In choosing this cruise we wanted to travel to the Greek Islands in a smaller ship, visit ancient sites and learn a little more of the history of the area. The brochures and itinerary met all our requirements as it was a combination of 3 back to back cruises. It indicated a reasonable level of fitness which also suited our requirements. On arrival in Venice we found that the cabin was as we expected. Not flash, but functional; however, had only one, poorly located powerpoint. The staff were generally helpful but some appeared that they would have been happier elsewhere. We found the food to be adequate but not to the standard we had experienced with some other companies. Food in the main eating area was cafeteria style, dishes were not labelled so everyone had to ask what each dish was. This created long slow lines at every meal. We asked the staff about adequate signage and were told that it was not Company Policy. Deserts and other hot foods were “serve yourself”, which provided huge opportunity for cross contamination and increased the risk of allergic reaction if staff did not understand or were not available to provide adequate answers. I am allergic to poultry and asked staff the ingredients. I was answered ‘meat sausage’. turned out is was chicken and as a consequence spent a very unpleasant few hours. There were not always staff to ask. There did not appear to be adequate staff to ensure appropriate hygiene was maintained by the passengers. We were served on a number of cracked cups and bowls which should have been removed from service. The more formal eating area was much better as the food was individually served. Since the cruise was focussed on Ancient Greek and Romanan ruins there were guest lecturers on each of the three legs. Most lecturers provided interesting insights but others just went through the motions. The AV facilities were as old as the ship, and provided many interruptions and failures. Most lecturers used laser pointers which were useless. Talk times were not at optimum times but when most passengers were not on board. As days went by it was obvious that the ship was extremely noisey. When our small ship was birthed next to one carrying 10x more passengers (3000) the only one you could hear was the Aegean Odyssey. Whilst cruising the noise level was greater than 75db in the cabin, which made sleeping difficult. The poor crew had to remove soot daily from the outside furniture and many passengers gained black oil stains on their clothing. Shore excursion staff lacked basic knowledge of the ports visited and could not tell passengers where pharmacies or banks were located, cost or location of buses or taxis. Nor could they tell us about some of the places of interest that were on the shore sheets. Manning of desk tardy. Not there on time. A little offhand and sometimes rude with responses. Water was only provided to guests who elected to do organised excursions. The excursions were usually run by local guides, some good some hopeless, who tried to accommodate all passengers. Unfortunately, with an average age of passengers in the middle to late 70s, the pace at which they were forced to go resulted in excruciatingly slow movement that then meant some of the highlights were not seen. This persisted for all three legs of our journey. It really should have been called Voyages of Antiquity! There appeared to be a policy of ensuring the passengers who had travelled before were always first off the ship. Unfortunately, due to their age and lack of mobility, this ensured everyone else was delayed. Tender safety was poor. The crew did not provide definitive instruction on where to sit, how to hold arms, slide along seats to move rather than walking and direction on where to sit and when to stand for exit. As many of the passengers no doubt had osteoporosis, it will only be a matter of time before bones are broken. Very poor! At the end of the first leg our cabin developed a water leak which soaked the carpet. The hotel manager offered us a move to a cabin on the upper deck which we readily accepted. It was slightly larger with one bed instead of two singles and slightly quieter (72db) Unfortunately the hot water was intermittent and often was filthy and both taps lacked acceptable pressure. The toilet would not flush so we resorted to a 10l bucket! When cruising, the room vibrated to such an extent that we were forced to put towels in the door to stop it rattling. There is no way this room was worth an extra $4000 pp! On our last day there was a significant water leak which resulted in a large area of one level being flooded. Since the ship had no downtime the oncoming passengers had a very wet and potentially mouldy trip ahead. Internet now is a must for travellers and unfortunately was exorbitant in cost and was of such poor quality that many passengers demanded refunds. In conclusion, Voyages to Antiquity have a great product but need to ensure guests’ capabilities are assessed and appropriate shore excursions are provided so that all passengers are provided with the experience they expect. The ship is in dire need of major refurbishment and maintenance. The crew have to endure more than most. I would not recommend this trip to anyone who has even a moderate level of fitness. It’s like travelling in a floating care facility! Read Less

