My Date with a Beautiful Lady

On Saturday the 10^th August, I and 3 colleagues were invited to an exclusive visit at Southampton to see the Oceania Marina. I was quite excited as she is one of the ships that do not visit Southampton very often. August and September will and has seen some of the most Luxurious ships afloat to grace Southampton waters, with the Marina and Silver Cloud earlier in the month, and the Seabourn Sojourn and Oceania Nautica to visit towards the end of the month. Regent Seven Seas Voyage will also visit Southampton in September along with the Silver Whisper. So for anyone near to Southampton it’s always quite interesting to visit the port and watch them leave in the evening.

 Anyway back to the lady in question, the Oceania Marina. She was docked in the Queen Elizabeth Terminal  on the Saturday which is not my favourite dock as its got a very industrial feel although once you have checked in and walk on to the ship you could be anywhere in the world! Just don’t look out the windows on the Starboard side until you leave port. We boarded on deck 6, which is at the top of the main stair case which is stunning and has a great view of the amazing Lalique Crystal Chandelier which I will touch on later in the write up, we were all told to go to the ‘Horizons’ on deck 15, most people took the lift, but I leave by one rule on the cruise ships, and that is that they are out of order, that way I don’t have to worry about how much I eat, although after 5 sets of stair, I wished I took the lift although carried on up the next couple flights, one of the lovely things about the stair is that each deck has an amazing piece of art work on and on the stair case its embraced with lots more art, the ship is full of Murano glass, which is stunning. Marina has had millions spend just on the art work on board.

When we finally got to the ‘Horizons’ we were treated to a nice cup of coffee, on Oceania all soft drinks, juices and speciality teas and coffees are free which is a nice touch, and if you are not a heavy drinker you bar bill should not mount up to much. The lounge with stunning and the chairs were so comfy I almost feel asleep, well I had just climbed up 7 flights of stairs!! The lounge is at the front on one of the highest decks and is windows all the way around with stunning views out to sea, the perfect place to come for a quick snack and a drink or in the evening this turns in to one of the entertainment venues. This is also where you will find afternoon tea; enjoy finger sandwiches and scones with clotted cream whilst listening to a classical string quartet.

After a lovely sit down with where whisked to the Spa and Gym on deck 12, this is a longer deck and the front is completely open and has been created in to an exclusive Spa Terrace, this is complimentary for all Concierge staterooms and above, but if you are staying in a standard Veranda cabin, fear not you can access this at the small charge of $20pp per day, which once you see it, is not bad as it is a private haven to retreat and relax in away from the noise of the main pool decks. There is also 2 raised whirlpool positioned right at the front with outstanding views to sea. The spa is aptly named the ‘Canyon Ranch Spa Club’ and has some amazing treatments should you wish to treat yourself. There is also Styling salon if you wanted to get your hair done for the evening.

Next up where the hot beds these are facing out other the Spa Terrace, and away from this were the treatment rooms and the gym, now for everyone who like to use a gym when on holiday, which in all fairness is most likely a small amount of us, the gym is fantastic, some equipment in there is so new it’s almost exclusive to Oceania at the moment, they offer many classes on board from Yoga to Spinning lessons, all the rooms are floor to ceiling windows, again to let the light in and the views outs.

For the top part of the ship, there is a small deck 16, up here you have a paddle tennis, golf putting green and a large sun deck area. Deck 15 is split in to two half’s with the ‘Horizons’ on the front half and then toward the back is the joining track which wraps around the funnel and the shuffleboard and croquet courts.

Back down on deck 14, once you come out of the spa, this is when you reach the upper pool deck and it does have a strong wow factor, the funnel elegant sits in view at the back, and its wrapped in glass from the upper decks, to the right you have ‘The Sanctuary’ which is the outdoor quiet seating area joining on to the ‘Canyon Ranch Spa Club’ and to the left you have ‘The Patio’, the deck then splits to give views down and over the pool deck and stunning pool area, this area is great to grab a sun bed and relax with a book, again this gives open views out to sea.

