After we were not sure what to expect regarding embarking etc, the whole experience was so well organised by Thomson. Even the coaches waiting at Palma airport were clean and modern. When you get to the ship there is a queue that doesn't take long waiting for boarding passes etc and a variety of juices are offered. On board the rooms were bigger than we thought they'd be and one of the group had booked a room with a window which turned out wasn't a small porthole but a large square window. Rooms with a window have bath and shower and inside cabins have a shower. Bathrooms all have a large mirror and sink area to put all your things. There is also a dressing table with stool and mini bar. TV has sky news and 2 free films playing at a few times each day such as Super 8 and Bridesmaids. All the staff are from the Philipines and couldn't do enough for you throughout the cruise. Beds are single so joined together for a double booking. For triple or quad bookings there are bunk beds that are attached to the wall that pull down. Mattresses and pillows are clean and firm and we all slept well. Sarah Jane in the Delo bar was exceptional. The cabin staff are on duty for 11 hours a day and each time you nip out of your room it's immaculately cleaned before your return with a chocolate left on each pillow each evening. Our cleaner Maurus would leave 'towel art' animals of monkey's and elephants which the kids loved and were excited to get back to the cabin last thing to see what was waiting for them. I did feel the boat swaying in the night and had to take travel pills while on board as I was sick the first night but ok after that.

We used the Lidl buffet as it was so easy for the kids and queues weren't that bad at all, moving all the time. We met daily at 10.00 for breakfast then 8.00 for dinner. After 11.30pm chips and chilli etc are brought out which was good for those staying up in the disco although most people on board didn't stay up that late as the age group was mainly over 60 really. There's a small games room where you can buy tokens at Reception. During the day after having a walk round the port or taking an excursion, we would take the kids for a run in the disco room as it was empty. There is a kids club but it looked like very young kids and ours didn't want to leave our group. The pool by the Lidl restaurant is always free as it's a bit cold so the kids had a quick dip daily. In the evenings the entertainment in the bars is singing, or piano, violin to modern and well known tunes - very nice. Bar staff wait on you so no need to go to bars. We all loved the latte, cappucino and hot chocolate drinks (topped with cream) that always come with a nice biscuit. On the buffett there is a meat joint carvery every day with veg and always lots of salad, choice of 2 soups, ice cream and mini cakes kids can help themselves to.

The webcam in the rooms show the front of the ship and you can see it docking early morning and it's fantastic going up for breakfast wondering what the scenery will be like. The only excursion we took was to Barcelona which was £67 for 3 of us and well worth it as you get 4 hours to wander after 1.5 hours on the coach. Sicily and Corsica were beautiful just walking round the port towns. Unfortunately our plane was delayed 16 hours coming back due to a hurricane in the Caribbean and Thomson gave us another cabin for the day then transferred us to a Marriott in Palma for dinner and wine before taking us to the airport for a middle of the night flight especially put on for us with in flight meal inc. We'd heard some bad things about the ship when it was first taken on by Thomson but couldn't find any fault with it all all and would recommended it highly. We are now saving to back again!