GOOD - Nice Room with Butler/Concierge service, large bathroom and balcony, 24-hour room service. Main dining room and Toscana had excellent service staff and food was fantastic. Ship was nicely equipped and comfortable, albeit not very large comparatively. BAD - Captain and officers were completely self-righteous and arrogant, to the point of being rude. The dining personnel in the "Polo Club" were incompetent and utterly unskilled in premier food service. We are not snobs and expect minor glitches in services, etc. However, the Polo Club is a "reservations only" establishment and one cannot simply enter at their leisure. The cruise was labeled "Gaelic Glory", but there was no glory about it. The theme was advertised as "Irish", but there wasn't an inkling of Irish theme aboard ship...no Irish food, music, or adornments...??? The entertainment was reminiscent of a theme park, with less than stellar performances. Shore excursions were offered by the cruise line at exorbitant prices, usually 3-4 times the amount charged by local companies at each port-of-call. If you did not book an excursion through the cruise line, you were not allowed to disembark the ship until all of those who purchased cruise line excursion packages had departed. This usually meant waiting 1-2 hours after arriving in port. The crew was extremely vigilant in enforcing this measure, to point of acting "Gestapo" like...very discourteous and unnecessary. I could list many more negative aspects about the cruise, but I think you get the picture. Overall...VERY DISAPPOINTED...!!! Read Less

This was our first sailing on the Victoria and it really is a most impressive ship . We had booked Balcony Club as we prefer the availability of dining when we choose . Shortly before leaving we upgraded to Princess Grill and considered the larger suite and good sized balcony well worth the extra cost . We were not , however, impressed by the Princess Grill dining room . It is large and caters for well over 100 people and is thus not an intimate venue . It compares unfavourably with the Club Balcony on the Elizabeth which ( on our earlier cruise) only catered for about 50 people . The waiters ( dedicated to a group of tables ) were polite and charming and very willing to please but on occasion did not notice when the plate was not as ordered. I could not fault the menus – 5 courses for Dinner and Lunch . We don’t have hearty appetites and never ate lunch there preferring to use the casual Lido restaurant where there was always a large range of different types of food where we could “graze” from the self service buffet . Even though we had the onboard spending allowance ( much of which was taken up by the automatic daily charging of staff gratuity charges of $27 ) I found the wine pricing exorbitant. In the restaurant a bottle of Cloudy Bay, Sauvignon Blanc had a basic price of $40 which was not too bad seeing that , tax free , in the UK it would be about £20 (c $26 ) . However a corkage charge of $25 was then added and ,on top of that , there was a service charge of 15% bringing the total up to $ 74.75 . I refrained from any further purchases there . Quite a number of people to whom we spoke also complained about drink pricing policy on the ship . The air conditioning throughout the ship was set low This was affecting the ladies, especially as they had to dress accordingly . A number complained that they had been unable to wear dresses which had been brought especially for gala nights . Perhaps this was a factor in the ship seeming deserted after 10pm . People were more comfortable in their suites. As regards the excursions we found these to be very well organised by Cunard staff as far as getting us off the ship was concerned but they varied in quality from place to place just as was mentioned in Cunard’s publications . They are dependent on local companies whose employees seem often to be students doing casual work . For example , in Mauritius , we had an early start one day and visited a charming old French colonial villa where we were given a bottle of water and offered a couple of very small deep fried battered vegetables . We then drove a long distance to an old sugar plantation factory which had been converted into a museum dedicated to the local spice industry. Here we were led around every section which , because of the time involved in slowly following other groups of visitors, we found intensely boring . It was over by around 2pm and there had been no allowance for lunch and we still had another town to visit . What was annoying was to find that the factory had a very pleasant outdoor café facility of which we were totally unaware and unable to use as we were then driven off for another 2 hours unfed, and with no opportunity of buying a snack anywhere , until we returned to the ship. Our cruise was part of the Victoria’s World Cruise and covered Singapore to CapeTown . When we boarded it was clear from the amount of coughing noted that there was a “bug” in situ . This was clearly recognised by the Medical Centre which had a prominent notice saying that they did not prescribe antibiotics for this bug which they said was a Cold/Flu infection . They admitted it was virulent and could take up to a month to clear completely . My wife caught this after a week aboard and was prescribed only basic cough medication and paracetamol. She saw the doctors twice and , it not improving , was then told that that was the only medication that they could/would prescribe . Her condition worsened and , when we disembarked in CapeTown , she immediately saw a doctor who diagnosed acute bronchitis and prescribed strong antibiotics and steroids and certified her unfit to fly ( we were due to leave 3 days later and this had to be extended by a further 3 days ) . We thus incurred considerable extra cost and had no opportunity of making the most of our time there . Regarding the entertainment (in the magnificent theatre) there were very good lectures during the day e.g. antiques , topical history and politics and regional cuisine but we found the evening shows and performances mediocre . All in all this was a rather like the proverbial curate’s egg – good in parts . For us however it was a disappointing cruise . Read Less

