For the more experienced and discerning (read: richer) traveler there is always Luxury cruise. You could call sailing your own private or chartered superyacht one step down, and mingling with the crowd several steps up. Vista, the upcoming luxury cruise ship from Oceania Cruises, is one such example and at the same time a pure exercise in outrageous luxury.
Oceania Cruises prides itself on being the “World’s Leading Culinary & Destination-Oriented Cruise Line,” a subsidiary of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. Earlier this year, the company announced that it would be expanding into a more luxurious area with two new Allura-class ships: one, called Vista, would sail in 2023 while the other would arrive in 2025. Vista is now being built at the Fincantieri shipyards in Italy, one of the largest shipbuilders in the world, where it is imbued with that specific Italian elegance and a little more than a drop of insolence.
The 250 meter high Vista will have 11 decks and carry 1,200 guests and 800 employees. It is a gigantic ship, okay, with a volume of 67,000 GT, but it is built with the same layout as the smaller ships of Oceania. The design focused on the desire to “present a sense of familiarity with unique elements and fresh perspectives,” as Bob Binder, President & CEO of Oceania Cruises, puts it.
Vista was originally announced in May 2021 and aims to bring comfort and luxury in living style into the Cruise industry. It’s like a five star floating hotel that can offer the experience of both a private yacht and a cruise ship depending on each guest’s need for privacy. It’s opulent, it’s exclusive, it’s chic, and it’s sure to get very expensive. To give you a foretaste of Vista, the two videos available at the bottom of the page should be enough – if you can overlook the very high number of clichés per frame.
The idea of Vista is that the cruise experience doesn’t have to be boring or rushed or inconvenient in any way. Oceania wants to offer curated experiences on board a luxury ship that’s right there at the crossroads between a private superyacht and the fanciest hotel, with the bonus that it’ll likely be more affordable than either.
For the first time in the Oceania fleet, Vista will offer solo solo (duh!) Private suites. The onboard suites are all spacious with private verandas, but Vista takes the idea of residential style suites even further, adding penthouse suites and the even larger Oceania and Vista suites, and even an owner suite. The sizes range from 27 square meters for the Veranda Stateroom to 172 square meters for the Vista Suite. Most of these suites have their own butler and concierge service and access to the exclusive lounge with staff.
The amenities on board are just as impressive. You get “a room for every mood” to paraphrase the shipping company, if you want enjoy delicious food, relax alone or meet in your bubble or with other guests. They have formal spaces for dining and conferencing, informal spaces for dancing and sunbathing, dining rooms, a spa, and a variety of entertainment areas. The Martinis Bar has been redesigned to offer “sophistication, glamor and elegance”. Drunkenness too, but of the elegant, refined kind.
The Grand Lounge has the feel of a private club and you get an Art Nouveau casino and casino bar, a Grand Staircase that “sets the tone” for the rest of your stay, and a new wellness center that would even do some Privately owned superyachts blush. Oceania calls it the Aquamar Spa and Vitality Center, where you can “rejuvenate” yourself holistically. Each room has floor-to-ceiling windows and a breathtaking 180-degree view, the most luxurious fabrics and themed surfaces, fine woods and huge areas of solid marble.
Vista is set to usher in a new age of sea travel and will open for bookings this September. You still have time to pinch pennies if that’s your ideal for life at sea.
