T+L’s Cruise Ship Review of Oceania Allura

One of many world’s smallest international locations, San Marino must be among the many most picturesque locations in all of Europe. Its tiny capital metropolis, additionally known as San Marino, sits on the high of Mount Titano, with spectacular views of Italy’s Apennines to the west. Its Medieval fortifications appear like one thing out of Sport of Thrones—or, given their crenulated towers, “Rapunzel.”

The slender lanes of town are crammed with memento retailers and cafes, to not point out an outsize variety of museums. The Nationwide Postal Museum, for instance, was surprisingly fascinating, stuffed with commemorative Olympics-themed stamps, distinctive San Marino euro cash, and an exhibit on Abraham Lincoln, who was granted Sammarinse citizenship in 1861. The San Marino Nationwide Gallery had an intriguing array of up to date artwork, together with a riveting installation by the Italian artist Enzo Mari. The State Museum was crammed with historic artifacts, each from San Marino and, within the case of some Egyptian antiquities, far distant.

Attention-grabbing as they have been—who is aware of something about San Marino, actually—I used to be extra charmed by the back-in-time really feel of the pedestrian streets and the climb to the well-known “Three Towers” of town. The heartbeat-quickening hike as much as Guita, the primary of town’s towers, afforded beautiful views of the Italian countryside which fully surrounds the microstate of San Marino.

As I stood on the high of Guaita, a towering fort that dates to the eleventh century, I may simply make out the bell tower of Rimini within the distance. Past the coastal metropolis was the Adriatic Sea—which is how I got here to San Marino, although few would take into account the city-state a handy place to succeed in by ship. However, for Oceania Cruises, taking friends off the overwhelmed path is a key a part of delivering an excellent trip.

“We go to in all probability twice as many distinctive ports of name and have twice as many itineraries as our opponents,” says Nathan Hickman, the road’s SVP of world advertising. “That’s simply our philosophical strategy.”

I met with Hickman aboard Allura, the most recent ship within the Oceania fleet, and a sibling to Vista, which launched recently to rave reviews. I hopped aboard in Trieste, Italy, for a week-long crusing to Athens that will give me simply sufficient time to get to know the road’s model of service—and to discover all of the bells and whistles on the brand new, 610-cabin ship, which accommodates 1,200 passengers.

I got here away impressed. Oceania doesn’t take into account itself a luxurious line; “my concern personally is that if you say ‘luxurious,’ does that repel some folks?” Hickman explains. Nonetheless, Allura has most of the trappings of high-end cruise vessels, together with a half-dozen specialty eating venues, an expansive pool deck, and loads of dwell leisure. That is the second vessel in Oceania’s Allura ship class, which notably provides extra space, extra facilities, and a leveled-up pool-and-sports advanced in distinction to the road’s older ships.

“The best way we describe ‘luxurious’ is genuine to us,” Hickman says. “The place we’re coming to it’s, ‘the luxurious of selection.’ Now we have essentially the most included eating choices of any cruise line. You may be in a typical room otherwise you may be in a 2,000-square-foot Proprietor’s Suite. You’ll be able to take a seven-day cruise or 180-day cruise. It is all about selection.”

I definitely felt that, notably when it got here to the wonderful eating places on board, together with Jacques, a French bistro that feels straight out of the eighth arrondissement. Greater than something, although, I simply love being at sea, with an ever-changing palette of blues out each window and entry to a few of the most in-demand locations similar to Dubrovnik, Croatia, with out the effort of ready in strains or determining ticketing preparations. (Oceania’s contracted tour guides took care of all that for friends on pre-arranged shore excursions.)

Like all good cruises, my July crusing aboard Allura managed to really feel comfy and acquainted—whereas taking me to locations I by no means would have skilled in any other case. San Marino: who knew?

Learn on for extra particulars about Oceania Allura, together with specifics about its staterooms, eating places, facilities, and wellness amenities.

The Staterooms

Allura has a wide array of rooms and suites, with entry-level lodging which are nonetheless comfy whereas being inexpensive and high-end areas that include top-notch providers not supplied to each cabin sort. In all, the ship has six completely different room classes, which vary from Veranda Stateroom to Proprietor’s Suite. Upgrading to a Concierge Stage room affords friends extra facilities, not least of which is entry to a non-public lounge, staffed by can-do personnel, who can help with on-ship and off-ship requests, whether or not a dinner association or particulars on, say, mountain climbing routes round Montenegro’s Bay of Kotor.

My cabin, 8129, was a Concierge Stage Veranda Stateroom, which supplied 291 sq. ft of room, together with an oversize balcony outfitted with two chairs, a desk, and a chaise lounge. Inside, there was sufficient area to lounge comfortably, with a sitting space and writing desk, plus a wonderful mattress with a Matermoll mattress fitted with crisp new, 1,000-thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets. (Oceania sells its so-called Tranquility beds, with mattresses starting at $3,625.) The spacious lavatory had storage galore—together with a intelligent set of drawers and cupboards in a single nook—plus a rainfall showerhead and the road’s customized Aquamar bathtub merchandise, which have a refined vetiver scent. All in all, I discovered the room practical and properly proportioned, if a bit understated when it comes to the gray and pale aqua colour palette.

Bars and Eating places

Meals is some extent of delight for Oceania, which for a few years partnered with Jacques Pepin as a culinary ambassador. In the present day, cooks Eric Barale and Alex Quaretti keep it up the custom, overseeing a lineup of specialty eating places which are, amongst friends, thought to be a few of the finest at sea. I used to be definitely wowed by Jacques, a shocking bistro with an open kitchen and a menu of elevated Parisian classics like lobster Thermidor, French onion soup, and veal medallions in a morel mushroom sauce.

