Embarkation in Sydney was swift and fantastic, no waiting standing in long lines for ages. After we dropped off the bags and progressed through the Overseas Passenger terminal we sailed through the booking in process- thanks Lorraine!! Staff were extremely helpful and all went smoothly.

We were pleasantly surprised with our stateroom, plenty of storage, though we could not fit my bag under the bed, it did not get in the way. We loved the decor of the ship it has a wonderful elegant feel to it- the Edelweiss Dining Room particularly oozed elegance and charm. Wait staff were attentive and helpful. Food was of good quality and menu varied- truly one wonders how anyone could not be satisfied. The specialty restaurants were also very good- Giovanni's was awesome- we shared the entree and skipped the pasta course- the portions are more than enough to handle. Izumi was great, so good we turned up the next day for lunch! We saved Chops Grille until the last night of the cruise. Again the food was overwhelming- great quality and steaks cooked to perfection. I could not finish my main...Petit Filet Mignon and shared Crème Brule with my husband. My only criticism would be the cost of bottled wine and not wanting to sound overly parochial but gee it would be nice to see more quality Australian wines on the menu rather than the token 1 in White and Red and under "Adventurous Wines" ??

Activities and entertainment were fantastic. Luke the Cruise Director was out and about and very visible. Stage shows were awesome- singers and dancers were great and the costumes and sets were wonderful- can't understand why anyone would complain about them. My only gripe was people incessantly talking all the way through the entertainment- if you want to have a chat- go outside!! Read more