The Marina is truly a beautiful ship with a fantastic crew. The main downside of the trip was the bad weather which, of course, was no fault of Oceania. We had a Concierge Level A3 Cabin which was mid ship. Although we hit some rough seas, we felt like the ship handled it well. The cabin was spacious and very well maintained. My husband really liked the Concierge Lounge and thought it was worth the extra money....I didn't really care as I rarely used it. We had a mini refrig in our cabin which was stocked with beverages.....the soft drinks and Perrier were free.

We booked all of our own excursions....the cost of the Oceania excursions was ridiculous but in addition, to that, we don't like to be with a large tour group. We heard mixed reviews about the ship's excursions but I can't comment personally. There was a free shuttle at every port that wasn't right in town and we were also provided with maps of the towns. A local tourist information person was brought on board at each destination and they provided additional information and maps. I also found the concierge in the reception area very helpful when we had port questions.

The food was excellent, We ate at the four specialty restaurants as frequently as we could, but we were unable to secure additional reservations on several of the evenings. My personal favorite was Jacques and my least favorite was the Polo Grill but I think that was just because of my personal taste in food. They were all excellent. The Terrace Cafe was usually quite crowded at meal time so we tried to avoid it whenever possible. Unfortunately, there are those who don't understand the concept of waiting their turn and I found it really annoying to have them cutting in the line. We ate in the Grand Dining room several times for breakfast, lunch and dinner and found it not only beautiful but the service and food were also excellent. The only issue we had with the dining room was the vibration from the engines at the very back. This was easily dealt with by getting a table near the front of the dining room. We used room service several times for breakfast and it was great. They also gave us a phone call before the delivery which was nice, especially in the morning. Read more