To set the scene, I've cruised once before on the Marco Polo eight years ago - and vowed never to do a cruise again. A converted Russian ice breaker does not a cruise ship make - but did do us well through a gale force storm. 8 years later myself and the wife wanted to see Iceland, due to her medical conditions we can't fly, so the Magellan was the way to go. Reading through the reviews there's a lot of common points raised, which I can now confirm or deny: THE CORRIDORS SMELL Yes, yes they do. Like a sulfur smell, I would take a wild guess at venting from the sewage system. But oh yes, there's a definite smell there. THE STAFF 99% of the staff are fantastic and always wanting to help. There's a couple that let the side down, but with a compliment of 400 crew - that's next to nothing. These people are teens/early twenties, doing 11 hour shifts on their feet - doing menial tasks - and stowed away in bunk beds on deck 4 at the back of the ship. It's a miracle they could raise a smile at all. Of particual impressive performance are the cabin stewards. Our own, Maguan was exceptional - and even learn't our routine so he could have our room ready whilst we were away. THE FOOD I can only discuss the Bistro. This is at a level of just above home cooked food. Impressively they cater with vegan and allergy sections. All sections have potential allergies marked against each meal. This is a Bistro in a cut-price Cruise Ship - I wasn't expecting Restaurant class food - but the choice was great and enjoyed a good feed four times a day. ENTERTAINMENT Yeah, this is great for the CMV target market of 60's and over. But for the slighter younger generation (in their 40's) - there's not a huge range to try out. We did go to the big shows a few times, but more for the laugh of how appalling it was than to enjoy it. The singers would never get past an X Factor audition, and their dancing skills are definitely limited by a rocking ship, but choreography had been well thought out. Give it 20 years and they're doing 80's themes - I'll probably be loving it. I however did not appreciate the sound engineer being so bored at his sound desk that he felt he could look at Ebay rather than do his job EXCURSIONS Yep - they're expensive compared to what you could arrange for yourself at a visitor centre. But we wanted a relaxing holiday and wanted everything ready to go without the hassle of personally booking a trip - and therefore also perhaps missing the departure deadline. ROOMS We went for the most expensive that we're still left available. Twin Premium Ocean View - that were an extra £1050 per person. It was fine, but not worth the huge hike in ticket price. SHIP She's getting on a bit, and the last refurb was some years ago. Fixtures and fittings are beginning to show some age - and carpets are no longer plush or have a uniform colour. But she's very clean, easy to navigate, and help stead fast in some rough weather heading towards the west of Iceland. CONCLUSION I've been converted, I will definitely go on a cruise again. CMV are not providing plush fancy cities on the sea cruises here, but they did provide a holiday I will treasure and that gave me no real reason to complain. Maybe except for stinky corridors. EMBARK/DISEMBARK Absolute rubbish. Disordered, no clear instructions and a rotten start and end to a great holiday. We we're due to be doing Faroe Islands and onto Iceland, but due to poor weather the Faroes were cancelled. As a result over the course of the holiday, I got 5 days of absolute relaxation, waited on, good food, great coffee - and Read Less

We sailed from Portbury in Bristol which was great as we only live 40 minutes away. The embarkation was very quick and smooth and the luggage was in out cabin within a few hours of us arriving. We were sailing to the Faroe Islands and then on to Iceland. Our itinerary was for a stop in the Faroe Islands, 3 stops over night in towns around Iceland and an over night stop in Reykjavik. Within a few hours of leaving Portbury we were informed that due to bad weather we would not be able to visit the Faroe Isles and instead of travelling up the Irish channel we would be travelling into the Atlantic on the West of Ireland, this would give us another day at sea. Ok nothing we can do about the weather so decided we would make the most of being on board. This was by far the roughest sail I have ever experienced, we were nearly tossed out of our beds on the second night. During this rough weather the boat really did show it’s age. The bar staff, serving staff, cabin staff entertainment crew were all fabulous and very hard working, always had a smile on their faces and very engaging with passengers. Cruise and maritime obviously look after their employees as they all had good things to say about the company. But this really does not go for the reception staff. They were the most unhelpful sour faced bunch I have ever had the displeasure to meet. I think there idea of customer care was you are the customer and they don’t care. We were eating in the Kensington restaurant, the service was excellent but the food was only mediocre and at times just warm. The Raffles buffet was good for lunch but far to busy and nowhere to sit, the Waldorf was also good but closed to early for our liking and found ourselves being rushed out of there on most occasions. The theatre entertainment was Ok but nothing like you would get on the other cruise liners. They did have a guest speaker there some days who was talking about his rock & roll heroes and this was very good. There was some entertainment in all of the bars but again just Ok. The ship has had a makeover in the last few years but it’s age is showing, it really does look very tired in places. There were water stained ceiling tiles in most bars and painted over rust everywhere around the deck areas, hence my heading mutton dressed as lamb. The decor is Ok but the seating is so uncomfortable and most of the furniture on the back of the boat was broken. Read Less

We were a family group of six, siblings and spouses, and for all of us a first time. It seemed good value but you’ll pay hefty prices for services, drinks and excursions so be cautious about your budget. It’s an old boat but quite charming with teak decks and some quirky features. It’s difficult to fault the staff who work extremely hard and are almost all polite, friendly and helpful. The exception are the reception staff who, apart from one individual, were unhelpful and abrupt. They seem to need more training in customer service. This was a very staid and generally fairly boring cruise. The customers are on the whole very elderly, and, on the round British cruise, almost all British. The activities are limited and I found them uninspiring. Bad lectures, boring games and quizzes. The performers for the evening show work very hard but the staging leaves a lot to be desired and sound system is poor and flattens the voices of the singers. Take several good books or something to do for the lengthy periods at sea. The food - what can I say- two weeks of very boring and mostly bland food. I’m a vegetarian and the options are v limited. For example, spinach and pasta swamped in bechamel served with chips. I eat fish - but served with relentless monotony with sliced boiled potatoes and carrots. Two weeks of the same meal :(. Meat eaters complained of tough, leathery meat and we were often served luke warm or cold food. We had a booked table in the evenings but ate buffet meals breakfast and lunch. These are better but cafes often v overcrowded and no seats. There’s always bread and butter puddling and custard at lunch time and warm scones for tea. But a buffet salad for a vegetarian - chopped onions, tomatoes, cucumber, olives and cold Brussels sprouts every single day. A couple of slices of cheese. I was desperate for fresh food and leafy veg. Excursions are well organised but expensive. And not very adventurous. If you don’t book an excursion, some ports, Cork for example, mean lengthy complementary bus transfers to get into the city; Lerwick is a short walk from the dock; Kirkwall has a v efficient free bus. Mull was a tender, but v lengthy waits to get onto one if you wanted to go ashore because passengers on excursions take priority. Honfleur a shuttle bus but v close; Bristol a long way from the port, Dublin 30 minutes in shuttle but easy to do; didn’t go into Belfast but it was also a shuttle similar to Dublin. Read Less

