A Little About Your Author:

Mr. Gary Tilkin spent his career in the study of the luxury experience.  Was an internationally known educator, curriculum developer, facilitator, and Trainer. During Gary’s retirement, he had a hobby to really study his purchased prior to there purchase.  The first items were his passion, music.  Mr. Tilkin’ s career took his ability to go to live music events away.  When he had the chance, he decided it was time to live. His attendance at these 4-day music events as 60+ years old had to be different then its younger attendees. This led to researching VIP, Super VIP, or Platinum entry.  There was no information on this online, so this was unique.

This went to High-End Two-Wheel Electric Scooters, Home Automation Brands, and of course Luxury Cruise Vacations. Each time the Excel Spread Investment sheet got more details and improved. This has become Gary joy.  The most important part of the research has been really drilling down on real experience. 

Introduction

I have had a love affair with cruising since my first cruise which was my Honeymoon over 40 years ago.  It was on the Norwegian (Now called NCL) SS Norway. That was the largest passenger cruise ship on the sea at the time. We stayed in the most inexpensive inside cabin and watched every expense.  Over the years, our quest for improving our cruising experience evolved.  My next cruise is on the brand new NCL Encore, in the (H2) Deluxe Owners Suite.  Quite the evolution of 41 years and 24 cruises.

My wife and my bucket list cruise were to go to Alaska for 7-days and Mediterranean for 10-days.  I have been to Europe 8 times all for business.  My wife went with me once on a business trip. Vacationing and Business trips are not the same experience.  One is filled with stress and the other should be stressless. My goal was to make our future bucket list cruises as completely all-inclusive luxury experience.  The first cruise to Alaska will be with my wife and three adult children May 23,2021. The Mediterranean Cruise is yet to be decided.

I love to do my due diligence and research my major purchases.  The more I do my due diligence, the better I appreciate the products and services I purchase.  My quest for the “All-Inclusive” Luxury Cruise experience had me look at every brand, in every category.  It was one of the more interesting journeys I have taken. 

The results will surprise you, as it did me.  What you think is reality, is not always true.  Once you get down into the weed, you start realizing what the real facts are.  When you compare Mainstream, Premium and Luxury Cruise lines, the financial comparisons are interesting. 

My criteria for booking a Luxury All-Inclusive Mediterranean Cruise:

Overview:

When you are looking to make an important decision, it is just as important to list your criteria. This allows you when researching to see if the product or service is meeting or exceeding your wants, needs and motives. That is what I have done in this section. 

Listed Criteria:

• Date: October 2022
• Timing: 10-Days
• Destination: Mediterranean
• Cruise Brands:
  • NCL (Mainstream)
  • Oceania Cruise Line (Premium)
  • Regent Seven Seas Cruise Line (Luxury)
• Cabin Categories: I was attempting to create as much of an Apple-to-Apples comparison as possible. Not the easiest task I have ever done. This was the best example of categories I could come up with.  
  • NCL (Mainstream):  Haven Penthouse Aft Facing
  • Oceania Cruise Line (Premium): Penthouse Category PH3 (Lowest Penthouse Investment)
  • Regent Seven Seas Cruise Line (Luxury): Concierge Suite-E (Lowest Concierge Suite Investment)

Choosing a Mediterranean Luxury Cruise Brand:

Overview:

Reality is that these three (3) brands are all part of the same parent company.  Yet they are completely different in so many ways.  Below was my selection of brand reasoning.

