Another wonderful cruise for our second Trans-Atlantic! This 15-day Trans-Atlantic paired six amazing European ports with nine relaxing sea days. Not surprisingly, the passengers were almost all Princess platinum or elite sailors - most everyone was standing in the priority check-in line! My fellow sailors were nearly all retirement age or older. This itinerary was quite popular - and the ship was nearly all booked.

What to know about the Emerald Princess: If you want to walk outside for exercise, the Promenade Deck straddles both Deck 7 and 8, making it tough. Instead, go to the track on Deck 18 - although you walk 16 times around for a mile!

Activities included port lectures by Carla (pretty awesome...) and first-run movies - my favorites. Lectures on the nautical and technical aspects of the ship were popular. Several arts and crafts were available but tended to conflict with port lectures. Trivia was held multiple times each day and vigilantly attended by its fans. There were presentations on finance and retirement planning which were very elementary. Read more