We had never sailed CMV before but was seduced by the price, not having to go to Southampton and the option of the Sicily Isles, something on my 80yr old mother’s bucket list. However, the first announcement on board was the cancellation of the Sicily Isles due to predicted bad weather, a frequent occurrence we were later told. The pre-cruise info was fine except when I tried to book port parking too close to departure I was told it’s too late and no we can’t suggest an alternative! Embarkation was fine. Even though I had ticked the box to say we were bringing a wheelchair, apparently you need a wheelchair users cabin which is different to a disabled cabin. So we had to pay to upgrade, luckily there was one or I was told to cancel our cruise! The cabin was a good size for 3 however I don’t know if it was any bigger than a standard outside, for the extra £80.00. The ship is 34 yrs old and on it’s 3rd life but the decor is fine, it’s not like a super new boat but perfectly acceptable except the cabin window which was very worn and you couldn't see that much out of it. Being older I’m not sure if the ship has stabilisers but you could certainly feel her roll about, only in moderate seas. The food was fine, a little limited in Raffles and the lack of tables there was woeful. The shows were fine, they pale if you have seen them on Cunard for example, but perfectly acceptable for a short cruise. The staff helpfulness and friendliness was mixed about 50:50 I would say. HOWEVER, my biggest grumble and the one which spoilt the cruise for us was the almost total lack of disability awareness. No preplanning for wheelchair users, no help with tables in buffet, none reserved for wheelchairs, terrible gang planks- seriously frightened my mother, poor lifeboat drill with no clue what to do with wheelchair in the event of a problem. Terrible trenches at doorways, causing wheelchair to repeatedly get stuck, crew no apparent training on disability issues. I suggest CMV get disability awareness training ASAP. Would I sail Magellan again - no, would I cruise CMV again - very unlikely, would I recommend CMV to friends- would let them make up their mind based on my thoughts. Read Less

This was our first cruise and we loved it, chilled out and took it for what it was..w new it was an older ship and not massive so you can feel the motion if your sensitive to it but my husband and our other dinner guey had great sea legs and felt norhing mot of the time. We got the VIP drinks package and it is definately worth it for all cocktails on menu and nice coffee. The shows were mediocre some good and some not so good but staff work very hard and were always on the go .Fair play to them all, bar staff included. Food was good and plentiful in restaurant and if busy people were very oblinging letting is double up on tables and we meet aome lovely people. All guest were very friendly and engaging throughout . We had fabulous Indian on the Saturday night well worth the extra which was half price on VIP package. We only booked one trip with cruise, cheaper to do it yourself on trip advisor. In Flam booked Segways great fun and super way to see village. Bergen lovely but book seperate from cruise. Our tour guide as lovely though. Nice art gallery in eidfjord. Stravanger nice to walk around. So glad we went. People need to be less critical and not so impatient. Some guests rudeness as nothing short of embarrassing, you can't expect staff to give 100 per cent if guests are rude. Read Less

This was our 5th cruise so we had lots to compare the Magellan to. As it was cheaper than our usual cruises we didn't expect it to be as good as it was. We booked though a local bus company (J McGinley coaches) who picked us up practically at our door and returned us home immediately on disembarking no airports or hanging around a great plus for the holiday.Embarking and disembarking was super fast and efficient and our cases were at the cabin with an hour. The Magellan is older and not as glitzy as some we have been on but we really enjoyed the cruise. The fjords are magnificent and we saw lots of magnificient scenery both on excursions and while sailing on the ship. Food : we managed to get a table for 2 in the Kensington 2nd sitting and we thought that the food was excellent. Small portions but lots of courses and it was like fine dining every night. I loved their consomme style soups we had a different one each night - very high standard. Our waiters Menino from Goa and Kwang from Burma were very charming and looked after us well . I opted for the lobster thermidor one night at £16 extra and it was lovely. We don't like dressing up for formal evenings ( a thing of the past thankfully on NCL who we usually cruise with ) so we ate in the buffet on formal nights. The food wasn't as good as in the dining room and was mostly too cold . The buffet in the evening ends far too early at 8.30 . Our 2nd sitting dinner was only starting then so why so early? The staff in the buffet were no overly helpful they watched me struggle to carry chairs to an empty table and didn't offer to help. Breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea were good but often hard to find a table. They had smoked duck for breakfast quite often amazing! Its a nice touch that they bring around canapes after 10 to the bar area but the calamari is inedible hard and tough . One night they put on a Magnifique buffet at 10.30 with all sorts of starters, salads, suckling pig and desserts but it was too late to enjoy and just after dinner surely this would be better at lunch time? Drinks : We opted for the premium drinks package which included our gratuities and felt we got good value with it although the drinks prices were very reasonable compared to other cruise line . The big negative we had on the Magellan however was the bar service , it was awful, we always waited at least 15 min to get a drink often much longer and frequently had to go to the bar to be served ourselves. Surely they can do away with the need to sign for each drink as well as swiping the guest card. Any other cruise we have been on the card was swiped and that was it , the signing slowed down the whole process . The bar waiters were a bit laid back too and were in no hurry to serve and if you went to the bar to order often just ignored you. The Taverners and Sinatra lounge were the slowest .This is an area Magellan needs to address. Safety Drill The safety drill took far too long it needs to be better organised and more efficient other ships we have been on do it in 15 min. We enjoyed the entertainment , the comedian ( can't remember his name was excellent) and the Broadway night was very good. Abba and We will rock you were not so good but shows lasted less than an hour which was just right . The cabins were fine plenty of room to store our luggage but the walls were very thin when our neighbours had their TV on until 3.am we heard every word of it . Nina our stewardess looked after us well . One thing I really dislike about CMV is that they overlap cruises. We were disembarking in Dublin some guests got off in Liverpool but new guests also got on to start a new cruise.This spoiled our last night as we didn't have our usual dining room table or sitting so opted for the buffet which was chaotic with all the new guests having to eat there . Also the bar closed before dinner from 6.30 to almost 7.30 while the new guests did the safety drill just at the time for our pre dinner drinks. I have listed a few negatives but overall it was a great cruise the disembarking and tendering ran well and we loved our excursions . We didn't really avail of the sunbeds and pool as the weather was cool. The day time activities weren't very good I think the older people would have liked Bingo and we would have likes more interesting talk relevant to the area instead of talks about African animals . We would like to do Iceland and the Faroe island with the company next . Please do away with the outdated dress code we had formal ,informal and causal evenings let everyone wear what they want when they want please and have more tables for 2 not everyone wants to eat with the same group every night Read Less

This is the fourth cruise we have been on, with various lines and destinations. Departed Liverpool, seemlessly, and cruised to Dublin, then on to the Shetlands and then to the Norwegian Fjords. It does amaze me how nit-picking some people are. This was a great value cruise - we weren't paying Cunard prices, and we were taking our two kids. The Magellan was very well run and extremely friendly. Nothing was too much trouble for the staff, and the food in the buffet was very good with plenty of variety (our children loved it) and the restaurants were excellent. Ivan and Oleksandr, our waiters each night were outstanding, and the food was beautifully presented, very slickly served, and the restaturant itself spacious and comfortable. Indeed the whole ship was very spacious, and at no point did we ever feel remotely crowded. Although the clientele were mostly aged 70+, there were enough families on board to make sure it didn't feel like a floating care home. The crew had put on some super activities for families and children, and really went the extra mile. Our cabin was clean, comfortable, and our steward excellent. We purchased four excursions, and while they weren't cheap, they were very well run and we thoroughly enjoyed them all. The Norwegian Fjords are breathtaking, and make sure you visit the Oil Museum in Stavangar - absolutely brilliant and you will love it. Ignore the whingers, some people are never happy. This was a great cruise, on a nice ship, with an really hardworking and conscientious crew. Well done C&MV. We'll not hesitate to travel with you again. AP Read Less

The ship was spotless, and furnishings. Please with the size of our inside cabin, sufficient storage space. Having done a lot of cruises with different cruise lines we found the staff on this ship very abrupt, up to the point of being rude, we had table 40 in Kensington restaurant our waiter had a dont care attitude. The food could of been a lot better you didn’t seem to have a lot of choice.you had to wait a long time for your meals but that’s not unusual. We did the steak speciality meal ( don’t waste your money) it was awfull, they had people walking through with swimwear on not being stopped whilst you were having your meal. Security should of been a lot better we came back on ship once and was not searched. You had to wait a very long time to get a drink in the bars sometimes up to 30mins I think three was a shortage of staff. Read Less

