On March 21, 2012, I received the news that no person ever wants to hear . . . "You have cancer!" Thus began my journey up through today toward recover from breast cancer. And what a journey it has been! In the past six years, I have endured more than ten operations and procedures relating to my breast cancer plus a total knee replacement of both knees! Couple all that with my husband’s paraplegia from three spinal surgeries and you can then understand why our recent “Glistening Glaciers” cruise to Alaska aboard Oceania Cruises Regatta (September 7–17, 2018) was so special and very important to us. The cruise was a realization of a dream and the completion of a long held wanderlust. We boarded the ship in Seattle after flying in from our home in Miami, Florida. We settled into Penthouse Suite 8065 (which showed signs of wear and tear) and were soon greeted by our butler. What a delight! Throughout the voyage, our butler attended to our needs, our wishes, and our desires! Bravo and thanks to him for making the voyage extra special! The veranda afforded us stunning views and phenomenal photographic opportunities! Compliments are also extended to the entire crew for a mostly lovely experience and pleasant journey. The afternoon tea was charming and the treats delicious, the martini bar tastings were fun and laughter filled, the grand dining room staff and food was delightful though nothing truly special. The specialty restaurant menues were sumptuous but had limited options! The library was cozy and well stocked, the Illy coffee bar was amazing, and all the entertainment was energetic but a tad amaturish! The scenery was a visual and sensual delight! The air was crisp and we were continually amazed by the splendors as we effortlessly glided past! What a boon to our collective spirits! The beauty of nature was in full display and we were ecstatic! It was disappointing, however, that the closest we got to any glaciers was seven miles! I expected more than a long distance view! There were, unfortunately and disappointingly, several aspects of our cruise greatly in need of improvement or enhancement. TOURS: My husband and I each purchased the Unlimited Passport Collection at a cost of $659.00 per person. It was stated in the brochure that this would result in a savings of up to 40% off the ala carte prices. It didn’t! Why? Because many of the “tours” we selected were not worth leaving the ship to experience! I didn’t want to over tax myself or my husband with activities that were too strenuous, but riding the Hoonah tram through a “forest” was a joke! We simply rode a muddy path along the shore! The Saxman Village tour featured a 15 year old who mumbled his memorized speech and got lost when someone interrupted with a question! Most of the tour bus drives were from other states and were in Alaska for only 3-6 months. They learned their speeches from the same guide books that I had read! Not impressive aat all! The “High Tea” at The Empress Hotel was abysmal! It was a rushed affair. We were grouped with people from the ship by the hostess. We were not even given china tea pots but prefilled stainless steel tea pots! No choice of teas was offered! Not at all a high tea. Not worth $199.00 per person! When I complained, I was told that that was what our “package” consisted of! I have been to The Empress for high tea and it was never like this! These Oceania sanctioned and promoted tours were beyond disappointing! SHIP BOARD LECTURES: Who hired some of these folks? I knew more about Alaska than one young guy who struggled all through his “lecture”! He knew almost nothing! Same with the jewelry presentation, a waste of time! MEIDCAL CENTER: Surprise! Don’t ask for anything! They don’t have it or won’t give it! My wrist was hurting and we were near the medical center and stopped in to ask for an Ace bandage to wrap it up. I was told that they weren’t available to give out. So I asked for an ice pack and was told that they didn’t have any! That they just put some ice in a bag when needed! Outrageous! Also, the hours of operation were ridiculously short! SPA: This was very disappointing as I had thought to spend the majority of my free time at this location! I attended a “lecture” on reflexology but could barely understand the young man’s heavy accent. Regardless, 4 of us were crammed into a treatment room for the talk and it was quite unnerving and uncomfortable. FLIGHTS: Who was the masochist that arranged this flight schedule? We traveled for over 8 hours pre cruise as well as nearly 12 hours post cruise! Our landing and connecting gates in Houston was nearly a mile apart and due to a delay, we had only 10 minutes to get there! Were it not for a transporter that we begged for help, we would have missed our flight! Not a pleasant way to end a supposed trip of a lifetime. I realize that I am but one voice, and that my comments and opinions carry little weight. However, I felt it compelled to compliment and commend even if I also had to conversely complain and condemn. I sent these same comments to Oceania. They responded that they didn't often get complaints from passangers but wished us well and hoped to see us on a future cruise! Translation, they did not care! Go for the scenery, but don't expect too much more! Read Less

