A couple of years ago, Charlie and I and thirteen of our really good friends sailed on Oceania Cruise Lines' Insignia from Barcelona to Athens. What an incredible cruise!!! We have put passengers on Oceania since their beginning, and have had nothing but rave reviews from our passengers, but because we had never sailed with them, we wanted first-hand knowledge.
We all arrived in Barcelona the day prior to sailing because most of our group had not been there and wanted to do a sightseeing tour of the city the following morning before we boarded the ship. We stayed at the Rivoli Ramblas Hotel. This is a great little art-deco Spanish hotel and is right in the middle of Las Ramblas. Location was fantastic. We couldn't check in until noon, but the hotel allowed us to check our luggage until our rooms were ready. We all headed next door to a little cafe for espresso and cafe latte just to keep us awake for a few more hours. This is a perfect hotel for those going in early or staying after their cruise. I had set up all of our shore excursions through Port Promotions, a company we use that does private shore excursions. Because there were fifteen of us total, we had private buses and mini-buses everywhere we went.
When we checked out of the hotel the following morning, we had a full-size motorcoach to take us on a half-day sightseeing tour with a drop-off at the ship. We needed this size bus because of all the luggage that we had to store under the bus. One of the women in our group had her purse stolen the previous night at an outdoor cafe next to our hotel. In Barcelona, apparently this is quite normal if you are staying in the Las Ramblas area. She did have her passport in her pocket, but all of her documents, money and credit cards were in her purse. What a way to begin a vacation!!! Lots of stress. However, when we arrived at the ship, we immediately were greeted by one of the entertainers, who was also from the South, and understood our Southern drawls. We explained about her not having her documents, and he immediately got the concierge, took her and her husband aside, and processed them through without a hitch. In fact, they were onboard before the rest of us. He also helped her in getting in touch with her daughter to stop her credit cards and to have a new one sent to the ship in a couple of days. Service is truly one of Oceania's assets. The staff bends over backward to assist with anything they can.
The ship is beautiful. Of course, we like small ships, and 660 passengers is the perfect size - not too small, but large enough to have plenty to do. The crew to passenger ratio is phenomenal. The ship is decorated in dark woods and lots of brass. There are fireplaces in some of the lounges which give you the feeling of being in someone's living room instead of on a ship. Unlike some ships that we have been on that have a lot of dark wood on the walls, this ship is bright and airy. There are lots of couches and comfortable chairs everywhere. The casino is small, but that should be expected on a ship this size. We all went up to Tapas on the Terrace for lunch after boarding the ship. There are just little things that I love about the service in this buffet restaurant. Instead of large industrial spoons sticking out for you to serve yourself, the staff serves your plate for you. Food selection was good and more European in style. Tapas is open seating for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and they do actually have a tapas menu like you would find in restaurants in Spain. Also, you will always have a staff member who will take your plate and escort you to a table. Don't see this often on ships any longer.
There are four restaurants on this ship - Tapas on the Terrace, the Grand Dining Room, the Polo Grill, and Toscano's. All four restaurants are open seating. You must have reservations for both the Polo Grill and Toscano's. The food in the Grand Dining Room was excellent. Menus were diverse and presentation was wonderful. Often on ships, we have found that presentation is great but the food is bland. Not so on this ship. I cannot say that I had one thing that wasn't excellent. Apollo Catering which did Celebrity's catering when they were just starting out is the caterer for Oceania. One thing to note is that Creme Brulee was served every night on every menu on the ship except in Tapas. If you book a concierge (Cat A) level or above stateroom, you can make reservations for two nights each in the Polo and Toscano's. All other cabins can book one night at each restaurant. Make sure to book either of these restaurants on the first or second day of their cruise, or you may have difficulty getting reservations.
Toscano's is a wonderful Italian restaurant. The food was outstanding and the service was impeccable. The ship has a wonderful wine list, and the sommeliers are knowledgeable and keep your glasses filled. Eat a very light lunch if you are going to Toscano's because there are so many courses, and you just can't turn any of them down. The Polo Grill is probably the finest restaurant on ANY ship that we have ever sailed. Everyone at our table (and there were 10 of us that night) could not believe that their steak, prime rib, etc. was cooked exactly as they had ordered them. There is a wonderful selection of side dishes including creamed spinach and sauteed mushrooms. For any of you hearty eaters, there is even a 32 oz. prime rib. This restaurant was fabulous. And, again, the service was superb.
We had a penthouse and had a butler. What a wonderful experience. Our butler made all of our reservations for the Polo Grill and Toscano's. That's one of the perks for having a penthouse or above. This stateroom (and I won't call it cabin) was great. The beds on this ship are called "tranquility beds". We have a Novaform memory mattress at home, and have really become spoiled to it. However, the tranquility beds are the same type of mattress we have. There are very plush duvets and comforters on the beds. In the penthouses, each stateroom has a DVD player, and there is an extensive library of DVDs that you can check out at no charge. The balconies for these staterooms are considerably larger than the standard A & B category cabins.
Entertainment is good. The cruise director and his staff are friendly and you see them around the ship constantly. However, on a cruise like this one, by the time you have been on shore excursions all day, you're too tired to even go to the shows at night.
