Sailing on the Oosterdam was an exceptionally pleasant experience. Within the past year, I have also sailed with Celebrity and SilverSea, and the Oosterdam provided the most value for the dollar and the most comfortable, well designed stateroom of all.

We booked a Deluxe Veranda Suite on Rotterdam Deck, and it was outstanding in every way...spotless, extremely comfortable beds, an expansive veranda with wonderful furniture, a spacious, well-designed bathroom with two enclosed medicine cabinets at either end of the double sink vanity, a dressing room which can be closed off from the main cabin using a drape, a wall of windows/doors which allow views of the sea, and excellent closets which contain shelves that can be "dropped" to provide shelf storage if you wish.

The entry level suite on SilverSea is prettier, but does not function as well, and the veranda is useless as it is crowded with large furniture, which drops off the small teak deck area. On Celebrity, the veranda is large, but the furniture on the Galaxy was not particularly comfortable and had seen better days. (Note: Do not book a veranda stateroom beside the glass elevators, because passengers on the elevators can gaze right onto your veranda.) Read more