Our 4th cruise with OCEANIA. Both types of ships have advantages. Marina and riviera have more specialty restaurants. Regatta is more familiar, but on waves a little bit less stable as the bigger ships. Always very good service and fantastic food. The ports of call more interesting than expected ( after having done similar cruise 10 years ago with Celebrity). Itinerary overall very good. You can explore a lot of things by yourselves. The ship should undergo a refurbishment in some parts. ( will be done 2019) Rooms and bathrooms are small but ok. The new Barista coffee bar is fantastic for an espresso and small bites. The quality of the shows are a little bit better on the bigger ships, but overall very good. Comedian was useless. We did not use casino or the loudly offered bingo games. The fitness center was good equipped, but no one looked for the guests. Read Less

First time on Oceania. Found the food to be the best I've had on non-luxury lines. Usually never eat dinner in the buffet, but they had much the same offerings as the dining room, so we found ourselves there more and more. It's a nice touch as you can try lots of things. It's pretty popular, so if you need a table for four or six, you may be hard pressed to get a table on arrival. The staff were excellent. We were frequently referred to by name and felt very well taken care of. I thought the ship was in very good shape although it is time for a decor change as will happen in 2019. Small showers, but I'll manage with that to be on a smaller ship and have a more personalized experience. We caught the first magician show and ended up leaving early. A little too hokey and underwhelming for us. Personal preference. I'm sure some people loved him. Production shows were good. All in all it was an excellent cruise and I will definitely consider Oceania for my future cruising! Read Less

We chose this cruise because of our prior cruise to Tahiti on Marina. We wanted a smaller ship able to dock without tendering and able to navigate in to the Hubbard glacier. Alaska was on our bucket list. We also enjoy fine dining which Oceania is known for. We had a great trip. The excursions were all very good. However, you can book them cheaper yourself but we prefer to pay extra for the convenience and having Oceania cover any risk associated with them and be covered with the insurance. The other issue is that some of the excursions are limited and when several ships are in port, you might not get one. The excursions in Alaska were great. We expecially liked the bears of Anan, the White Pass Railway, and the Whale watching tours. Our weather could not have been better. Seeing the Hubbard glacier from the ship was magnificent. I would recommend checking trip advisor for more in depth reviews of the considerable amount of excursions, because its too much to review here. From what I researched, Oceania has the most available. The service on board was very good, and we had no issues. The entertainment was even a bit better than our previous voyage. Liked the comedians and the ventriloquist. Even played bingo for the first time. The casino was small and I think the odds are better in Atlantic city, but just a feeling, can't prove it, but people seemed to be losing money very quickly and the place was never crowded. I did miss the two specialty restaurants, Jacques and Red Ginger that are on the larger ships. We have a lot of local Italian restaurants so a French restaurant is a real treat for us, especially one inspired by Jacques Pepin. We liked Polo and Tuscan but there was limited availability, owing in part I think to the size of the ship. On Marina we were able to obtain a reservation in a specialty restaurant any time we wanted one. The only issue we had was with the food preparation. This was an initial disappointment and not up to our previous cruises on Oceania or their reputation, in my opinion. So much so that I brought it to the attetion of the food director and exec chef who took it seriously and rectified the issues, of which there were several. I was very surprised at these issues. I won't relate them all, but for example, the scrambled eggs for breakfast on the buffet were the consistency of soup and could be poured off the plate, meat cooked improperly, etc.. But to their credit, they were resolved the next day, which is why I kept my rating at excellent overall. We liked the barista and good expresso was always available without a long wait. I did like the afternoon tea when we could make it. Seating was hard to come since it was popular and limited on this smaller ship, especially on sea days. Also had to wait a bit longer for tea and pastries here. Love the string quartet, especially when they played a song by "Guns and Roses". Talented folks. One thing I learned is that you are allowed to bring wine on board, so if you are not a heavy drinker, we did that and used the credit for the occasional wine at dinner and gratuities owed at the end of the cruise. Even used the saltwater pool one warm sunny day. Fun but a cold trip back to the cabin. Great captain and crew and great interacting with them and other passengers on a smaller ship. Would go back to Alaska on Oceania. Read Less

