Colonial America Cruise on the Oceania Vista
9/29/2023 to 10/14/2023

Click on the above link buttons that will take you directly to a particular page or area of the review; or you can just click through to the next page at the bottom of each page.
Page 1 – Pre-trip in Montreal
Page 2 – Ship, Cabin, Dining, Activities, Entertainment
Page 3 - Ship (continued); Ports of Call: Quebec City, Canada; Saguenay, Canada; Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada; Shelburne, Nova Scotia, Canada
Page 4 - Ports of Call: Bar Harbor, ME; Portland, ME; Martha’s Vineyard, MA; New York City, NY
Page 5 - Ports of Call: New York City, NY (continued}; Charleston, SC; Miami, FL

Ship

The Vista is a new class of ship for Oceania. It is basically the same size and layout of the O class ships Riviera and Marina, but there have been some modifications to the deck plans that I like a lot and some that I am not thrilled with. I will mention those changes as I discuss the public rooms. The one change that I didn’t care for but understand why it was done was to eliminate the hall on deck 5 going to the rear elevator. It was wasted space, but it was desirable to have a direct access to the rear elevator for deck 5, especially after shows in the theater at the front of deck 5. Some people can’t easily climb stairs to get to deck 6 to walk back to the rear elevator, so the forward elevator area got very crowded.

The forward elevator configuration was also changed on the Vista. The two elevators facing to the rear of the ship are shaped like mushrooms, where it is narrow where you enter and wider in back. As a result, when people get on, they don’t go all the way back and it appears full when there is more room in the back. Added to the elevator situation, they had mechanical problems regularly and at least one of them was down all the time, sometimes more. One evening 3 of the 4 weren’t working. On disembarkation morning one of the two rear elevators was down. Not good when people are taking their carryon baggage down to leave the ship. I realize that mechanical things break, but the Vista elevators had way too many failures for a new ship.

The various public rooms are shown below by category.

Restaurants (Link to Menus) –

I have included copies of the menus for the restaurants along with photos of some of the food items at the Menus link just above and at the top of each page of the review.

Grand Dining Room –

This is the main dining room for the ship. It is located on deck 6 at the back of the ship. Breakfast and lunch are served there every day, and lunch is served there on sea days. There are no set seating times. I was surprised that dinner in all of the restaurants started at 6:30 PM. It was fine with me, but many people like to eat earlier than that. The room itself is quite elegant. Rather than a large center chandelier like O Class ships, Vista has several beautiful ones all around the dining room. This is because the dining room is not as open with the room being sectioned off into smaller dining areas.

We only had dinner in the dining room four times and breakfast once. As a result, most of the Grand Dining Room menus don't have food photos. The group I was with preferred the flexibility and shorter dining time afforded in the buffet. With a group of seven, we were limited as to where we could all sit at one table. The ones we had were at the back corners of the dining room. They were nice in that it was like a private room, but there were no windows close to us to look out at the ocean.

As always on Oceania, the food was very good as was the dining room service. With this being the first time my friends were cruising with Oceania, I was very pleased to hear them rave about how great some of the items were in this and the other restaurants. They agreed that Oceania had the best overall food of any cruise they had been on. That doesn’t mean that everything was great, but for the most part they really enjoyed their meals.

Terrace Café –

Located on the back of deck 12, this buffet is the main dining venue for breakfast and lunch. It is also very popular for dinner, since they have most of the same food items as the main dining room, plus more. It is a beautifully decorated restaurant. I loved the artwork and mosaics on the wall.

It is in the shape of a “U” with the middle being the area where the food is located. The long parts of the U are the seating areas. It is basically the same layout as the O class ships, but it is much more attractive.

The main hot food line was on one side, and it could be accessed from either end, since the food items were duplicated for whichever way you came in.

On the other side was a grill that had various food items including steaks, lobster, burgers, and a very nice pasta station. They even made their own pasta right in front of you.

The center section had all the salad makings, sushi, cheeses and special appetizer type items on one side with desserts and ice cream on the other side.

There was a nice outdoor seating section adjoining the main buffet area at the back of the ship. With the cooler weather, we only ate out there once when we got further south. More beautiful mosaics.

