Although my first time to sail on a HAL ship, this was my 10th cruise overall (8 Princess 1 RCCL). I had selected this cruise because I was intrigued by the itinerary and thought that it offered something a little different than the usual Western Caribbean itinerary of Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Jamaica. A little background; I am 48, my DH is 52 and we were celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary. Normally when flying to a port my DH and I fly out the same day as we sail, but this being December, and reading enough horror stories of missed ships we decided to fly to Tampa the day before. I am glad I had the foresight to do so as shortly after we left Baltimore it began to snow, and there were a number of delays at the airport. Flying out early also gave us the opportunity to go down to Sarasota, FL, about an hour drive south of Tampa to go to the Ringling Museum and Mansion ($25 pp-adult). If you get the opportunity I would highly recommend the Ringling as an entertaining side trip. Besides the beautiful mansion to tour there are art and circus museums, a gorgeous rose garden, as well as a miniature big top display that made my DH's jaw drop in amazement. But I digress, and this is suppose to be about my cruise experience. At the Tampa airport we were met by a HAL representative, which I did not expect, who was there to make sure we didn't require any assistance and to ensure that we knew how to get to the pier since we did not get a pre cruise package from HAL. I thought this a nice touch. The next day we easily got to the pier and were whisked through the embarkation process. In 10 cruises this was probably the smoothest embarkation I have ever experienced. Once on board we went to the Lido for a buffet lunch. While it was very busy we had no trouble finding a place to sit. After lunch we explored the ship. Overall I thought the ship was lovely and easy to navigate. It is an older ship, scheduled for dry dock within a couple of months, and yes there were places where the carpet looked very worn and even discolored, but I did observe crew members cleaning and maintaining the ship throughout the cruise. At 2PM we were finally allowed to our cabins. We had a Veranda Suite, on the Veranda Deck and we quickly settled in. It's impossible for me to compare this cabin to others I have traveled in because on all of our previous cruises we had an interior room, with the exception of once with an obstructed view. The balcony was a treat because it was a special anniversary cruise, and because we were able to upgrade for a very affordable price from our initial interior room. I loved the decor which I thought was warm and welcoming. The bed was comfortable with plenty of pillows. Because we mainly wanted to relax on this cruise we spent our two sea days by the pool. We had no trouble finding two chaises together, even when getting to the pool as late at 10AM, as long as we went to the Sea View Pool. The Lido Pool was often more crowded. At night we were usually enjoying the Thermal Suite ($149 per couple for length of cruise), or we would watch a movie in our cabin. I did take one class at the Culinary Arts Center ($29), and my DH played BINGO one day with cards won playing pool games. I would have loved to take some of the free classes at the Digital Workshop, but for some reason I was never able to fit them in my schedule. We ate most of our meals at the Lido Restaurant. Food taste is subjective; we found the food to run the gamut from not so good to delicious. Our last three dinners were in the Rotterdam Dining Room. The first time we used the open dining option, which worked just fine. We showed up about 7:45 and were seated right away. The other two times we joined two new friends who had late traditional who's tablemates disappeared after the first night. I must admit that I loved the production of the Farwell Dinner with the waiters dancing and singing. It was the best entertainment I saw on board. My only complaint regarding food was that it seemed a little difficult at times to find something to eat, unless you ordered room service which was available 24 hours. The Lido closed each night at 8 PM which I find too early as I enjoy a later dinner. The dining room was opened until 9PM, but I would have liked a casual option that was available a little later. On the final night the Lido closed at 7:30.

