I’ve Done 5 Oceania Cruises. Here’s What No-one’s Warns You About!

After cruising across every category of cruise line, I keep coming back to Oceania. I’ve cruised 5 times on all three of their current classes of ships. My most recent a 19-night Sydney to Papeete cruise on Riviera.

Yet for a line I return to and recommend, I often get messages from viewers and read reviews from cruisers saying they were underwhelmed or asking what all the hype was about.

Welcome aboard, I’m Gary Bembridge, and I want to talk bluntly about five things that are misunderstood about Oceania Cruises, and the gaps between what they promise and what many people experience. And importantly, where it matters and where it does not.

Before I get into that, a quick scene-setter.

What is Oceania Cruises?

Oceania is part of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, alongside their mainstream resort line Norwegian Cruise Line and the ultra-luxury Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

They’re in what’s often called the small-ship luxury category that sits between the Premium Category (with lines like Princess, Celebrity and Holland America) and the Ultra-luxury one (with lines like Regent, Crystal, Seabourn and Silversea).

Also in this segment are lines like Viking, Azamara, Windstar and Explora Journeys.

Oceania’s ships range from 670 guests on their oldest R-class ships (Insignia, Sirena, Regatta, Nautica) up to 1,250 on their O-class Riviera and Marina, and Vista and Allura Vista-class ships, with a new, even bigger Sonata class coming in 2027 at 1,390 guests.

They also went adults-only at the start of 2026, making them the second 18+ only luxury category line alongside Viking.

And then there’s the marketing promises, which as you will hear causes them some issues.

They claim to be “The world’s leading culinary- and destination-focused luxury cruise line” with the trademarks “The Finest Cuisine at Sea” and “Award-Winning Itineraries. Small Ship Luxury” registered.

These are bold claims – so let’s explore if they really stack up!

Oceania Cruises Watch Outs: Finest Cuisine at Sea?

Their promise of “The Finest Cuisine at Sea” is the single biggest source of disappointment I hear about. So many people on each of those five cruises told me the food just didn’t live up to that.

But is that because Oceania has set themselves an almost impossible bar with that claim? Or is there a big issue with their food?

In my view they are not the finest cuisine at sea as they cannot and do not match the gold standard of cruise dining, which for me is Cunard’s Queens Grill.

That’s a smaller, more exclusive environment, with totally changing daily menus, every meal is silver service with vegetables served from platters rather than plated meals, it has off-menu classics that are made-to-order not mass produced like Beef Wellington and Duck à l’Orange, and tableside flambé desserts like Cherries Jubilee.

Also to ensure the finest cuisine experience the Queens Grill Maître d’ and Chef will happily get the kitchen to make something completely bespoke. Like curries and dairy-free Baked Alaska that my partner has custom made when cruising in Cunard Queens Grill.

But also, as Oceania is not an ultra-luxury line with their budget and resources, I don’t feel or found they can compete with the likes of Crystal’s Nobu partnership, or Silversea’s unique S.A.L.T restaurant with dishes totally linked to the specific region being sailed in.

I find that based on their “finest cruise at sea” claim, many people upgrading from Premium lines board expecting Michelin-style levels of dining, with dramatically elevated food and more exotic dishes, but what they get is beautifully prepared, plated food, and larger menus that, at its heart, is still classic cruise dining.

Those people I speak to coming to Oceania from lines with suite specific restaurants like Cunard Grills and Celebrity Retreat Luminae do not see the promise delivered.

Nor do those coming from or who have tried Ultra-luxury lines.

And yet, here’s the twist.

I always find that Oceania has great food. Among the best, and absolutely in my experience leading in that small ship luxury category.

I just wish they didn’t oversell it so hard as they set themselves up.

On ships their size, I find the choice impressive, and what is included in the fare is excellent.

Here’s what is included on the larger ships.

Grand Dining Room

The Grand Dining Room is the main dining room. Beautiful venue open for breakfast, lunch on port days and for dinner. It is open seating and you can always get a table for 2 or any size you want. It has big, varied menus that are far more extensive than on premium lines, and match ultra-luxury for choice.

