Riviera Cruise Reviews - Reviews

We never got off the ship mostly due to cancelled ports, cold weather. We turned our cruise into an "all inclusive resort" on the water and enjoyed our time no matter the cancelled ports.

the wifi sucks, food not exceptional - Oceana as a culinary experience is a bit of an overstatement - staff indifferent, not proactive - it seemed that the staff were focused on costs reduction and limiting food and drink service, is Oceana in a financial crisis? - you had to basically flag down sommelier in the grand dining room to get a drink, also at the pool and in the martini bar had to flag down the servers to get service - lots a training needed for the staff - some staff were wonderful, but most were more interested in standing around and talking. to each other, rather than providing service to passengers.

The only thing that was missing was the ability to order appetizers/ tapas with happy hour.

My wife and I have not been big cruisers. However, we both hope that is about to change as we have just retired. Over the past 30 years this was just our seventh cruise. We have sailed on everything from Carnival to Crystal. We both agree that Oceana hit that sweet spot. The size of the ship was perfect ,the people on the ship both other passengers and crew were great. And the food? Wonderful. That being said, there are always some Sour Puss you find anywhere. And cruising is no exception.Ran into a few entitled people but the VAST majority of people were just like us. Happy and feeling blessed that we are on such a special cruise line.We had a very happy 10 days. Before getting off the ship we booked another cruise on Oceana. This one it’s two years from today on the Marina to Antarctica!! I can’t believe I just typed that. Antarctica? Well, when you find the ship you are comfortable with and made great memories on, we both said let’s go for it! Should be fun. Come join us!

we cruised with Oceania already 14 times and will continue to go with them; they have the best food on board, it's a small ship, nice people. They have drawbacks, like the lounge chair situation and the entertainment, but one cannot get everything. We are there to be pampered and relaxing. And this is what we can do on these ships. Booked already for next year.

It was an interesting experience to visit Greenland and the Faroe Islands. Sweden was a country that we have not visited before, and we believe this aspect enhanced our experience. Overall, Oceania seemed to be a better overall experience prior to the pandemic.

This is our second cruise on this ship and with Oceania. Based on what we experienced I would caution folks to lower expectations on food for a while. We hope they get their act together or they will be just like low-mid cruise lines.

Oceania cruises remains one of my favorite cruise lines. We like that the ship isn't massive. While we like kids (and we spotted a few), the cruise line doesn't cater to families. The kids we were around were all very well behaved. The crew is so accommodating and pleasant. The ship is spotless. The food is delicious! I appreciate that Oceania no longer hands out bottled water at each port. Instead, an aluminum water bottle is in each cabin to fill with their filtered water. This is more eco friendly. Dinner portions aren't huge, so there's less food waste. There's a wide variety of foods to satisfy anyone's palate. The spa is lovely-- serene and spotless. The crew that handles the tenders are efficient and pay special attention to passengers with disabilities (I'm one of them). We will definitely return on one of their ships again!

We had a nice time on the cruise. It was definitely more low key than previous cruise on other lines. The lack of photographers and waiters selling fancy umbrella drinks was good. There were no belly flop contests in the pool...another plus. The food was terrific. The walk in shower in the cabin was a great feature.

Cruise was great relief from the cold north. Weather was gorgeous each day. Ports were not great, if you didnt go to the beach on each island.

I have enjoyed all the cruises I have taken with Oceania, this one was no exception. It was a lovely trip with very little that I did not enjoy on board. The upgrades definitely added to the comfort and enjoyment of the boat. The staff, as usual, were outstanding.

We will always probably cruise on Oceania, but it definitely felt less high end this time around vs. our last cruise in 2022. The cruise ship director didn't seem as engaged, the entertainment was subpar, the art classes were not appealing at all (the artist made the classes nearly impossible to attend), the butlers weren't as attentive, and especially the staff was all around less helpful and keen to be there.

Cruised with hubby. Loved the ship the food and staff. Iteneraries were great as well. Dining experience was the best. Looking forward to another Oceania cruise.