We chose the cruise for its itinerary. We wanted to got to French Polynesia and had never cruised across the South Pacific with such exotic locations as the Pitcarin Islands and Easter Island. The flight over allowed us to visit one daughter & family in California out the way over and ended in New York where a second daughter lives. A bonus was a scheduled stop in Norfolk with even more family. Past cruises have shown us that Oceania really takes great care of its guests in the top suites. We were booked in a penthouse but wanted an Oceania Suite. About 3 months prior to sailing, an Owners Suite came available for leg one and in January the same cabin came available for leg 2. We call that cruise karma. From the moment we stepped on the ship we were treated with the best service available. We had the head butler at our disposal (he has only 3 cabins and supervises the other butlers). This gentleman made the cruise for us. He got us into the restaurants we wanted when we wanted and was always available for anything else. At 2000 square feet, the suite was larger than my wife's first house. We had a bedroom with a separate bath and his and her closets. The foyer was our favorite as it had a fully stocked bar, sofa and grand piano that was a modern day player piano. The living room had a desk, table for 6 and full sofa. Everything was Ralph Loren, right down to the drink coasters and candy trays. With the number of sea days and with poor weather in the first week after leaving French Polynesia, we found our suite even more enjoyable. Unfortunately everything did not stay perfect. First, we missed the port call at Easter Island. The weather was great but there were ocean swells entering the tender harbor. Many were mad but we understand that this was just bad luck and, having done our homework, we realized that this was a real possibility. We booked an independent shore excursion there and as a result lost half of our prepaid excursion cost. Lima was mid cruise change out day. All was well but unbeknownst to us, someone brought aboard the dreaded GI disease. This was not our first experience with GI and Oceania. It is not a pretty site. Within 2 days of leaving Lima we started to see items disappear like the sugar bowls in the coffee bar. Next comes the announcement that if you feel sick, see the doctor for a free consultation (buyer beware - they do not say free treatment - see one of my previous Oceania reviews to learn about how Oceania will completely empty your pockets if you visit the medical center. When they hit the high level - 20 -30 people sick, service stinks. When entering a restaurant, there is nothing but a bare table cloth. Anything you can touch that can be removed is. The putting green is closed, but interestingly, live goes on as normal in the casino and ad in any other retail or money activities. We retreated to our room and used room service a bit more than we had been. The really bad part of this is that they keep the ship at this "protocol" until the GI is eradicated. It was almost over in central america (after a week) but 2 more came down with the GI. The end result was that the ship went back to normal only 3 days prior to the end of the cruise, so the total time under the sad conditions was 12 days in total. I suspect that other reviews will point this out. On departure from Miami we were informed that we would skip Norfolk and put into Port Canaveral. Good call. A check of the internet indicated 26 foot seas around Cape Hatteras and we would not have enjoyed it. I missed seeing my sister in Norfolk, but such is life. Sail into New York was mid-day and was an event everyone should get to experience. We sat on our expansive back deck and enjoyed the arrival with a room service lunch. Our travel agent has always warned us that Oceania lacks in entertainment. It did. Lectures weren't great, save for the Easter Island resident historian who prepped us for the visit that did not occur. The on board cast and guest entertainers were mediocre at best with the exception of a Vegas entertainer aboard the last week who was heads and shoulders above anything we had seen the entire 34 days aboard. This is not a high priority for us as the show mainly keeps us from going to bed too early. Overall, I would rate the cruise at a 4.5 if I could. I have been very critical of Oceania in the past, we are not likely to go again on the older smaller ships, but this one was great save for the unavoidable missed ports and GI experience. We are likely to book the larger Oceania Ship again, but only if we can get one of the top suites. We normally travel with Regent, Crystal or Seabourn but this experience was equal to or better than those lines. Read Less

We chose this cruise to visit Vietnam and Hong Kong and finish with a stint in Singapore. this segment was 22 days. - we were medically disembarked on day 18. Please read on to the Cunard Cough Embarkation was so smooth and took just minutes. The Cabin 8114 was clean, comfortable and the steward wonderful. Dining in the Lido Buffet offered a wide variety of choices of excellent food. Unfortunately the furniture in the Lido needs a very good clean and the chairs were very grubby and the salt and pepper shakers were the main source of germs. The main restaurant was very disappointing. The offerings were average at best and the service was not up to the food and service standard that we experienced on the Queen Elizabeth a few years ago. Mock cream was offered with desserts. MOCK Cream!!!!! when you can get fresh whipped in the Lido buffet - that was not logical, fine dining Vs buffet and we got mock cream. Might sound picky, but the rest of the food followed suit. The entertainment nightly and offerings during the day were very good. Excursions were well managed, Tender ports took forever to get off, so get down early if you are doing a self-tour as these leave after the excursions. MEDICAL CENTRE - excellent service for all those who became sick, and those with the dreaded CUNARD COUGH. Yes, it has a name, This cough is a virus and was rampant on our cruise. It put too many passengers in sick bay and resulted with us getting pneumonia and having to leave the cruise early to get specialised hospitalisation and treatment. Many passengers didn't like getting treatment on the ship as their travel insurance was not top notch and they didn't want to pay, therefore they coughed and coughed and gave it to many others. The doctors and medical staff we give 1000%, we would not be here writing this without them. Yes our travel insurance paid up but we were very honest with them and took out extra and got their approval to cover pre-existing conditions. Would we go again - no, we felt the overall standard on this cruise was not what we enjoyed a few years ago, and on review we will not take the health risks. Read Less

