Built in 2000, this cruise liner was originally named R Five and operated for Renaissance Cruises. At 30,277 tons, she takes 684 passengers and an international crew of 400 on cruises to the Mediterranean in the spring, summer and fall, and South Asia, Southeast and East Asia and Australia and New Zealand the balance of the year. She sails with sister ships Insignia and Regatta in the upper-premium market, a cut above Holland America and Celebrity and below Crystal Cruises.
At 594 ft long and 84 ft across the beam, she has a draft of 20 ft and cruises at 18 knots. Registered in the Marshall Islands, she was last refurbished in 2007. The ship's officers are European and the crew international.
Oceania Cruises was founded in 2002 by some of the same executives that had worked for Renaissance Cruises when it went bankrupt after 9/11 in 2001. The line began chartering the former Renaissance ships and quickly established an excellent reputation for good food, service and attractively decorated midsize ships. In 2007, Oceania Cruises and Apollo Management, a private equity firm, established a partnership that injected enough capital to purchase the heretofore chartered ships and to order a pair of new, larger 65,000-ton ships to be delivered in 2010 and 2011. Oceania Cruises will remain an independent brand.
Most passengers are destination-oriented Americans, though some Europeans and Australians are finding their way to the three ships. Most are semiretired or retired. Passengers like the country-club-casual atmosphere of moderate-size ships. Since there are absolutely no facilities for children, few will ever be present. Service throughout the ship is excellent, and most of the staff is Eastern European and many from the Renaissance days, so they know the ship and the type of passengers they are serving. Gratuities of about $11 per day are added to the bill.
Most cruises are destination-oriented with lots of ports and few sea days. Typically, in the Mediterranean she will have one day at sea on a 10-, 12- or 14-day cruise. Itineraries include the Eastern and Western Mediterranean and the Adriatic and Black seas. When this season winds down in November, she heads via the Suez Canal on a long 40-day cruise including the Persian Gulf and India to Southeast Asia and Singapore. From here, the ship heads to the east coast of Australia and cruises from Sydney to North and South Island New Zealand and back. By February 2010, it’s a return to Southeast and East Asia until April when the ship sails via the Indian Ocean and Suez to cruise the Mediterranean for the entire warm weather season. Although shore excursions are an optional charge and expensive, fares are often pegged at two-for-one with air included.
The interior design is Edwardian English country-house-hotel via the Bombay Company, so the overall quality of materials varies but the effect is both homey and comfortable. The casino's adjacent bar lounge typifies the period atmosphere with dark-wood paneling, rich Oriental carpets and heavy draperies, cushy sofas and chairs, decorative sconces and a marble fireplace. It's just the place to gather for a drink before or after dinner. High up, the Horizon Lounge, another favorite spot, is light-filled and has stunning wraparound views. A white-glove afternoon tea takes place when at sea.
Upon first entering the library, one might immediately wish for a damp day to be able to squirrel away with a good book seated in a high-back chair facing the fireplace beneath a raised ceiling featuring a painted tropical-bird setting. The open shelves contain an excellent selection of both fiction and nonfiction books, and an honor system prevails. Additional places to roost are the card room, a computer room with ample stations, spa (three treatment rooms, steam room, beauty salon and fitness center) and the main show lounge for cabaret, orchestral concerts, and jazz and blues.
The promenade decks, truncated at both ends by public rooms, provide a peaceful place to read, look at the sea, and ultimately nap. A dozen cushioned wooden deck chairs each side see few passersby. Elsewhere, there is no dearth of chairs, out around the lido pool and under cover, nor is there any need to save spots. Smoking is strictly confined to a miniscule area on deck.
Passengers choose among four restaurants and a wide window of dining hours, and consistent preparation and presentation is evident throughout. The Grand Dining Room seats fully half the ship at one time, and it does get noisy under the low ceiling sections when full. You generally sit with other passengers unless you arrive with your own party. This way, you meet others, or you can request a table alone if one is available. The tables to the sides and at the stern are certainly preferable to those to the middle. The international menu changes daily. Two specialty restaurants, both seating less than 100, are located high up and aft on Deck 10, and while reservations are required, there is no extra charge. Toscana is Italian with a set menu and a daily chef's special. Roast garlic veal tenderloin with wild mushrooms and gnocchi in a creamy pesto sauce are favorites. The Polo Grill offers a set steak and seafood menu card featuring prime ribs, filet mignon, rack of lamb, broiled lobster tail and surf and turf. For informality as the end of the day, the aft-facing Terrace Cafe one deck down becomes Tapas on the Terrace, a Spanish restaurant (paellas a specialty) with dining inside or out under the night sky. Breakfast and lunch take place here and in the main restaurant. During the day, Waves, poolside, dishes up grilled dishes, seafood, salads and sandwiches from an open galley.
The 342 cabins, nearly all outside and two-thirds with partly partitioned balcony dividers, are of a moderate size with room for a small sitting area with a two-seat sofa and chair. All the bed linens, down pillows and duvets are of top quality. Baths, however, are adequate for one person at a time, with a small shower. There is plenty of storage and adequate hanging space, but the beds are not high enough to stow most large suitcases beneath. Amenities include 24-hour room service, flat-screen TVs with DVD players, movie selections, satellite phones, an Internet access portal, safe, cotton robes, hair dryer and 110/120 volt outlets. Deck 7's A1, A2 and A3 cabins (216 sq ft) are at the concierge level with additional amenities such as refrigerator, minibar, welcome bottle of champagne, priority early embarkation, and priority reservations for the two specialty restaurants. The suite levels include butler service, meals in the room served course by course, tub baths and 42-inch plasma TVs.
The atmosphere and layout remain much the same as during the Renaissance days, but Oceania Cruises has upgraded many aspects of the food service, decor and amenities to provide an extremely good value for the money, whether passengers choose a port-intense Mediterranean cruise or a longer sea journey in Asia or Australasia.