We had a good overall experience on our “Grand Fjordland Splendour” cruise on the Magellan. Overall, we believe that the cruise provided good value for money. Nevertheless, some upsetting incidents arose that could have been avoided, or much better handled, if managers had taken more care of their customers. The ports of call were good, and the excursions, though expensive, were worthwhile. We found the food and cabins perfectly adequate. The gym is good, but the library and the areas for quiet discussion and games are small. Much of the inside space is taken up by the casino, beauty salon, photograph shop and gift shop, which seem designed to make profit for the company, rather than to add much to customers’ pleasure. The singing and dancing shows in the theatre are spirited and appealing, but some singers in the bar areas are over-amplified. Cabin, restaurant and bar staff were unfailingly helpful and pleasant. By contrast, the staff on Reception can be off hand. One we encountered was actively rude. These staff need to be better managed. We had a few occasions in which we needed to speak to the Reception staff. Once we asked for a town map for a port we intended to explore on our own. There were two ladies at the desk. The unhelpful lady did not bother to look, and said that they didn’t have any. The helpful lady said, ‘I think we might have some.’ She got up, looked in a cupboard, and found a pile of town maps. Another unhelpful lady brushed aside a query about changing our dinner sitting. We asked to speak to the restaurant manger. The reception lady replied in an uninterested voice that we had to sort this out ourselves. One night the toilet flush didn’t work. Someone had pushed something down the pan and blocked the loo for several cabins. I called Reception. The lady was uninterested and said that it would be fixed in the morning. In the morning, it hadn’t been fixed. When we went to Reception to find out what had happened, one member of staff was particularly unpleasant. For example, when I asked why we hadn’t been moved to a different cabine as soon as I reported the problem, he said, ‘We have emergency cabins, but you didn’t ask for one.’ There’s a reason for that. I didn’t know they existed, and Reception didn’t tell me. After much persistence, we were allowed to speak to the customer services manager. He recognised that our enjoyment of our holiday had been reduced, and that we deserved compensation that he could not authorise himself. He undertook to write to CMV company management to set out our case, and assured us that CMV would wrtie to us after our return home. We have had no communication from CMV. Management can be slow to respond to situations that arise. Once, we returned from an excursion to find that the tide was low, and that the gangway resembled a limbo dancing pole. You couldn’t enter the ship, even by bending low. Passengers, many of whom had mobility difficulties, were having to sit on the gangway and slide down on their bottoms. Some complained that they had been injured by this. In my case, the only damage done was to my dignity. However, it was not pleasant to hear that a lady had been asked to leave her wheelchair to slide down the gangway. Only after angry passengers had voiced their complaints did management belatedly make tender boats available. This need should have been attemded to hours earlier. CMV needs to ensure that managers and staff responsibie for customer welfare treat passengers like valued guests, rather than like a bunch of nuisances. Read Less

We had a super time onboard the Magellan. Staff were amazing and always smiling. Thr food was fantastic, always hot, plentiful with lots of choice, afternoon tea scones were amazing everyday and the evening meals in the restaurant were superb served by a lovely waiter. The ship was always clean and the itinerary was brilliant. There were activities if you wanted to join in, crafts and cinema on the days at sea. We used the gym a lot on the boat too which had enough machines to help burn off the copious amount of food eaten. Norway was spectacular, it helped that we had such good weather, even in Shetland on the way over! There are a lot of bad reviews on here, however moaners love to find something to moan about and rarely give praise in my opinion! My main gripe (apart from said moaners onboard) is the need for some new tender boats, they are in need of an upgrade! A few of the outdoor areas are maybe looking a little tired and a couple of nights of the main entertainment were not really our thing (other entertainment was available) however none of these effected our holiday, we thoroughly enjoyed it and would definitely use the ship again! Don't let the moaners put you off unless you are one yourself!! Read Less

Lots of hours of boredom. The ship is very old and has "out of service" signs in several services and machines. Entertainig activities are unatended "meetings" mostly and the shows are quite poor and focused on old people. Even Games room has no games but puzzles. Food quality is under the expectations for a cruise and it is unavailable from 8.30 p.m. to 6.30 a.m., in addition to pauses between meals, and the buffet (only place where you can get 2 of the 4 meals in the day) is too small to have seats for all passengers, so it is crowded and uncomfortable. Sound isolation in cabins is almost inexistent and air conditioner makes a consant and annoying noise that could not be fixed for the ship staff (they simply said there was not a solution for that). Worst think: Tender disembarkation system is terrible and makes you loose 2-4 hours in any port where it was necessary to use them (about half of the total). We had to wait 6 hours in Flam and 4 hours in Kirkwall, for example. Tenders are too old, had malfunctions that increased the delays and spelled diesel fumes over the passengers. The worst cruise I have ever been. Read Less

We chose this because of the price and because of the itinerary. Not only did the cruise cover the fjords but there were stops in Dublin, Lerwick and Kirkwall. My partner had never visited Dublin and the stop in Kirkwall offered a chance to visit the Stone Age village of Skara Brae. It was unlikely that we would ever be in the vicinity again so the opportunity was one worth taking. We were conscious of the fact that CMV was at the cheap end of the market but first impressions were good. Check in at Liverpool was smooth and we found the cabin to be clean and spacious. For the first time we had fixed dining. We were wary of being 'stuck' with the same people for eleven days so requested a table of eight. Our fears were ungrounded. We all gelled well and conversation was easy throughout. The food and service in the restaurant was uniformly good. Breakfast in the buffet, although on sea days, a scramble was fine. On the one day that we were forced to have our evening meal in the buffet it was poor - my Lamb Madras was merely stewed lamb with potatoes plus a pinch of mild curry powder which was bland and tasteless. We did not explore the other eating options. Service in the bars was good. If only I could say the same for the entertainment.. Each of the three main bars had its resident act and these acts were on every night. One was a piano bar, another featured a duo singing bland versions of pop hits through the ages, whilst the third had an Irish singer who veered between Irish crowd pleasers and country classics. If this has made him sound like a pub singer then this is essentially all he was. We did attend some of the shows. The Magellan team were truly awful. The dancers were not in sync and the main female singer compensated for her inability to reach even base camp when attempting the high notes by shouting the lyrics. We made the mistake of sitting near the front for one performance and her attempts to ascend the scale actually hurt our ears! Two guest performers were booked - a very average singer and a comedian. Although his jokes, like the man himself were not in the first flush of youth he was far from the worst we've heard. One final observation on the entertainment: the rock 'n' roll tribute featured the much older cruise director serenading the young female singer with Neil Sedaka's Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen. Several passengers found this idea of the older one celebrating the girl's transition to womanhood more than a little creepy. The overall onboard experience was fine. The sea days saw sunny weather so that masked the lack of activities. We have cruised with other lines and the lack of options to fill the days seems to be an issue with all ships. We took only one organised excursion - the Flam railway. Unfortunately the train broke down so we were unable to complete the trip. We had a convoluted journey back to the boat hence our buffet meal (see above). Whilst it was accepted that CMV could not be blamed for the breakdown, we were disappointed that two days later we had heard nothing by way of an apology or refund just a reminder that the full fare would be added to our bill. When we queried this those on the excursion desk felt they had done nothing wrong and that they were 'looking into the matter'. We did eventually receive a 50% refund but customer care was sadly lacking. Several ports required tenders. The tendering was not handled well. CMV operated a scheme whereby no guests could leave the boat until all of the excursion groups had disembarked. When one of the tenders was out of action this led to long waits to leave the ship. A local boat was hired but those on excursions told of their boats being only partially full. When our ticket was called after an hour's wait the boat left with space for many more. One couple we spoke to waited for two and a half hours after collecting their ticket before they could disembark. Another passenger, who travelled frequently with CMV stated that he resented being treated like a second class citizen because he had not bought an excursion. I would cruise with CMV again. The service was fine, the itinerary well thought out, and overall it was very good value. Read Less