With the buffet having pretty much the exact same items as the main dining room each night, plus other items, it was a great place to go if you didn’t want to dress up or take a long time dining. Each night you could get grilled steak or lobster tails at the grill side, which is quite appealing. They also had sushi and other appetizers not available in the dining room for dinner. On the last two nights of the cruise they had the Caribbean Chef’s Market Dinner both evenings. That did seem strange. I guess they had too many leftovers from the previous night. I must mention how great the Mexican lunch they had was one day. In addition to delicious food, everyone in my group was raving about how good the mole sauce was. Most of us got the wonderful croissants most days for breakfast. One of the couples recently spent some time in Paris. They said that the ship’s croissants were better than any they had in Paris. That is saying something.

With us being on a cool weather cruise, we noticed that the dining area was cold when then automatic doors to the outside opened. This is normal in ship buffets, but the doors on the Vista stayed open a very long time that made it more of an issue. This became even more apparent when we got into warmer weather, since the buffet got very warm. This might be a real issue when cruising the Caribbean or other warm climates where it gets very hot outside. I did like how most of the exterior doors and interior restroom doors were touchless remote opened. It took a while for some people to not touch them, but just get close. It is an excellent system.

Aquamar Kitchen –

This is a new healthy dining venue for the Vista. It is located on deck 12 on the starboard side between the Terrace Café and the swimming pool. This used to be the private dining area La Reserve. There is an indoor seating area in the kitchen. The only seating there though is a long high rise. This is the table we used because it held our group of 7 nicely. There is plenty of outdoor seating at normal table and chairs.

They have a pretty nice menu for breakfast and lunch. They aren’t open for dinner. I ate there once and enjoyed their poke bowl and sweet potato fries, but I much preferred the choices in the buffet. Our friends loved Aquamar and ate there several times.

Ember –

This is a new specialty restaurant for the Vista. The restaurant replaced my favorite one, Jacques. It is located on deck 5 starboard behind the atrium in the middle of the ship. You have to pass by the boutiques to get there. I loved the look of the restaurant with the brick ceiling and wood-tone furniture. Oceania describes the restaurant as “where savory American classics come to life with a modern twist.” It is the only specialty restaurant that doesn’t use tablecloths.

I had read comments about Ember where people felt it was like going to an Applebees or other American food chain restaurant, and they weren’t pleased with it. Not that those are bad restaurants, but it isn’t what one would expect from a specialty restaurant. Specialty restaurants on most mainstream cruise lines have an upcharge. Oceania doesn’t and that is probably good for Ember, since more people will go to it. I will say that whenever we checked to see if there was seating available for a specialty restaurant, the only one that had availability was Ember. I liked the menu and the food they served was quite good. There were some menu items I would like to try had our group wanted to go back there.

Polo Grill –

This is the ship’s steak house. It is a specialty restaurant and requires reservations. There is no additional cost to eat there, but each cabin is only guaranteed one reservation. It is located on deck 14 starboard at the back of the ship. It is a nicely appointed room and very comfortable. The O class ship version feels much more like a steak house with the high-back read leather chairs. This is still a nice room with lots of windows looking out on the ocean.

They had a nice private room with seating for eight. I wish we could have gotten that room for our seven.

We were only able to eat at Polo Grill one time since no other bookings were available during the cruise. We had a very good meal there, as expected.

Privee –

This is a small dining room on deck 14 rear between Polo Grill and Toscana. It used to be a dining room that could be reserved for a group for a price. Now they have brought the La Reserve wine pairing menu experiences to this venue. It is a very attractive intimate room for a small group.

Red Ginger –

This is the Asian specialty restaurant. It is located on deck 5 port behind the atrium in the middle of the ship. You pass through the other side of the boutiques that you would go through to get to Ember to reach Red Ginger. It is a lovely room, but it doesn’t feel like an Asian restaurant to me. The Red Ginger on the O class is a beautiful room that is clearly an Asian restaurant.

Red Ginger is clearly the most popular specialty restaurant on the three ships that have the restaurant. It has been mine too. Everyone in our group loved their meal. I wasn’t as happy with mine as much since I decided to get something other than my favorite dish Miso Sea Bass.

Toscana –

The ship’s Italian specialty restaurant is on deck 14 aft on the port side across the ship from Polo
Grill. It is an attractive room, especially in the evening.

They also had a nice private room for eight or more.

This was our groups favorite meal the whole cruise. The food was outstanding and the service exceptional. When a meal starts with a yummy breadbasket and we are offered a selection of olive oils and vinegars with it, how bad can it be? Well, I guess it could have been, but not this time.

