We live near New Orleans, so we had friends drop us off at the terminal around noon. Embarkation was easy, twenty minutes or so. Ate lunch and found our room ready. This was the first lifeboat drill we've been to that did not require you to bring your life jackets...good. However it concluded with an en mass hike up two decks to the lifeboat boarding area...bad.

The room set-up for a double bed is odd and requires one person to crawl over an immovable small table to get into the far side of the bed. The bathroom was functional and did not require a step-up. Our cabin steward did a fine job, although I was surprised that he never introduced himself.

We tried the buffet for breakfast and were astounded by the number of people who heaped food onto not one but two plates with bacon being hoarded like it was gold. The volume of food waste is appalling, but what can you do? Lunch and dinner in the main dining room was much more pleasant. We enjoyed meeting the three other couple at our table. The food was good, but far short of great. We did opt to do the Chef's Table one night and it was excellent. The quality of food and wine, enjoyable entertainment, and a chance to tour the galley made the cost worthwhile. Read more