Towards the back of deck 12 overlooking the sundeck and wrapped around the funnel, you have the ‘Oceania At Sea’, this is the internet café on board, ‘Baristas’ which is the place to go for a lovely coffee, you can have an alcoholic touch to your coffee for a small surcharge, around the corner from here is the ‘library’ a great place to come if you have had a long flight and want somewhere quiet to relax before your stateroom becomes available, also should you want a quiet retreat throughout the cruise this is a perfect place to get some peace before dinner.

Now we touch on the dining on board Oceania, Oceania are the cruise line that spend the most on food, there Beef comes from a farm in America, where they rear the cattle, and do the whole process from farm to plate meaning that they have some of the most expensive cuts of beef around. There lobster is sourced from Maine, and there Lamb from New Zealand, both companies that supple Oceania with the Lamb and Lobster, Oceania are there only customers meaning the quality is outstanding, the Marina and Riviera are the larger ships meaning that they have more dining options on-board. The two main specialty restaurants on board are at the back of deck 14 on either side of the ship Split by ‘Privee’, which I will touch on a little later. Nearly all off the restaurants on board come with ‘No Additional Charge’ even in the speciality restaurants there is a limit of visits down to the stateroom you are in, however if you speak to the Maître on board if they can get you in there again they will. One of the key points about the Marina and Riviera is that the Galley is the same size as a 120,000 gross tonnage ship, so about the same size as you would find on P&O’s Azura and Ventura, however the Marina and Riviera are only 60,000 gross tonnage meaning that they have the space for lots more equipment. They are have some of the most expensive catering equipment, including whole grills made out of Aluminium which is not found on over ships, but due to the way it is built it enables the whole grill gets hot to the same temperature all over, meaning your steak is cooked perfectly.

So let’s start with ‘Toscana’, the catch line for this restaurant is ‘So authentic you could be in Italy’, most of the chefs that cook for this restaurant are from Italy and know and appreciate fine Italian cuisine so you are in for a treat. The name is as Italian as the food, as in Italy Toscana means Tuscan, and touching back on the chefs, many of the recipes come from the mothers and grandmothers of their own Italian culinary staff, this means that the recipes can be evolved from strong and rich family traditions. Each course is served on beautiful, custom designed Versace china, with the main dinner plates being worth over $350 each, so each bit of china and the food which is served on them is a masterpiece and exemplifies the essence of Tuscany and celebrates Italy’s culinary passion.

 The ‘Polo Grill’ is the next restaurant we visited, the catch line for this one is ‘A classic steakhouse in every sense’, this is where you can really embrace the beef and lobster dishes, the ‘Polo Grill’ embraces all the elements of a classic steakhouse and expresses them with timeless reverence. Every course is a very definition of a time honoured favourite. As I said earlier on the Beef is some of the most expensive cuts available at sea and on land so you can really appreciate the texture and tastiness of the dish, and if you are feeling really hungry you could take the surf and turf option with the steamed Maine lobster, or just the lobster on its own. Possibilities are endless, for those a little more adventurous why not try the Kings and Queens cut of Beef!!

 In both the ‘Toscana’ and ‘Polo Grill’ these sit on the Port and Starboard side of the ship right at the back and offer beautiful view out of the floor to ceiling windows, should you wish for a window table it is worth speaking to the Maître as soon as you can to request these as they are the favoured tables.

Exclusive to the Marina and Riviera and not on the smaller ships is ‘Privee’, ‘a private party’ as they say. This is one of my favourite restaurants on the whole ship, it sits in between the ‘Polo Grill’ and ‘Toscana’ right in the middle at the back of the ship again offering sea views out to sea, the table was cut from one bit of white onyx and had to by craned on to the ship before the roof was put on, the table in fact was designed by the famous American designer Dakota Jackson and is illuminated by a golden Venini glass chandelier in an exquisite setting adorned with Baroque millwork and with backlit onyx-clad walls and Ferrari Red carpeting. In here you can chose to dine from either the Polo Grill or Toscana menu or both!! Within the privacy off your own dining room.

