Oceania

We have a special place in our heart for Oceania. Look at the photos of Oceania's ship, Marina (taken on both a tour and, subsequently, a Mediterranean sailing), and perhaps you will see why. P.S., it also has some of the best food at sea. We've included the following photo galleries below: Marina's Owner's Suite, Paradise for Foodies, and Tour Marina.

Marina's Owner's Suite

Master Bedroom The 2,000 square foot Owner's Suites are beautifully decorated with Ralph Lauren furnishings.	Vicki Scheck Vicki is loving the Owner's Suite on Oceania's Marina.	Dressing Table or Desk Glass dressing table or desk in the master bedroom of the Owner's Suite.
Master Bath The Owner's Suite has a huge master bathroom, with toilet/bidet room, large tub, and separate shower.	Shower in Master Bath The Owner's Suites have two bathrooms. This is the man-sized shower with rainfall shower head in the Master Bathroom.	Toilet in Master Bathroom The men will have a nice view out to sea!
Living Room in Owner's Suite The Living/Dining Room is quite spacious. Marina was so new at this point that the rug wasn't lying flat yet.	Player Baby Grand Piano In the event you'd like some 'live' music, there's a player baby grand piano in the foyer of the Owner's Suite.	Wrap-Around Deck This is part of the spacious wrap-around deck of the Owner's Suite on Marina. The best part is in the next photo.
Private Jacuzzi The private wrap-around deck of the Owner's Suite sports its own Jacuzzi. Note the outdoor TV.

Paradise for Foodies

In addition to the Grand Dining Room and the more casual options of the Terrace Cafe and Waves, Oceania's Marina and sister ship Riviera have five specialty restaurants, the first four of which (below) have no surcharge. Oceania's smaller ships—Insignia, Nautica, and Regatta—have the first two listed below, as well as the Grand Dining Room, Terrace Cafe, and Waves.

TOSCANA. With its Roman shades raised, the restaurant provided a memorable occasion, as we watched the sunset over the bow of the ship. Imagine an Italian restaurant with a separate, two-page menu just for the olive oils! There were plain olive oils of different varieties, others that were infused with rosemary and assorted herbs, and still others that were mixed with vinegars. The uninitiated almost needed a class to be able to choose.

POLO. Like Toscana, this overlooks the bow of the ship, so we had another great view of the sunset. It was wonderful. My appetizer was a tower of beet root layered with garliced goat cheese and topped with assorted little green sprigs. For an entree I had filet mignon and truffled mashed potatoes. Yum!

RED GINGER. Soon we discovered why the other passengers were raving about Red Ginger. Everything was out-of-this-world good. And like Toscana's two-page menu for olive oils, there was a little something extra at Red Ginger, as shown in the photo gallery below.

JACQUES. Jacques is the French-themed restaurant, named after Chef Jacques Pépin, the Executive Culinary Director for Oceania Cruises. For me, the little surprise there was the edible labels on the loaves of French bread (see photo gallery). The real treat, though, was the Baba au Rhum dessert. Without exaggeration, it was one of the two best desserts I've ever eaten in my life, the other being a very similar concoction, called a Sacher Savarin, at the Sacher Hotel in Salzburg.

LA RESERVE. The crème de la crème is the 7-course wine-pairing dinner in La Reserve by Wine Spectator. They started us off with a glass of sparkling wine in a private patio lounge. For each course of the dinner, the chef and sommelier visited each table, explaining both the food and its wine pairing. Our dessert was garnished with gold leaf. The whole experience was simply amazing. Though there is a cover charge—and it's not insignificant—it's definitely worth it. And as this restaurant serves only 24 guests per night, reservations fill up very quickly.

PRIVEE. Privee is a luxurious dining room that can be rented for small private parties of up to 10 guests. The décor includes white baby crocodile chairs, backlit onyx-clad walls, and a white Venini glass chandelier (see photo in gallery).

The Grand Dining Room It is quite a treat to enjoy a meal at one of these tables, overlooking the ocean--and then get up and walk away without paying a bill.	Swarovski Crystals The focal point of the Grand Dining Room is this Swarovski crystal chandelier.	The Grand Dining Room
The Grand Dining Room The Grand Dining Room is patterned after elegant 5-star restaurants in Europe.	Elegant China The china in the Grand Dining Room added to the elegant ambiance.	Artistic (and Delicious) Desserts
Beet Root and Garlic Goat Cheese A delicious appetizer available in the specialty restaurant, Polo.	Chef Jacques Pépin Chef Jacques Pépin is the Executive Culinary Director for Oceania Cruises.	Chairs at Jacques Jacques is the French specialty restaurant on board Marina and Riviera.
Le Pain at Jacques Oceania has so many creative touches in their specialty restaurants, such as the edible labels on the bread at Jacques.	Salmon at Jacques	Dessert Menu at Jacques With all due respect to the French, we did not choose one of the fromages!
Baba au Rhum One of the two best desserts I've ever had in my life! Photo was taken before a small pitcher of warm, aged French Island rum was poured over it.	Cappuccino at Jacques There is no charge for specialty coffees on Oceania, and—more significantly—no charge for specialty restaurants, other than the one with wine-pairing.	Hot Towel at Red Ginger We wondered what the pellet was on the dish beside each place setting. Then the waiter poured water over it, and it became a hot towel.
Appetizer at Red Ginger	Our Dessert at Red Ginger	An Evening at La Reserve The wine-pairing dinner at La Reserve started with sparkling wine on the terrace.
La Reserve by Wine Spectator Final preparations are being made for the evening's dinner at La Reserve, which serves only 24 guests per night.	Gold Leaf Garnish on the Dessert Dessert at La Reserve. The wine-pairing meal was definitely worth the cover charge.	Coffee in a Beautiful China Cup Beautiful ending to a beautiful dinner at La Reserve.
Privée Privée is available to rent for exclusive parties of up to ten guests. The décor includes white baby crocodile chairs, backlit onyx-clad walls, and a white Venini glass chandelier.

Tour Marina

Oceania's ship, Marina	Marina Penthouse Suite	Bvlgari amenities
Separate tub and shower	Grand Staircase	One of several lounges
Bar on Marina	Rhinestone-studded upholstery in bar	My beverage of choice!
Barstool on Marina	The Baristas coffee bar	The Terrace Cafe overlooking Venice
Al at our favorite breakfast spot	Wonderful nooks for reading	The library is a series of rooms.
The library is a series of rooms.	The library is a series of rooms.	The Executive Lounge on Marina
Marina's band They added a lot to the experience of arriving into port.	Pool deck on Marina	Marina's deck chairs
Oceania's Marina	Miniature golf	Pulling into Dubrovnic
In our cabin on Marina	Venetian mask in Marina's theater	Venetian mask in Marina's theater