As this was our first cruise we didnt know what to expect. We arrived at Southampton at about 12:15 & we were in our cabin luggage unpacked by shortly after 13:00 - how good is that.
The afternoon was spent exploring the floating city they call the Independance. After going on deck to watch 4 other ships departing swiftly followed by our departure we decided to order room service after our days long drive.
The next day & a bit was spent cruising across the Bay of Biscay getting to know our way round the ship.
The food was excellent, breakfast in the main dining room was always very good. In the Windjammer I would reccomend finding a table prior to getting your food as at busy times it tended to be quite hectic. Some people felt the Windjammer was too busy, but if you do as I suggest & get a table first you should never find it a problem. We chose to eat in the main dining room on a table of 8 & fortunately had great company every night. Our waiters never stopped smiling & catered for our every need.
The shows were very slick with the ice show the best.
I used the golf simulator playing Pebble Beah & Torrey Pines, it is now quite an old simulator but still fun
Our cabin steward Dwight was excellent, always smiling & could not do enough to make our time on board a pleasure.
On returning to Southampton we self carried our luggage at 06:15, no customs no crowds - easy
