My wife and I sailed with the 1200 passenger Oceania Marina on their 16 day cruise from Lima, Peru to New York. We have typically traveled on smaller ships, including Sea Dream, Silversea and Seabourn, and I have to admit to having reservations about the ability of the ship to meet the service and food standards of ships half their size or less - especially since Oceania originally had only smaller ships (600+). Our experience with the other lines mentioned was that it was extremely hard for them to bring the smaller ship personalized service and dining to the larger ship.

I needn't have worried - Oceania has done a masterful job, and in many categories I rate them better than the other lines on which we have traveled. That was an unexpected and very pleasant surprise. In fact, I would have to say that overall, I would now put Oceania on the top of the list of Cruise experiences. Below are some of the specifics:

The Ship Read more