We knew we were in for a special experience when we arrived at the Singapore Cruise Center. There were thousands of people lined up for the Holland America cruise leaving from the next berth, as we were waved past all of them, dropped off our luggage, sped through customs, and directly onto the ship.

Our inside stateroom was lovely, and quite spacious. Every member of the staff was friendly and gracious, and made a point of remembering our names. I have a culinary background, and asked if I could tour the galley. Sadly, the answer was no, because of security concerns, but the next morning, the Food & Beverage manager found me and made sure I met the Executive Chef.

We booked most of our excursions through Oceania, since it was our first time in this part of the world, and found them generally satisfying. One exception was the tour to the ancient kingdom ruins in Thailand. We were promised a Thai luncheon, but our tour guide took us to a mediocre Chinese luncheon at a western hotel. And it was a bit wearing to have a "shopping opportunity" on each and every excursion, when you know that the cruise line and the shop have their hands in each others' pockets. But that's a small objection to an overall fantastic cruise. Read more