We went on this cruise because we had been on the Marella Dream in June, we had such a good time on the Dream we decided to go on the Discovery, so we could compare the two. we enjoyed both to be honest, although the Dream is smaller and older ship than the Discovery I'd say the Dream just piped the Discovery for us. We thought the Dream managed the people it had on board better than the Discovery, it just seemed to us that there were to many people for them to cope with comfortably. Don't get me wrong the staff were fantastic and worked very hard to make our stay as good as they could, we just thought the management had packed to many people on the ship. To give you an example if you were out and about at night there didn't seem to be enough seating for all the customers, I'm not sure if some parts of the Discovery were more popular than others but it did look odd that there were a lots of people having to stand because there were no seats available. Food on the Discovery was good and plentiful, we did have an issue with the bacon on the breakfast buffet which I have written to them about but that was all, just going back to the subject of room, we went as a couple and when we went to the 47 gallery or the 47 restaurant we wanted a table for two which we did get, but the tables were only separated by a few inches so there was no chance of a intermate or private conversation because you were so close to the next table. Now again don't get me wrong we are not loners and can mix with the best of them, but if I wanted to make eyes at my wife I don't want the women on the next table getting the wrong idea because we so close together. The cabins were nice and the staff kept them clean, the places we stopped were good, except Santorini which was a disappointment the place would be lovely if it wasn't for the vast amount of people, we expected it to be busy but goodness me it was packed to the rafters. My wife has a disability and walking is a problem so it was even harder for her to get around because the crowds, there were no places to rest for her because all the places were full, so we decided to go back to the ship, but even this was a big problem because the queue for the cable car back down the mountain was so long its was a long hot wait of 20 minutes before we got back down. So if you go on this cruise been warned its busy and hot at the top the crowds are mad and in our minds Santorini has that far away look, it looks better far away. All the other destinations on the trip were better and we enjoyed them. Over all we had a good time we will go again with TUI next year on a different ship and see how they do, look out for my review. Read Less

I got on the discovery 2 at Corfu and got of there as well. I was on the ship for a week and the destinations are lovely Santorini and Rhodes have to be my favourite. The cruise is really good the activity's for kids are a climbing wall a mini golf 9 holes 2 swimming pools one inside and one outside also there is a games room called hideout for the children to chill out and play on the Xbox and the football table. The entertainment is fantastic with 4 different venues to choose from and they have a casino. the bars were clean and sold a verity of alcohols from shots to beer to cocktails. the crew are so friendly saying hello and always ready to help really good custom. The sail away party was absolutely fantastic with live performances from DJ Tomas and a band that I cant remember there name and a flag parade to see were parts of the crew come from. definitely arrange with TUI they are stars amazing job Read Less

We chose this cruise because we had been on the Dream twice before and we were quite happy with it so we thought it a good prospect to go with the Dream again. Two people in our party of four needed assistance with walking any distance or standing for long periods especially through airport security or standing in queues. My wife (rods and screws in her back) and the other person in our party with a disability (Parkinsons) requested well in advance when the holiday was booked that some assistance would be needed at the airport for reasons mentioned. I won't go into details but in Aberdeen going out and in Corfu on arrival the assistance was not there with both people abandoned at the airport. On arrival back in Aberdeen we waited one hour at the carousel to collect our luggage. There were good points and not so good points about the trip as far as the cruise was concerned. Our cabin was on deck 5. We had booked a cabin with a window. It looked like areas of the cabin had not been dusted for weeks. The shower leaked at the spray head where the washer had perished and a poor attempt had been made with plumber's tape to fix it. The main shower head didn't spray properly and water went everywhere. I gave up and just strip washed instead. However our cabin steward was very friendly and helpful and tidied the room twice daily apart from the dust. Dirty towels were replaced every day with clean towels. There was dust in many areas of the ship which was not there on previous cruises. I only once saw a crewman with a spray and a duster whereas previously the ship was continually cleaned. The entertainment each evening was a bit of a let down since some of the male singers couldn't pitch their notes or keep their keys. The female singers and dancers were excellent but this only made the males appear to be tone deaf. On a happier note the four of us dined morning and evening in the Orion restaurant where the food was freshly cooked and served with great enthusiasm by the waiters. There was plenty of coffee or tea and cold water at any time of the day. My wife and I went on two excursions and the prices had gone up a bit from last year. However the excursions were very interesting and informative with excellent tour guides who knew their subject very well. Greek people are very welcoming and don't hassle you in the streets like the Turkish people do where every few yards there is a hawker who can't take no for an answer. WiFi in cafes are free but £50 per week on the ship. The shops in the ship are cheaper than the shops ashore - watch for special prices and bargains. We noticed some changes since last year. The crew all wore smart uniforms instead of the Bahama shirts as previously. There seemed to be less crew and they didn't sing or joke this year but went through a process but the joy seemed to have gone. We noticed that there were no more trays to carry your food to the table and the water glasses were a fraction of the size. At the end of the cruise the process of transfers went smoothly and the assistance was better to help the disabled onto the plane and also on return to Aberdeen. Would we go on Marella Dream again? No! Read Less

