We were a family of 4 first time cruisers and did the Spice of Asia 6 night cruise and loved it. I’m scared of heights and get motion/car sickness, so was a bit apprehensive of cruising and stocked up on pills – I needn’t have worried as I never felt the motion of the boat. I’d read that people who suffer sea-sickness are better off on lower deck staterooms, so we had an outside (window) cabin on deck 2. Two single beds, with two bunks above for the kids (aged 10 & 12) – we were all extremely comfortable and slept like babies every night. Although in the aft section there was very little engine noise – just a constant low hum, no more intrusive than most hotel room’s aircon systems. Our cabin was tended to twice a day, with the beds made and bunks retracted in the morning, and lowered in the evening. We all enjoyed the towel animals – loved coming back from dinner to see which animal we had!

The ship itself is fantastic. Our boys did nearly every ice-skating session and were kept busy in-line skating, rock climbing, mini golf and playing basketball. They were never bored. The younger one decided against the kids club and chose to make friends elsewhere and hang out by the pool. The older one loved the hangout and Fuel nightclub and enjoyed most of the organised teen activities.

The majority of passengers were Australian (over 60%) with the next biggest group Chinese. The food was fantastic. We lunched at Windjammers (though very tough to get a table) and had my-time dining for dinner. The same table every night with 2 of the most brilliant wait-staff, Alex and Rodante. They encouraged us to try new things (imagine kids giving escargot a go!) and every three course meal was a winner. Read more