Embarkation and disembarkation was relatively smooth. Don’t expect much hospitality. Employees are not excited about their jobs so don’t expect many smiles either. We spent much extra to stay in a (PHS) Penthouse Suite and was advertised our own personal Butler, (which was shared by many other suites so personalized is the farthest from the truth.) He is given too many rooms to service. We also understood we would have preferred tendering, (which we were first to get tickets, but told we would be last. Yep, last to tender.) We almosted missed our excursion. Does the ship care? Nope! If you book through them then you are first to tender. *Know b4 you go! Next the food. Why does everyone rave about the food? Ugg! My wife got sick on the fish. It was not cooked though enough. The Caesar salad is soaked in dressing every time! It was gross! Our friends lobster was over cooked. The buffet breakfast is pretty good but basic. We ordered room service breakfast. The scrambled eggs were runny, boiled eggs inconsistent. The fruit was mushy & over ripe most of the time. If you wear a hat to dinner, be prepared to be kicked out!! We were late for almost every port with little time anyway. Then paying extra to be in a PHS and having to be last to tender. What a slap in the face. Bottom line: a PHS gives you nothing extra really! The laundry service is terrible it took four days to get 20 items back! Four tiny washer & dryers for the whole boat so get ready to stand in line!! Now Entertainment: (———.) that describes it. VERY limited, basically nothing. The butler &/or staff is always pressuring you to buy something like an excursion or wine tasting or martini tasting (they must be getting a commission!) It just sucks!!! The rooms are small and closets are too. We have sailed other cruise lines and not had such a terrible experience. Oceania is not for me. Read Less

We are in our early 60's and fit and healthy. The Cunard line represented to us elegance, fine dining and an association with the Grand Queens of the Sea. Though there were some good points to the ship including the Common Areas, the Afternoon Tea, Library and some entertainment, the rest of the experience left a lot to be desired. We were in Cabin 6123 Starboard with balcony. We were assigned Britannia early seating. The main food options available are the Britannia Restaurant on Decks 2 and 3 and the Lido Restaurant on Deck 9 which is the main outdoor activity Deck on the ship. The Lido has very poor quality food - think Cafeteria style - with little flavour and no fresh produce, only cold storage items. The Lido restaurant itself looks like an Aged Care Facility with boring pastel shades and Ikea style furniture. The Grill bar out near the pool area again has no decor - just a plain service counter with precooked burgers and battered fish, but mainly batter, available in hamburger buns - just awful. The Britannia Restaurant is the formal dining offering where jackets for men at Dinner are mandatory and where waiters and a Sommelier in attendance. The menu changes daily but hardly any of the dishes were recognisable as chef quality. Some of the dishes were a mystery with the most ridiculous additions that did nothing for the hero of the plate - either fish, lamb or beef. What is the Head Chef thinking? We brought on board our own wine from Australia as we had the foresight to check out the wine prior to boarding. This was a good move, and though we paid $20 US for every bottle opened, at least we got to drink good wine at a reasonable cost. Our sommelier, Roberto was excellent and had a thorough knowledge of wine and his service was impeccable - thank you Roberto. All drinks are expensive on board the ship and you pay in US dollars - add to that a 15% surcharge plus gratuities every day. We did eat at The Golden Lion a few times, and the pub meals were good and at a standard of most pubs in England. The Daily Programme was nothing short of tedious and repeats of the same thing every two or three days. Think trivia challenges. The Gala Evenings (7 in 24 days) were of no consequence. We all put on our finery, went to dinner, went to the show, then came back to the Queen's room and watched a dozen or so of people on the ship who could ball room dance - there was no allowance for any type of other dancing as the floor was taken with Fox Trot, Samba etc. with couples swirling around the whole dance floor. Why have a Ball? Nothing was done to include the 90% of guests in more modern dancing or being part of a 'ball atmosphere". There was dancing in the Yacht club. However, this venue was as dead as a door on the few occasions we visited. 'Under 30's' are scheduled for 10.30 pm (the only under 30's on board are crew) and there's a disco on from mid-night. A 'Beatles' band joined the ship for the remaining 4 nights with the band playing in the Queens Room on the last night and everyone got up and danced and had a great time - the only one night throughout the duration of the 24 days. The lectures - some were interesting and others were terrible - a right royal buffeting of Princess Anne, and World War II British lectures on how the war was won (don't mention the war!) with over 350 Germans on board - goodness know how well that went down with the Germans.... The ship has apparently had an upgrade, but you were hard pressed to tell. We spent a large amount of time on the back verandah near the swimming pool and the condition of the decks, pool surrounds, and rusty areas needs to be attended to immediately. At times, the belching of the smoke from the funnels created great piles of soot deposits which spoilt our clothes and left us covered in black spots - unhealthy to be inhaling too... The windows on the ship always seemed to be dirty so if you were sitting in the Britannia looking out to sea, there were rust and salt encrusted streaks in your vision. The Tender service process was terrible. We managed to finally get ashore at the Whitsundays at quarter to twelve after having milled about in the Queens room with hundreds of people waiting to be called for the Tender. People who had booked tours that day, ended up not doing a different tour because of time constraints. The same process for every Tender port ensued and although there was some improvement in the process, the queues and delays were very frustrating. Oh, and to top it off, and notwithstanding the crew's best efforts with hand sanitisers, a flu like bug went through the ship which had people coughing incessantly. Difficult to stop once it starts. Perhaps food handling in the kitchens needs tighter control given we observed on one occasion when the kitchen doors were open one of the 'chefs' coughing into his hands then handling food without washing and sanitising his hands. Read Less

