Embarkation was smooth and efficient. Tables with wine and soda packages and Portofino reservations were all available at the end of the embarkation hall which made a lot of sense. We had our Portofino reservations and wine package sorted before we even boarded the ship. Interestingly the wine package didn't come in the usual format of Gold, Platinum and Diamond. Instead we were offered only one package and when we checked it against the previous list it seemed we were offered wines from the Diamond package at the Platinum price - which seemed like a good deal to us!

Cabin: We had a E1 balcony mid hump on deck 8. First time we'd not travelled in a JS but found ample storage space for our needs and mid hump was a great location. A few things didn't work - interactive TV, announcement channel, but not a big deal for us.

Guests: The ship had a real mix of nationalities and consequently a really cosmopolitan feel, which we really liked. I didn't hear the statistics but would say there were roughly the same number of Spanish, American and British/Irish onboard and then a whole range of other nationalities. Announcements were in English and Spanish and the CD switched deftly between the 2 languages. There were many many children of all ages onboard but we saw very few incidences of poor behaviour and most of those were from the same family of 3 very young girls who seemed to be allowed to run around wherever they pleased - not good in a crowded dining room! Read more