We have just returned from a cruise on @OceaniaCruises. For this initial cruise, we sailed on Oceania Marina's Northern Realms itinerary. This was our first cruise with the brand, and Oceania Cruises really surprised. How? Well, we share it all in our Oceania Cruises cruise review.
Discover if Oceania Cruises is right for your next cruise vacation with our exclusive Oceania Marina Cruise Review from our recent trip to the Baltics.
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----Oceania Cruises Review---- 0:00 Introduction 0:50 Signature Dining 2:50 Casual Eats 4:31 Main Dining Room 5:35 Pool and Sports Decks 7:38 Service 8:40 Onboard Activities 9:56 Nightlife 11:03 Bars and Lounges 12:20 Staterooms 14:00 Embarkation 14:45 Northern Realms Itinerary
----Oceania Cruises Dining--- We have sailed on several premium and luxury cruise lines. All of these lines pride themselves on offering amazing food. So, we were skeptical if Oceania Cruises would live up to its claims of culinary excellence.
Happily, we agree that the 4 signature restaurants on Oceania Cruises were superb. In fact, it was tough to pick a favorite among the Polo Grill, Red Ginger, Toscana, and Jacques.
The steakhouse served up perfectly seared cuts of beef. The Italian restaurant offered homemade pasta and expertly prepared apps and entrees. Not to mention, the pan-Asian and French restaurants delivered on classic dishes from these global inspired restaurants.
On the other hand, we did feel the main dining room was pretty average. Each night, the Grand Dining Room offered a new menu. These rotational options were certainly more upscale than contemporary cruise lines; however, the presentation and flavors were hit or miss.
---OCEANIA MARINA ONBOARD AMENITIES--- For this Oceania Cruises review, we made sure to check out all of the public spaces. The main pool deck felt rather small for a ship that can carry 1250 passengers. Although, there were plenty of loungers available one deck above. In addition, those in suites have access to a private sundeck with two hot tubs all the way forward beyond the spa.
There were also two small sports decks on the ship. All the way forward, there was a putting green and pickleball court. Aft, the running track, shuffleboard, and croquet court were also available to help cruisers stay active.
Oceania Marina offers a few unique experiences too. The Culinary Center offers up-charge cooking classes and demonstrations, while the Artist's Loft offers up-charge art classes and talks. Not to mention, the spa has a complimentary sauna and steam room.
Other enrichment consisted of themed talks about the region. Besides that, there wasn't much to do during the day on the ship. With a new port of call every day, the lack of activities did not bother us.
---OCEANIA CRUISES NIGHTLIFE--- Surprisingly, there was a new show each night in the main theater on Oceania Cruises. The entertainment was on par with our expectations- which is to say this is not where the cruise line shines. The ship's singers and dancers offered several shows from Dancing Fool, to Brill Factor, and Broadway in Concert, which were your typical cruise revue shows.
Also, there were three headliners, each with two shows during the 10-day voyage. These included a comedian, a virtuoso piano player, and a West End singer.
After the the show, cruisers could get a drink at the Martini Bar on deck 6 or Horizon's on Deck 15. Horizon's hosted live music and other activities, like karaoke. Martini's had classical piano music.
Our Norther Realms itinerary on this Oceania Cruises cruise stopped at 7 countries, including Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Sweden. For us, this Baltics cruise was an amazing way to see so many places in such a short amount of time. We particularly enjoyed our visit to Lithuania and Latvia, which were new countries for us.