Just finished a great family cruise on the Regatta. The service was outstanding, by the second day the staff we saw the most (bars and dinning rooms) knew our names. The food was as expected - top knotch. We ate in both of the specialty rest (Polo Grill & Toscana) the food was fabulous and the service very attentive. Other than that we normally ate in the Terrace Cafe ( breakfast & dinner) or Waves ( lunch outside) and did not try the main dinning room and we were very happy with the quality of the food and the casualness which by the third day had folks at different tables toalking each other, it very much felt like the grill at a club.Horizons the main bar up near the bow offered great views and attentive staff. One of the things I like about Oceana is the low passenger count (640) and the high ratio of crew (400+). You always feel pampered but not smothered. The entertainment was very good the comedian and the special singing act were excellent. We only saw one of the shows by the ships troop and it was good. Sadly one of the troop got sick and they had to cancel the rest of the shows. However on the last night they put on a variety show with the show band, some of the troop, comedian, magician and speciality singer that was well accepted by the packed audience. It is true that Oceana caters to a older more well to do group of folks so they do not tend to have a lot of children on board. The other thing I enjoyed about being on a smaller ship was that we got to dock in two smaller towns Hannah and Wrangel that the large ships pass by. We enjoyed ourselves so much that we are going to book our next cruise with Oceana next summer and have been spoiled by the small ship with a large crew. Read Less

Jacques Pepin is the chef who drives the food on this cruise. Enough said, in that it was excellent! Service was almost one to one ratio, so you can imagine how that feels. In the buffet, you are served- it's not a free for all where everyone is grabbing stuff. We met quite a few people who were extremely happy as well. Some we met are the type that would probably find fault no matter what. I don't recommend going if you are looking for a lot of excitement. Shore excursion was cancelled in SItka due to technical issues with boat. Would have been nice if we knew that prior to getting off, but we just found other things to do. Pack for EVERY kind of weather- hot cold, rainy, windy, you name it- it will change on a dime! Having been on NCL, Royal Caribbean and Carnival- there's no comparison. Price is also higher than those above. Also, be very sure of drink package purchased- it is NOT the norm in that it only includes wine with dinner unless you upgrade. I'd do another Oceania cruise, although probably not Alaska due to the fact you only see the ports, which is an iota of the state. Read Less

We had always wanted to go to Alaska - chose 4 days pre cruise in Denali - expensivel rip off for 3 actual hours in park. They dont bother to tell you the Mtn is actually 90 miles away from park..... Restaurants so tightly packed you can barely move......not enough staff - very haphazard service - overworked staff and not very personalized as they see you a couple of hours later and look right through you as if they have never served you.....menu looks amazing very well presented but does not taste that good - tasteless , badly cooked fish - food cooked way in advance......although some of the meals were good but not reliably so.... serve coffee with no spoon sugar and cream and have to wait 5 mins for someone to bring it in specialty restaurant...... did have 3 very nice waiters , excellent hostess in main dining room. Huge emphasis on drinking and gambling............shows mediocre and cruise director needs to retire. Cant hear any announcements from cabin. Book your own tours ridiculousy expensive - can book for ½ the amount on shore. Thing that really really pushed us over the edge was $89.00 transfer charge per person from ship to airport - transfers have always been included - very rude unhelpful destination services. Took taxi for $40 to airport for 2 people ......The service or food is NOT 5 star - have been spoilt by Viking River and Sea Cruises would not travel Oceania again. Great ports though. The first time I have not felt sad leaving. Not very personalized service like Viking. Read Less

