I have cruised on the Marina twice and was wondering how I would find the R class (smaller ship than the O class) Insignia. Well, I loved it. Why? The size was excellent and the passengers did not overwhelm the ports or tendering operations. Just a nice scale. True the Veranda suites are smaller and particularly the showers than the Marina but they were not disappointing. I did not miss the other specialty restaurants they have on the O ships. Food was excellent and fully up to Marina/Oceania standards. Which I have found to be the best of all other cruise lines that we have taken, mainly AMA and Holland America. I had read a review prior to the trip that stated that the Insignia was tired and dog eared. I looked very closely at a number of areas of the ship and found her to be in excellent condition. I think the main lounge was a little weak (small) for entertainment but we don't cruise for the entertainment. Piano bar and string quartets are more of our thing and was very good on Insignia. I loved the itinerary because they were unique ports and not tourist traps. I learned things about places I had never read about. Service was outstanding as it has been on our other Oceania cruises. Booked next years cruise while on board. Read Less

Coming off of a RSSC cruise on Voyager, also in Scandinavia, expectations were high. Oceania, while not the same all-inclusive experience, offered better dining and an altogether better value proposition as well as a more lively crowd. Our PH1 suite, 8030, was extremely well located, quiet, clean, and well maintained though wardrobes and bathroom were a bit small, at 6'3" had to duck to use the shower. Early embarkation was a breeze and luggage delivery was less than one hour after getting access to our cabin. Specialty dining at Polo and Toscana were great and offered twice in each restaurant as suite passengers on the 10 night cruise. In MDR suite status seemed to ensure (not an advertised perk) seating at prime 2-top tables by the windows unless we requested group seating. We opted for top-flight beverage package based on number of sea days, but wouldn't opt for this again as we felt "pressure" to make the most of it. Have read other reviews that pan this ship, I understand that there was an unfortunate fire and norovirus outbreak on the ship which seem to have pushed down the overall score. Our experience was top-notch and we would have no reservations about booking on Insignia again. In fact we enjoyed the cruise so much we booked another on Riviera for next year. Read Less