a whole lot more to approach perfection, but they provide value for the price.  

 

Your results will vary.

 

 

[MEFIowa]

5 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

... I’m hopeful some people will have some helpful comments. ...

I've booked my cruises using O sales, to keep the cost reasonable. We've travelled in both B and A cabins. B on Sirena and both A & B on Riviera. The A has the "concierge benefits".

 

The FOOD has been amazing to us. No complaints. Other than I put on too many literal pounds afterwards and then have to do some dieting.

 

BUT we cruise for itineraries and don't worry much about entertainment. We'll do comics and I enjoy the educational speakers (if they have one). This last 20-night cruise we did NOT go to a single evening event in the lounge or elsewhere. We had only 2 sea days, so 18 of the days were all about getting off the ship and going to see & do fun, interesting stuff. We wear our shoes out. So to speak.

[tobique33040]

1 minute ago, shepherd really said:

You're welcome.  Honestly, most people here skew toward being fans, so you have to take everything with a large Ocean of salt.  I like the product but don't like how they operate their on-shore operation.  That said, it does not affect my enjoyment of the product.   Are they perfect, no.  You've got to pay a whole lot more to approach perfection, but they provide value for the price.  

 

Your results will vary.

 

 

Value for the price is good. Thank you. 

[MEFIowa]

3 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

... We are looking at a Baltic cruise beginning end of August for 12 nights. It’s a very interesting itinerary. ...

That would be the 1st 12 of 22 nights on our B2B on Sirena. London to Stockholm. Then Stockholm to Copenhagen for the latter 10 nights.

 

Wife booked our flight to London on Delta today and made a 3-night hotel reservation in London today, as well. (We already bought our trip insurance when we booked this cruise and paid our deposit.)

[tobique33040]

Just now, MEFIowa said:

I've booked my cruises using O sales, to keep the cost reasonable. We've travelled in both B and A cabins. B on Sirena and both A & B on Riviera. The A has the "concierge benefits".

 

The FOOD has been amazing to us. No complaints. Other than I put on too many literal pounds afterwards and then have to do some dieting.

 

BUT we cruise for itineraries and don't worry much about entertainment. We'll do comics and I enjoy the educational speakers (if they have one). This last 20-night cruise we did NOT go to a single evening event in the lounge or elsewhere. We had only 2 sea days, so 18 of the days were all about getting off the ship and going to see & do fun, interesting stuff. We wear our shoes out. So to speak.

This is very good news. We are looking at B cabins on Sirena. We are all about the itinerary as well,  but I admit we like the feel of Viking ships. We are really not interested in the entertainment, so like y’all, the lack of lots of entertainment is of no importance to us. It sounds like Sirena will work for us. 

[tobique33040]

1 minute ago, MEFIowa said:

That would be the 1st 12 of 22 nights on our B2B on Sirena. London to Stockholm. Then Stockholm to Copenhagen for the latter 10 nights.

 

Wife booked our flight to London on Delta today and made a 3-night hotel reservation in London today, as well. (We already bought our trip insurance when we booked this cruise and paid our deposit.)

So we begin in London, but it appears to be leaving Southampton. I think we will take the included airfare so Oceania will make our reservations. We were thinking of doing a few days in London, but the logistics of getting to Southampton seem daunting. Whereas with the included airfare, transfers to the ship are provided. If it were Greenwich or somewhere close I’d not be concerned. But Southampton is on the coast I believe. 
We will be using our TA so I’m hoping to get an idea from her about this. 

[MEFIowa]

Just now, tobique33040 said:

We are looking at B cabins on Sirena. ...

I booked the 2nd 10 nights first way back on 7 May 2022 when the itineraries opened. As a G (6060). Then used an O sale to revise it to a C1 Deluxe Outside on 20 Oct 2022 (7006, one of the "big" C1s).

 

I booked the 1st 12 nights off a summer sale, 13 Jul 23, in an F (7055).

 

As we learned recently, the veranda isn't that big a deal since we spend so much time off the ship doing things and then come back and go to bed early to prepare for an early rise the next day.

 

BUT IF there is another great sale, I'm more than willing to find a "better" cabin at a great price. I watch for ALL the O sales. Thinking O has had 6-8 or so just in 2023. 

[MEFIowa]

1 minute ago, tobique33040 said:

So we begin in London, but it appears to be leaving Southampton. ... We were thinking of doing a few days in London, but the logistics of getting to Southampton seem daunting. ... But Southampton is on the coast I believe. 

Our hotel is next to the Waterloo station. So we'll walk from the hotel to the station. Unless we pay a driver to take us to Stonehenge on the way to Southampton.

 

We learned how to use the local transportation systems during our recent 20-night cruise on Riviera.

 

- We bought the Venice Pass for the water taxes in Venice and took them everywhere. Cheap and easy for our 3 days there.

- We took the Italian train from Venice to Trieste, no problem and just E15.50 PP.

- We took the Greek metro to the Acropolis and back. Dirt cheap.

- We bought the Istanbul card for TL 70 and used the local trams and buses to get all over the city (including 4 miles to the old walls). Was TL 15 or about 55 cents per trip. And it was good for the 2 weekends we were there on the B2B.

- We took the Barcelona metro near the cruise port to near our BnB.