Brands Being Considered:

• NCL (Mainstream):  After 24 cruises, the best experience I have had on any cruise was in the NCL Haven “Ship-With-In-A-Ship” luxury experience.  I have also gone on the Celebrity “Retreat” area which is supposed to be like the NCL Haven.  It was not to my liking. This justified using NCL as my Mainstream selection. Therefore, NCL became the standard to beat.
• Oceania Cruise Line (Premium): After researching Oceania, it became clear that it was one of the best choices for dinning at sea.  The is the issue with Mainstream Brands. Unless you are in the “Suites Only” Restaurant (Haven or Lumina), the food as well as service is not great or consistent. Even the specialty restaurants on mainstream cruise lines are lacking in my opinion. The Oceania Penthouse Category PH3 was chosen because, like the NCL Haven private courtyard, Oceania provide access to the private Aquamar Spa Terrace.  This amenity is ONLY available in the Penthouse and above categories. The issue with Oceania was, it was an ala-cart cruise line choose. Instead of All-Inclusive, with Oceania and NCL Haven, you pick and choose what you might want.  This allows you to work within your budget, if the Luxury Cruise Line is over your budget range. It also loses one of the main emphasis I was looking to achieve. Everything completely paid for prior to leaving on my cruise.
• Regent Seven Seas Cruise Line (Luxury): Concierge Suite-E was chosen because of size of suite and balcony.  It also at the Concierge level provided a pre-cruise hotel, breakfast, and airline transfers.  What is missing that are included in the NCL Haven and Oceania suites is a butler.  Based on the research, my experiences with butlers on both Celebrity as well as NCL. It is not an amenity that is critical to my cruise enjoyment. Unlike NCL Haven or Oceania, Regent is the closest of all cruise lines that is “All-Inclusive”.  The other main difference in my opinion was that all amenities and public areas on the RSSC ship is for all guests.  So, looking at all three brands suite categories, the fact that RSSC does not provide a butler at this price point, does provide the pre-hotel/breakfast/transfers and all suite categories have access to all the ships amenities makes this a great luxury choice.

Others Interesting information:

• Ritz Carton Yacht Collection: I took a deep dive in to this newly formed cruise company.  I called, wrote emails, got information back comparted all aspects of what they claimed.  Even the CEO of the company called me for a 15-minute phone call after reading my letter. What I found was shocking.
  • Airfare: The ports for the most part was nowhere near reasonable airports. Airfare or the use of air points would be cost prohibitive.
  • Customer Service: These folks had a lot to learn.  The did not listen to the questions given nor address those question in a logical way.  The written correspondence was 80% templated and amount of information was over whelming.  Not helpful, just sheer quantity. On one email, they put someone else’s name on the document. The pricing was extremely high and not close to being all-inclusive. At these prices, this company did not so they had the attention to detail needed to earn my business or investment.
  • Cancelation Policy: Insulting.  No way to cancel for a full cash refund prior to sail date. 

Important Assumptions and Facts:

Overview:

Since the brands we are considering are three categories; Mainstream, Premium and Luxury, they offer different things.  We need to look at what each sector provides and do our best to create an “Apples-to-Apples” comparison.  My background is in an industry where I was acutely familiar that brands look for anything possible to differentiate themselves from each other.  There is no difference in the cruising industry.  That is what will be outlined below.

Assumption Categories:

Excursions:

• All brands were first come, first served with pre-cruise online reservations if your full fare was paid in full.
  • RSSC: All-inclusive premium excursions if it follows the brands guidelines of time out, time back to port.  Super Premium excursions were available for an up charge.  These might include private helicopter trips.
  • Oceania: You had the choice of one of three perks when booking.  Drink standard drink package, $600.00 of onboard credit or three (3) each passenger standard excursions.  The standard excursions investment was about $100.00 each for a total value of $600.00.  These were upgrade able to Premium for an upcharge.  Most of the standard excursions were walking journeys which I was not interested in.
  • NCL Haven: The perk here was $50.00 of the first passenger excursion. 
    • Conclusion:  When going to Europe, you want to do excursions at every port.  Regardless of brand, these excursions would cost you an average of $300.00 per passenger.  My Excel spread sheet shows the additional amount one would have to pay on both Oceania and the NCL Haven.  This is when all-inclusive luxury started to make sense

Adult Drink Package:

