Luxury Cruises

Oceania Cruises

Oceania Cruise Inspection by our Master Cruise Consultants

Oceania Observations
John Emerson
Travel and Training Consultant
TravelWizard.com

Oceania seems to fit a niche that offers luxury travel at considerably less expense than the very high end cruise lines.  These observations are based upon two sailings with this cruise line, one in the Mediterranean and the other from Brazil, around the Horn to Chile.

The primary reason I travelled with Oceania in the first place was once again to experience the 640 passenger ships formally operated by the now defunct Renaissance Cruise lines.  These intermediate sized ships offer an intimacy not available on the larger, middle of the road lines such as Princess, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, Holland America, etc.

During my first voyage with Oceania, the Executive Chef of the cruise line, Jacques Pepin, was on board and the cuisine was absolutely outstanding.  I suspected that perhaps it was better on that cruise since “the boss” was on board but on the second journey, I found the food to be every bit as good.

Unlike other middle category cruise lines, Oceania offers two specialty restaurants at no additional cost, The Polo Grill, which is a prime meat steakhouse and Toscana, an Italian venue also serving prime beef in addition to focusing on gourmet Italian offerings.  The Grand Dining Room offers a new menu each evening with a wide variety of interesting items. 

Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages incur additional charges; however, Oceania policy allows guests to bring their own libations on board from port for consumption in their cabins.  The only limitation is that guests are asked not to consume their own stock outside of the cabin.  This certainly seems “fair enough,” compared with other cruise lines who threaten to confiscate alcoholic supplies and return them at the end of the cruise.  If you wish to bring your own wine to dinner, there is a $20 corkage fee.  Because of the high level of service, I asked why the soft drinks were not included and was informed that Oceania was not competing in pricing with the high end lines such as Crystal.  It was observed that when soft drinks were included, wine sales and other alcoholic beverage sales dropped which makes some sense in regard to the cruise line’s bottom line.

The existing ships of Oceania - Regatta, Insignia and Nautica, all refurbished and improved former Renaissance Cruise line ships, offer inside cabins, balcony cabins, penthouse suites, vista and owner’s suites.  All cabins have flat screen TV and DVD players.  Room service is available 24/7 at no additional charge.  At the penthouse level and above, the cabin includes the services of a butler.  This is not a concierge, this is a butler.  He is available from 6am until 10pm to provide meals en-suite from any of the dining rooms including the specialty restaurants, served course by course or all at once depending on your preference.  Afternoon canapés are offered by him daily and he makes reservations for the specialty restaurants, shore excursions, and other activities as you require.  Housekeeping services for the cabin are performed by very efficient cabin stewards twice daily.

In the public areas, there are a variety of bars and lounges as well as a small stage auditorium for evening performances by usually a small ensemble or single artist performer.  Elaborate Broadway productions are not possible on this size of a ship however talent seems reasonably good and up to cruise line standard.  There is a single salt water pool with two Jacuzzis on either side.  There is an additional Jacuzzi available with a variety of treatment additions in the full service spa.  Also available are a well equipped gym and a hair salon.  A beautiful wood paneled and well stocked library is comfortably furnished with couches and wing-backed chairs for quiet reading.  Internet access is available, for additional charges, by wifi in cabin, or on internet stations in the computer classroom or library. 

One very big plus for many of the passengers is the self service laundry located on deck 7.  For a reasonable fee, tokens may be purchased for the washers and dryers.  This is a very economical alternative to the ship laundry service, especially on longer itineraries.  Irons and ironing boards are available in the self-service laundry as well.  (A note to agents – avoid the cabin directly across from the laundry as passengers begin lining up at 7am in the hall for the 7:30am opening.  This can cause some conversational noise at a very early hour.)

Shipboard activities are limited because of space, ship size and clientele.  The mandatory “fine art” sales are offered although at a much lower key than larger ships.  The incessant photographing and peddling of trip memories posted for everyone to view and purchase has been eliminated on Oceania, a refreshing departure from the irritating practices of mainstream cruise lines.  The staff will be more than happy to take your picture with your own camera when asked.

Generally speaking, the clientele onboard are older couples perhaps from late 50’s to late 70’s.  There are no programs for children and activities are not conducive to them.  There is a small casino with table games and a fair number of slot machines.  Daily activities include bingo, team trivia, bridge, computer lessons (some for a fee), golf putting and ping pong.  There was also an event where people could brag about their grandchildren (a further indication of the average age of the passengers). 

It would be nice if the evening entertainment in the main lounge was broadcast on the television system the next day for those passengers who do not wish to stay up until a 9:30-9:45pm single performance.  It would also be a plus if the menus of the restaurants, were displayed on the TV, especially for the Grand Dining Room since it changes daily. All of these broadcasts could easily be accomplished by interweaving them throughout the day using the channel dedicated primarily to the cruise director’s review of the daily activities.

Another advantage onboard is the dress code which is “country club casual.”  During the last 19 day cruise, formal night was never mentioned.  Although some of the men dressed in evening wear that might include a sports coat and tie, most did not feel the need for a tie (personally I’d skip the coat and tie on the next trip).  The ladies seemed to enjoy dressing for dinner yet not to an overly formal level.  Overall, these three ships are comfortable, elegantly appointed, and provide a relaxing, slow paced environment. 

Oceania is also building a new ship to be launched in 2010 named the Marina.  This ship will accommodate 1100 passengers but I am told that the level of service and policies applied to the three smaller ships will remain in place.  Although the ship will be in size, comparable to some of the mainstream cruise line ships which can handle two thousand plus passengers, the Marina will focus on providing more space for public areas and cabins as well.  Standard balcony cabins will about the size of the current penthouse suites (350 sq. ft. +), the new penthouse suites will be 500 sq. ft. or more, the new level of cabin accommodation called Oceania Suites will be in excess of 1000 sq. feet and the Owners’ Suites will exceed 2000 sq. ft.  Butler service will be provided at Penthouse level and above.  There will still be a few inside cabins.  All cabins will have wifi and likely an interactive communication system to perform a variety of tasks.

The Marina will have six restaurants including four specialty restaurants with the existing Polo Grill, Toscana Italian, plus an Asian and French restaurant in addition to Tapas and the Grand Dining room.  At present, there are no plans to charge for the specialty restaurants and the personal alcohol in cabin policy will remain the same as the rest of the fleet. There will be significantly more lounges and the show venues will be larger allowing for larger and more elaborate show productions.  There will also be more shops and perhaps a movie theater and art gallery.  Because of the increased size, it is expected a wider variety of activities will be offered although I suspect they will still be designed to please adults and not the younger crowd.

Overall Oceania is a major cut above the standard fare in cruise lines while not attempting to compete with the higher end, all-inclusive cruise market.  In the past, cruise fares have been offered at two for one and have included air to the embarkation point and returning from disembarkation. For clientele who want value for luxury service, refined and classic environment, and an opportunity to know most of the other guests, Oceania is a perfect option.

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