Beautiful ship, rooms were great. Based on info from friends and the fare we paid, we had high expectations that were not close to being met. Buffet restaurant was too crowded. Bakery items looked good but tasted mediocre. Service was inconsistent, as were updates from the crew. Food, even in the Specialty restaurants was of uneven quality. Coffee quality was excellent at Barista's and of lesser quality elsewhere. The wine by the glass selection was average in quality. It was nice though to utilize a corkage fee so we could occasionally enjoy good wine for a reasonable price. Excursions run by Oceania are overpriced. The "free WIFI" was a joke. Only one device allowed online at a time and it was painstakingly difficult to "toggle" back and forth between devices (and no instructions were given on how to do this). Get serious and allow TWO DEVICES PER CABIN! We were also promised Oceania-labeled tote bags, but we were told they didn't make it to the cruise on time.

Overall it was a good cruise but we have had better experiences on other lines. They don’t put a lot into the excursions, other than getting you on the proper bus or group. Port information was supposed to be on the TV, but there were issues from Day2 and many features on the TV didn’t work. Limited shows to watch.

The ports in general were poor. Small towns with nothing to do. Looked forward to Norway but felt missed a good experience. When compared armed with Vikings choice of ports, Oceania missed the boat

Though we used to be great fans, we were very disappointed in Oceania and details on this cruise. Japan is not as US friendly as most ports we have visitied and you must have your passport with you all the time. The language barrier made it difficult, and there is a LOT of walking. It does appear they have reevaluated the tours and the walk ratings have been changed since we booked them. Japan is interesting and I got some great photos. Riviera did not meet our expectations overall, and though similar ship, it does not compare to our prior experience on Marina, which we loved.

We chose this cruise for the itinerary. Before we booked, we already weren't impressed about Oceana but our "personal concierge" booking agent as they call it, reassured us that this ship was the finest quality of luxury, dining, etc. He was so friendly and “call me anytime attitude”, until we called and asked for a refund and wanted to cancel the cruise because they cut out half of our ports, then he was cold, indifferent and rude. It was a 10 day cruise. My husband and I chose this line, because it would have given us 4 more new countries. We were supposed to see UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. A week before the cruise, they told us they were cutting out the last two ports and used the excuse of the "Israeli war". Total excuse. They just wanted to save money. As soon as we boarded, we were met by a lady and her husband who said they were already on the ship for I think 20 days and quickly confirmed that they "baited and switched" her itinerary also. She was 9 days "at sea" because the captain refused to go to port. When concerned customers tried to talk with the manger about this, they were told the manager was too busy to speak to them. She also told us that another couple demanded to speak with the Captain to ask why their itinerary had been changed and when finally granted an audience with the Captain, he essentially said, shut up or get off my ship, so they got off. The lady also told me that the Captain had told her that he would remove her from the ship if she kept talking to guests about the “bait and switch”. Seriously. From our experience, I can confirm the management was impatient, rude and unhelpful when asked about anything. The staff was pleasant, but they were very annoying and wanted to “overserve” and were very “hovering”. I couldn’t get coffee by myself and walk to a quiet nook to sip it to wake up without being assaulted by at least 10 staff insisting they carry my coffee. The ship was NOT elegant. It was frumpy. Our AC in our room never worked properly so the room was stuffy and hot the entire time. The bed was saggy and uncomfortable. The food was DEFINITELY NOT “fine dining”. It was subpar, tasteless cafeteria food. I could barely find anything to eat that was edible. They even served “mashed potatoes” that were rehydrated flakes and overly watered down. Disgusting. Their “desserts” were inedible. Nasty quite frankly. I am 57 and my husband is 61 and we were almost the youngest people on the ship. Most of the cliental were in their 80s. The “activities” were crossword puzzles, shuffle board, mahjong. When I attempted to use the fitness room to stretch and do Pilates, I was rudely told that I had to leave because they were about to start a “seminar”. Two old ladies showed up because they were bored. The ship has been hawking antiaging pain management “seminars” to get them to buy their crap. One lady told me she had to pay $90 for a bottle of supplements. Can you imagine? You’ve got a captive audience that is 90 percent very elderly people and you try to rip them off by promising “anti aging benefits”. It was such a horrible cruise, that my husband and I decided to get off early and return home for Christmas.

Oceania delivered one of my memorable cruise journey/experience with friendly services, quality food and well design /organized excursions. I'd already booked my next cruise with Oceania for my 2025 trip.

Disappointed compared to previous experiences on Riviera