We booked a 50 day cruise with Cunard Queen Mary 2 primarily to visit Petra, Rome plus about 20 other countries. The cruise departed Feb 23 from Shanghai to April 14 in South Hampton. While boarding in Shanghai, I was bumped by a luggage handler and my knee was scratched. The scratch became infected by Feb 27 and I had to take antibiotics for the whole cruise, so we never saw any of the sights we intended. After the cruise, we submitted our claim to a Cunard cruise claims adjuster because I needed to continue antibiotics April 15 to June 12. The Cunard claim adjuster gave us a runaround and distorted facts to avoid paying any fair compensation. I wrote the President of Cunard asking to be treated fairly in compensation, and were emailed in return indicating since we purchased our cruise in the USA he could do nothing! I wondered why they are marketing in the USA if they cannot treat folks that book in the USA fairly in compensation. I must say the Cunard medical staff is excellent, but their onboard antibiotic selection is limited. The exercise facilities are limited for a person with a knee infection caused by Cunard. The pools are beautiful and clean, but someone with a leg infection can not use the pools or hot tubs. From the stern from the 11th floor or above, one can see 3 pools on 3 different levels. Dining room food is limited quality but good variety; and deserts are for a European palate. With my leg infection we were forced to do things we normally would not do, viz. painting, read and gamble. The casino has really nice folks working there and the odds aren't bad as my wife and I bot one several times. The art classes or lessons was a fantastic experience. On level 2 at the pursers desk or level 3 at the shops the central foyer is a classic 0 the flowers display is the nicest we have ever seen on any ship. Read Less

We selected this cruise specifically for the stability of the QM2 and Cunard's reported quality. We had never been on a long cruise previously and didn't know if we would even like the experience. In the event, we loved it and have indeed book further world cruises with Cunard for 2020 and 2021. You need to book much earlier than we expected to even get on one of their ships! All Grill Suites for both were sold out while we were still on the ship in April. We appreciated most of the shows, not all to our taste or to the same quality, but there was something for everyone and we certainly enjoyed over 80% of the performances. The Guest Speakers were a real highlight and most were exceptional. Although the tours were expensive, they were well organised and Graham the tour Manager did an exceptional job presenting and "selling" the various tours. Again, another asset to the business as he has a real wealth of experience. On the down side, there were rather more medical emergencies among the ageing guests on board than we had expected and we had to make a few non schedule stops to facility these. Cunard however handled these really well and we never missed a planned port of call or were late arriving. We also though a good number of people complained and moaned a LOT more than we would have expected. There appeared to be a sizeable cohort of "professional moaners" on board, which we found hard to understand given the luxurious surrounding, excellent food and simply magnificent service. I wouldn't care but it always appeared to be people less use to these things who complained the most. In short, we loved the experience, which certainly exceeded our expectations. Expensive? Yes, very. BUT who goes on a world cruise at this level and expects it to be cheap? Well done to all the staff on QM2. Read Less

There are now so many awful cruise reviews that despite not usually writing a review I am forced to do so to redress the balance Having read the reviews of Marina over time I believe that some people only go on a cruise so that they can complain about it afterwards whereas my only complaint for the trip as a whole is that it would have been much better had a number of ignorant, rude and objectionable passengers stayed at home. This is how I found the cruise. Ship We found the ship to be in excellent condition, well ran and well maintained. All of the staff we encountered went out of their way to be helpful and ensure that we were having a good time. We were in a Concierge Cabin on deck 9 Mid Ship and did not suffer from Vibration, excessive noise or too much rock and roll although at the front of the ship it was noticeably more so. Concierge lounge was good for early morning coffee and cake. There were a small number of children on board however this was not a cruise suitable for them. Cabins. Clean, comfortable and spaceous with sufficient storage and size of bathroom to satisfy most people. Despite the huge range of termperatures on this cruise it was neither too hot or too cold was always keep very tidy by the room attendant and suffered from no external noise problems. The bed was particularly comfortable and the choice of amenities of a good standard. Ideally, it could have had coffee making facilities but my only real complaint was the fact that during rough weather the closet rattled so much I had to wedge it closed. Restaurants We eat at all of the restaurants and found the food to be of a very good quality throughout. Service was equally good and there was a real desire by the staff to please the passengers on board. Alcoholic drinks were sometimes a little slow arriving however this was more to do with how this is organised with the Sommeliers being responsible for wine and therefore being fewer in number than the general waiting staff I had booked one visit to each of the speciality restaurants beforehand and was able to obtain additional bookings on board, 2 more at each, without problem. Our favourite was Red Ginger because of the exemplary levels of service as well as excellent food. Of note also is the Waves Grill which served excellent Sandwiches at lunchtime. Bars Most days we frequented the pool bar and in the evening Martinis. The service in the pool bar was great and staff again excellent. Martinis had an amazing Pianist called Andre Mieux who was by far the best entertainer on board the ship and the cocktails particularly the Big O, very good. We purchased the Prestige Select drinks package for the cruise and found that it was for us value for money particularly when a 25% surchange was applied to all drinks whilst in Brazilian waters on top of the 18% gratuity normally added to each drink Entertainment Proved to be a bit of a mixed bag with some which we liked other no so good Most people found that the shows are not the same on a small ship as in the West End or Vagas so will always generate comment. Personally I would have liked to have seen a little more local culture rather than acts such as An Evening with Allen. Enrichment Lectures I fell asleep at the only one I attended Shore Excursions Generally handled well by the staff on board with the booked tours getting off the ship first. Generally, they are expensive and most people we met preferred to take the chance and book their own. We did a mix of both however careful research is needed for a private tour and this takes time. Getting on and off. Mostly hassle free on embarkation less so on disembarkation due to the onward travel arrangements and large number of people. Overall this was an excellent cruise which was good value for money and I will definitely book another in future. Read Less

It was a wonderful cruise, we visited some remote islands which we found very interesting, the lectures were informative relating to the region. The food at all of the restaurants was very good with a good variety, the wines were of excellent quality and we particularly like the caviar service which was available 24/7! The premium restaurant was very good, no cover charge, was an added bonus, however you must book this venue. Our cabin was in a very good location for us. It was spacious and well appointed, with walk in robe, the bathroom was a good size with a full size bath and glass door type shower (no shower curtain!). The ship and crew were excellent at all times, no hard sell of tours, for that matter did not push any agenda, and were most helpful if you wanted to do your own thing. Nothing was too much trouble. Can’t wait to get back on Seabourn! Read Less

