This was our 10th cruise with Marella (Thomson) and we have also cruised with NCL and Royal Caribbean. We really enjoyed our cruise on Discovery over Christmas 2017 and I suppose we were expecting this cruise to be as enjoyable.
The ...
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This was our 10th cruise with Marella (Thomson) and we have also cruised with NCL and Royal Caribbean. We really enjoyed our cruise on Discovery over Christmas 2017 and I suppose we were expecting this cruise to be as enjoyable.
The itinerary was Panama Canal and Cuban Fusion. The change to the port time in Cuba added effectively another day at sea so 5 days in total. The activities on offer were very poor, "medical"/ beauty seminars to sell things mainly. I did enjoy the two Ceilidh dance classes, they were fun. There is nowhere on ship to quietly read, Spirit had a rather nice reading room. Part of the problem was fellow passengers being rather loud with no regard for others so we often retreated to our cabin. The cabin 8076 was fine, spacious, quiet but the toilet stopped flushing every 3 or 4 days.
Days in Jamaica were a trial. Food in the buffet was more awful than usual and the snack shack and 47 were not open for lunch. 2 of the main lifts were out of action for 13 days and it was a trial on changeover day to get anywhere with the remaining lifts being crowded with departing and incoming passengers and their luggage. There was also limited evening entertainment, no show or quiz, in fact evening quizes were every other night rather than every night and were interspersed with "Human Jukebox" which was lame.
The Broadway Lounge shows were generally good apart from the guest comedian in the first week who would have been booed off stage at any Working Men's Club and the show with "virtual" Anton de Bec which is just a film. I enjoyed the actor hosts games and play,
We normally enjoy the buffet but not on this ship, food was cold, tough, unappetising and it was a trial to get a table. We had debated upgrading to Premium drinks but decided against it. If you like a buffet be aware that you can't get Premium drinks there, you would have to get them from a bar and bring them in with you.Same if you want a G&T, Prosecco etc on the All- inclusive. There is no waiter service for drinks in this buffet, there is just a drinks station with John Smiths, Strongbow, Fosters and red and white wine on tap. My Dad drinks John Smith's all the time but he couldn't drink this, he said it was awful. I feel this is a downmarket move by Marella, saving them money on both drinks and waiters.
We ate mainly at 47, had great fish and chips at the Snack Shack and enjoyed the Glasshouse, the trio of Tiramisu's at Gallery 47 and one dinner at Surf and Turf. Food outside of the buffet was acceptable, nothing was delectable but we could always find something to eat.
Excursions: The flavours of Colombia excursion in Santa Marta was good but there was far too much food. I believe it was authentic for the area but it wasn't really very nice.
Cartagena we saw with Dora the Explorer private group trip.
Panama tour by ferry was awful. Colon is decrepit, dirty and unsafe. We went by bus across the isthmus to Panama City where we boarded a ferry. the seats were just plastic or metal folding chairs and it was really crowded. Horrible sugary soft drinks included with the poor lunch of 4 tiny bits of chicken, cold pasta and veg and a piece of cake. We went through 3 locks and eventually disembarked at Gatun Lake for the bus back. It was a long, boring and uncomfortable day that was never worth £108. The only saving grace of Colon as a port is that there is a big supermarket very close to the dock where we were able to get drinks and snacks (they took dollars and gave change in dollars too)
Costa Rica we did the Jaguar rescue Centre and Boat ride. Be aware that this is a 7 hour trip with no lunch included and nowhere to buy lunch. I can't understand the mentality of Marella contracting with an agency for a tour that doesn't make any provision for lunch. We had snacks and drinks we bought in Panama and we went to the snack Shack the day before the trip and took some sandwiches. There are notices all the time in the buffet & cruise news warning that it is illegal in some places to carry food off the ship and that you can be fined. We didn't take any fruit and the sandwiches were in sealed packets so we took the chance. The only place there could have been a problem was Cozumel in Mexico where all bags were searched on disembarkation.
Grand Cayman we had to anchor away from the main town as it was too windy for the tenders. We got shared taxis into town but there were 6 cruise ships that day, there must have been 10,000 people on the streets and the queues to get the tender back to some of the ships were enormous and taking up all the pavement.
Cuba was the best stop. I have been before but it was better than I remembered. We did a private tour with Fertours. 3 hours tour by convertible classic car to see Revolution and other squares, the neighbourhoods, the forts, Malecon and the army museum and a park. We went back to the ship for dinner then met our guide with driver and a hard-top classic car. We went to the National hotel and had a tour round and a cocktail on the terrace, this was the highlight of my holiday the hotel has so much history and atmosphere. We then went to the 9pm cannon shot ceremony which was much better than it sounds, the fort is amazing and the soldiers are dressed in old-time uniforms. The next day we had a 2 hr waking tour of Havana with our guide which was really nice. We saw 3 or 4 squares, Hemingway places, the Camera Obscura, churches, sculptures and learned a lot about life in Cuba and the difficulties they had when the Soviet Union collapsed. Havana is a lovely city, Highly recommended
Cozumel: couldn't berth where supposed to because of the wind. Our tour to Tulum and Xel-Ha was cancelled as no ferries were running. It was Sunday so most of the shops were closed even at the cruise port because of course we weren't supposed to be docked in that place. Too windy to go to the beach so had a taxi tour round town and to nearby Mayan ruins. Cozumel is perhaps not an ideal port of call especially on a Sunday. Somewhere on the mainland would give more opportunities on shore.
Overall the cruise was ok, no major disasters fortunately but I wouldn't wholeheartedly recommend this itinerary. Regarding the ship there were enough niggles to make us question the direction Marella is going (downmarket it seems) and to make us disinclined to travel with them again.
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