I was prepared to love this ship as the concept completely appeals to me: not a mega ship, emphasis on education and destinations. But my tiny, sterile, airless cabin ("Premium Outside" with a "partially obstructed" window) overwhelmed the good things about the voyage. Those included an excellent lecturer on Byron in Athens, generally friendly people and hard-working staff. As we sailed a wonderful itinerary from Athens to Venice, stopping at terrific spots along the way (e.g., Corfu, Dubrovnic and Split) one could not help but enjoy the beautiful scenery and visits to historic sights. Fortunately for me, I was on a trip (about 60 of the ship's approximately 300 passengers were on a guided trip) which meant we generally had much better guides and special attention, which helped a lot.

Nevertheless, the long nights and much of the days were on the ship where it was very hard to find a comfortable place to sit or a decent cup of coffee. I'm an early riser so I was particularly unhappy that there was no place to get coffee before 6AM and regular breakfast didn't open until 7PM (at which the coffee was terrible). I love cruising and am generally an upbeat person, so I am sorry to write such a negative review of this ship, which has many fans.