This is the second cruise for my husband and me. We flew into Venice a couple days early to explore the city. Online before we left the states, we purchased a two day transportation pass with a transfer from the airport. We exchange the voucher and caught the bus to Piazza Roma and found the Best Western Olimpia right at the plaza. They did a quick morning registration for us and kept our bags. The hotel was lovely and close to the main piers. Our exploration of Venice, Murano and Burano were amazing. We had also bought online the museum pass which we used. The transportation pass also got us to the islands. When we checked out of the hotel, we walked to the People Mover and then to the ship. We didn't realize how far the walk from the People Mover to the ship was so that was a tiring experience, but our fault for not researching that better.

Check in was a breeze, but we didn't come on board until about 4:00. We were surprised about surrendering our passports, but it really was no big deal. We had paper copies with us. Our cabin on the 10th deck was great and we loved the size of the bathroom and the regular size shower. Our steward was right there to introduce himself and provided great service throughout the trip.

We enjoyed the first two days at sea and exploring the ship. We sat by the pool both days and were happy that plenty of chairs were available. We enjoyed the poolside entertainment and food service. We visited Henry's Pub, Champagne Charlies, and the Galaxy Bar. We enjoyed the entertainment at each place. We also attended the production shows in the Starlight Theatre and felt that the entertainment was good. We thought the ship common areas were in good shape and service was always polite and positive. Read more