This old and tired ship is well past its sell-by date and unbelievably Saga are renaming it back to Pearl 2 which it was before it became Quest for Adventure. I booked the holiday as Saga usually have special events to introduce solo travellers - not this time sadly and it was the subject of many complaints. Having paid a great deal for an outside cabin, the window was caked with dried salt and never cleaned the whole cruise. This applied to large picture windows in the library area as well. That is normal routine cleaning on all ships but not this one.

I found the amenities sadly lacking and the small swimming pool with rusty steps very uninviting. The main sunbathing deck was under the funnel which sometimes belched out filthy black smoke, depositing soot particles on the sunbed cushions below.

Entertainment apparently had to be provided by the wonderful overworked crew and it was embarrassingly amateurish. Saga need to pay for real entertainers as there were only 2 singers and 2 pianists provided. The Discovery Lounge is not designed to watch shows as there is no raised stage or tiered seating. Views are also blocked by pillars. The cinema was a joke as the small screen could not show widescreen films and only basic seating provided. Read more