Great expectations .... BUT.....
Insignia Cruise Review to Europe - Mediterranean
12 Night Black Sea Treasures (Athens To Istanbul)
Sail date: May 29, 2014
Ship: Insignia
Cabin type: Balcony
Traveled as: Singles/Friends
Reviewed: 9 years ago
Review summary
The ship is beautiful, the service is exceptional, the food is delicious and the accommodations are great. Oleg the pianist was wonderful and so were the singers and dancers. Diego the concierge was a saint having to put up with legitimate complaints and is the ultimate professional. However, we expected more from the cruise director Leslie regarding lectures onboard and not just dry talk about places we were going to visit, did not need lectures about shopping. More activities on the two sea days would have been welcome. Oceania is not known for its sea days but this cruise was altered without much thought. We initially booked this cruise because of the three Ukrainian ports, Yalta, Sevastopol and Odessa. Thanks to Mr. Putin we had to miss all three. Oceania had no choice on this but the passengers expected better customer service from the main office, the suggestions fell on deaf ears and we all felt that a complimentary bottle of wine would have been a nice gesture. This was a very expensive cruise that did not meet anybody's expectations regarding the destinations. A second greek island would have been preferable to two days in Romania. This was my 6th cruise with Oceania. I am still debating whether I will sail with them again.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
Ports of call
Syros, Greece
Sinop, Turkey
Trabzon, Turkey
Sochi, Russian Federation
Nesebur (Nessebar), Bulgaria