Embarkation Firstly if we ever take a cruise from Liverpool when we live near Portsmouth departing at start of school holidays, shoot us! The car drop off was easy, but we were early and it was going to get much busier, without a lot of space to operate in. Parking the car meant following a black minibus for about 1 mile along the main dock road, with lots of traffic lights. This was asking for trouble and sure enough being third in line, at the back meant I had to stop at lights when the others had made it through. Fortunately the driver was very observant and kind, so found somewhere to stop and wait. The trip back was uneventful and the service was excellent. My wife had waited for me in the large seating area (tent) and we had to wait to get on board until our luggage label was called (Red). As we were early, we had quite a wait, which was OK but a number of other passengers with Red labels, just walked into the queue for boarding and got away with it. We were told when we asked that we couldn't get on any earlier. We were in the tent waiting at 13:15. Red was called at 14:00. So for 45 minutes we watched the boarding procedure. Below are our observations: 1. Due to the boarding system, the room cards were handed out at a separate table. Which had up to 3 people searching through stacks of cards alphabetically as in all "M's" were in one stack but not in alphabetical order from then on as "Ma" should have been near the top but was half way down and missed first time through the stack. This was a slow process and meant the 10 people with paddles designed for linking credit cards and checking passports were constantly waiting for people. 2. Most other cruise lines integrate the card/passport checking with giving cabin cards. 3. After 15 minutes someone decided to move the table for handing out cards away from the health form table, which made absolutely no difference as they were still the bottleneck! Due to the very steep slope (and wet) leading down to the pontoon, where the ship was berthed, provision of a bus for people with walking difficulties was a great idea. Thank you. As there were 1,000 people maximum getting on board, it should have been a straightforward process. If they had to cope with 3,000 plus it would have been chaos. Clearly this was not a full time operation. Our hand luggage was not scanned when getting on the ship. We walked on with a full small suitcase and back pack. The luggage reached the cabin before we did, which was great. Maybe due to us arriving early, but that part of the process is definitely efficient. Dining The bistro for lunch has a reasonable selection, though the sugar free lemon mouse had absolutely no taste of lemon whatsoever. The layout is pretty good with space between tables. The pizzas lack a tomato base and have been there for ages. The Waldorf restaurant for dinner is very good and though the portions aren't large the food is served very quickly, the waiting staff are excellent and really work hard looking after the guests. Vegetarians get two choices for main meal which is good. Breakfast in the Waldorf is buffet and the food is alright, The orange juice is squash and it is a bit of a scrum at times. The food is what you'd expect from a buffet. If you want sit down go to the Kensington where it is better and more relaxed. The choice is excellent. Scrambled egg on toast was nice and freshly made but a tiny portion. They even do crispy bacon. Most of our breakfasts were taken here. We met the head of restaurant and chef with other guests with special dietary needs who explained they can deal with most requests, if they knew about them. The guests could get a menu for the next night and write what they wanted or changes and they would make them. They would even cook you something different if there was nothing you liked and the selection of gluten, lactose and not free products were excellent. Shows The shows are of reasonable standard, though not outstanding and the singers/dancers are OK. They do struggle with some songs and the dancers "whoop" at the end of songs which is disconcerting. The cruise director has the best singing voice and also knows how to get out a song, one of the younger singers is also good. The dancers are certainly energetic and put a lot of effort into it. If you sit upstairs down the sides of their show lounge, don't expect to be served a drink at all quickly, whereas downstairs multiple waiters are ready to serve you. On one occasion we waited 20 minutes trying to get attention from upstairs and ended up going to see one of the crew just to get a waiter to come and take my order. Then the drinks took a further 15 minutes to arrive and the show had started, so 35 minutes to get two simple drinks! An earlier attempt only took 10 minutes less! General Ship The ship is compact and bijou. Everything seems smaller and the ship itself is definitely narrower and has corridors down one side of public areas to make larger (e.g. Pub and Sinatras bar). There is no promenade, though you can get completely around the ship on deck 10 via a few doors and steps at the bow. There is also no running track, though the gym does look to be pretty good. The ship seems to roll in the slightest of swells, The North sea was about as flat as it could be 3 foot waves max) yet Magellan rolled on occasions. We've been on much larger ships in over twice the swell and had less movement, maybe it is because it is an older ship? The corridors in the cabin areas is nice and wide, enabling two sets of people to pass easily. The staff are very polite and say good morning... when they see you. Even the receptionist we dealt with over the room was always friendly and polite. The waiters are very efficient and fast with service and always very polite. We were issued with bars of soap for the cabins, but on day 10, why? Ports & Excursions The excursions are good though getting on and off the ship can be fun. The gangway height can be very low and once due to the tide it was too low and they had to resort to tenders, which seemed to cause a stir. They should have known the tide levels. Another occasion, our first tender port, one of the boats had a problem which caused significant delays, why couldn't they just get another boat ready? The excursion deck has really unhelpful opening hours, half an hour in the morning (07:30 - 08:00 - when you are having breakfast & 18:00 - 20:00 when it is first sitting for dinner!). Reception can't help. I understand it is a small ship and crew and they have multiple jobs/roles, but on all other lines we've been on the opening times are much longer. Shetland is a wonderful island group, with plenty to see and do on the main island. Strongly recommend a local guide. Ours was brilliant (Grant). We didn't realise how big the islands were. Puffins and seals were amazing to see, St Ninians beach is our idea of heaven and we'll be back. Olden was great going to the Birksdal glacier, with the ride most of the way up (Troll car). The last bit we had to walk was hard, but we'll worth it. Geiranger going to Mount Dalsniba was brilliant and the views were breath-taking, we were lucky enough to have a clear day. Our guide was excellent too. Eagles road also provided an excellent viewpoint. The Flam railway was the tour we looked forward to most, but it was badly run, just a train (the scenery was good) and a stop for mediocre waffles, jam and cream. The disembarkation from the ship took absolutely ages (over an hour). It was not organised well at all, one boat needed servicing which didn't help. The train was late both ways, and there was very little to do at Vatnahalsen after eating waffles to take up the hour and twenty minutes we had at the top. Please do not expect too much from this tour. Eidfjord is pretty but unless on an excursion very little to do (our excursion was cancelled). We went on the road train which took up an hour, from then on there is little else. Stavanger has quite a few attractions, get in early as with 3 cruise ships in it was definitely busy. Been told the oil museum is interesting. Orkney is much more commercialised than Shetland, and though there are some excellent sites, there are some that are expensive (Scara Brae). It is a lovely place and the views would have been good without the most and rain. Following on from the tender debacles, I have a question for CMV: If you have 1,200 people wanting to get off a ship and the journey, from ship to shore and back takes 30 minutes (I timed it, 10 mins each way and 5 mins for on/off the boat). How long does it take with only 3 Tenders? Assuming 60 people per boat, that is 20 boats worth and 20 boats at 30 minutes each therefore 10 hours! Fortunately not all wanted to get off, but enough did so that as the boats started at 08:15 The people with ticket B (so second non excursion group), were on a boat leaving the ship at 09:20. That is ridiculous! The actual question is, assuming you arrive at the port to go back to the boat at 14:30, there is a long queue and you get on the fifth boat out. As it was raining, how wet are you when you finally get on a tender? Answer: VERY! Therefore, how happy are you with CMV that they only put 3 tender boats on? Answer: FURIOUS! Even MSC tendering in Santorini, from a similar distance out had at least 10 tenders in the water and though they had more people to get back, it only took 5 minutes to get on a boat. To say the whole tendering scenario on Magellan is a farce is an understatement. Apparently we were told they tender boats were restricted due to the pollution they spewed out (which was large amounts and very smelly diesel). Answer get better tender boats. Disembarkation As we are travelling from Liverpool to Portsmouth we want to get an early start back. The problem is that with both of us requiring a stick, with 2 large cases a small one and a ruck sack, there is no way we can use the express service. I.e. Get yourself off the boat. We also have to recover our car from parking about a mile and a half away. We went down to excursions, who have given us black luggage labels so we can get off at 09:10 and not 10:00, which is good. The actual disembarkation process was excellent and very quick. We were called at 08:50 20 mins early, we were met by a fan to take us up to the luggage area, because of having sticks and a steep ramp. Our luggage was easily identifiable and both pieces next to each other (which is a first). The transport to where the car was parked was quick and efficient so we were off home before 09:25. Conclusions There are a number of pros and cons with Cruise and Maritime, or this cruise on Magellan in particular: PROS • Food • Service • Embarkation and disembarkation (cases there each time) • Customer Services getting on and off ship • Destinations CONS • Cabins can be noisy • Cabins have thin walls • Tendering service Read Less

