We chose this cruise in order to see specific ports including Barcelona, Seville, Oporto, Bordeaux and Bilbao. We chose Oceania specifically for the itinerary, small size of ship and reputation for a top notch cruise ship with excellent food and personal service. We signed up for several excursions and planned a few private excursions with our traveling companions. We found the staff on board ...
As a couple who has cruised many times on HAL, Norwegian, Celebrity, Princess, Viking and Windstar, we decided to look into Oceania as their smaller ship with exceptional food and service reputation appealed to us. Much of the cruise was not only disappointing, but actually frustrating. Our boarding passes stated that our embarkation time would be at 6:30 p.m. There were two busloads of ...
Background
We mostly cruise with Viking, Tauck, and with others, but three years ago we saw this itinerary and we couldn't wait - and then we waited three years. We are also introverts, so there are things Oceania offers that are simply not relevant to us - the bar scene, the entertainment, the casino, the sea day activities. We spend a little more for a larger room where we can happily hang ...
Just completed Barcelona to Abu Dhabi - 20 days on the refurbished Nautica.
The refurb is outstanding!
Better food in the Grand Dining Room. Portions are much better/lighter.
Speciality venues are excellent.
Butler was Superb!
Excursions were very good and the overnight in Luxor was outstanding.
I am baffled by the other reviews in that this was one of the best cruises we have ...
We picked the cruise for the itinerary. We were able to get Greece, Israel, and Turkey on one trip with the bonus of starting in Barcelona. We were originally booked into standard balcony class on deck eight. We were offered a modestly priced upgrade to concierge class on deck ten and decided to try it.
We spent three days in Barcelona (our second time there). The highlight was a food and wine ...
We chose this trip mainly for the Israel focus and spent three days there. The excursions are always expensive and in Israel the guides were useless, which was frustrating. Also there were no port talks; odd; though most people now have to book before they get on board. Booking was sometimes complicated pre-cruise.
The ship is a size we like 1200 pax and it has all the usual stuff. We like ...
This was our second Oceania. But we have done a few other cruises over the years. The newly refurbished Nautica was very beautiful. Couldn't get a suite so we were on 7th floor with Balcony. Small room- Impossibly small shower and we're small people. Rarely got hot water. But the room Steward was outstanding! The food in all the places- specialty as well as Main Diningroom just VERY average! ...
We chose this cruise to be with friends, and for the opportunity to visit ports and countries in the Mediterranean for the first time. We boarded in Barcelona, sailed for 17 nights, and disembarked in Malta. We unfortunately caught covid two days before the end of the cruise, and had to quarantine onboard, and for an additional week in Malta. Oceania did not handle this issue completely to our ...
We chose this cruise for the "island hopper" itinerary with many new-to-us ports (Minorca, St. Tropez, Corsica, Sardinia, Malta etc). It was definitely H-O-T in August 2022! We enjoyed the cruise very much. We did miss our stop in Toulon due to weather (a fierce storm that resulted in some local deaths from flash flooding).
We did not use any ship's excursions (one we thought we were ...
We chose this cruise because of the itinerary, the smaller ship size, the expectation of great food and service, and our past experience with Oceania. The cruise overall was wonderful. The ship was clean, our penthouse suite was amazing, and the ports were awesome! This was our first time visiting Spain and Portugal and we loved it!
Embarkation was a disappointment. We asked numerous times ...