Around the world in 180 days
When one door closes, another one often opens. That was the case when Renaissance Cruise Lines closed its doors in 2001. That opened the door for Oceania Cruises, which bought three of Renaissance’s “R Class” ships and turned them into 684-passenger vessels called Regatta, Insignia and Nautica to become the base for this now-popular cruise line.
Oceania worked on building its brand for several years, then kicked it up a notch by launching the 1,250-passenger Marina in 2011, followed with her sister ship — Riviera — a year later.
If you’re launching a new class, then you do it in style, right? Oceania did that with Marina, getting TV star Mary Hart at the height of her Entertainment Tonight fame to be the ship’s godmother, the famed Jacques Pepin to lend his name to a restaurant, Bon Appétit to operate a cooking school at sea, and Canyon Ranch to pamper you with its spa acumen.
How popular is this small cruise line Oceania? Here’s a good yardstick: this month Oceania welcomed its one-millionth passenger.
The three original ships are in top shape — all three emerged from dry-dock this spring sporting a $50-million tune-up.
Overnight ports, longer stays in ports, restaurant choices that the cruise boasts about as having “the finest cuisine at sea” and attentive service appear to be Oceania’s hallmarks.
As one of the first to set foot on the Marina, I remember that it felt bigger than a mid-size ship with its large, high atrium. My luck moved up a notch when I ran into Jacques Pepin as he saw his restaurant for the first time. As he was touring, Pepin nodded approvingly ... Oceania had his blessing.
Outside of the main dining room, my favourite eating place on Marina was Red Ginger — one of the many open-seating restaurants and best described by its mantra: “Asian Fusion.”
Oceania annually sails a good part of the world with a variety of itineraries but the highlight is surely its true around-the-world cruise. This year, the cruise sold out in record time and, already, Insignia’s 180-day World Odyssey, departing Miami on July 8, 2015 has some stateroom categories sold out.
What makes Oceania’s world cruise unique is the many ports where the ship docks for two or three days. These overnights are in cities you would expect — New York, Boston, Singapore and Hong Kong — but also include more exotic experiences such as three days in Rangoon Burma, and Mahe Seychelles, and two days in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Namibia. If 180 days exceeds your time frame, you can buy shorter journeys within that cruise.
Oceania’s 2015 summer collection brings on a boatload of new itineraries ... 40 of them, according to the cruise line. Among new ports are Trois-Rivieres, Londonderry and Palamos (Spain).
Success breeds growth, so we hear more about more new Oceania ships on the architect’s table.