Chose this because of the attractive itinerary, plus the convenience of sailing from UK port with no flights involved. As seasoned cruisers for many years ( principally with Thomson / Marella and NCL) we tried CMV for the first time this year. I will start with the positives:- There is a good staff to passenger ratio, and we found the service was good across all departments. The cabin (6131) was spacious and clean, and well serviced by our cabin steward on a daily basis. The food was of an acceptable quality, and well presented, and served hot. The itinerary was good, with adequate time ashore in each venue. The DISembarcation at Liverpool was very speedy, and we were on the train home in little more than an hour after disembarcation commenced. Now for the negative points. We attended the cruise terminal at Exactly the time given by CMV, Only to find that RED label had already been boarded 1/2 hour earlier, which resulted in some delay to us boarding. The boarding process struck us as being very poorly organised. The dining allocation in the Kensington restaurant, (we opted for the smaller table) was bench seats either side of the table ( 3 people each side) which was very cramped and uncomfortable. We both made the observation that this seating would be more appropriate in a Wetherspoons Pub! On the 2 venues that required tender service the wait was unacceptably long ( 3hrs. in the Scilly Isles, and one and a 1/2 hrs at Guernsey ) This obviously had a detrimental effect on our time ashore. There is considerable room for improvement here. The evening entertainment in the main show lounge was very poor by cruise ship standards. The last evening on board was a "formal" night where passengers dressed for the occasion for the advertised "Gala Dinner" This was quite a damp squib---- The only thing "Gala" about it was the baked alaska dessert. This is not what we are used to on other cruise lines in the same price bracket. To sum up, if you are looking for a no frills cruise from a uk port with no flying involved, then go for it, but there are better deals out there with other companies. Read Less

We booked this cruise as it seemed an ideal way to visit Iceland and the Faroe Islands, something a bit different. Another bonus for us was embarkation in Dublin - no flights! We were onto the ship in 5 minutes. It was very quick indeed. Cases were at our cabin before we were, so top marks to the porters. The ship was, as we knew, an older model, but very good in most aspects except the size of our cabin which was limited in circulation space. I'm no spring chicken, and we knew the CMV demographic, but the age group on this ship was quite the oldest we've ever seen. There could only have been about 10 people under 60 and you had to feel sorry for them!! The buffet was therefore a pretty slow process, as you were constantly holding back behind less agile passengers. We thought Fred Olsen had the market cornered in respect of the nursing home market, but this was a real eye opener. Food was excellent, and our drinks package was more than adequate. Entertainment was not great however. The one show I did venture in to see could only be described as up to the standard of our local amateur dramatic society. Singing and dancing were not up to much. Others of our party did go to further shows, and were appalled at the comedian, but felt the 'crooner' was good and there was a classic night which went down reasonably well too. Music in the bars was decidedly average, but after a few pints didn't seem to matter too much. Reykjavik: We were picked up at the dockside by a local tour company for the standard Golden Circle tour. Geysers, Craters, Waterfalls, Tectonic plates, 8 hours in total, but half the price of the CMV tour, which covered less. Isafjordur: 5 of our party took a walk around the town itself, but I hired a bike and went around the coast for 20 miles, pretty spectacular views, really enjoyed it. Clear blue skies for the afternoon. Akureyri: Went whale watching with a local company, again, cheaper than the cruise ship excursion. Spent an hour watching one particular whale in waters which had hardly a ripple. Took a walk around the town in the afternoon. Again, sun in the afternoon. Klaksvik: Not very much to see here. Just a stopping off point for excursions but we hadn't booked anything here. Dull and wet. Thorshavn: Bigger town, more to see, hired a bike again and climbed out of the town and rode along the coast. Faroes are very bleak and the weather was dull and misty which disappointed some, but is only to be expected. Liverpool was our last port and it was great to visit again after many many years. Lots to see, even if you never left the dockside area. All in all, the number of sea days (5) felt like just too much. Now I know you can't move Iceland any closer, but 2 days in a row on the Magellan was too much. I bring a kindle for reading purposes, but didn't use it at all, so the time must have passed rightly, but the 11 day trip did feel a bit too long for us all, and that was down to the days at sea. All in all, we got what we expected I suppose. We've seen Iceland now, but wouldn't be rushing back. Unlike Norway, for example, which we've returned to with Fred, and would love to go again. Scenery more spectacular and easier to get to! Would use CMV again without a doubt, if the itinerary was appealing. Read Less

