Brought to you by: Michelle Haliday – Team Leader Creative Cruising NZ

Ship: Oceania Vista
Destination: Christening Cruise departing Rome
Sailing dates: 13-20 May 2023, 7 nights
Itinerary: Rome, Valletta (overnight), Naples Olbia, Ajaccio, Rome

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Highlights

The Christening – On May 8th 2023 in a glittering christening ceremony in the harbour of Valletta, Malta.  The celebration was headlined by the ship’s godmother, Giada De Laurentiis, an Italian-American chef, author, restaurateur and Emmy Award-winning food personality.  After the iconic ceremonial Champagne bottle-breaking, guests were treated to a 60-minute performance by award-winning musician Harry Connick Jr followed by a spectacular firework display over Valletta’s historic harbour.

The Ship – Oceania went all-out when designing the cabins aboard Vista, most offer private balconies (exception is the French balcony cabins). In fact, even the smallest room still has a generously-sized balcony at 14.95 square metres, and the bulk of cabins onboard are around 27 square metres, leaving plenty of space to lounge around.

Dining – For a ship of its size, Oceania’s Vista offers an astonishing 12 different dining options onboard, including three all-new venues for the cruise line. The consistently high level of quality in the cuisine onboard, passengers are spoilt for choice with the culinary delights — whether it’s simpler options like pizza, or full-blown, multi-course dining extravaganzas.

Outdoor Pleasures – Aboard Oceania Vista include dedicated courts for pickleball, croquet/bocce and shuffleboard with a generously-sized mini-golf course forward on Deck 15.  There are plenty of resort style secluded chaise lounges scattered on the central Pool Deck on Deck 12, sheltered from the wind via faux slatted wood panels.

The Cabin – We were allocated a veranda cabin with a balcony. The room itself was spacious, fresh, modern and importantly very comfortable. The cabin is well designed, with plenty of storage and incredible amenities including a refillable water bottle and robes. The marble bathroom was equally as beautiful as the room with large glass shower and with Bvlgari toiletries and more storage.

Top Tips

1. Dining:  Try out all the great places to eat on board – you’ll never want to leave the ship.  My favourite was Ember, the newest restaurant on Vista.  Ember offers inventive American classics, dishes will include braised short ribs on polenta, grilled swordfish with asparagus, crab cakes with spicy aioli and a Cobb salad with smoked chicken. To finish try the New York cheesecake or Key Lime Pie.

2.Bars:  A must try are the equally impressive onboard bars with new cocktail experience at the Founders Bar on deck six packing a punch. The talented team offer a menu of really unusual craft cocktails that include whisky-smoked tipples and herb-infused gin and tonics. Equally popular is the Horizons bar where you can enjoy a tipple as the sun sets and Martinis with its in-house pianist and great choice of Martinis.

3. Dress Code: While other luxury ships grapple with the dress code, Vista is very relaxed so you’re free to turn up in a pair of jeans at the Terrace Café or maybe dress up a bit for a night at the one of the speciality restaurants.  Resort or country club casual, for evening dining, elegant casual resort wear is suggested.

4. Wi-FI: Let’s be honest, you’re going to want to send loads of photos to your friends and family when you’re cruising on Vista – lounging by the pool, enjoying a drink or champagne on your balcony – so it’s great news that Oceania has installed the Starlink Wi-Fi system on all its ships which means sending your selfies is now easy.

5. My Favourite Place: Lastly, the pool deck will be “a tranquil oasis” complete with beach-club cabanas.  This is my favourite place to relax with my favourite drink or just to unwind and enjoy the pool and sunshine while lazing on the amazing cabanas.

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