We chose this cruise,because we have always been happy with Thomsons and have travelled with them about eight times.We always look at the itineries,to find one that is calling at ports we haven't visited yet,obviously this becomes more difficult as time passes.The Greek islands have been on our to do list and we certainly were not disappointed.Our flight out and service at Corfu to join the ship ran very smoothly,our cabin was very well presented and staff were on hand to answer any queries.The restaurants are always fun with the staff being so kind and always smiling.The food and choice of menu were posted every day and we enjoyed the choices provided. The excursions were well organised,but we prefer to explore each destination ourselves,Santorini was very pretty and the cablecar was fun.Syros was very unexpected,no one seems to have visited or even heard of it before,we found a very beautiful place to visit,the locals were very helpful andeverywhere was so clean.We found a quiet little café where we could people watch and see the world sail by at the quay side.We would definitely visit again.The other destinations were Zante,Chania on Crete...very busy place with lots of character...and friendly people,we also called in at Marmaris too.The weather stayed fantastic all week which is always a bonus. Read Less

This cruise was part of a guided tour with a large international tour company. We started in Istanbul for a few days before joining the cruise when it arrived in Istanbul from Athens. As part of a larger group our on-shore excursions were organised by our tour director and we had no problems at all. I was pleasantly surprised by the size of our outside cabin with window. It was larger than I had expected and the bathroom was a decent size too. We had plenty of storage in the way of wardrobe and cupboards. The only issue we had was the the bed was too low to store our empty suitcases underneath. We were on deck 5 which has an outside walkway that goes around the entire ship so we did have people walking past our window from early in the morning but the windows are mirrored so the room is still very private with the curtains drawn. There were two choices for eating; the buffet or the dining room. The buffet food was decent and plentiful if you ate early though it was never hot only warm. The al a carte in the restaurant was tasty though there is a limited menu choice. You could have breakfast in either the buffet or restaurant. I didn't attend any of the shows but was told that they were entertaining though not very professional. There are plenty of bar areas to enjoy; around the pool, indoors or at the rear of the ship on deck 5. As a smoker I spent most of my time at the deck 5 bar as it was one of the few places I could drink and smoke. The staff were all absolutely wonderful and very helpful with any requests we had. Our room stewards kept our room clean and neat. As the crew come from all over the world there are many new friends to be made if you enjoy learning about other countries. Watching the ship dock in the early morning was one of my regular highlights and the other was the sunsets. Read Less