We were a group of six friends on the Scottish Isles 8 night cruise from Newcastle finishing somewhat bizarrely in Liverpool. Embarkation was extremely fast and painless. We are gold members and have priority boarding but everyone was boarded quickly. As soon as the car pulled up our luggage was taken and we never saw it again until it was in our cabin. We have been on 4or 5 CMV cruises and enjoyed them all but predominantly on some of the fleets older ships. Whilst the Magellan is not new it is in good condition very quiet and stable. We were upgraded to a superior inner room so didn’t have to row on this trip(we always choose the voyager guarantee and have never failed to get a decent cabin. The food was very good even if the portions weren’t huge but after 5courses I had had enough. We all had a drinks and tip package which I thought was exceptional value. The house wines were ok and all the usual branded spirits available though it seemed odd to me that some coffees were chargeable. We tended to use the main dining room for dinner/ lunch and the bistro for breakfast. We tried the main restaurant for breakfast but the service was too slow for us. The entertainment does seem a bit like a lot of singing and dancing but in different costumes each night but it was light and reasonably proficient We had a comedian for two nights who was OK. He clearly had been doing cruise ships for some time and his material showed this. We weren’t onboard much during the day so didn’t take advantage of the other activities onboard. We won the quiz on the first night but quit while we were ahead. First port was Dundee where we saw a quite a large exchange of passengers. Weather was good so we strolled ashore visited the Discovery and the new V&A (great outside but much wasted space inside) but an enjoyable hour and a half. We also visited Broughty Ferry Castle which was worth a visit. Next stop was Shetland where the weather was a bit wet but we still managed a significant Lerwick town trail walk which now includes Jimmy Peres’s House from the Shetland TV series. Next stop was the Faroes where we had a 35 minute shuttle bus ride to Torshaven which was interesting in itself. We enjoyed another walk around the town looking at some of the older properties with their distinctive grass roofs. An enjoyable day out. Orkney was our next stop in cloudy weather. We have been to Orkney a couple of times so dint see the need to visit scara brae which we would have if it had been our first visit. We were fortunate to witness what seemed the wedding of the year at the cathedral. We also witnessed the “ blackening” of another engaged couple which seemed to involve sitting in the back of an open truck which friends covered in molasses, gunge etc roaring around the town making a lot of noise. The poor groom to be was cling filmed to a stone cross in the churchyard but was freed before the wedding party arrived. A beautiful day and we arrived in sunny Skye to be tendered ashore to meet up with our prearranged tour bus. This was a private tour (sky mini bus tours)for the six of us (£42 each ) and it was really excellent. The beautiful weather helped as did the two knowledgeable locals who did the driving and guiding. We stopped at all the usual sights some of which were quite busy it being a Sunday and having excellent weather. We had a lovely lunch in an old hunting lodge called Flodigarry House which also had Flora McDonald's house in the grounds. The bus dropped off at the docks for our tender. - an excellent all day trip. Next stop Belfast in mixed weather. Here we enjoyed the hop on hop off bus (we negotiated £50 for six old fogies!). We did the full tour then got off at the Titanic exhibition which was excellent. That took a couple of hours but I really enjoyed it as it was a lot to do with the history of Belfast rather than just the sinking and subsequent recovery of the ship. It even included a mini Disney like shipyard ride. On the bus watch out for low hanging branches as my pal had his glasses and heating aid knocked off!!! Then on to Liverpool. Disembarkation was not so smooth due to not using the Ships tannoy to tell you what was happening ( it could be that as we were docked the ship was not allowed to so not to disturb the locals) it meant passengers were constantly querying why they couldn't leave the ship, pa better presence with better communication would have sorted it. There were some anxious passengers needing to catch a train/coach who were left in the dark. A very enjoyable cruise with excellent food and service - pity about the weather!!! Read Less

Actually chose this cruise due to an engine failure on one we booked. Interesting ports around the Uk where few other ships go. Though this is an old ship from Carnival, it was well maintained and clean. Had an inside cabin on deck seven, and was larger than those on Crystal! Food was surprisingly good, especially the dinners in the restaurants. Restaurants were also open for breakfast and lunch and were expertly staffed. Great place to go if one wants to beat the crowds at the main buffet. Drinks were well priced, and did not include a tip. One could actually get a pint of larger (German) for 3 pounds 60 pence! Tours were also top notch. Payment for these were from 40-70 pounds. Only problem I had was with the crew members that were not involved with the passengers (stewards-wait staff, etc) Many could not understand English-tough to communicate with. Read Less

I chose this cruise as it gave us five full days in Iceland among other ports of call. Iceland was fantastic, as were Shetland and Faroe Islands. Nothing happening in Invergordon, so best to take a tour from there. I knew the CMV Magellan was an older ship, only rated 3.5, so I didn't have high expectations. However, although the ship looks rather dated, the cabins were clean and functional and the meals at the restaurants were good - only average at the buffet. Where the cruise really fell down was the lack of organisation and planning for the activities. Most activities were a non-event, but listed every day in the program as an "unhosted" timed activity, e.g. Knit & Natter, Library, table tennis. Other activities were scheduled inappropriately, eg "Chance to Dance" - on twice nightly (not live music though) - both scheduled while passengers were either at the Show or at dinner! One night there was a display of the Chef's food presentation skills at 10.15 pm, when 2nd sitting guests were just leaving dinner. Why would they want more food and why would 1st sitting guests want a second dinner? There was also a dress up "School Disco" scheduled for 10.30 pm at night. The average age of the passengers was about 80!! The activities themselves were described by one fellow passenger as more attuned to occupational therapy activities in a Nursing Home. I couldn't agree more. They were insulting and very uninspiring. The restaurants were quite good, but staff couldn't organise seating. Many tables of eight only had two or four people on them, despite wanting a full table. It wasn't good enough to book seating six months prior. The nightly Entertainment Shows were mediocre. Although many individual staff were quite friendly, the majority of staff and entertainers seemed unhappy in their jobs. Also, I would not recommend booking a "Guaranteed Ocean View" cabin. We were allocated one right in the bow of the ship, with a porthole! We ended up having to pay about 900GBP to upgrade to a mid ship cabin with a proper window. I can only recommend you not to book this cruise line. Another passenger said he'd travelled on CMV's Vasco de Gama and it was even worse than the Magellan. Steer clear and choose another ship that knows how to provide passengers with a good holiday. Read Less

This was our first, but hopefully not our only, cruise so we have nothing to compare against. As first-timers I will say one thing firstly: the instructions given each day were a great help and all the things I worry about (not knowing where to go or what to do) turned out to be nothing to worry about at all. Your hands are well and truly held to ensure you know where you need to be and when. Embarkation was very quick (20 minutes from drop-off outside Newcastle Passenger Terminal to being in our cabin). The cabin was 4119 and was more than adequate for our needs. The ship has a slightly dated feel to it but is clean and bright. Large bars and public areas meant even at the busiest times it didn't feel cramped. We stuck to the Bistro (buffet) and the "Speciality Restaurants" as we're not formal-wear people. The food was flawlessly good. The "Speciality Restaurants" are really "pop-up restaurants" requiring reservations within part of the Bistro's area. The service and food there was absolutely wonderful. The arrival into ports was handled well and it was far easier to walk on/off than I'd expected. We had one anchor port on the itinerary (Lerwick) but they managed to dock in the end so can't speak to how good/bad the tender process is. The main issue was due to our fellow passengers (of a certain age and thus of a certain speed!) which did mean we took to walking out rather than wait for shuttle buses which would take forever to board or get off. We went on two excursions (Jewels of the North in Akureyi and Loch Ness in Invergordon) both of which were well-organised though suffered from similar "speed" issues as the getting on and off the ship did! We went to a few shows, activities and lectures. The shows were extremely well done and the show area is spacious with comfortable seating (lots of leg room which is very important to me!). The activities (quizzes, "gameshows") were amusing enough though we avoided the Knit and Natter due to concerns we might get too over-excited ;) (In all seriousness there was plenty to do for all personalities!). The lectures... weren't so good. One of the speaker's lectures were so full of errors I was able to spot them and I wasn't an expert on their subjects. The other had blurry photos and film which seemed pointless given the lack of quality. Service was great in parts (the restaurants), okay in others (we had a few mix-ups happen around our welcome package which were eventually sorted and refunds arranged without us asking so all was well) and bad, for the most part, in bars. Even if just 6 tables were in use out of the 40 or so available in a bar, you'd be lucky to get successfully served once every 60 minutes. Needless to say this meant we never woke up with a hangover! I'd hold special praise for our room steward and her colleagues on our deck. They were not just always polite when we passed them in the corridor but remembered us and engaged us in personal greetings. Our room was kept immaculately throughout our trip. Overall the positives far outweighed the negatives and we had a really enjoyable two weeks. We'll certainly be cruising again and CMV will at least get consideration when we come to planning our next trip. Read Less

