We have taken several cruises previously on Holland America but we wanted something a little more upscale to celebrate a milestone wedding anniversary so we decided to try Oceania. We are so glad we did. We loved Oceania and will be booking our future cruises with them. Embarkation and disembarkation were well organized and were a breeze. For embarkation, within about 20 minutes after arrival at the terminal, around noon, we were on the ship.
The 4 main things we were looking for on the Oceania cruise were i) excellent food, ii) excellent service, iii) a nice stateroom & ship facilities and iv) not constantly feeling "nickeled and dimed". Oceania delivered on all 4...
i) Food - The food in the Main Dining Room (MDR) at dinner varied from very good to excellent. Presentation and service were fine. For dinner, we generally arrived at 6:30pm, when the MDR opened, and we never had difficulty getting a nice table for 2, which is our preference. We also had several luxurious breakfasts and two lunches in the MDR. We were very impressed by the selection and the quality of the food.
We took the tender into the port, Gustavia, and then walked around & explored the town on our own. Afterwards we walked to Shell Beach, a pleasant 10-15 minute walk. As the name implies, Shell Beach is a great place if you like beachcombing for shells. Also did some snorkeling while there to keep myself busy. On the way back into town stopped at Le Gustav for a drink, while looking out over the marina and harbour. A lovely day....
We only got off the ship briefly to take a peek at the shops in the harbor area. Nothing much of interest to us.