Other cruise companies may have you pay extra at certain restaurants, or for certain dishes - not Oceania. You could have fresh lobster (or anything else that tickles your fancy on their menus) free of charge, every day at any of their speciality restaurants (with the exception of one particularly extravagant one, La Reserve). You could have room service every day, again free of charge, if you prefer.

Imagine enjoying a sunset dinner at the table above, watching the sky turn yellow and orange as you slowly work your way through your Maine Lobster Baked in Shell with Mushroom Cream Sauce, Served with Crispy Parmesan. To get a better idea of the restaurants aboard their ships, take a look at this page and click through to read the menus... then start saving for your trip. ;)

Each of the many restaurants aboard the Oceania Marina has different decor and serves from a different menu. Many of the dishes in their repertoire were designed by former French president Charles de Gaulle's personal chef, Jacques Pepin... which seems fitting for a fleet that prides itself on the quality of the food they serve.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Oceania Cruises place a great deal of emphasis on food and service. What I found astonishing is that the Marina (and Riviera) have 800 staff members aboard to take care of only 1250 guests! That's a ratio of about one and a half staff members to two guests... pretty hectic hey? Sure, some of those staff are manning the rowing oars, but you'll find most of the others taking care of your needs in the spa, gym, dining rooms, culinary center, and pool area. ;)

Our tour guide aboard the Marina mentioned an interesting fact about Oceania's fleet of mid-sized ships: Because their ships are smaller than other very big liners, they're able to dock in smaller harbours along, say, the Mediterranean coast. Not only are they able to dock inside those harbours (instead of out at sea), but they're able to dock close to the centre of town so that guests don't have to travel far to get to where the action is. Imagine taking a 10 day voyage, starting in Barcelona, and each day disembarking to wander the cities of Marseille, Monte Carlo, Florence, Rome, Sorrento, Sicily, Zakynthos, Santorini, and ending up in Istanbul? Sounds pretty amazing, right?

I really wish I'd get commission for leading you to book a trip, but alas, I won't. So, just go ahead and find a travel agent to book your trip, or visit Cruises International to check what they have on offer. I have to mention though, don't look at the first price you get - Kerry-Anne found a few beautiful deals on the Web. ;)