I've waited to write this because the number of misadventures we experienced left a bad taste in our mouths, and I wanted to let this cruise from Barcelona to Venice and back settle into perspective.
Departure port - Barcelona is a magnificent city, and we recommend staying there a few days before embarkation if you can. Much to see, a great tourist bus line with three intersecting routes, and friendly people. We needed the extra days because our luggage got to us nearly two days after we landed; Air France had left many passengers' bags in Newark, and then there was a two day strike at the airport. Unfortunately, the desk clerk at our hotel told us this is not unusual. We were very pleased with the inexpensive Victoria Suites Hotel in a fairly quiet neighborhood. We booked air and hotel ourselves on the internet.
Embarkation - As with our last two RCI cruises, embarkation was rapid, smooth, ahead of published schedule, and easy. The new on-line paperwork required us only to have our credit card imprinted, and smile for the camera. On both this cruise and the Empress out of San Juan last winter we were able to board two to three hours ahead of the scheduled time. Our cabin was ready, our luggage arrived in less than an hour, and shipboard music and drinking were in progress by mid-afternoon.