Our itinerary took us to Marseilles on Tuesday. We did a half-day excursion there and were back at the ship by 1:30. This gave all of us time for a nap because the following day we began some true trekking through Europe. We arrived in Monte Carlo on Wednesday morning where our private bus picked us up and took us to St. Paul de Vence. This little French village is in Provence. We drove along the Cote d'Azur which was beautiful and spent half the day in St. Paul. We came back to Monaco and did a half day tour there as well.
If it's Thursday, it must be Florence. Again, we had our own private 22 passenger bus to take us into Florence. All of us had been there before, and we just wanted a transfer into the city. Port Promotions put a semi-guide on the bus with us to give us maps of the city, and point out how to get everywhere we wanted to go. We walked our little feet off this day, but a visit back to our favorite city in Italy was wonderful.
On Friday, we were in Rome. Our private coach picked us up in Civitivecchia early in the morning, and we arrived in Rome about 9:00 am. Everyone wanted to go to the Sistine Chapel. However, when we got there, there was a line six people across and about a half mile long waiting to get in. We all opted NOT to wait in line, and instead went into St. Peter's Basilica hoping to see where Pope John Paul was buried. However, part of St. Peter's was roped off and we were unable to go there. As we were leaving the basilica, we noticed a cardinal and a couple of men in morning coats coming from a side door. I immediately thought that something was about to happen, perhaps a wedding. We went on outside into St. Peter's Square, and the bells started ringing. Now, we have been to St. Peter's four times, and this was the first time that we had ever heard the bells. All of our group had family radios with them, and as we got back on our bus, one of the members of the group radioed back that they had just seen the Holy Father. Of course, none of us believed him. But two of the women in the group got on the bus with digital pictures of Pope Benedict as he was coming out of the door that Charlie and had seen the cardinal coming from. Little did we know that there was a convocation of the cardinals and Pope Benedict was holding mass. What an incredible treat for some of our group.
Again, because we had our private bus, we were able to go to the Colosseum and Forum, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and the Spanish Steps. There was a propulsion problem on the ship when we returned, and we had to stay in Rome an extra day, dropping Malta from the itinerary. We were sitting outside at Tapas on the Terrace for dinner on Friday night and realized that the ship didn't sail at 8:00 pm. The Captain came on the intercom, and announced that we had a propulsion problem that would be repaired and we would be leaving during the night and he didn't want to wake anyone with another announcement. I woke up a couple of times during the night and realized that we had not moved and knew that we were not going to be leaving for Naples anytime soon. Instead of going back into Rome, we ventured out into the tiny village of Civitivecchia for a few hours. Very interesting little Italian village, and we were there on Saturday when all of the locals were shopping at the open market. This was really a welcome relief for some very tired feet after two full days of walking continuously, and we just napped the afternoon away.
On Sunday, we were in Naples, and had a private tour again of Pompeii and Sorrento. Some of the women in our group wanted to go to a cameo factory. There is one at the entrance to Pompeii, however, our drivers suggested another place that wasn't crowded and was much, much better than the one we had visited previously. We also were one of only 15 groups that got to visit a new part of Pompeii that has only been open to the public in the past year. Charlie and I have been there four times, and as yet, we have not seen the same things twice. This excavation is huge.
After Pompeii, we traveled down the Amalfi coast to Sorrento for lunch and some afternoon shopping. What an incredibly beautiful drive. Of course, we had to buy Limoncello to bring home.
On Monday, we arrived in Sicily. We did a short private tour of Messina and then drove to Taormina. If you go to Messina, skip everything else, but don't miss Taormina. This is a wonderful little Italian town in the mountains. The Colesseum there has an incredible view of Mt. Etna. If you can believe it, the drive up to Taormina is more beautiful than either the Cote d'Azur or the Amalfi Coast. It is truly incredible.
Finally, we had a day at sea on Tuesday, and believe me it was welcomed after such a hectic itinerary. One thing that Oceania is doing very, very right that the other cruise lines could take a hint from is serving brunch in the dining room on a sea day from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm. We saw the information in our daily program the night prior and were not rushed to get up to have breakfast in the dining room or at Tapas. And, it was truly a brunch menu. There were activities onboard the ship that day including an art auction that was great.
On Wednesday, we arrived in Athens with an overnight onboard the ship. We again did a private half-day tour of Athens and climbed Acropolis Hill to the Parthenon. We ended up at the Plaka for lunch and shopping all afternoon before returning to the ship. Some of our group left the following morning for home, but eleven of us stayed an extra night in Athens at the Sofitel Athens Airport Hotel. This is a great location if you are leaving on an early flight like we were. We literally walked out of our hotel and crossed the street to the airport the next morning. We did a two hour tour to Cape Sounio to see the Poseidon ruins, but the only day that we had rain was that day, and it was so bad we couldn't even climb up to them.
Oceania is a great cruise line. If you have sailed Celebrity, Holland America, or Princess in the past and want a little more for their money, you will love Oceania. This is just a step above. However, it's not quite six-star. There are a few things that Oceania needs to possibly change. On a ship and a cruise line like this, there is no need to have the 2' X 6' tables outside the gift shops selling costume jewelry and other trinkets. This should be kept to the mass market cruise lines. Also, the dress code needs to be stressed more. Everything says country club or resort casual. Some passengers interpreted this to mean that they could wear jeans in the dining room at night. That needs to be emphasized that it's a big "no no". There were two children on the entire ship. I'm sure the time of year had a lot to do with it. However, I can see families on this cruise line during the summer months.
We loved every minute of this cruise and cruise line. I can't recommend it enough.
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