Excellent Alaska Cruise

We've always wanted to go to Alaska and out of the blue, got an Oceania brochure in the mail. With a couple RC cruises under our belts (which were fine), we decided to try a smaller, more upscale cruise line. Mainly we were looking to avoid the crowds & lines of the big ships, and see if the food was as good as they brag about.

Both hopes were met. There were times walking around the ship where is seemed like we were the only passengers on board. Never any lines for anything - meals, shows, getting on & off, etc. Never any problem getting a good seat for anything.

The food in the dining room, specialty restaurants or poolside grill. But the big surprise to us was the outstanding buffet. We've never been to a buffet anywhere with the quality, selection or service of this one.

We didn't expect the entertainment to be as good as on the bigger ships, but we were pleasantly surprised to find it every bit as good - a terrific little song & dance team, a string quartet playing here & there, it was great. Plus the enrichment lectures, in this case a marine biologist, were really interesting and not something the other cruises offered.

The library, which seems to be disappearing from the mainstream lines, was excellent.

Cons: Smaller ships don't do as well in rough seas, and the first leg from SF to Alaska, was a bit rough. But we expected that and the seasick pill handled the problem pretty well.

There's nothing for kids and were none on board. But that's not a con for old geezers like us who enjoy the peace & quiet.