This is our third Alaska cruise on Oceania's Regatta. My husband tried for years to get me to go on a cruise, and I always refused because the thought of being on a huge ship with 3,000 people was not at all appealing to me. Then I found out about Oceania, with its smaller ships (Regatta carries just 680 passengers and 400 crew), and its reputation for having some of the finest cuisine at sea and beautiful ships. We took our first Alaska cruise 3 years ago, and we both enjoyed it so much that we took another Alaska cruise last summer, and just returned 2 weeks ago from our third. We've already booked the same cruise for next summer; we may take a Mediterranean cruise the following year. There is so much we love about this cruise line and Regatta -- first, the incredible food! It's like eating in a fine restaurant at every meal; the Grand Dining Room is beautiful (Versace china is a nice detail), and the two specialty restaurants, Polo Grill and Toscana, are beautiful as well (no extra charge to eat at them). The breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets at the Terrace Grill are also excellent. And Afternoon Tea, served daily at 4 p.m. in Horizons with trolleys laden with fabulous desserts made by the French pastry chef and his team, waiters bringing china teapots to each table, and the string quartet playing classical music, is a real highlight of Oceania cruises for us. I listened to 3 of the 4 daily performances of the string quartet; all excellent musicians. We stay in the least expensive inside cabin (G class) on Oceania since we spend little time in our cabin. The rooms are small, but laid out very well with lots of storage space, and they are very comfortable. The beds and 1,000 thread count sheets are like sleeping in a cocoon (the beds and linens are so popular that you can buy them). The ship is beautiful -- from the furnishings (I was surprised to learn that an upholsterer is on each cruise in case something needs to be repaired) to the artwork to the lounge areas and the restaurants. Just class all the way. Oh, and the entertainment is also excellent -- my husband has cruised in the past on another major cruise line and said the quality of the entertainment on Oceania was far superior. There is even a naturalist on board to give presentations on the wildlife that might be seen, and he was always looking for whales, seals, orcas, etc. to point out. We saw about 50 humpback whales and many seals, dolphins and other wildlife. I wouldn't recommend Oceania to the younger crowd or couples with children; it's definitely aimed at middle-aged and older guests. Being summer, there were some grandparents with their kids and grandkids, but the overwhelming majority of guests are in their 50s and older. We don't do any excursions so I can't comment on those, but the big majority of guests did get off for excursions at the different ports and seemed to really enjoy their activities. We just like to relax and enjoy the quiet on the ship when most guests are off, or we get off and walk around the small towns on our own. I can't imagine us ever taking a cruise on any other cruise line! Read Less

We chose this cruise because of the itinerary and our previous experiences on the Regatta. The three star rating is an average between excellent food and dining experience, poor stateroom accommodations and very poor service with luggage delivery upon embarkation. One of our suitcases was not delivered because the room tag had fallen off. When we inquired about it we got excuses and downright lies, but no apology. It was a challenge to get staff to bring out undelivered luggage so that we could identify ours and get unpacked prior to sailing. The destination staff were not well informed about the shore excursions and provided poor advice for our excursion in Juneau. In general, we think we could have done better arranging our own excursions. When we last sailed on the Regatta in 2006, our experience was completely positive. We have sailed on the Regatta since it was owned by Renaissance. The food and service in the dining venues was excellent. Read Less

Oceania Regatta was our choice because of the size of the ship, the itinerary, the length of the cruise, and the reputation for excellent food. The cruise delivered on all fronts. The restaurants, particularly Toscana, were excellent. I haven't had so much foie gras in years -- always in a different preparation each night. The entertainment was very good. As good or better than Vegas cabarets. The itinerary was goof and we very much enjoyed our helicopter excursion to the top of Herbert glacier. The Whale watch at Hoonah/Icy Straits was a winner -- saw both orcas and humpbacks. Glacier Bay was amazing. And Butchart Gardens in Victoria lived up to its reviews. The ship's decor is a bit tired but everything is clean and operational. The service crew was first-class. Maybe they could use one or two more people in the Main Dining Room. We did have a couple of slow meals. The only thing that was irritating was that the people who went to Martini's, the bar on the same deck as the Main Dining Room, congregated in two large groups watching sports on laptops and hooting and cheering for their teams. Maybe it was because of the World Cup, but it made things difficult for other guests. Read Less