Since we have been to Toscana before, I wanted everyone to try their lasagna. We asked the waiter to bring us a couple of meal lasagnas for the table so everyone could try it. He brought four of them. We told him to take some back. He didn’t. A good thing, since only a tiny slice of one lasagna was left at meal’s end. Some of my friends are of Italian descent, cook wonderful Italian food and are very critical of Italian food restaurants. I had been concerned how they would feel about Toscana’s food, but they thoroughly loved everything. They were most disappointed that we couldn’t get another reservation. Since I will be on the Riviera in January, I will be sure to send them photos our food when we eat at Toscana. 😄

Waves Grill -

This is the pool grill where one can get hamburgers, hot dogs, Reuben sandwiches and much more. It is on the starboard side of deck 12 between the Terrace Café and the swimming pool. They serve lunch between 11:30 AM and 4:00 PM. At 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM they only serve pizza along with salad, drinks and ice cream. It is all outdoor seating, but you can tell them that you want it delivered to the pool or the buffet. They will give you a little table stand with a number and the waiter will find you. We did this one night when we wanted pizza and it worked out great. It also works well at lunch if someone wants something other than a burger.

I have always enjoyed the food at Waves, but not this time. I was so disappointed. Everything we ordered there was overcooked and/or very dry. I was embarrassed because I had talked up how good Waves was, and they didn’t get that experience. Since some of them will be on the Riviera in 2025, I hope they give it another chance and have better results.

Lounges (Link to Menus)-

I have included copies of the menus for the lounges/bars at the Menus link just above and at the top of each page of the review.

Baristas/Bakery –

This coffee bar/bakery is located on deck 14 forward of the elevators. It is usually open from 6:30 AM to 5:30 PM. It is my favorite change from the O class ships. It used to be a relatively small area. It has now been expanded by moving the internet center and card room. With the extra room, they now have a bakery and a large sitting area for those that just want coffee/tea and baked goods in the morning. They also had quiche in the afternoon. I always recommend people to try the wonderful Frappuccino they serve. It is a very smooth coffee tasting soft ice cream type treat. Try it, you’ll like it. On nights when the Horizons lounge was devoted to Oceania Club events, Baristas was used as a happy hour venue since they have a full bar there.

It was surprising how delicious the baked goods were. They really know how to bake on this ship. It was difficult to not just come up and taste what wonderful treat they had made during the day. This is a much more popular venue now than when it was just a coffee bar.

Founder’s Bar –

This is the bar that used to be the Casino Bar. It makes drinks for the casino and Grand Lounge. It is on the port side of deck 6 in front of the Grand Dining Room, but there is no entrance to the Grand Dining Room from the bar. It is out of the way and not easy to find unless you are looking for it. It can only be accessed from the casino and one entrance from the Grand Lounge. Since the starboard side is the main entrance to the Grand Dining Room, there is no reason to pass through it. I only saw it when I took photos for the review.

The bar did have some unique drinks that could only be made there, as well as standard drinks. Some were made with smoke. They had some good ones, but with the Founder’s Bar not being one of the lounges that was included in the 2 for 1 happy hour special between 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM, it wasn’t as popular as the others.

The Italian Harlem

Grand Lounge –

This lounge is on the starboard side of deck 6 in front of the Grand Dining Room at the back of the ship. It used to be called the Grand Bar. It is very nicely decorated with beautiful items displayed on the many shelves in the room. The violin quartet played there several times each day.

Horizons –

This is the largest lounge on the ship located on deck 14 at the very front of the ship. It was on deck 15 on the O class, but it feels very much the same on both classes. There are lots of places to sit and look out to the ocean. It was particularly popular on this cruise since most people didn’t want to sit outside in the cooler weather. It is used for many functions during the day including bingo, trivia, afternoon tea and Oceania Club events. It was also one of the two lounges that had the 2 for 1 drink specials between 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM.

The ship band or musical group would play in Horizons during happy hour as well as during the evening. Some would take advantage of the dance floor.

Martinis –

This lounge is located on deck 6 in the middle of the ship. It is a very attractive and comfortable lounge. It was always very crowded during the happy hour special time. We normally like to go to Martinis for happy hour, but on this cruise, they had a piano player that played and sang so loud that we couldn’t hear ourselves talk. With the piano in the middle of the lounge, there was no way to escape his sound.

