When you see the differences up close and personal, you really get it.

That was my takeaway from my day aboard the Oceania Cruises' Marina in Charleston, S.C. Tuesday.

The Marina was the exclamation point that the now-11-year-old company was ready to play in the primetime pool with the other cruise companies. Launched in January 2011, it was the company’s first newbuild vessel, followed by the sister ship Riviera in May 2012. The two ships have very similar layouts and features.

One of the biggest questions I get asked by potential cruise vacationers is, “The difference between a mid-level and a luxury level cruise line, is it really that noticeable?”

I’m as much of a fan of a good Carnival or Royal Caribbean family vacation as the next guy. But the difference from what I saw on Marina was striking.

Keep in mind, this is not a ship built for families. The target demographic is the AARP set and the décor reflects that. All the places where you might see a basic reflective pillar in a Carnival ship, for example, you’ll see mahogany on Oceania. Mass-made seats with paper-thin cushions on a mid-level ship evolve into leather seating you never want to get up from on Marina.

I have never had the pleasure to be on a Regent Seven Seas ship. I am told that is the highest end of luxury and that Marina is more of an upper premium ship. Well, the 66,084-ton, 1,258-passenger ship fooled me.

First, the dining options. Jacques Pepin, a Hemingway in the kitchen, PBS TV star and author of the French cuisine bible “La Technique,” is the cruise line’s culinary director. His influence is felt in every dining option there is. From his decadent Jacques restaurant to the Asian fusion Red Ginger to the Italian-influenced Toscana, the menus are varied and exquisite.

We also toured the Polo Grill steakhouse, the less-formal Waves Grill and Terrace Grill, the wine eatery La Reserve and finally, the Grand restaurant, the formal dining room option. That’s where I had the pleasure of dining for lunch.

We were served a potato and caviar appetizer, a lobster bisque, a stunning risotto (I had to say that to describe it, with a nod to Gordon Ramsay) and a wellington with veal main course, topped off with an airy but sugary delight for dessert.

It’s the type of meal you don’t want to end.

The 282-square-foot balcony stateroom we toured was plenty of room for two with some high-end touches such as 1,000-thread-count sheets. There are higher-end options that go all the way up to the 2,000-square-foot Owner Suites. Book anything from Penthouse level and above and you get room-service access to all the ship’s restaurant menus.

In terms of open spaces, I was impressed by the pool, the library area full of great reading options and extremely comfy seating, and the artist loft, which hosts a number of arts and crafts activities.

There’s also a putting green, mini golf, ping pong and paddle tennis onboard, as well as a croquet/bocce area and shuffleboard.

But the biggest “wow factor” for me on the ship was the Bon Appetit Culinary Center. It is laid out like a MasterChef set with cooking stations that accommodate 24 guests at a time.

The center not only hosts a slew of classes to teach you to cook French classics with a Pepin flare, Italian and tropical dishes. But chef instructor Annie Copps also utilizes the ship’s ports of call to take the guests on market excursions to shop for the finest ingredients of the region.

It literally has the feel of a high-end reality show with such hands-on opportunity to work with both Copps and with guest chefs from the various ports of call.

This was such a unique but brilliant idea and to see the way Copps and her staff execute the classes, I was ready to book a cruise at that moment. You’re seeing a lot of copycats of this idea and rightfully so, but I was glad to see such a high-end execution worthy of the Bon Appetit name.

All this excitement and elation, and I wasn’t even at sea – which was a shame, since the casino was dormant while in port.

Gorgeous day, gorgeous ship. I may not be the target demo, but I definitely walked away putting the Marina on my bucket list.