Without a doubt, we had a great cruise on Sojourn Oct-Dec 2018, pretty much flawless, so we booked a 94 day cruise( Auckland to Cape Town). Total disappointment, the entire cruise was fraught with inconsistency in service and chaos in dining rooms and bars. To say the least, we were disappointed in Seabourn Service standard not even 1 star. These are the highlights (tongue in cheek): Bar staff totally disorganized and inexperienced ( served gin/tonic with stick of olives) Terrace outside dining chaotic and inefficient, sometimes service other times not Main dining room food bland, monotonous,poorly prepared, service inexperienced Sometimes staff indifferent and other times friendly were not knowledgeable What was good: The itinerary and ports of call fabulous The ship itself and captain great The Ventures tours interesting with competent staff The emphasis on safety in tendering excellent The cabin a haven of refuge Summary Clearly, the cruise industry is struggling with high fuel-costs,labor costs and commissions to travel agencies. So revenues from passenger bookings are off set with cost cutting in services areas such as labor and food etc. to achieve operating margin and profitability curves, a sad commentary and unhappy experience for passengers. Seabourn did not meet. mission or vision for this cruise: What's so special about poor service and poor food?, Read Less

This is cruise 18 with Oceania on all ships but Serena. I am not sure if i have been unlucky but the service level was less than “normal”. For example at the Sunday brunch my wife and i finished before any staff member asked us if we wanted water, juice or anything else except cocktails. At dinner in the dining room the opposite, cant find a drink waiter and have to ask. It seems there is a staff shortage. The other annoying thing is the berths, there was a German ship “AIDA’ shadowing us and in every common port it had the in town berth when one was available and we got the container terminal. This happened even when the advertised Oceania berth was in town. Is all this Norwegian cost cutting a little at a time? I also note that the level benefits are being downgraded next year. In a way that is good news for me because the loyalty program did have me captive to an extent so I now feel less trapped. About to try Viking for the first time and maybe not the last. Have already tried Ponant and although it is a very different product being “expedition” yachts of 200 pax it has overcome finding new places to cruise given i have exhausted the Oceania network. Read Less

Loved the itinerary - many locations we had not visited. However a horrible cruise overall. Booked our flight through Oceania as part of the cruise package and arrived at the airport to find out that our flight was cancelled the day before. No notice received from airline(Austrian Air) or Oceania - frustrating way to start a vacation. Thank goodness we arived early at the airport and was able to find a substatute flight. Booked a Penthouse suite and expected suite service. We entered our suite after the 10th floor suites were released to find out our bathroom had not been cleaned. Towels were changed but shower was littered with previous guest used ammenities and toilet was plugged. Butler service was all smiles and no service. With all the advertising bosting the "finest cuisine at sea" and endorcement by Master Chief Jacques Pepin, cuisine in main dining room was very ordinary and the specialty dining venues were not much better. Tuscan Steak house and Jacques are not worth going to, Polo Grill was just OK and the best cuisine was at the Red Ginger. The Terrace Cafe had the most consistant reasonablly good cuisine. On the last night in the main dining room I had a Ceasar Salad only to find a "fingernail" inbedded within the salad. I complained to the Mater'd who notified the chief. The chief had a "it happens" attitude and was upset that he was asked to make an appearance, suggesting the foreign object was a piece of plastic! Entertainment was non- existent. Would not recommend Oceania to a friend! Read Less

Travel agent recommended and literature posted to our home looked good so we booked the cruise $26,000 AUD ....TOTAL RIP-OFF Food constantly served tepid and unappetising. Constantly returning food as not acceptable Bed mattress was burst and I had to sleep on the small double seater until they finally replaced it (approx 12-14 days) Argumentative security personnel, they issued new keycards halfway through the cruise , we got them AFTER we had left for the day. They were placed in our room.... Food in most meal areas dried out under heat lamps. I wouldn’t recommend this cruise to my worst enemy Ended up eating off the ship ( at addition expense) to be sure of HOT food. We want the only ones very disappointing with the food, many others expressed their concerns Wrote to the company but got the usual corporate fob off and a pathetic offer of $300 AUD credit to another cruise. To,d them, politely to “shove it” Will never go with them again..... Read Less

We chose this cruise to sail among the small islands of the Sea of Cortez with abundance of marine, birds, and reptiles. Professional team with Kit Masters leading. She made every effort to insure that everyone needs were met. There were many opportunities to snorkel, hike and view birds/landscapes from Zodiacs. Our cabin was very comfortable with Butler/attendant on call. The food could be better, Particularly the fish - not fresh. Lack of fresh vegetables, lots of salad greens instead. Lots of desserts. The wait staff were friendly and attentive. Travel to Copper Canyon was too long 16 hours there and back. The landscape was beautiful from our balcony view of the can tonight. Shipboard credit $1000 per person only if you ask.. other couples which we met told us so, you had to ask. As first timers, this is a ridiculous offer. To get with Silverseas again is questionable. Read Less