• All adult drink packages are NOT the same. Getting accurate information is also a quest. I am not an alcoholic, yet I do drink much more on my vacations.  I also want to try new items not normally available to me during the other 51 weeks in a year. Add to that it is especially important to me to have specialty coffees, bottled water, energy drink, bottles of select wine at dinner that can be taken to suite if not finished.
  • RSSC: Of all the brands outlined, RSSC has the deepest all-inclusive alcoholic drink program. What is more important is every one of the passengers has the same program. Therefore, when ordering a drink, you do not have to show proof of your beverage package. Are some items an up charge, yes. This is the same for all brands. The best example is high-end brandy or champagne. 
  • Oceania: As I mentioned above, Oceania gave as one of their perk’s choices a standard drink package.  This was wine and beer.  You had an upcharge if you wanted their Premium Adult Drink Package.  On the positive side, if you choose another perk, the retail price of the Premium Drink Package was $600.00 per passenger.  In my reviews, that is more than reasonable.
  • NCL Haven:  When you book a Haven suite it usually comes with five (5) perks.  One of them is the “Premium Adult Drink Package” for all cabin passengers that are over 21 years of age. That is why NCL Haven is the best bet for when you take a 3-4 passenger.  However, NCL like all Mainstream cruise brands finds a way to nickel and Dime every passenger.  When you select the perk, you also then must pay a surge for 20% of the price for tips.  So not really a complete perk.  Then if you want specialty coffees, bottled water, selected fresh juices, energy drinks and per drink maximum cost to be over $15.00, you have an upcharge.  That package is called the “Premium Plus Drink Package”.  It costs approximately $270.00 per passenger.  I always get it and I always resent it.
• Suite Mini-Bar: What is included and what is not.
  • RSSC:  The suite mini bar is all inclusive.  It has small bottles of wine and beer included with soft drinks as well as waters.  It is replenished daily to the specific needs of the passenger. 
  • Oceania: The suite mini bar does not include any alcohol.  It does include soda, mixers, and bottled waters.
  • NCL Haven: Everything in the mini bar has an inflated cost.  Even the bottles of water on the cabinet tops have a cost.  This shows again that the mainstream cruise brands look for every single place to add to their profit margin.  The only exception is when a guest books the H1 or H2 Owners Suites.  In this case you receive three full bottles of alcohol and your mini bar is stocked with mixers and waters daily complementary. These suites are huge, lovely, with the largest balconies at sea and cost prohibitive. When I cruise mainstream, I immediately have my butler take every single item that has a cost out of the cabin on hour one.

Specialty Restaurants:

• RSSC:  All specialty restaurants are available on a first come first serve basis.  You can pre-book them online well in advance of the cruise date.  As one might expect, the highest suite category always has priority for day, time, and amount of pre-reservation for any given specialty restaurant. You can still go to one of these places, without a reservation on standby for a table of four meaning you might be joined by strangers.  I never had an issue with this and kind of like it.
• Oceania: Remarkably like the RSSC Specialty Restaurant situation. The exceptions are much more restrictive on when you can book your reservation based on suite category.  They also limit the number of restaurants you can book based on suite categories. The same situation holds true with standby reservations however reviews show that this can be quite the wait and makes some passengers upset.
• NCL Haven: Some items must be mention here. The main dining rooms in both RSSC and Oceania are “Excellent”.  On NCL and most other mainstream cruise brands that are average to below average.  The Haven Suites Only Restaurant is “Excellent” and not considered a specialty restaurant because it is exclusive to Haven Guest Only.  The challenge is the menu’s for breakfast, lunch and dinner is always the same daily. That is where the NCL Specialty Restaurants come in for variety.  In my most recent case, one of the five perks was for three (3) specialty restaurants for passenger one and two. If you want more, you must pay for them.  When you go to some of those restaurants, there are restrictions and some upcharges for thinks like Surf & Turf. I consider the NCL specialty restaurants quality to be below average to slightly above average in food quality/taste.  The service is always great.