 As we go down a deck lower we reach deck 12, yes call it superstitious but there is no deck 13 on the Oceania Marina or Riviera, anyway back to deck 12, this is the main pool deck on-board with a huge swimming pool and whirlpool spas, in a relax atmosphere, there is a stage her for entertainment and one of the things I liked was that they was a map on a large screen displaying exactly were you are and where you are going.

On this deck you also have the Terrace grill, this has an Al-Fresco dining area so if you want to eat out side you can, ‘The Terrace’ is right on the back with undisrupted sea views and in the evenings they put up the Parasols and tea lights for ‘Tapas under the stars’. ‘The Terrace’ is a casual and carefree dining venue, I suppose this could be classed as the buffet restaurant on board however you can have various dishes including some served in the specialty restaurants.

As we leave ‘The Terrace’ depending on what side you go out, if you leave on the right hand side you have to walk past ‘Waves Grill’ a lovely chilled out buffet style restaurant with home-made ice-cream and think milkshakes this is the place to go! Why not have a burger or a nice piece of fish or have a surf and turf burger if you can’t be bothering two decide between to two!! This again was a lovely area to sit back and watch the world go by. This is what Oceania call ‘Come as you are and dine alfresco’, other treats on the menu include hand cut truffle fries dusted with grated aged parmesan and Chefs grill gourmet burger.

Now if you come out on the right hand side, you go past ‘La Reserve’, this is ‘Perfect pairings’, this is a union of Wine Spectator, the foremost magazine for wine connoisseurs and ‘La Reserve’, this is the only other restaurant on board that comes with a cover charge but it is so worth it. Here they offer wine seminars and tastings, but also delectable meals such as butter poached Brittany blue lobster with vegetable nage and beetroot cress. As Oceania say ‘Even the most devout epicureans will enhance their appreciation of perfect pairings!’

Now what can I do on board? This is something I get asked on a regular basis, now both the Marina and Riviera have two very exclusive places you get go if you fancy something different. Let’s start with the ‘Bon Appetit Culinary Centre’ this is found on the left hand side towards the front of the ship, this is where all budding cooks can go. A purpose build cookery school which can take about 20 people, they offer cookery lessons to learn to cook a dessert right up to a 3 course meal, or if you want a day in port, you can accompany the chef and go shopping to the local markets, pick up all the bits and pieces before returning to the ship to cook a fantastic meal with the bits you have brought. This does get booked up so pre booking is recommended.

On the right hand side towards the front of deck 12 you have the ‘Artist Loft enrichment centre’ there are no art auctions on board Oceania so if you want to buy art this is the place to get as they have some amazing bits of art here, and if you think you can do a better job, then why not have a go and see what you can create.

The is also ‘Waves Bar’ which is the pool bar, should you wish for a quiet drink around the pool, the very front of the suite homes two Vista Suites, both sit at the very front and are split in to two, offering fantastic private views out to see. There are also some of the very popular Oceania suites. I will touch on the accommodation later on.

 Now as we take the stairs or the lift, up to you do from deck 12, to deck 5, this is the lowest passenger deck there is, with the exception of the medical centre which is on deck 4, here we have ‘Jacques’ each dish in here has been ingeniously interpreted by Master Chef Pepin and is a restaurant with ‘A passion for French Cuisine’, it is beautifully decorated and it feels as if you are in a French restaurant in Paris. The restaurant was names after Jacques Pepin whom is the Executive Culinary Director for Oceania Cruises.