Each night the menu has course-by-course sections: Destination / Global Cuisine Dishes, Aquamar Vitality Spa Dishes, Jacques Pepin dishes (their culinary partner), and a Wine Paring option.

All of these were included along with some daily standards in the Appetiser, Entrée, Soup, Salad and Side Dishes sections. There is also a 6 dessert and 6 ice cream menu, with a daily souffle option.

Terrace Café

The Terrace Café offers buffet breakfast, lunch and themed dinners with many items from that evening’s Grand Dining Room menu.

Specialty Restaurants

While just two on the small ship, there are four specialty restaurants on the larger ships.

Red Ginger for Asian (one of the most popular among guests), Toscana for Italian, Polo Grill for steak, and Jacques for French. The fare allows one visit each, unless in the top-end cabins, but I found I can usually get more during the sailing.

Casual Dining

For casual dining there is the Waves Grill on the Pool Deck for healthy breakfast, burgers and hot dogs at lunch, and turns into a pizzeria at night.

Baristas

There is Baristas for the included speciality coffees and light bites through the day.

Afternoon Tea

In the lounge overlooking the bow, every day at 3:30pm is the signature and very good Oceania afternoon tea. Trolleys with savoury and sweet treats are brought round, with choice of scones on offer too.

Grand Brunch

They also put on a massive grand brunch in the Grand Dining Room on longer voyages, which is rather impressive.

Where they do themselves no favours is on attention to detail, which I think also undermines the “finest cuisine at sea” claim at times.

For example, on all trips including the most recent I’ve repeatedly seen menus describe dishes that simply weren’t what arrived at the table. A chicken liver pâté that was more like a terrine, or a “chocolate lava cake” that was really a mousse with a solid centre rather than a hot, oozing sponge.

Also, on my recent Oceania Riviera trip I ordered soft poached eggs six times at breakfast. Not once were they soft. Even most mainstream and premium lines can get that right in my experience.

Those little mismatches matter when you’re telling the world you have the finest cuisine at sea.

The second big challenge I have is around their claim to be destination-focused through their “Award Winning Itineraries” marketing line.

Oceania Cruises Watch Outs: Destination Focused?

While I do find the itineraries themselves are largely superb. Oceania regularly offers some of the most interesting, in-depth routes in the small-ship luxury space.

My recent Sydney to Papeete voyage on Riviera through the South Pacific and French Polynesia is a perfect example, as was unique and intensive.

• Their shore excursions are generally well-run with good local operators. But here’s my issue: they do a terrible job of immersing us guests in those destinations on board.
• On all my voyages there have been no port-specific talks at all. Not even basic briefings about what to expect in the ports, like where docking, facilities, or guide to help self-exploring.
• The enrichment speakers we did have were loosely connected to the itinerary, often talking in broad strokes rather than about the places we were visiting.

For a line selling itself on destinations, that is a huge miss, especially when like we were in less-travelled regions where most guests don’t already know the history, culture or logistics.

Instead, all we got was a vague very corporate one-pager port outline on the TV or available to pick up from the desk – not even delivered to the cabin – with little practical detail.

This was poor.

Just one example typical of several ports, is in Huahine French Polynesia the tender dropped us at a spot miles from anything so nothing for anyone self-exploring to do there. But nowhere had they mentioned there was a US$10 shuttle bus into Fare on the sister island which had shops, markets and gorgeous beaches.

I met so many confused, underwhelmed passengers wandering around in so many ports ranging from Pago Pago, Vana’u and others not knowing what to do, and missing brilliant opportunities simply because they weren’t briefed and prepared.

My takeaway now is that if I sail Oceania, I must do my own region and port homework. They are much weaker than lines like Viking in their category who always have speakers doing deep dives into the itinerary history, culture and port briefings.

On this latest trip they did not even have a talk by the Excursions Team about the tours.

Oceania Cruises Watch Outs: Small Ship Luxury?

The third thing I don’t think is understood is that their “small ship luxury” promise means different things depending on which Oceania ship you’re on based on my experience.

As mentioned earlier, there are three distinct classes today, soon to be four.