Room Service:

• RSSC: All inclusive; 24/7; literally no restrictions.
• Oceania: All inclusive; 24/7; served by your butler; some restrictions for late night snacks.
• NCL Haven: Usually that would be a fee charged for room service.  Since you have a butler, they are now also your room serves server. The fee is voided. Now you must be incredibly careful. You must request the room service from the Haven Restaurant, or it will be regular room service.  Literally not eatable. I only made that mistake once.  If you want diner in your suite from a specialty restaurant, you can do it, but it will be charged against your Perk or specialty restaurant package.

Tipping Policy:

• RSSC: All inclusive, tips are included for all crew.  They will not even take a tip.  Allow me to correct that, if you hide it in your hand and no one sees you do it, they will accept it. The notion here is everyone is treated the same regardless of suite category.
• Oceania: Not included and as usual, most folks pay these prior to cruising.  You will see the costs on the excel spread sheet.  Butlers are an extra tip based on what they do for you so that adds to your expense.
• NCL Haven: The same situation as Oceania.  The difference is that the Butler are not the same quality as on Oceania and RSSC.  The other crew members also non-confrontationally ask for additional tips where that does not happen on RSSC.

Per-Cruise Hotel/Breakfast/Transfers:

• RSSC: When you book a Concierge or higher suite, you receive this benefit.  That is why I choose the concierge level.  The issue here is that RSSC uses the better hotels therefore the breakfast is better. More important to me is the Transfers. Since most suites on RSSC are Concierge or better, RSSC have their act together on communication and organization for the hotel to ship and ship to airport transfers. This is a noticeable difference in the Luxury segment.
• Oceania:  You must pay extra for the pre-cruise hotel.  It does not include breakfast but does include transfers for pre-sailing. You must pay for transfers off the ship to your airflight.  This is reflected in the excel spread sheet. The review shows exceptionally low scores for communication, hotels, and especially transfers.
• NCL Haven: Not included, upcharge if you use NCL travel.  Expensive for the level of hotel provided.  I never use this option and instead simply do it myself.  Really no issue but not all-inclusive or stress-free.

Airfare:

• RSSC: Business Class Airfare is included round trip.  You must utilize the airfare booked unless you pay a $175.00 per passenger service fee.  If you choose to do your own airfare or use Airline points, a credit is given of $2,500.00 per person.  The issue here is airlines points are hard to use and you must book them the moment they are available to get them at a fair amount.  The average cost of Business Class airfare round trip to Europe is $5,000.00 per person.  All that must be taken into consideration.
• Oceania:  The current promotion provides coach airfare.  You can upgrade to Premium Coach for about $300.00 per person round trip.  You can also choice to reduce your overall air expenses by using point.  I have shown this example at the bottom of the excel spread sheet and in an example below. Remember, this is assuming you have the airline point.
• NCL Haven:  It is all on you.  I figured if you got lucky, you might gain a round trip ticket for about $1,000.00 per passenger.  Please note that is not Premium Coach.  I also cannot guarantee the prices will not go up after COVID-19. Not a great option here. 

Butlers:

• RSSC (Luxury): It is clear from the reviews that the training and skills of the RSSC Butlers are far superior then the alternative brands.  It must be stated that many folks do not use the butler’s skills because they simply do not understand how or never ask.  The other comment from the reviews is that on RSSC, the butler really does not improve the experience much based on the entire brand and ships quality of service to begin with. This last statement is not true for the other two brands. Therefore, my cabin choice did not include a butler.
• Oceania (Premium):  Butlers were hit or miss.  You also had to tip them extra because their tip was not in your pre-cruise tipping options.  Those that loved their butlers really loved them. Those that did not, really had some bad stories to tell.
• NCL Haven (Mainstream): If I were to be completely honest, the Butlers on the NCL brand are nothing more than glorified room service and room stewards.  They also are hit or miss.  Their tips are not included pre-cruise tipping programs.  This was always a nice to have yet for me and my family, disappointing at times.