Waves Bar -

This is the pool bar that is forward of the pool on the port side. On this cruise it wasn’t used much due to the colder weather. With it going to the Caribbean after this cruise, it should be very busy with everyone outside.

Entertainment -

Vista Lounge –

This theater is at the front of the ship on deck 5. It is where the evening shows and daily enrichment lectures happen. They have changed the seating arrangement on the Vista, which to me, makes it more difficult to get to the seats on the side of the theater. The bigger issue, is that there isn’t enough rise in the stadium seating to be able to have an unobstructed view of the stage if there are people in front of you, which there normally are during the evening shows. I didn’t notice it as much on the O class ships. Perhaps because the seats weren’t offset as much where you could see between two heads.

I do like the wide aisles. It makes it possible for someone to walk in front of you without having to stand up. Plus, there is plenty of leg room.

Casino

The casino is on deck 6 port side between Martinis and the Grand Lounge. It is a small casino and was very popular when it was open. Since we don’t gamble, I was never in it other than to take photos.

Other -

Atrium –

This beautiful area is located on deck 5. Unlike all of the other Oceania ships, that have lovely double stairways to the next deck, Vista has a single grand staircase with a gorgeous lighted crystal pillar. The color would change. I liked this new look.

Aquamar Spa & Vitality Center –

The spa moved to deck 15 from deck 14. The reception area was much more elegant on the O class ships. This area has consulting and products for sale.

The styling salon is just before the Aquamar reception area. This is also where they do nails.

The open Aquamar Terrace that is in front of the ship is included with Concierge class and above cabins. Others can purchase time there. I do like it better than the previous one. It seemed classier and had two hot tubs compared to just one. The thalassotherapy pool is also larger. We went up there one time when the weather started to warm up a bit. We enjoyed it but the very strong wind we were experiencing made it uncomfortable after a while.

Artist Loft –

The Artist Loft moved from deck 12 to deck 14 and is located on the starboard side of the ship behind Horizons. This is an area where instructors help passengers learn to paint or improve their skills. The classes were well attended.

Barber Shop –

This is on deck 15 as you enter the Aquamar Spa area.

Bocce Ball/Baggo Croquet –

The area to play bocce ball, baggo and croquet is on deck15 at the back of the ship on the port side of the fitness track. The equipment was kept in the large wooden boxes making it available during the day.

Boutiques –

On deck 5 midship there are three boutiques. They are separated by two halls that go to the Red Ginger and Ember restaurants. The jewelry store is in the middle with access from both hallways.

The other boutiques have souvenirs, sundries, clothing and accessories.

Concierge –

On deck 5 there is a concierge desk on one side of the atrium. They are there to assist where needed.

On the other side of the atrium is an attended desk for making specialty restaurant reservations.

Concierge Lounge –

This is a lounge on deck 9 forward that is reserved for those in Concierge class cabins. It can be accessed by higher level cabins, but they have their own lounge, the Executive Lounge. They have some light snacks and non-alcoholic drinks available. I went there one morning to bring coffee back to the room, but it was quicker to go to the buffet. It has a nice sitting area with a large screen TV. The main benefit of the lounge is the attendant stationed there. It’s similar to a concierge. Whenever I walked by the lounge, I rarely saw anyone in there.

Conference Center –

A large conference room is located near the front of deck 14 starboard just before you get to Horizons. It was used for computer and photography classes, religious services and group meetings.

Culinary Center –

This very nicely appointed cooking classroom is located on the port side of deck 14 forward. The various classes that were offered were mostly sold out before boarding the cruise. We were lucky to be able to get a class for Cathy and Jim. The cost for the 2.5-hour classes is $89 per person. They both raved about how good the teacher was and that is was a great cooking class. We booked another class for Cathy for our January Riviera cruise. Most of those classes were already sold out too. They are very popular and now we know why.

Below are photos from when a class is taking place. They are very hands on.

I had to take a photo of the Jim and Cathy in their chef’s aprons.

Destination Services –

On one side of the deck 5 atrium is the destination services desk. It is used to find out and book ship excursions. They also provide some port information for those not on ship tours.

Fitness Center –

A gym is located on the port side of deck 15 forward near the entrance to the Aquamar Spa. It isn’t that large, but they do have a nice selection of equipment.