Booked this cruise for two reasons, the itinerary and to see for ourselves if Cunard is what they say they are. The itinerary was great, Cochin excepted but we expected that. We had three complaints about this cruise, first of which was the visas for India. We had no plans to go ashore in Cochin but was told that we must have full tourist visas otherwise we would not be able to embark the ship in Singapore. Due to a lack of time we had no choice other than to use Cunards intermediary CIBT visas, at a significant cost to us. Due to a lack of communication it turned out the visas were not required pre cruise. We watched people board the ship who had no visas. Cunard have since agreed to reimburse us, but only because we complained. If you were on this ship and had a similar experience then complain, they won't contact you! Secondly the stateroom------ We were in 13024 which is a club balcony cabin. The room itself was very nice with a roomy balcony and was well maintained by the steward, thanks Salvi.There is tea making facilities in the room which is always a bonus. Further to the stateroom there is significant vibration most of the time which is apparent to both port and starboard. Theses staterooms were a recent addition made during the last refurbishment. Cunard of course are aware of this and I'm told by a guest services executive that they are looking at ways of factoring it into the brochure stateroom descriptions. Too little to late for us, Cunard got our money, my wife got no decent sleep. As a matter of interest the vibration has nothing to do with sea conditions as it was present when the ship was on its mooring lines. Finally, the food--------I was served raw ( yes you read it right, raw) chicken with bloody juices running from it! As you can imagine there was mayhem, the servers, maitre d, chef and executive chef all arguing amongst themselves as to who was at fault, with fellow diners looking on in disbelief. I left the dining room and went for a meal. The outcome of this was that I was not allowed to make a formal complaint at the pursers desk,I wanted a case number so that I could take the matter up when I got home but was refused and told to drop the matter.I was given a complimentary meal in the Italian specialty restaurant, special it wasn't. Since being home Cunard agree that we have had a shocking experience with the three complaints and have offered us 20% of the cost of the cruise plus reimbursement of the cost of the visas. Is this commensurate with the cruise experience ? The service in the dining room was, we found, fine. The food in general in the dining room was adequate, but no more. A bit hit and miss. The service in the bars was, at times dreadful. Gone are the days of being escorted to seat and waited on for a drink, like it used to be. More often than not I got my own drinks at the bar and carried them back to where we were sitting. Staff work hard enough but there just isn't enough of them. The experience made me that I was at home in my local Wetherspoons. The entertainment for us was a mixed bag with no hint of a wow factor. The two productions shows were very poor and most certainly the entertainment was geared toward classical recitals and ballroom dancers with some jazz thrown in. The resident orchestra was very good as was the dance band. All in all we found the entertainment to be low key and not to our taste. Some of the sea day lectures were good though, as was the planetarium. Shore excursions were robbery but they are everywhere. The price of drinks was also robbery but we have seen worse, can't remember where. In the end we were glad to get home. Would we cruise Cunard again? Highly unlikely. For the life of me I can't see any evidence of a White Star experience, perhaps it's reserved for the grills? As for us we will continue cruising but methinks we will body swerve Cunard in the future. Read Less

We love Oceania for its amazing service and outstanding food quality and variety. We've been sailing on Oceania for the past 15 years and just got off the Marina yesterday. This was an unusual itinerary since it had so many sea days (which we both love). We boarded the ship in Papette, visited 4 ports in French Polynesia and then sailed to Hawaii and visited 4 island ports there. We sailed 5 days from Kawaii to Los Angeles where we disembarked. We really enjoyed the ship's excursions. We did an excursion in every port. We enjoy nature, birds and photographing beautiful landscapes - we were not disappointed. The Pacific Ocean was as calm as a lake (we were quite lucky). We had perfect weather on every port day and all but one sea day. Our butler proved outstanding service - including room service breakfast on disembarkation day. We have booked a 30 day voyage August, 2019 sailing from London to NYC - visiting Iceland, Greenland and some of Europe. That will complete 31 Oceania cruises for us. Read Less

xcellent staff was very efficient service spotty in Terrace cafe getting a drink of teat took forever Service every else was excellent The entertainment on the front part of the trip was mediocre to terrible It improved substantially from the Hawaaian Islands to LA.Entertainment has never been this lines strong point cuisine however is fantastic anywhere on the ship The line even provided a Passover dinner and Haggadahs which was a plus This cruise director was new to us but he was excellent and very professional My wife who is an avid bingo player indicated that this bingo game was one of the best ever The flight from LAX to Papeete was not bad considering it was coach .Better than any of the US based airlines we fly on cruises We are loyal to Oceania as this was our 12th cruise and we have booked 13,14 ,15 and 16 to date Read Less

Its the only way to see the Chilean coast inlets and scenery short of having your own boat. There are no roads or habitation in most of the areas we visited. Excursions by zodiac to see wildlife and glaciers were amazing. The ship was small by cruise ship standards but was therefore able to sail in confined fiords and through narrow passes. The food and service was excellent. Nothing was too much trouble for the staff. The ships captain was informative and approachable. The company issued everyone with appropriate clothing which was just as well because that part of the world has heavy weather at most times of the year. If you needed items of clothing or spares for your photography the ships shop was well stocked. Improvements are possible in some detailed areas. The graphic display of the ships position was poor. The exterior of the window could have been cleaned. Read Less

We also left San Francisco 2/5/18 for Sydney on Q2. The Itinerary was great, the Ship clean, and the crew professional. However, with a number of 4-5 day stretches at sea, one would expect some professional entertainment and varied daytime activities. During the day your choice was basically the library, a very small pool, or boring lectures. At night, the entertainment was dull and amateurish. To make matters worse, the food rarely varied, and was of poor quality-- both at the buffet and formal dining room. (e.g. how hard is it to make a decent cup of coffee and a good omelet?) You could hammer nails with the round pieces of hardened dough they were passing off as bagels. Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and NCL are far superior on all counts. To make matters worse, by the time we reached Sydney most of the passengers were infected with the "Cunard Cough", as named by the physician we saw in Sydney who had his hands full telling passengers that codeine might suppress the cough, but the viral illness would persist for up to six weeks. (His prognosis was right on target). Finally, while the crew was very polite, many of the Brit passengers onboard were not. Many were particularly rude to Yanks, and thought nothing of lecturing all of us on the evils of America. A few were even disrespectful at the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Read Less

