ON BOARD OCEANIA’S NEW VISTA in January, my husband Bill and I met a very loyal fan of the cruise line. An ex-pilot who found freedom at 55, he had already taken over 50 cruises on an Oceania ship. When Oceania christens a new vessel, he told us he’s among the first to book.
What inspires such loyalty to a cruise line and why the excitement to be among the first to be onboard? The answer to the second question was obvious as soon as we put foot on deck. That everything-new smell, the gleam of the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, railings so shiny they’re like mirrors and the pure opulence of design, it all was so impressive.
Photo: Oceania Cruises
Oceania Cruises
Vista, launched in May 2023, is the first new ship to be built for Oceania in more than a decade and the first of their Allura class vessels. We’ve been on two of its fleet mates, the Marina sailing Polynesia in 2018 and the Nautica cruising the Mediterranean in 2016. This ship has the same basic dimensions as the Marina, but with more grandeur and glamour, such as a sweeping staircase that rises from deck five to six, crystal chandeliers, champagne colours, generous splashes of gold throughout and standard staterooms measuring 290 square feet, among the most spacious at sea. With a passenger capacity of 1,200 and 800 crew, it’s considered a midsize ship.
The cruise industry’s post-pandemic revival has been impressive. According to the industry body Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), around 31.5 million took a cruise in 2023, a healthy increase over 2022. The forecast for cruise capacity shows an increase of 10 percent from 2024 through 2028; to meet demand, Oceania’s eighth vessel, the Allura, is set to launch in July 2025. To set themselves apart, Oceania claims to be “the finest cuisine at sea” and trademarked the slogan. They not only aim high with their signature restaurants, but also with their hands-on Culinary Centre and Chef ’s Studio.
On Vista, this space has been expanded to 24 individual cooking stations. The Privée private dining experiences for a select eight that pay up extra (all meals in other venues are included in the fare), includes Odyssey, which is a multicourse meal with fine wine pairings and the six-course Dom Perignon dinner. We’ve found both the wines and the dishes at these meals to be top notch and well worth the price.
Oceania Cruises Cooking Station: Photographer: Nick Tortajada/Oceania Cruises
That is because for Bill and me, what floats our boat is food. We’ve tried other cruise lines but seem to always drift back to Oceania. On the Polynesia trip, three of the Culinary Discovery Tours we did, The Culinary Secrets of the Sacred Island of Raiatea, Gourmet Dinner at St. Regis Bora Bora and Polynesia Culinary Experience on the Marquesas island of Nuku Hiva, were so delicious they’re indelibly in my taste memory.
We had great hopes for this Maya Montage voyage on Vista, a round trip from Miami to Costa Maya Mexico, Roatan Island in Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Belize City and Cozumel. However, no one can control the weather and we were hit with such stormy seas that two of our port stops were cancelled and, in the end, all three of our onshore culinary experiences.To make up for the Maya Mexico cancellation, we did have a free, fun, informative cooking lesson organized by Kathryn Kelly, Executive Chef and Director of Culinary Enrichment for Oceania.
Executive Chef & Director of Culinary Enrichment Kathryn Kelly’s favorite empanada recipe.
Kathryn Kelly, Executive Chef and Director of Culinary Enrichment for Oceania.
In a follow up via email, Chef Kelly wrote, “We are the only cruise line in the world designed specifically for foodies, by foodies, earning the reputation as the cruise line of choice for gourmands.” I’d agree but hope for better luck on a future voyage. Cancelled culinary onshore tours aside, the endless offering of activities onboard along with 11 culinary venues, cooking lessons, special private dinners, cocktail parties with the captain and crew and wine tastings, our taste buds were well looked after.
Our suite also came with a personal butler ready to deliver whatever we wanted – within reason. Shortly after we entered, Anthony arrived impeccably dressed and ready to serve. “I’ll have caviar and hard drugs,” said Bill. The latter request was a display of my husband’s teasing humour but the caviar was a demand that had to be met. Sure enough on the days when caviar was available, a very generous serving was delivered to our suite.
On a typical voyage, Vista is stocked with 60 pounds of caviar per week. My husband got more than his share. The answer to my first question, why loyalty? For us, while we are way too many cruise miles away from President’s Circle (60 cruise credits) to get there in our lifetime, we’d be happy for go for Bronze (five credits) and try out Allura next year.