1. The R-class ships – Insignia, Sirena, Regatta and Nautica – carry about 670 guests and feel older, more intimate, with fewer venues and truly tiny bathrooms.
2. The O-class – Riviera and Marina – are my favourites. They’ve been modernised but still feel classic, with great dining choice, lots of lounges, good deck space, great cabin design and décor, a casino that’s lively without being overwhelming, and solid build quality with good between cabin soundproofing.
3. Then there’s the Vista-class, Vista and Allura, which are newer and very stylish, but on my sailing, I had serious noise and soundproofing issues that put me off so much I chose Riviera instead for that next cruise – and I’m glad I did. Many people though prefer the Vista class more slick, modern feel, and décor.

What is consistent is the onboard vibe.

The daily programme is light, as with most small-ship luxury lines, but there’s always trivia, group games, bingo, dance classes and the chance to collect “O-Points” by attending these to redeem for merchandise at the end.

Enrichment is decent, with things like the Artist Loft running arts and crafts, Culinary Center cooking classes which have an added charge of $99 per person, bridge and digital learning classes.

Entertainment is a weak area in my view. Though to be fair this area is not a strength of any small ship luxury line either.

The production shows are fine but standard cruise production shows put on by 12 strong singer and dancer group with a live band. They are cruise usual themed revues, like Broadway, Neil Diamond, and Motown. Guest entertainers are also standard cruise fare.

There’s good live music, with a string quartet, pianist, party band, and the theatre band, with the occasional themed deck party like Abba (of course!) and a Blue party.

Next, I must talk about the fares, and inclusion and exclusions.

Oceania Cruises Watch Outs: Fares and Inclusions?

Over the years I have found Oceania fares and inclusions confusing, as they kept changing the names and inclusions.

The current structure is called “Your World Included”

The fares now include gratuities, non-streaming Starlink Wi-Fi, specialty dining, group fitness classes , and sodas, specialty coffees, teas, juices, smoothies, gourmet ice cream.

You then choose either a shore excursion credit – up to $600 per guest depending on voyage length – or complimentary wine and beer during lunch and dinner times (so that in any dining venue and bars between 12 – 1:30pm and 6:30 – 8:30pm).

One thing I missed was there’s also a Best Value Guarantee which means if a better promotion appears before you sail, it can be applied to your booking, but that isn’t exactly shouted about.

I missed out exploiting this as you must request it at the time of the promotions and lower prices, and I only realised once on board that the sailing had been discounted quite a lot after I booked by talking to people bragging about their great deals.

What isn’t included is where costs can rack up fast.

The premium drinks package is about forty dollars a day per person including gratuity, which is worth it if you drink outside restaurant hours because individual cocktails – even non-alcoholic ones – are around $15 plus gratuity.

Excursions aren’t wildly out of line for this category, but I still spent over $1,100 on six tours on that last cruise, with things like a Duck Island trip in Noumea costing $139, a Suva Pearl Hotel Resort experience at $209, and a Homestead and Market tour in Apia at $259.

Spa prices are eye-watering high, streaming Wi-Fi was around twenty dollars a day extra, and with all these add ons, it is easy to board thinking you’ve booked something close to all-inclusive and then feel nickelled and dimed.

Oceania Cruises Watch Outs: Getting More?

Another thing several people I spoke to had not known about is they could have got more out of Oceania if they’d cruised on other Norwegian Group lines.

The group now status-match across Norwegian, Oceania and Regent, although unlike Royal Caribbean you must request it by email for each cruise.

I did that after hitting Gold on Regent and got a bunch of extra perks for this recent sailing by status matching, the best being $600 in onboard credit!

Oceania is, I feel, a great step up for cruisers coming from premium lines like Celebrity, Holland America, Princess and Cunard wanting to try a less crowded, busy and noisy cruise.

While Oceania have smaller ships, there is still a decent amount of choice of bars, lounges, a busy enough casino, many dining options and enough going on to be entertained. And at a price point well below the Ultra-luxury lines.

But if you think that you do want to go even more luxurious than Oceania, and on even smaller and more intimate ships, join me over in this article where I contrast and compare the ultra-luxury lines.