We took this cruise because of the itinerary and Oceania. This was our 5th Oceania cruise, and we are still pleased with the cruise line. The food is excellent and the amenities wonderful, and just right for us. Oceania caters to well-traveled, older clientele, and we fit that. They provide free wifi, free soda, and other niceties. You don't get nickel-and-dimed. On many Oceania cruises you can choose either a free beverage package, free shore excursions, or onboard credit. This itinerary started in Copenhagen, ended in Stockholm, went to 6 countries between the two. The highlight was St. Petersburg, where we spent 3 full days. What a treat that city is! Such beautiful architecture and fascinating history!

A couple of recommendations about Oceania's shore excursions. If you take this cruise and opt for the free shore excursions, you get 3 per person. What we did, and what I recommend, is that you do not use them up in St. Petersburg since there are so many other options there. We used Oceania's excursions in Klaipeda, Riga, and Helsinki. We used Alla Tours for excursions in St. Petersburg, Warnemunde, and Tallinn. The Alla Grand Tour of St. Petersburg couldn't have been better, and it covered so much more than the Oceania excursions and at a much better price. Our guide Angie was excellent, the lunches provided were excellent and exceeded our expectations, and the sights we saw were outstanding. The Alla tours of the other 2 cities were fine, but not at the excellent level that we experienced in St. Petersburg.

Now, bear in mind, that to experience all of this, there isn't a lot of time lying around on the ship. We had one day at sea, which we really appreciated, but the other days were filled with shore excursions. So I can't say this was a relaxing cruise. On the other hand, we learned a lot, saw a lot, and perhaps because of the intensity, I was able to forget all about pressures awaiting at home at the end of our vacation. Read more