Loved Alaska but disappointing first voyage with Oceania
Regatta Cruise Review to Alaska
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 5
11 Night Wildlife & Frontiers (Seattle Roundtrip)
Sail date: June 10, 2024
Ship: Regatta
Cabin number: 7104
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 4 months ago
Review summary
We encountered some surprising issues and disappointments, which does not allow us to recommend Oceania. However, we strongly recommend visiting untouched Alaska and its many wonders.Embarkation
It was a little disorganized in the cue. Staff was not directing passengers efficiently.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We were so surprised and disappointed with the food quality, menus and taste. It was not "the best cuisine at sea" as advertised. Not even close. There were only a few meals out of 11 days that were memorable and we were not being super critical. We heard other guests also commenting to staff that the food was not seasoned well or was simply not a good recipe. Some of even the simplest items like pancakes, eggs benedict and beef were inedible. Surprisingly, we were never asked about food allergies and gluten free options were minimally noted. The afternoon tea was lovely but we found that the finger sandwiches were stale more than once so we stopped going. One shining star was the pastry chef. Throughout the cruise, the pastries and desserts were incredible and delicious. We had consistent great coffee drinks at Baristas. However, the coffee available in the dining areas was watered down and bitter. We relied on getting better coffee while in port. The prime steak at Polo was dry and tough, even thought it was cooked med rare. We enjoyed Toscano, the best of all the dining we experienced onboard, but even there not all the dishes were exceptional. Lobster tail was only offered once in the Grand Dining room. The best servers we had were in Toscano. We found many of the servers throughout the ship to be untrained, rushed or not knowledgeable.
Onboard Activities
We enjoyed the spa amenities the most of anything we did on the ship. We enjoyed the hot tub, which was either empty or being used by one other person when we used it. Very few exercise classes were offered in the gym since it was tiny, so it filled up quickly. We were very disappointed that more enrichment was not offered like on the parent company, NCL. There was a geologist that talked about Alaska was formed but there was no other enriching details about the ports, the Native peoples or the wildlife. We expected this since Oceania advertises "most sailings have specialized destination lecturers and guest speakers". The geologist was all we had and believe me it was beyond boring to learn how land masses are created. I think he was retired and this was a sweet gig to get. We tried two lectures but his presentations were unbearable and inconsequential. We were dismayed to see selling on board with gem presentations & sales and casino tournaments almost daily. Even the spa offered posture presentations followed by Good Feet products for sale. The cruise director did his best to raise some energy and keep us informed but overall it's a very quiet ship with most passengers turning in after the evening show. Not even 2 for 1 one drinks afterwards could make guests stay out later. One night we went to the Horizons bar for this offer and found there were only 6 of us. How awful for the band playing! However, the television had a wide range of channels and the movie selections were excellent, which we enjoyed quite a bit. The wifi, however, was almost unusable. We even tried the advanced wifi and it did not improve it, so we cancelled it. We relied solely on our phone's cellular service at port, which really saved us.
Entertainment
There were only 2 performances that we looked forward to everyday: the nightly entertainment which was very good and lively and the early afternoon strings quartet in the foyer. The string quartet was very talented and it was wonderful to listen to them. Just be sure to get there early since seating is very limited, which should have been addressed, since it was very popular each and every day.
Service and Staff
We found that the mainstream service and staff to be wonderful and friendly. Some of the staff even went beyond and above for us!
However, we were greatly disappointed with the senior staff. We had an issue and the concierge manager could have not cared less. He was arrogant and annoyed we were asking for assistance and even raised his voice to us. He absolutely should not be in that position considering he was unsympathetic, not helpful and had no appreciation for how the excursion cancellation we encountered was handled. We then spoke to the ship's General Manager about this issue. He was much more pleasant, however he told us he had no authority to anything for us. We saw him twice on the ship afterwards and he never said anything to us. Be it known that if an issue does arise, do not expect any assistance. The lack of customer service was shocking considering how competitive the cruise industry is.
Ship Quality
Oceania's Regatta is a beautiful ship and very well maintained. It had been refurbished two years earlier and it was wonderfully updated. The public areas are decorated very tastefully and the artwork is wonderful. We never saw anything dirty or needing attention. The staff works incredible hard to do this magic without you seeing them!
Some items to note are: We found the two designated ship locations for smoking to be badly situated. One was in the corner of the Horizons bar. It was poorly ventilated so cigarette and cigar smoke waffed into the lounge, which was disgusting. The second location was near Waves, the outside cafe, which also permeated the area while al fresco dining. This location was also near the exercise room so you could also smell it there. We also had an issue with our cabin ventilation during meal service. Our cabin was in the rear of the boat on deck 7 and everyday we could smell food from our main vent starting prior to when the dining rooms began to serve food. There was also a consistent vibration on the end of the ship. We did not use our included concierge amenity of laundry service. We were told it could take up to 3 days for the return of our clothing and this was not acceptable. Some guests complained that they were still waiting after 3 days. Thankfully, there was a launderette down the hall on deck 7. Many guests found it annoying that there was only 1 launderette on the ship and it was always crowded since there was only 4 washers/dryers.
Cabin / Stateroom
We found our concierge veranda cabin to be very spacious and well appointed. The bed was very comfortable and we slept very well. The bathroom and shower are small but we are not oversized and it was fine. The towels, however, are like sandpaper. The towels in the spa are wonderfully soft and absorbent. We always get a cabin with a veranda and we really enjoyed it. Except for the food smells from the air vent, the cabin was excellent. The cabin stewards were beyond fabulous at maintaining our cabin and public hallway. Always meticulous and timely!
Ship tip
If food taste/quality is important to you consider sailing on another cruise line.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
Arrived early and really enjoyed the local sites on our own. We very much enjoyed visiting the Space Needle and the Chihuly glass exhibition.
Cruise Outside Passage, Alaska
Definitely not enough time at this port. You need to take a bus to get into downtown and after our morning excursion we could not risk the time needed to get into town and back.
Canoed across Mendenhall Lake and visited the glacier and the falls. We then took the Mount Roberts tram.
Best port day- booked our own excursion and it was fabulous! Highly recommend using Chilkoot Tours! So much better than what other guests said they did with Oceania. Be sure to visit the quaint historic town and the Klondike National Park visitors center and watch the movie. Also enjoyed the restored Mascot saloon. Great displays.
Icy Strait Point (Hoonah), Alaska
It is a man made port that has little to do with Alaska. We walked around and the best thing it offered was the salmon canning process. A bunch of shopping stalls. We had chosen the Oceania ATV drive for this port but were notified the day before that it was cancelled.
A transportation disaster unless there is no other ship in port. You must be bussed 5 miles to the town center. Our ship of 650 was eclipsed by a 4000 ship that flooded the dock and created tremendous lines (over 1.5 hour wait). We had a limited time there and most was taken up by waiting in long cue lines to board a coach bus!! Horrible organization. Strongly recommend going to the Sitka National Historical Park. We walked the trails and don't miss the movie, which educates you on the native peoples. Otherwise, the town offers a small street for shopping.
Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Wonderful port, beautiful and the locals were very friendly. Walked ourselves downtown and took a tour of the Parliament building. Walked down the main street with lots of shops and eateries. Enjoyed incredible fish & chips at The Finest at Sea restaurant, far away from busy downtown and so worth the quality and peacefulness.
Disembarkation
Disembarkation was quick and easy since we elected to walk our luggage off the ship ourselves. We were able to leave whenever we wanted!