We have recently returned from a 13 night Icelandic cruise from Newcastle on the Magellan and all I can say is wow. This was our 10th cruise and definitely one of the best. I’ve sailed with CMV before, together with Celebrity and Royal Caribbean. The CMV ships can’t complete with the others when it comes to high tech modern features, but neither does they try to. What you get instead is great service, good quality food and drinks and the ability to travel from local ports, which is a major plus point for those of us who don’t live close to Southampton. The itinerary for this cruise was first rate and we enjoyed all of the ports of call, and Iceland itself is magnificent. We were blessed with great weather for the entire duration. I’ve heard the seas around Iceland can get a bit rough, even in summer, but we didn’t have any issues. There was one night when travelling around the north that the seas got up a bit, but the Magellan handled it perfectly and we barely felt a thing. The ship is a little old fashioned in its décor but that’s a minor issue. It’s kept spotlessly clean by a hard-working team. The ship was full for this cruise but there was rarely a problem getting served or finding a seat. I think the most we waited was five or six minutes and this was at peak time. The staff are very attentive and we would usually have our order taken in a couple of minutes. We chose the VIP drinks package which was great value compared to other cruise lines. This included all premium drinks, gratuities, bottled water for the cabin and an invitation to a private cocktail party. It also gave a 50% discount on speciality dining. We ate in Fusion, the Indian themed restaurant twice (stunning food), and also did Chef’s Table, a sumptuous 10 course dinner with wine pairings. Highly recommended. There is also a speciality steak night but I’m not a steak lover so we didn’t try this one. We ate each night in the Waldorf restaurant and the food was excellent. Always hot and good quality with plenty to choose from. I’ve heard complaints that the food could be luke warm but this was never the case in my experience, perhaps these complaints relate to buffet. We only used the buffet a couple of times for lunch as I’m not a fan of self service, but it seemed pretty good to me. As good as any buffet ever gets. The entertainment team were also very good. Some of the shows weren’t my cup of tea so I gave them a miss, but the ones I did see (Broadway, Queen) were very enjoyable. The late night cabaret in the Captains Club was always worth a look too. We’re a couple in our mid-forties and were definitely among the youngest people on the cruise, but I quite enjoyed this. We met some lovely people and had a great time. Things tended to wind down quickly after midnight, but because of the heavy itinerary we weren’t looking for late nights anyway. We did one excursion through CMV – Loch Ness, which was excellent, and booked another independently. In Iceland we took the 8 hour Golden Circle trip with a local tour company for a third of the price of the one on the ship, so I’d recommend doing a bit of research before you go. As it was our first time in Iceland we just went ashore at the other ports and explored on our own. Everything was within walking distance of the ship. Having done a few Royal Caribbean cruises in the last three years, I’d got a bit jaded with their massive ships which are increasingly marketed to families and young kids. They tend to be very noisy and poorly behaved. CMV with it’s adult only policy was exactly what I was looking for this time. I loved this cruise on Magellan and can’t wait to experience her sister ship Columbus in September. Read Less

The ship is lovely and our cabin 4060 was spacious, comfortable and quiet. We had 3 wardrobes - full hanging, half hanging and shelves with safe. Bathroom compact but shower larger than the one on the Marco Polo. The restaurant (Waldorf) was a bit strange to reach from our cabin. You had to go up to deck 9 walk past Captain's Bar, Sinatra's Bar and Tavener's Bar then down to deck 8. The 5 course evening meal had a good choice each night and there was always something I liked to eat. We had a Chocoholic Night one night and Magnifique buffet near the end of the cruise. Both brilliant. We did ship's tours in every port except St.Petersburg (Alla Tour detailed below) and Helsinki - rest day. Dundee and St.Andrews was a wet day. Aarhus and Edeltoft was good and a lovely village to walk round. Warnemunde and Schwerin Castle was good.Tallin was in a small mini bus so saw Upper and Lower Tallin as well as a tour of the area. Stockholm has a lot of road and building work going on so cranes everywhere. This was the only guide who was a bit hard to hear and understand as we think she was Spanish. Our final tour of Copenhagen and Dragar was very good. And Dragar was a lovely old village on the coast. Our visit to St. Petersburg was with Alla Tours and we did the Must See tour. There was 8 in our party and lunch both days was included. First day was 3 courses and second day was 4. Both delicious. Our guide was Katya - a local who was also an English teacher so understanding her was no problem. We were in all the places straight away and in Catherine's Palace the small groups go in through the servant's entrance and tour each room from the right hand side whereas the public and large groups tour on the left and were very crowded. Would highly recommend an independent tour company. When we left the queue apparently was over 40 mins wait in the rain. We visited Church of Spilled Blood, St. Isaac's, The Hermitage (wow), Catherine's Palace, Peterhof Gardens. Also went to the subway and a boat trip. Everything so enjoyable and lovely being in such a small group. Highly recommend anyone to do rather than the large ship tours.St.Petersburg is definitely a MUST SEE and would to have done and seen more. Read Less

Having read previous reviews we were worried about going on our first cruise. Please make your own mind up. We live 20 minutes away so embarkation was efficient and quick. No waiting around in airports for hours. Our room was bigger than we expected with plenty wardrobe space, tea and coffee making facilities and as part of our VIP package complimentary wine and several bottles of water. Sepnash our cabin steward was always friendly and cheerful even though he worked extremely hard cleaning our room at least twice a day. We tended to have breakfast in the waldorf restaurant which was always fresh with plenty choice. You didn't even have to make your own toast as there was always someone to do it for you. Lunchtime we tended to eat from the grill bar which was basically chips, burgers and salad. However there were plenty of others places to eat with plenty of variety. Evenings we ate in Kensington restaurant with themed nights including Greek and italian. Daytime entertainment was basic but a quiz at least once a day but for what we paid we couldn't grumble. We went to A few shows which we enjoyed and there was always entertainment on in the other bars including a pianist and duo. We loved Norway with bergen being our favourite destination especially the funicular railway. The views from the top were spectacular. We did the hop on hop off bus but this was a waste of money as we could walk everywhere as bergen is so compact. We booked 2 trips to Glamis castle and Flam railway which were both good. While we were in Flam we visited the micro brewery which we really enjoyed and if you like beer tasting this is well worth a try. Read Less

We wanted to visit the Baltics and chose this cruise because of the departure from Scotland having previously travelled on this ship to Iceland in 2017 also from Scotland . Embarkation quick and efficient cabin ready and waiting luggage at our door shortly after we got to cabin Cabin Steward Aung Soe quiet courteous and good at his job . Unpacked then time for Lifeboat drill which is mandatory Lovely views of the Tay from the deck things explained well staff very helpful with life jackets making sure no trip hazards from straps . Kensington 2 nd sitting our allocated dining which we went to every night with the exception of our first night and also one evening when we were going to an evening excursion in St Petersburg . Waiters Denys and Thia were excellent at looking after the 6 people at our table ?The ladies at the table 4 of us Recieved red roses one night and hand made origami flowers on one other evening .The company at table all lovely and we had a good time . Shows in Show lounge all good some I preferred .One evening the artist from Hamptons did a show in the main showroom and it was Fantastic Gerswin,s Rhapsody in blue one of the notable pieces but both artist gave great performances .Show Team good fun and Orchestra Great .Cruise Director Changed at Copenhagen to the same one we had on Iceland Cruise .We welcomed this as Toby is a great performer and joins in with the Show team . We discovered Hernan the Guitarist in Taveners Bar and most evenings caught a good bit of his performances Hernan a solo performer with great guitar skills and his music choices suited our taste . We caught snatches of game shows and cabaret in Captains club Particularly enjoyed Stephanie solo cabaret where she had chosen great old songs which suited her voice In Magellen Show lounge we enjoyed the From Russia with love show in particular. Food overal is very good .Bacon tends to be a bit hard at breakfast other than that I had no complaints .Always something on the menu choice I could have . Craft classes I managed to get to 2 which I really enjoyed Art classes my husband and I both Attended and found Nina,s classes very helpful .We attended Dave Wrights lectures and he filled the Show Lounge he was so good and informative about all of his subjects from the Romanovs to Mary Queen Of Scots .Didn,t manage to get to the pop music lectures from a different Lecturer as they clashed with other things we were doing .Prebooked leisurely shore excursions in most ports and enjoyed all of them especially the Russian Folklore show which was fantastic .Weather was mixed but overal not bad considering the time of year early May 2019 Overall we had a great cruise met some lovely people Both staff and passengers and returned to Scotland Getting off ship organised well waiting in allocated areas till staff member comes to collect you . Read Less

