By
Rebecca Barnes |
For family-founded cruise line Oceania Cruises, it’s often all hands on deck, and vice president of international sales, Jason Worth has had plenty to focus on recently. His priorities have included two much talked-about Allura-class newbuilds – Oceania Vista, which launched in 2023, and its sister Oceania Allura, which is expected to set sail in summer 2025.
Representing the next step in the Oceania evolution, the 1,200-guest Allura, sitting in the upper premium cruise space, will spend its inaugural season in the Mediterranean, before heading to Canada and New England for a series of immersive voyages in North America, followed by a winter season in the Caribbean.
As with every Oceania ship, the food and beverage product will be a key part of the guest experience on Allura. New offerings will include the Crêperie, which will serve a selection of French crêpes, Bruxelles waffles and bubble waffles, alongside Italian ice cream sundaes, from mid-morning throughout the afternoon. “With this addition onboard Allura, our guests have never had more choice in what to eat and when – and of course, all our dining venues are included free of charge for every guest,” says Worth.
The ship will also feature an expansive Culinary Center, with 24 cooking stations and an accompanying Chef’s Studio, where the brand will reveal its epicurean secrets.
“The Culinary Center boasts more than 60 current classes, taught in custom-built teaching kitchens with individual stations and professional-grade equipment,” says Worth. “The classes offer the chance to explore a destination’s culture and history through food, or to hone core kitchen skills, thanks to the faculty of dedicated chef instructors.”
New classes will shine the spotlight on dishes from the Pacific Northwest of the USA, Polynesia and Australia, among other destinations. One example is the Culinary Northwest Passage class, which is inspired by the innovative chefs from Seattle to Anchorage and embrace seasonality and honours the region often revered as the farm and sea-to-table bedrock of modern American cuisine. Another is South Seas Salt Life, a class focused on Polynesian cuisine and uses fresh, seasonal and local ingredients, with subtle influences from France and China.
One new venue onboard Oceania Allura is the Crêperie, which will serve French crêpes, Bruxelles waffles, Italian ice cream sundaes and more
The culinary news doesn’t stop there, which will be music to the ears of loyal guests, in particular those who appreciate fine dining. Unsurprisingly, on a line created by foodies for foodies, there will be one chef for every 10 guests, while 50 per cent of crew members will be dedicated to culinary experiences.
“We just announced we will be bringing our signature French restaurant, Jacques, onboard Allura, which I am thrilled about,” says Worth. “Named after renowned chef Jacques Pépin, the founding father of Oceania Cruises’ culinary philosophy, ‘The Finest Cuisine at Sea’ and our first-ever executive culinary director, this sophisticated restaurant is already a favourite with guests sailing on our ships Marina and Riviera.”
Jacques will also debut aboard Oceania Vista in October 2025, joining Polo Grill steakhouse, Italian restaurant Toscana and pan-Asian Red Ginger on all four of the ships.
So, with best-in-class cuisine taken care of, what else can guests expect, both now and in the near future?
“Late in 2024, we announced that the installation of the world’s first and largest satellite constellation, Starlink, had been completed on all ships, providing guests with high-speed, unlimited Wi-Fi as part of the cruise fare,” says Worth. “Using advanced low earth orbit satellites, Starlink will improve the capacity, speed and reliability of onboard internet, offering guests high-speed connectivity.”
In terms of new destinations, Oceania Riviera will be making its debut in Alaska in May. “It’s the first time we have positioned one of our 1,250-guest ships in the region,” says Worth. “This brings a new perspective to this fascinating destination as we can offer classes in the Culinary Center in Alaska for the first time and have new food and wine-focused shore excursions to complement this.”
Discover more insights like this in the Spring/Summer 2025 issue of Cruise & Ferry Review. Don’t miss out – subscribe for FREE and get the next issue delivered straight to your inbox.