Fitness Track –

The tenth of a mile walking/running track is at the back of deck15. Since the rear elevator only goes to deck 14, it can only be reached by taking the stairs. Not a big deal if one is planning to use the track.

Golf Putting Greens –

The golf greens are on deck 16 in the front of the ship. It can only be accessed by taking steps from deck 15.

They also have a golf driving cage.

Laundry –

Decks 7 through 11 each have a laundry room that can be used by the guests. They have 3 sets of stacked washers and dryers. There is a free soap dispenser available also. Every time I went down to take photos, the room had people in it. I put off taking photos so many times that I never did get one.

Library –

The library is located on the port side of deck 14 aft just in front of the Toscana restaurant. It is made up of several different sections making it a more intimate setting for those that want to relax there and read. The library on the O class ships has a very different appearance, with heavy leather furniture and dark woodwork. The Vista library is much brighter and modern than the previous version. Both are lovely venues with an excellent selection of books to borrow while on the cruise.

LYNC Digital Center –

The computer center is located on the front of deck 14 starboard next to the conference center. Since they had classes at the conference center it a convenient location. They were also able to have smaller classes in their area, as is shown in one of the photos. As with most cruises, the computer centers are packed with people the first few days of the cruise when they are trying to turn on the WiFi for their phones and tablets.

The internet speed was relatively adequate for a cruise ship. It was frustrating that only one device per cabin could be used at a time, since it prevented the guests from communicating with their spouses when in different locations. This has been changed for cruises after ours where both guests in a cabin can have their devices on at the same time. Thank goodness!

It was also surprising that unlike most cruise lines, Oceania doesn’t have their own app to be used during the cruise. I like being able to access activities, restaurant menus, deck plans, account status, etc on my phone during a cruise. I had downloaded a PDF of the deck plans on my phone, but everyone doesn’t do that. I have to assume that there will be an Oceania app in the future, like their parent company, NCL, has.

Oceania Club Ambassador –

This is where future cruises can be booked. It is located on deck 6 forward on the starboard side. It was very difficult to find the office, since it is not shown on any deck plans on the Oceania website. Since there are promotions for booking onboard, it is always a popular place when they are open. On this cruise, I think it was even more popular because every cabin had a $500 or $1,000 future cruise certificate for missing a port I will discuss later. There are two agents available, but most of the time there was only one there, so guests were in the waiting room and some standing in line to get into the waiting room. The hours were normally 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM and then 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM. The off time allowed the agents time to complete the paperwork from the morning visitors. Since they didn’t take reservations, you either needed to wait in line or check in regularly to see if they were available. As usual, it was very hectic at the end of the cruise when people decide that they need to book another cruise before the cruise ended.

Paddle Tennis Pickleball –

On the port side of deck 16 forward, there is a very nice pickleball court. I would think that its location would make play more challenging with the exposure to the wind.

Pool –

The pool is located on deck 12. Also on the pool deck are two nice size hot tubs. There is a large area surrounding the pool that I assume is used to contain the pool water when the ship movement pushes water over the sides.

There is lots of seating and cushioned lounge chairs around the pool for those that want to relax outside. They weren’t used much on this cruise until the last few days.

There are also several covered areas near the pool for those that want to keep out of the sun.

Reception –

The reception desk is located off the deck 5 atrium. The staff were very helpful and pleasant. They must have been efficient too, since I never saw any long lines waiting for service.

Shuffleboard –

The shuffleboard court is on deck15 at the back of the ship on the starboard side of the fitness track.

Smoking Lounge -

Located on deck 15 starboard forward just before Horizons is the smoking lounge. It is one of the most attractive rooms on the ship. It was rarely occupied by more than a couple people when I went by.

Sun Deck –

Deck 14 midship is the place for those wanting to get a suntan. The deck is lined with cushioned lounge chairs and very nice private areas too.

Upper Hall –

This is area where the atrium’s grand staircase extends up to deck 6. It is at the entrance to Martinis.

Artwork & Decorations

Sometimes I like to show some of the gorgeous artwork and sculptures in the review. I wish that I had the time to do it for the Vista, since the whole ship is a masterpiece. By not doing on this cruise, it will give me something to do on my next Vista cruise where I won’t need to take public room photos.

Colonial America Cruise on the Oceania Vista 9/29/2023 to 10/14/2023