Purple Ginger, a pan-Asian idea, might be the hardest reservation on the ship, and I sadly wasn’t in a position to get a desk throughout my six-night cruise. Different passengers have been raving, as my T+L colleague did when she tried the restaurant on Vista, the sibling ship of Allura, in 2023.

Different specialty eating choices embrace Toscana, with a big menu of Italian favorites, and Polo Grill, a chophouse with a sublime vibe. The Grand Eating Room has traditional Continental dishes, a lot of which have been wonderful—a pleasant distinction to the sometimes-disappointing “fundamental eating” delicacies discovered on different cruise strains.

I used to be considerably underwhelmed with the buffet, which is much less of an event on condition that the ship provides so many different selections, apart from one night, when the crew went all out for an Italian theme evening, full with contemporary pasta made to order, a caprese salad station, and an over-the-top show of antipasti. Aquamar Kitchen, with its smoothies, contemporary juices, and health-conscious bowls and veggie-forward sandwiches was a welcome different to extra formal (and decadent) eating across the ship. Equally, Baristas, with its gentle bites and wonderful espresso, was a terrific hangout each early within the morning and mid-afternoon. A close-by Crêperie is new for Oceania, doing stylish bubble waffles and traditional crêpes. I didn’t have time for Waves Grill, which does burgers and the like, close to the pool—nevertheless it was typically stuffed with completely satisfied friends.

Shore Excursions

Whereas Oceania places an emphasis on its delicacies, the model has additionally closely invested in making extra excursions in additional ports obtainable to friends. (T+L reported on Oceania’s “vast catalogue of outings” in 2022, when contributor Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon sampled most of the line’s “Go Native” excursions in Greece.) On my weeklong journey, there have been 51 selections obtainable within the 4 intermediate ports we visited, with choices that included introductory strolling excursions, lively adventures like sea kayaking, and wine- and food-focused choices that will ferry friends to languid lunches within the Croatian countryside.

“Our friends do not need to be passive contributors of their trip,” says Hickman, the Oceania government.

Apart from my day spent in San Marino, which was a spotlight, there have been a number of different worthwhile excursions on my crusing. In Dubrovnik alone, there have been 21 selections, together with a Sport of Thrones–themed tour and a sea-kayaking expedition that took me (and round 20 different contributors) across the metropolis partitions to the outstanding Betina Cave.

In Rijeka, Croatia, quite a few friends took a visit to Hum, which payments itself because the smallest city on the earth, a bitsy agglomeration of medieval partitions and, frankly, not a lot else. I stayed within the metropolis correct and located myself pleasantly shocked by a well-done strolling tour that seamlessly linked Roman historical past, the area’s Twentieth-century struggles, and details about modern life in what’s now Croatia’s third-largest metropolis.

The place Oceania Allura Sails

Oceania Allura will sail in southern Europe, on the Adriatic and Mediterranean seas, in the summertime, and winter within the Caribbean with a house port of Miami. This 12 months, when the ship crosses the Atlantic, it can spend a while cruising in Canada and New England earlier than heading south.

Facilities and Leisure

Allura is large enough that it provides loads to do on board, together with plenty of sports activities, health courses, stage reveals, dwell music, dancing, and different cruise-ship pursuits like trivia, needlepoint meetups, and artwork courses. Sorry, however if you happen to’re bored, you’re not making an attempt laborious sufficient.

The pool deck has loads of daybeds along with chaise lounges, with a fundamental swimming pool and two whirlpools, plus a bar and grill. Additionally on the open decks are a number of well-done sports activities amenities, together with the nicest minigolf course I’ve ever seen on a ship, a pickleball courtroom, Baggo units, shuffleboard, and desk tennis; there’s a working observe, too. The health heart, which is filled with the newest Technogym machines and loads of free weights, was typically very busy however not a lot so that you just couldn’t work in.

Within the night, friends bop between the a number of bars on board, which play host to varied musicians, who do classical, piano-bar requirements, and revues of pop hits. The on line casino, with its desk video games, roulette, and slots was bustling most nights.

A compact spa had loads of remedies—massages, facials, wraps—in addition to steam and sauna amenities. Friends can even entry the quiet Aquamar Spa Terrace on the bow of the ship, with two whirlpools and a plunge pool.

One different notable amenity have been a number of visitor launderettes, scattered across the ship, with free washing machines, dryers, and ironing tools. They have been among the many most well-appointed I’ve ever seen on a ship and proved widespread amongst passengers.

Household-friendly Choices

Oceania doesn’t have something in the best way of kid-specific leisure, however I seen and spoke with a number of households with youthful youngsters on my crusing, together with one couple who instructed me they have been relieved their youngsters weren’t the one ones on board. There have been additionally plenty of households touring with grownup youngsters or in teams of three generations; one other couple I spoke with instructed me the ship was supreme for his or her multigenerational gathering of greater than a dozen. The official policy of Oceania is that the corporate does “not present providers for the care, leisure, or supervision of youngsters,” which makes the road higher suited to extra mature and unbiased youngsters. (The one exception is Oceania’s Alaska Explorer Youth Program, for youths aged 5 to 12, which is unique to itineraries in that state; there are at the moment no plans for Allura to function in Alaska.)

Accessibility

Allura is accessible to these with mobility challenges, a spokesperson for the model tells T+L. “Aboard all Oceania ships, facilities are accessible by elevators; no friends ought to encounter stairs as a barrier to expertise Oceania’s on-board facilities. Employees is educated to accommodate extra wants on an individualized foundation to make sure all friends are comfy and protected. Allura has ADA-accessible staterooms/suites within the following classes: French Veranda, Veranda, Concierge, and Penthouse. Moreover, all locations have ADA-accessible shore excursions.”