[flygod]

5 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

So we begin in London, but it appears to be leaving Southampton. I think we will take the included airfare so Oceania will make our reservations. We were thinking of doing a few days in London, but the logistics of getting to Southampton seem daunting. Whereas with the included airfare, transfers to the ship are provided. If it were Greenwich or somewhere close I’d not be concerned. But Southampton is on the coast I believe. 
We will be using our TA so I’m hoping to get an idea from her about this. 

 

Southampton is easy to get to from London - maybe not the great old days of a train right to the quayside, but frequent trains direct from central London. Standard class from about $13, first class from c$40 - 90 minutes journey, service runs every 15 minutes or so! Check thetrainline.com

[tobique33040]

10 minutes ago, flygod said:

 

Southampton is easy to get to from London - maybe not the great old days of a train right to the quayside, but frequent trains direct from central London. Standard class from about $13, first class from c$40 - 90 minutes journey, service runs every 15 minutes or so! Check thetrainline.com

That is excellent information. We will have to talk about our plans. It would be nice to spend a few days in London. Thank you! 

[Sthrngary]

1 hour ago, tobique33040 said:

My friend and I are looking at a cruise next summer on Sirena. This will be my fourth ocean cruise (all others on Viking) and she has been on one Viking and a lot of Caribbean cruises  years ago. We have seen a lot of bad reviews and dissatisfaction with Oceania recently in reviews and on the boards. The specific itinerary and time frame on Oceania suit us, so we are reaching out to get feedback from those who have experience with this line. Thanks very much.

@tobique33040 Hello.  I have taken 30+ cruises. My last many on NCL in the Haven or Celebrity in the Retreat.  I just got off the Oceania Riviera for a 10 day Mediterranean Cruise with my lovely wife and best friends.  It was our first Oceania Cruise ever. I did a live blog and a review that was just published under reviews.  That said, ask me anything you like that you are concerned about and as a brand new Oceania Guest, I will answer transparently.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[tobique33040]

13 minutes ago, Sthrngary said:

@tobique33040 Hello.  I have taken 30+ cruises. My last many on NCL in the Haven or Celebrity in the Retreat.  I just got off the Oceania Riviera for a 10 day Mediterranean Cruise with my lovely wife and best friends.  It was our first Oceania Cruise ever. I did a live blog and a review that was just published under reviews.  That said, ask me anything you like that you are concerned about and as a brand new Oceania Guest, I will answer transparently.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

I found your blog and I’m going to read it! Long and detailed sounds good to me. I’ll come back here if I have questions. Thanks very much. 

[edgee]

Just remember that on Serena and the other three "R" ships of Oceania, the bathrooms in all cabins below the suite level and especially the showers are REALLY tiny. Certainly not a deal-breaker for some, but after two cruises on these older ships...for us it is. We now confine our Oceania cruises to their newer, larger ships.

[tobique33040]

10 minutes ago, edgee said:

Just remember that on Serena and the other three "R" ships of Oceania, the bathrooms in all cabins below the suite level and especially the showers are REALLY tiny. Certainly not a deal-breaker for some, but after two cruises on these older ships...for us it is. We now confine our Oceania cruises to their newer, larger ships.

So the Sirena was refurbished in 2019. Is the bathroom nice but tiny? Thank you for the information. Everything we can learn is helpful. 

[ak1004]

The only way to know is to try. Start with a short one, maybe 7-10 days. Then decide. Don’t let the reviews to impact your decision. Some of the reviews are just ridiculous and some people are just never happy. This is true for all lines.

[edgee]

5 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

So the Sirena was refurbished in 2019. Is the bathroom nice but tiny? Thank you for the information. Everything we can learn is helpful. 

Have not been on since refurb. Perhaps others can comment.

[tobique33040]

1 hour ago, Sthrngary said:

@tobique33040 Hello.  I have taken 30+ cruises. My last many on NCL in the Haven or Celebrity in the Retreat.  I just got off the Oceania Riviera for a 10 day Mediterranean Cruise with my lovely wife and best friends.  It was our first Oceania Cruise ever. I did a live blog and a review that was just published under reviews.  That said, ask me anything you like that you are concerned about and as a brand new Oceania Guest, I will answer transparently.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

Just read your blog. Very interesting and informative. Thank you. We are not looking at booking the rarified level that you enjoyed 😊but class B1. It was fun to hear about it though. Glad to hear you were pleased with the cruise and enjoyed reading your review. 

[Sthrngary]

5 minutes ago, tobique33040 said:

Just read your blog. Very interesting and informative. Thank you. We are not looking at booking the rarified level that you enjoyed 😊but class B1. It was fun to hear about it though. Glad to hear you were pleased with the cruise and enjoyed reading your review. 

Remember, when you leave your room, everyone is treated the same. The friends we went with Warren a penthouse. They were treated the same as we were.
 

Cruise well, and enjoy every moment

[Jancruz]

2 hours ago, tobique33040 said:

Hmmm. Well if there is a preponderance of bad or good reviews, or if a certain aspect of the cruise line is commented upon often enough, that at least to me, is worth considering. I’m hopeful some people will have some helpful comments. Thank you for your input. 

Why bother considering go back on Viking..Then you done have to waste your time thinking about it ..

Jancruz1

[tobique33040]

Just now, Jancruz said:

Why bother considering go back on Viking..Then you done have to waste your time thinking about it ..

Jancruz1

😂I love thinking