Boarding/Disembark:

• RSSC: The higher the suite category, the earlier you can board.  It must be stated that rarely, at any suite category is there ever a complaint.  This is the exact opposite of a mainstream cruise brand.  The main reason is the much smaller size and guest on these luxury ships.
• Oceania:  The same holds true for Oceania as was outlined for RSSC.  The difference was many more complaint was given for this process.  Communication and disorganization were the issues. Remarkably like the Pre-Hotel comments.
• NCL Haven: You are first on, first off.  You can use the service elevators and have escort. This is only important because you are on a ship with 4200 other guests. This is a huge benefit for being a Haven over a non-Haven guest. There really is no benefit against the examples of RSSC and Oceania.

Conclusion:

There are a lot of difference from each level of cruise brand.  You must make a personal choice which level, quality, service, dinning, and investment meets your personal needs. As far as I know, this document is the only one that goes into this much detail on those difference.

Financial Analysis: 

Overview:

As I did the financial considerations, I had to bring both NCL Haven and Oceania to the same basic amenities level as RSSC.  Some examples that RSSC was providing: 

Total Over All Investment Considering Apples-to-Apples:

• This is including premium coach or business class airfare.
  • RSSC (Luxury-Penthouse):                     $29,398.00
  • RSSC (Luxury- Concierge):                    $24,398.00
  • NCL Haven (Mainstream):                    $20,403.22
  • Oceania (Premium):                               $19,100.00
    • Conclusion:
      • Although Regent was between $4,000.00 to $5,000.00 more expensive, you could attribute most of that to the fact that they provided Business Class Airfare where Oceania provided Premium Coach and NCL Haven did not provide airfare at all forcing use to estimate their airfare at $1,000.00 per person.
      • NCL Haven, which is a Mainstream cruise line, was approximately $1,300.00 higher than Oceania which is a Premium Cruise Line.  This was one of the biggest surprises of all my research.
      • NCL Haven was without a question the best choice if you were taking a 3-4 passenger in your suite.  In my case, that would allow for my adult children to go in a Haven 2-Bedroom Family Villa.

Total Over All Investment Taking Airfare Out Considering Apples-to-Apples:

• Since I can utilize my Delta Airlines Saved Airline Miles for Delta One Business Class tickets, it only made sense to look at this investment that way as well. 
  • RSSC (Luxury-Penthouse):                     $24,398.00
  • RSSC (Luxury- Concierge):                    $19,398.00
  • NCL Haven (Mainstream):                    $18,403.42
  • Oceania (Premium):                               $16,004.00

Conclusion:

• RSSC was once again the more expensive selection.  The difference was far less.  $900.00 to $3,400.00 was the difference based on RSSC Concierge. That was yet another surprise in my research.
• The NCL-Haven was just $900.00 less than the Regent luxury cruise. This really was unbelieving to me. Once I saw this, the consideration of NCL-Haven was completely off the table unless we were taking a 3-4 passenger.  

Research and Reviews: 

Overview:

Part of my business background was assisting with the development of survey matrix.  Wording or questions was always critical yet not an exact science. Therefore, the best way to understand what a consumer really means, or thinks is by reading their verbatim comments. It is also important to attempt to toss out the Best and Worst reviews.  That leaves the 80% in the middle as your core foundation which gives you the best statistical information.  That is what I did with luxury cruises. 

It is not easy to find professionally written reviews or information for any high-end luxury products or services.  You really must take the dig deep.  YouTube™ video reviews are overwhelmingly travel agents promoting their businesses rather that giving an honest and accurate review.  CruiseCritic.com is a good yet not great source. The reason is the reviews are scored either high or low.  The verbatim comments are usually incredibly detailed when someone is unhappy. Then you go to social media like Facebook™ or Reddit.com. Reddit is a mixed bag of tricks.  It was clear just the mention of Oceania, Regent, or the Haven on NCL got hateful responses.  It seems, most of these folks have no interest in a true luxury experience. This is fine however does not give me the information I was looking for in my research.  Facebook™ was an unfair representation. If you go on a RSSC group, RSSC can do no wrong.  The same thing happened with Oceania and NCL-Haven.