The service we received from the crew was mostly good. I am unaccustomed to having waiters in the buffet offer to carry my plates, and the first two days got into small tugs of war with waiters that wanted to carry my plate, and me insisting that I was capable of carrying my own. Once I got use to the routine I let then do their jobs. The front desk was also very good. The staff there was very friendly and helpful. On many of my previous cruises (But not all) I have found the pursers desk to be run by rather snooty employees. The only lack of service I had was from our room steward, and I don't think it was deliberate, but rather because he had more rooms to clean than what he could handle. We didn't see him at all the first day (I am use to our room steward showing up almost as soon as we first step into our cabin to introduce himself, let us know how we can contact him if we need anything, and to show us the location of the refrigerator, life jackets, etc). He did keep us well supplied with towels, but four out of seven nights our bed wasn't turned down, we didn't receive our HAL tote bags until day 4, when most of the other passengers had theirs by the first or second day. Small stuff, and not enough to dock any of his tips, but noticeable. I loved the smaller size of this ship and the fewer number of passengers. I also enjoyed the fact that there were few children on board. We had probably less than 25 young children. One of the staff told me that on the Thanksgiving week cruise, which had ended one week before ours there had been 175 children on board. The vibe on this ship was laid back and quiet, which I found very enjoyable. Ports of Call The first stop was suppose to be Key West, and I was really looking forward to it. However, when we got to the pier we were told that Cozumel was being substituted for Key West (The ship was having equipment issues). While disappointed about missing Key West (And a number of our fellow PAX were very vocal in their displeasure) we ended up enjoying our day. We took a ship shore excursion; Fury Catamaran Snorkel & Beach Party, which at $49 pp was a great value. At Belize we took another ship's tour, Mayan Ruins of Xunantunich with lunch. I highly recommend this tour as the ruins were magnificent, and we had a great guide. However, there is a 2-hour bus trip to get there. On our bus the air conditioning wasn't as cool as Americans are use to, and it did get slightly uncomfortable. At the end of the bus trip you exit the bus, and get on a small ferry, which is pulled across by a man using a winch. You then board a small van in groups which takes you to the entrance. You then have to walk up a rather steep hill. All in all it's a bit grueling, but well worth it. There was one temple we could climb, and there were some awe inspiring views. After the ruins we went to an outdoor restaurant that served chicken and the best rice I have ever eaten. Keep in mind that Belize is hot & humid. When we returned we went straight to our room to take much needed showers and a nap. In Santo Tomas I had really wanted to go to Tikal, but I was afraid the trip might be too hard on my DH. Instead when we got off the ship we went into the terminal and took a tour with Go with Gus. I had read several excellent reviews regarding his tours, and felt safe enough to finally take the plunge and do my own arrangements rather than a ships tour. I had wanted to go to The Seven Altars & Las Velas Beach, and the guide we were speaking to, who works for Gus, agreed to take us. We ran back to the ship and put on our swim suites, went back to the terminal only to have the guide backpedal. First he told us that the Seven Altars wasn't very good because it hadn't rained in 45-days, and then he kept telling us about the virtues of the Rio Dulce tour, promising us that we would not be disappointed, and finally he told us we could do the Rio Dulce for the price of the Seven Altars. It was apparent that they were not going to take us to the Seven Altars, so we reluctantly agreed to do the Rio Dulce tour. While not a bad tour at all, it didn't meet my expectations. The way others had raved about this tour I thought this would be "The Best Tour Ever". First of all we were packed into a boat that did not have enough seats for everyone. Children had to sit in their parent's laps, and 2-3 adults were sitting on a ledge at the bow of the boat. It was rather uncomfortable how packed in we were. The seats faced inward, so to look at the views of anything on the river or the river bank you had to keep twisting around. I did enjoy seeing and meeting the children, and for me it was the highlight of the tour. I will also give Gus a lot of credit for all that he does to help the people, especially the children, of Guatemala. Costa Maya was our final stop. We took another ships tour; Bacalar Highlights and the Seven Color Lagoon. It's another long ride, with a mostly barren landscape. The description of the tour states "Learn the history of a Spanish Fort & Pirates, discover the culture of a sleepy Mexican Town, Travel through a tropical jungle....." The fort was unimposing, I don't recall any stories of pirates, we drove through a dirty town, but didn't learn anything about its culture, and I didn't see any jungle. However, Bacalar Lagoon was very beautiful. I didn't see 7 shades of blue, but I did see at least 4. The water is of a comfortable temperature, and a joy to swim in. The lagoon is very clean, very clear, with a soft sandy bottom, and it made the tour worthwhile. I was hoping that this would be a special cruise, and HAL delivered. I loved my first HAL cruise, and expect it to be just the first of many.