As we walk round the back end of deck 5 is no passenger allowed area, so the way the deck is laid out is a horse shoe layout out as you leave the ‘Jacques’, you walk round past the ‘Boutiques’ and the concierge and reception is down on this level along with ‘Destinations Service’ which is the shore excursion desk if you have not guessed that already. 

Towards the front of the ship is the Show lounge, again very intimate, Oceania are about the food so this is not a main room for them, there is shows going on but not the same Broadway style as you would get on the more mainstream cruise lines. It is only on deck high, so limited spaces in here if there is something in particular going on that you want to see, I suppose this is a bit of a down side to the ship.

As you come out again you past that spectacular Lalique Crystal staircase, worth over 3 million dollars this is certainly the centre piece of the ship, there way it has been designed is beautiful and it is got to be one of the most elegant and sophisticated staircases not to mention the most expensive for its size afloat.

We then went on to ‘Red Ginger’, if I am honest I didn’t like this restaurant, it has gone down a storm with Oceania customers but it has no windows and feels a bit like a night club, lots of reds and blacks, I must say I prefer the soft colours, although this has been designed to be the Asian Fusion, Oceania’s tag line is ‘Bold, contemporary Asian cuisine’ Its full of ebony wood, a dramatic waterfall wall, and modern Asian artwork. The dishes in here are contemporary interpretations of Asian Classic.

 As we leave ‘Red Ginger’ again past the ‘Boutiques’ we take the Grand staircase up to deck 6, where a string quartet is playing soft beautiful tunes. At the top of the staircase we then enter the ‘Martini Bar’ all of the furniture in here is different, all handpicked. Sit back in here and listen to the tune played on at the grand piano.

As we leave here we go thought to the ‘Casino’ you can avoid this by walking down the ‘Grand Bar’ one of my pet hates on Cruise ships is when you have to walk through the ‘Casino’ to get where you want to go. The ‘Casino’ is a large space great if you like a gamble although I must say this is not somewhere I would chose to go.

The ‘Grand Bar’ again is an elegant area to sit back and relax what more can I say, again the furniture is all different here.

Then we go through to the ‘Casino Bar’ also known as the Purple bar, these are were the famous $10,000.00 bar stools, the stools have been designed and built by Swarovski and contain actual Swarovski Crystals, these have been embedded so you can’t get them out although after a couple of drinks you might be tempted. This is a cool and funky place to hang out, with even pieces of art by Pablo Picasso hanging on the wall, and yes these are original pieces.

Then from here is the ‘Grand Dining room’ this is the last port of call before dinner. This is a very elegant room with a light made from Swarovski Crystals. We were treated to a 6 course meal starting with ‘Fingerling Potato’ which was mash and caviar, I don’t eat caviar so opted for the mash on its own, it had been made with Echire butter and fresh chives and was the best bowl of mash I had, had in a long time. Next course was ‘Risotto All’Aragosta’ which in English is Abrorio rice with roasted Lobster medallions in a Lobster broth reduction, some opted for the Vegetarian alternatively which was mushroom instead of the Lobster, this was beautiful, and elegantly served.

The third course was the fish dish, ‘Den Miso Glazed Seabass’ which was wrapped and cooked in a Hoba Leaf, when you put your fork in it just flaked to pieces and again melted in your mouth. The main course was ‘Slow-Cooked Short Rib Perigourdine’ with Semolina Gnocchi, vegetable casserole and crispy parmesan. The vegetarian option this was rather boring which was spaghetti in a tomato sauce, with cauliflower and broccoli.

For desert, Oceania 10^th Anniversary Signature Dessert, ‘Zen’ which is Manjari chocolate bar with milky giaduka-yuzu and hazelnut croquet.

Dinner as expected was amazing, and the ship overall was fantastic if you are looking for something a little more luxurious then Oceania is certainly the way to travel.

Stay online for more details to come on the Accommodation and suites included a $100,000.00 Sun lounger and a Ralph Lauren Sofa!!

www.tomstravels.co.uk – 0800 408 6143 – [email protected]