August 9th sailing - weather in Southampton was AWFUL! Pouring and cold - but we knew that was a possibility from England. We had sailed on this ship from Honolulu as the Pride of Hawaii and only took it again due to the dates corresponding to our schedule and their itinerary & great price. Nothing really bad to say about the ship - cabins fine (we had 2 on the 10th deck inside)small but functional - we are never in our cabin. Cabins were perfectly located 10099 and 10101 - 2 decks up was the pool and buffet right above us and the gym behind the pool. Also the daily disembarkations were directly below our staircase making it quick and easy- ports were all nice - Malaga, Barcelona, Livorno (Pisa), Civitavecchia (Rome), Villefranche (Nice), Lisbon and Vigo (this was a total waste of time)- the excursions we took in Malaga and Nice were very good and worthwhile esp the one in France. Pisa we took a quick train fm the port - 20 min and Rome we took a 1 hr train fm Civitavecchia. Food good on ship - Main dining room was pleasant with good food, Cagney's had great steak, Le Bistro was excellent and great for a romantic meal, Papas was nice and comfortable - the only other one we did not like was Paniolo's - not good at all and zero atmosphere - it should be free - we paid an addl $10 each. Entertainment ran from fair to excellent - Smoky Joes was a great show! The pool deck was way, way too crowded on sea days of which on this cruise there were 5...but the 1st day the deck was closed due to rain and winds-on nice days it was nearly impossible to find a chair in the sun..other ships have more pools and usually 1 in the back and 1 in the front or an indoor covered pool (Costa) so the passengers are spread out more. The gym was fine and usually fairly busy. There were not too many options of things to do during the day at sea except the usual art auctions...there was no high tea and no midnight buffets - thats sad - we miss those once in awhile. The ship of a bit too casual and men not really well dressed for dinner - the ship was overrun by unruly British kids who ran rampant while their parents were socializing. There was no real place for kids to go - their teen program is very weak - the kids program looked popular and well attended - there were over 800 kids on our sailing and lots of younger children 10 and younger. Many families - not many singles. Only choice for late nite dancing was Spinnakers lounge - same place everynite. A few bars on the 6th deck but no music - Zero coverage on any television of the Olympics - what a shame! It was a pleasant vacation but my teen daughter was bored and only met a few kids she liked but they wandered around with no place to go most nites...my son stayed with us. All in all it was a nice trip, nothing out of the ordinary or esp. memorable but nothing problematic either. Crew was nice but not overly friendly - all Indonesian crew - cabin stewards were polite and efficient. We have taken over 20 cruises..we prefer Royal Caribbean by far, or Costa in Europe, even Carnival can be entertaining- this appears to appeal to more budget minded travelers due to the low price. The casino was not well attended either and usually empty every nite. Lots of people drinking large beers on this cruise...not a champagne crowd! We heard the crowd changes when it leaves fm S.Hampton and retns to Barcelona - more Americans onboard during summer sailings. It was a nice getaway anyway!