We wanted to see the Maldives and Indian Ocean islands, thought we would snorkel every day in beautiful water. ( Water was beautiful) However this did not happen, excursions were not planned well, so we spent most of our days on an old ship with little amenities! we got to snorkel 2 times, for 45 minutes. Nothing for the other 9 days. Food and service was good. We had OBC to spend, but there was nothing in gift shop to buy ! The fitness center is a cubicle, they offered massages in an empty guest room, only 5 people could use pool at any one time, only 10 lounges for 90 plus guests. Total experience was very poor when supposed to be 5 Star Luxury cruise and we were charged a 5 Star price. Even though we bought our air and transfers from Silver Sea, they did not make arrangements for us to be picked up from the hotel to get to the ship. We (and 12 other couples ) had to transport our own luggage in the pouring rain onto and off the public pier and public ferry to get to where the ship was picking us up. Never have we been treated like this. There was no apology or reason given for our poor service, our tour leader just said, "he was having a bad day!" Read Less

We booked a Sea Breeze suite on deck 9 in mid 2017. These suites were created when the ship was refurbished in October. 14 days before we were due to step on board our agent was told by Crystal that due to electrical problems the Sea Breeze suites required repairs and we had been upgraded to a Penthouse Suite on Deck 10 under the pool deck. Our agent knew that after 25 years of regular cruising there are locations of a ship that we would not accept even if free. Under the pool deck is one area. Upgrade rubbish - suite size the same, fare the same and services to the suite the same. We asked if we cancelled would there be a penalty. Yes there would be no refund and read the small print we,Crystal, have the right to change the suites. We had also taken a 3 day pre cruise hotel package in Mauritius. Two days before flying out to Mauritius we checked the weather to discover the island was about to be hit with a category 3 (severe) cyclone and all air travel was cancelled to and from the island. We telephoned Crystal in Sydney and identified ourselves with the booking number etc. The voice at Crystal told us that they had no official notice of any Cyclone and they would only talk to our travel agent. Hello a cruise ship capable of holding 848 passengers heading into a cyclone forecast area and they did not know that fact. Does anyone in Crystal tell the truth? The coach from the hotel to the ship was a shambles. We arrived after 1.30 pm so lunch was not available - part of the service was suppose to be a champers lunch, which no one knew about. When we arrived on board we were told that deck 9 was closed due to flooding. Hello the ship must have great scuppers (drains) if only deck 9 was effected. When we told the Concierge that our concern with the Penthouse Suite was noise from the pool deck we were told they had never had a complaint about noise. Hello again. The now have one. For the next 14 days we had foot steps over our heads from around 7 am to 10 pm or later. Furniture was dragged across the deck. From time to time heavy trolleys trundled across the deck. At 5 pm the staff rearranged the sun lounges by moving them into position and dropping them. We complained to the Concierge and the time moved to 9 pm. When the deck was hosed down in the early hours of the morning we had the benefit of an early wake up call. On the second day we became aware that there were only 380 passengers on board, so that really explains why deck 9 was closed. The climax of the treatment we received came on day 5 when we discovered that the on board of US$1200 was not on our account. You had to spend that on board. Yes, we do read the fine print. After a meeting with the Chief Accountant it took another 2 days before the credit was put onto our account. Although the web site sets out the service to the suite we had to ask for such service each time. We only have a butler because we select the better accommodation and the butler comes with such accommodation. On the ship the Butler did not offer any service. On day one there were no canapes. Afternoon tea was never suggested etc. Service in the dining areas was initially very good but fell away in the last 7 days to poor. Read Less

This was our first cruise on Riviera, our second on Oceania. Our previous Oceania was the Nautica, and our cabin had been a disappointment. Our apprehensions were dismissed the moment we entered our cabin on Riviera. It was a very good size, and most importantly, the bathroom was much much better than the airplane-size bathroom on Nautica. No 'Psycho' shower but a full bathtub and separate shower. Yay! The ship is beautiful, I spent some time going through the ship to view all the beautiful artwork. Most amazing is how quiet the ship is; our cabin was on deck 8 midship and we never heard a sound ; we had to look out to check if we had docked or sailed away. The only reason I didn't give full marks is the entertainment and sound system in the cabins. I had the same complaint on Nautica and I was given the same lame excuse that Oceania buys its entertainment system from a provider and this is what they provide (!). The TV is old non-hd technology. The sound is terrible and the picture is so blurred you can't read the credits at the end of a film. There is no docking station for your phone, or bluetooth that would allow you to listen to your music. Unlike in most hotels nowadays, you can't access your account information. There was a Grand Slam tennis tournament going on, but no station to view it. There are only 3 news channels: MSNBC and FOX, and, thankfully, BBC World, a welcome relief from 24-hour US-centered news. It is time Oceania followed the competition into the 21st century, all the rest of the cruise is such a wonderful experience. Read Less