This is our 5th cruise, the 3rd on the Magellan. We were sent tickets and purple luggage labels, booked for parking at Newcastle. Boarding turned out to be horrendous, something went seriously wrong which CMV blamed on the Port Authority. Eventually on board cabin 5193, right on the stern, deck 5, Baltic. All went well until 2-am, woke up by horrendous noise, props and bearings, followed by every imaginable noise a ship could make at one hour intervals. Phoned reception followed by visit to reception. Asked for change of cabin, refused at that time, was offered a temporary inside 4 berth cabin for the night, we refused that on the grounds we might have to stay there, so no sleep that night. Docking was even worse, continuous noise early morning docked at Dundee, we packed our bags. Visited reception for change of cabin, no can do until boarding has completed. Phoned local Dundee Taxi company for price back to Newcastle, they text me back £350. Waited and waited for info. Eventually told reception that unless we receive a like for like cabin before departure we will leave the ship and CMV can pay for taxi back to Newcastle. This seemed to do the trick and we were offered suitable like for like cabin on the same deck. Sorted and we thanked the staff involved. Day 2 was the start of our cruise, we can put all that happened behind us. New Cabin good, very clean, coffee and tea making facilities in all cabins which is a great bonus, lovely male Steward who was attentive throughout. As a rule we always try and give the Cabin Stewards a break, so making up room does not have to be every day, they are always there if you need them. Food as always very good, we never use the restaurants, that is our choice, we prefer to use the Bistro on deck 10, purely for choice and we can pick our time to eat. Always something there for everyone. Plenty to do and see on the ship on sail days or just relax and socialise. Noticed sick bags out at Dundee and at various other times although the sea was never rough, slight bobbing but gentle all the same. Unusual for us we decided to book shore excursions, we normally do our own thing, but as we had to book Russian excursions we thought what the hell. Actual excursions well organised and a good variety, (very good description of actual excursions so you know what you are letting yourself in for). Excursions are good value for money. All excursions start with a coach journey, this is where we noticed an abnormal amount of coughing. A lot of passengers were complaining of a sore throat. Further into the cruise the problem seemed to get worse, more people coughing, the general consensus was the air conditioning. Up to now we were not affected. We arrived at St Petersburg and disembarked for our excursion, half day at the Hermitage. This is a busy excursion and nonstop once you are in the venue. Two of our party went missing and were found outside, they did not seem well and said they needed air. Back on the ship by afternoon my Wife complained of a sore throat. As seasoned cruiser's we take every kind of medication just in case, so after taking this my Wife settled a bit and it was "carry on cruising". The second day in St Petersburg we were at the Yusipov palace and Waterways. This was a fabulous excursion for anyone going to St Petersburg. However it was marred by increased coughing, by the time we were back on ship it was noticeably worse among the passengers. Also we noticed passengers walking around with cannulas attached. My Wife's condition worsened throughout the day and evening, our own meds were not working. My Wife does suffer from COPD following Lung Cancer three years before. We always visit our G.P. before cruising for "Fit to travel purposes". By late evening things were that bad we had to visit the dreaded Medical Centre (no one wants to end up here). Upon initial assessment my Wife was immediately put on an I.V. Drip with Anti-Biotics (one hour) followed the next morning by another one hour I.V. drip with anti-biotics and face mask nebuliser. This was followed by two further treatments lasting one hour each. Various tests were carried out via a blood test. All tests proved negative. Diagnosis Pneumonia / Chest infection. Whilst these treatments were taking place a lot of other passengers were receiving the same treatment for the same problem, one elderly lady was very bad. This was a very busy Medical Centre. I have to say the care and treatment was first class. Eventually my Wife was discharged, however we were confined to Ship at Stockholm and no arranged Excursion at Alborg (we had a gentle walk here although limited). Elsewhere on the ship this was becoming an epidemic with coughing from every quarter so much so we spent a lot of time in our cabin to avoid the problem. The worse part was in the theatre where you could hardly hear the guest speaker for coughing all around. As far as I know and saw, one chap was airlifted off by Helicopter, he was being treated while my Wife had her last treatment, one person left at Stockholm for emergency operation. We heard of one being left at Russia and one at Alborg. Talking to a passenger (coughing became a talking point) a maintenance team turned up at her cabin to fix the bathroom door, (no problem known to her) however miraculously the door repair yielded a new shower head??? Make of that what you will. By the time we left Alborg my Wife was feeling better, albeit she still had a very sore throat which we treated with hot honey drinks. I have to ask the question. What was lurking aboard the Magellan? I have never known a problem like this on all our other cruises and it was quite worrying. Disembarkation, we were sent two light blue luggage labels the evening before. We came on with purple and guessed this was because of cabin change, light blue also denoted SAGA cruisers. Back to reception and after explanation we were given purple luggage labels (remember the car park), so on the day we disembarked with all the other purples, only to find we were an hour late and that service had ended. We were told we should have had lime green labels (yep I am still working on that one). However CMV were very good and we had a coach and escort back to the car park. Now I said earlier the "dreaded Medical Centre". The final bill for this was £4600.00. Now we have insurance but as with all insurances there ARE RESTRICTIONS AND RIDERS, one of our restrictions is COPD. As the diagnosis was Chest Infection Primary and COPD as secondary we are hoping the insurance passed the treatment as we were allowed to disembark. DO NOT CRUISE WITHOUT FULL INSURANCE. My Wife has visited our G.P. and further blood tests have been taken. She is still unwell and is being monitored. I would like to say that this was a good cruise, but the health issue has left us with no memorable thoughts. Of course the staff were brilliant as always, they all work very hard to please you. Will we cruise again? We have a cruise booked next year on the Marco Polo, but seriously after experiencing what we have just gone through........................... Read Less

My husband and I traveled to London from America to celebrate my 60th birthday . It was our first time to be in Europe and it's beautiful. I would rate the places we went as Very Good. Embarkation and disembarkation is OK. I was so disappointed with the ship . Our cabin is in the 4th floor and once you get in the hallway it smell like SEWER. I heard people complained about the smell. But nothing was done about it. The Entertainment show is so horrible that some people walked out of the show. It was amateur singer and dancer. The singer are out of tune and you can't even tell if they were singing or screaming. The outfit of the dancer are so tacky and the performance is so horrible. The magician who did the show his magic trick could be done by a 10 year old. So amateur and so CHEAP. It's laughable. We been cruising quite a bit and entertainment is big for us. We always look forward for good show and was never been disappointed . But this ship the show they gave us is very insulting. CMV need to hire Professional people to entertain their customer. AT breakfast or lunch people talked about how bad the prior night performance was. There's nothing to do so you end up watching half the horrible show and walked out . If you like their activities like Board game, Darts tournament, carpet bowl, table tennis ,Knit & Natter , Bridge and song from the 40"s then this is your ship. We were bored beyond bored. Try to watch Tv on your cabin they only give you 1 movie all day. The food is Ok I won't complain about it. They need to improved their customer service. Excursion is Ok and I like the countries we went. When we came back to America I was asked by co worker , friends & family about the cruise line. I told them NEVER take a cruise with CMV Voyages Magellan. It's not a cruise ship that you recommend to friends and family. Read Less