Well, it's been two weeks since our cruise ended and I just watched the Coral leaving Ft. Lauderdale for her next Panama transit. We had a wonderful time on our cruise. Many people commented to us before we left for our cruise that this was going to be a "Geriatric cruise", well we thoroughly enjoyed having less "energy" around us 24/7. Very relaxing. Met many folks our age and older with whom we played trivia or had great conversations. You make a cruise as good or as bad as you want it to be. Ours was great!!! The ship was in great shape, the food was super and the ports were fun and interesting. One of the lunches we did was the " Pub Lunch" in the Bayou cafe..very interesting and delicious. My wife was entertained and fascinated by the canal. We had both read "The Path Between the Seas" and were well educated about the endeavor of the project.
The ships entertainment was superb, except for the hypnotist which we were not impressed with: we frequently had to show up at least a half hour early to get seats in the Princess Theater. There were a number of shows in the Universe Lounge. One of the shows which I really liked was "On the Bayou". Towards the end of the cruise there was a production put on by some of the crew members; very well done.
The ship's personnel were very happy and always willing to talk and share info about themselves and their family. Our stateroom steward ( Jonifer)was very good at keeping our room ready and clean. We had been upgraded two weeks before our cruise from Caribe 507 (inside) to Emerald 732 which looked out from the stern of the ship with a large window. Not only did we have a great view from our window but we also had a huge "balcony almost to ourselves". The space aft of our room was about 80 ft. wide and about 8 ft. deep, blocked off at each end by staterooms with balconies. The only time we saw using that space was during the transit of the canal. We were well pleased with the room. There was no noticeable noise or commotion from foot traffic or a/c.
Room was as expected. Had a large window overlooking the stern of ship and great view of ships wake. Outdoor space aft of room was almost a private balcony 80ft.by 8ft.