One of the first things I noticed was the unique layout of this ship. I have been on many cruises and seven different cruise lines but this was the first time I had been on a ship that almost completely separated the public areas from the cabin decks. Only deck four has public space (the reception area and the medical office.) None of the other decks with public rooms have cabins.

Deck five is the main public deck, with the showlounge at the very front and the main restaurant at the aft of the ship. Between the two are several bars, the casino, the piano lounge, the photo shop / gallery, and the boutiques. Deck nine has the pool, Terrace Grill/Tapas at the aft, the Internet center (Oceania@Sea), cardroom, spa, hydrotherapy pool and workout center at the bow.

Deck 10 has the library, Polo Grill and Toscana aft, the jogging track in the center, and Horizons Lounge at the bow. Deck 11 is a sundeck which has the golf cage, and is only accessible from the forward end of the ship.

I was unprepared for the decor of the public spaces, the Regency and Queen Anne furnishings, dropped ceilings, frescoes, rich golds and deep reds of the carpets and upholstery, dark burled woods. It felt more like being in an English auntie's drawing room than on a cruise ship. Some found the faux fireplaces a little over the top, but not me, I loved all of it.

It's hard to define what my favorite room might be; certainly, The Library, perched over the pool on deck 10, with its painted ceilings and quiet corners, is special. But then there is Martini's Bar, midships on deck five, the perfect respite after a day of sightseeing, the place to relax before dining, the environment of choice for a pre-bed liqueur. The Regatta Lounge, the ship's theatre, offers fantastic line-of-sight for all shows, and uses table groupings rather than auditorium-style seating, encouraging camaraderie. And Horizons, at the bow, with its more restrained decor of dark woods, blue chairs and blue leather banquettes, is the perfect choice for afternoon tea, quiet enjoyment of the sights through the wrap-around windows, and late-night music and dancing.

It's obvious that Oceania's intent is to sustain an aura of class throughout all of its public areas, as a visit to the pool deck proved. It's much less expensive to outfit the deck, bars and grill areas with plastic or composite tables, chairs and loungers than with teak. Most cruise lines do. But Oceania replaced those items with teak tables and chairs, loungers with pads, and replaced the rubber matting around the pool with teak decking. Even outside, elegance prevailed -- with thick pool towels, smiling bar attendants, comfortable deck loungers, newly-tiled pool fascia, bubbling hot tubs, cream-colored European-style table umbrellas, and Oceania's stylized logo anchoring all of it.