All you could do is ask good questions and look for a trend or pattern in the answers you receive.  That is what I did. My below information is based on that research and is in no way scientific.  The most important part of a cruise is nothing ever goes completely right nor as planned.  That is a fact. Hearing how the brand handles those situations makes a huge difference in choices. Please also add to the below comments that I am intimately familiar with NCL-Haven. 

NCL-Haven:

If you want a bigger ship with more nightlife and mostly high-quality productions shows, this is a great consideration. The number of cruisers can be more than 4000.  The Haven “Ship-With-In-A-Ship” concept allows for a few lucky guests, 200 out of 4000, to have an oasis where they can have VIP treatment, quiet, relations and a much-improved cruise experience.  I call this the best of both worlds.  It also has a lot younger children, which is fine.  The issue is when these children are unsupervised by their parents.  Even in the Haven, this can affect your ability to relax and enjoy this well thought out environment. The Haven Restaurant in my opinion it the best on board and on any cruise I have ever taken.  The downside is the menu never changes so variety can be an issue. When cruising in the Haven, part of your 5-Perk package is to have 3-5 nights of Specialty restaurants for your usage based on the length of your cruise.  Unfortunately, I was less than thrilled with these specialty restaurants during my many voyages. The perk of “Premium Beverage Program” was good but was missing some key ingredients. It did not provide specialty coffee, bottled water, fresh juices, or energy drinks.  They limited your drink cost to $15.00.  You could upgrade your drink package to the “Premium Plus Beverage Program” for about $300.00 per person.  This eliminated the maximum drink cost and added the other items.  The issue here is what makes NCL Haven the lost choice in my evaluation. The experience is all about upselling you the guest.  That is something I truly hate on every level.  It goes against my goal to create as close to an all-inclusive first-class luxury experience as I can do.

Oceania Cruise Line (Premium):

This is a medium sized ship at a capacity of 1250 passengers.  Not quite the mega ship status yet a nice in between.  The calling card for Oceania is supposed to be the dinning.  Where this was absolutely the case in the past, it seems many return cruisers are extremely disappointed in the cost cutting that this line has done over the last four years.  A marked improvement in quality over the NCL offering, yet not what it once was. The service onboard is also under criticism from past Oceania cruiser.  This observation just as the dinning comment was a statistical trend.  The suites got excellent reviews.  Where Oceania seemed to fall flat was on the nightlife and entertainment. That is where NCL Haven shined.  Finally, if you are on a 10-day cruise, with 8 ports in interesting places, you want to take 8 nice decent quality excursions.  Each of those excursions will cost $300.00 per person unless you like long walks which I do not.  That adds a tidy sum to your overall cruise budget.  Finally, no tips included which is like the NCL Haven. No question if your budget is a concern, yet you want a much more luxurious cruise, Oceania is one to consider.

Regent Seven Seas Cruise Line (Luxury): 

The ship I was considering is their newest and largest ship, the Splendor.  750 passengers.  This would be a much different experience then I have ever had on a cruise in the past.  A far cry from the 4000 plus on the NCL ship.  Regent is also all about the ports, much longer time at each port, and the excursions.  The experience with few exceptions is the closes of any cruise line or brand for being a luxury All-Inclusive experience.  That is reflected in the investment analysis I did above. In the reviews it was hard to find anyone with a complain on their dinning, service, suite, or drink program.  The overwhelming major of past cruiser made comments like: No upselling at all, no tipping even aloud, a butler was not necessary, room service was excellent, the service was consistent regardless of the cabin you stay in.   The unlimited shore excursions did have a very few upcharges like a private helicopter and such. That was totally understandable. If there were any negative comments it was on the older, smaller ships in the collection. That is why I only looked at the Splendor.  All in all, this research was not surprising that the Regent would be the best choice if you could afford the investment.

NOTE: Excel Spreadsheet available upon request.