My wife and I generally travel on the luxury lines and decided to try Oceania for the first time in 9 years. We booked well in advance and chose the 100 square foot Oceania suite which was on the stern of the ship on deck 11. In over 20 cruises in the past 10 years, this was far and away the best cabin that we have had. Service by the butler and stewardess was excellent. Booking the large suite came with lots of perks such as double the number of specialty restaurants, meaning that we only ate dinner in the main dining room 2 or 3 times. We did eat many breakfast and lunches there and found that the staff quickly knew us by name and gave us excellent service. Oceania provides guests with a key card indicating the room category and we felt that much of the service was recognizing us from the suite listed on the gold key card. Bar service was excellent as well and the specialty restaurants would have been enjoyed much more if I hadn't gotten sick ...... On the 2nd day I developed a chest cough accompanied by some minor gastric problems. In all my time cruising I had never darkened the door of the medical center and did not know what to expect. I went to the medical center and was honest about my symptoms, indicating that I was sick but not deathly sick. I did sign the release for treatment so from here on I should have no complaint, but I'll relate so others might be warned. I was given tests for everything from the flue to mono. The doctor decided I needed an IV and I was given multiple IVs over the course of the next 3 hours. I received urine and blood tests as well. The process took about 4 hours and I never inquired as to cost. My fault. I was informed to return at 6 PM for a follow up. All this made me feel better and I asked to have the IV needle removed which they had left inserted in my hand. The doctor said to leave it in in case I needed another IV - this was my warning sign that I did not heed. The next morning I returned to the medical center saying I was feeling even better. The doctor prescribed more IVs. After these, they took the IV needle out and told me to drink Gatorade, giving me 3 packs to mix. The bill was presented at the final follow up and I almost fainted. Charges for day 1 were around $3500 and day 2 was over $1400 making the charges come in just a hair under $5000. All this for a 57 year old male with slight discomfort. Medical insurance won't pay and we have never taken trip insurance which might have paid some or all of the cost. (with all our cruises we have never taken insurance and even with this bill I'm still money ahead over having taken insurance and not made claims). Lesson learned - I'll be very sick before I ever again go to the medical center. If I do have to go I'll get out my cell phone and call my personal doctor in the United States for consultation with the on board doctor. From the next trip forward we'll have a medical kit including a thermometer, some basic antibiotics, Pepto-Bismal, and perhaps some Imodium. I jokingly told my wife that I would want to take my own AED as well. In 4 or 5 days I was back to normal. The rest of the cruise brought lots of rain and bad weather, which is just bad luck. The only great day we had was the last port of Key West, perfect weather and we had returned to full health. We'll be on Oceania again, due to great service, food and room, but we'll be prepared to treat our own minor ailments. Read Less

Holiday of a lifetime planned for early in our retirement. Negatives - health and safety issues. 1) We question the practice of the same member of staff responsible for cleaning the cabin also being responsible for bringing coffee/milk new cups etc to the stateroom.i.e. the steward comes straight from cleaning the bathroom/toilet to delivering new cups/coffee/milk etc. This is not the fault of our steward who was friendly, helpful and attentive. More it is an organizational fault instigated by management and should be rectifed by them. 2) Many of the tables in King's Court are unstable. Not only does this make eating a meal somewhat unpleasant, but one table we sat at was so unstable that we spilt a cup of scalding hot coffee. Given the status and calibre of QM2 it seems unbelievable that this easy to solve problem had not been rectified by the end of the voyage despite a number of complaints from passengers. 3) The facilities at the guest laundrettes are woefully inadequate for the number of passengers -18 washing machines (when they are all working) for over 2,500 passengers. The numbers tell the story. The situation was exacerbated because the cost of having the laundry done by the ship was so high - at the cheapest it was two dollars per item. This situation bought out the worst in some passengers with angry outbursts and aggressive behaviour. Our suggestion that the cost (of having the laundry done by the ship) be brought down to alleviate the situation was rejected. Positives - 1) Stateroom was large, comfortable, well decorated and on a day to day basis worked very well. We loved the balcony which was spacious enough to sit out in comfort and afforded us some spectcular sights. 2) Ship was spectacular with a wide range of activities although we did find that many started too late in the evening for us at 9.45 p.m. Day time activities during days at sea were good - regular bridge, art lessons, craft activities etc. and some one off events including a passenger choir, line dancing and even a class where you could learn how to juggle. There were lots of famous and informative speakers giving talks and presentations. The swimming pools, games room, library, gym etc. meant there was plenty to do on board ship and most of these facilities were well run. However some of the teachers were not up to scratch - notebly the first bridge teacher we had at the start of the cruise, and the art teacher who was very knowleageable, but had a poor approach to her students and who could not actually paint very well. This opinion is based on the paintings done by her that she showed us to demonstrate techniques. 3) The staff on board ship were smart, attentive and generally efficient. Many went out of their way to help - the deck hand who climbed the ship's railing to retrieve my husbands hat, the World Voyage conceierge who was so much help when we had to go home early because of illness. Her assistance was of real value and we cannot thank her enough. The disembarkation was as effiicient, fast and as comfortable as it was possible to be given the circumstances. 4) The ship's shore excursions were varied and well organized given the very real constraints experienced in some ports, but we did find the cost of these to be high. We ended up using other cruise excursion operators and found these to be less expensive and more geared to our individual wishes. 5) Food was generally good, varied and there were a wide range of venues although some incurred additional charges.The Brittania Restaurant served lovely food - I can reccommend the ice cream!. We also took advantage of the free room service - breakfast on our balcony was particularly welcome on the days we went ashore on excursions. Overall we had a fabulous time, and were particularly impressed with the care taken by Cunard staff in difficult circumstances. Nothing was too much trouble when there was a problem,evident in the care taken of us when I was ill, which was second to none. The ship is magnificent, lots of stylish and attractive areas with the WOW factor. It attracted a lot of attention in virtually every port we visited. A trip to remember. Read Less