We had previously sailed on the Spirit the year before and wasn't sure if cruising was for us so decided to give it another go by booking a cruise on the Jade for my daughters birthday. Why NCL? because the freestyle dining suits the needs of our disabled daughter. So, as we wanted to see Venice, this was the chosen cruise all independently booked by myself. Flights from the UK to Venice with BA - no problem. Taxi from Marco Polo to Piazza Roma - no problem Overnight hotel on the Grand Canal - no problem Getting on the ship - no problem. We were given priority due to my daughters disabilities and the shared balcony room was as we expected and had enough room for 3 adults. So far so good until we got to Corfu - we had already decided that we would do our own thing and not take any excursions so off we went for a look around Corfu. However, when coming back to the boat security is within the port and not on the ship and it was at this point my husband had his wallet stolen at the security scanner.- this could only have been an act by Corfu security or someone on the ship. This is where the Jade and NCL really let us down with their lack of help, compassion and knowledge. Left with no cards and no money. Corfu security reported the incident to ship security who merely said 'you need to pray that the person will be honest and hand it in but go to Guest services' Off to guest services we go - no wallet, no interest when the situation was explained other than you need to cancel your bank cards - which we did. Then Guest services ring the cabin demanding how they were going to be paid if the cards were cancelled regardless of the fact the card registered to them was not affected - lack of communication/understanding or downright stupidity who knows but the situation was explained all over again. Next day still no wallet and no money and a request made to advance some cash on the card held - this was accepted, then refused, the accepted with a message to collect the money from the bursar - off we go to collect this - she refuses to hand it over saying she knows nothing of this. Eventually this was allsorted out late on the 3rd night of the cruise. Day 4 results in Guest services wanting to know if we have another card we can use - insensitive or what. No other help or advice was given as long as they were being paid NCL do not care. So on to the rest of the cruise - ports were great and a good way to see the Greek isles. On board ship - entrainment was seriously lacking if it happened at all. Food was the same nearly every night in the Garden Cafe, often cold and unappetising - couldn't use the restaurants as it did not meet the needs of my daughter and could not use the speciality restaurants as we needed to keep a tight reign on the finances due to the above incident. The Beatles quiz was the most popular and when asked by another passenger if we could have a Beatles night the answer was a resounding NO - so much for listening to the paying guests. Last day at sea - unfortunately the weather was not too good so the pool was out of the question - entrainment around the ship, not on your life - no music until night-time, first quiz in the afternoon but plenty of sales pitches to squeeze your last pennies from you or Bingo if wished to throw your money in that direction. Might as well have been on a ferry going back to Venice. So with bad customer service, rubbish food and lack of entertainment cruising may not be for us or maybe it's NCL who are the problem. Read Less

Lovely extremely clean ship. We had 8:45 dinner seating for 2 . All the dinners were great! The service in the main dining room took our dining pleasure to another level. Our waiter I believe his name was Nadik and the assistant were incredible. We also purchased the 5 specialty dining package and loved the atmosphere offered as well as the food. A huge shout out to Author and Oliver who went out of their way to talk to me and make me smile! The room we had was on the Aft end of ship balcony. The room was clean,well appointed and so lovely. My cabin stewards were so kind and helpful. The entertainment at night was decent,with a show time for early and late diners. The ports of call were dream ports. What really made this cruise was the service. There is great service but this was beyond. Somehow each and every crew member took me in and made me a part of their intimate family. The crew were never intrusive or fake,yet they were always there with a kind word,some great advice,or inquiring what it was that made our trip. I have to give a huge shout out to the Captain who lead by example and created a team no other can compare to. The pleasantness of the crew was contagious. Also I always felt in competent hands. We had some severe weather on one excursion. In the emergency situation the crew took things very seriously and did everything they could to get us safely back on the boat,while offering warm dry towels to dry off and hot cocoa. I know there will never be a ship or a cruise that will compare to this one. Everyone should experience a cruise so wonderful ! Read Less

We embarked on the ship in Heraklion, having flown in from London. We travelled as a family of 3 (myself, my wife and my 10-year old daughter, who is in a wheelchair). The embarkation in Crete was what I would consider to be the worst part of the cruise. Heraklion is not really geared up to be a cruise port but more of a ferry terminal. The small embarkation building meant that some people were queuing outside in the heat for more than an hour before being able to enter the building. The whole process was very slow, a bit chaotic and quite uncomfortable. Once onboard the ship things improved considerably. We were able to go straight to our cabin and our luggage joined us almost immediately. The interior of the ship is beautifully decorated and, although 10 years old, did not give this impression. The cabin was quite small but was cosy and served our needs. The cabin steward kept the cabin immaculately clean and our only gripe (other than perhaps the size) was that the air conditioning was not very effective, meaning that the cabin (being an inside) was a bit warm for us at night, especially as there were 3 of us in the cabin. The beds were, however, comfortable. Despite the small size, we were able to pack the luggage in the wardrobes and had just enough space to park the wheelchair without folding (we had requested a wheelchair accessible cabin but were told these were all booked, despite the ship only being 60 to 65% full). We found the Costa staff to be very approachable, friendly and helpful throughout the cruise, especially in the restaurant. The only niggle we had was the cruise excursion desk telling us that because we had a wheelchair we couldn't go on our planned excursion in Santorini, and advising us not to go ashore on the tender boat. Our cabin steward informed us that we would be able to take the cable car to the summit as they cater for disabled. we took the plunge and went ashore and did not regret doing so. Read Less