We chose this particular cruise because we wanted to return to the Mediterranean, which we had not seen for many years and we like the itinerary. In addition, we liked the option of adding Madrid to the beginning of our trip. That extension was lovely and we thoroughly enjoyed the high-speed train from Madrid to meet the ship in Barcelona.

The ship and amenities more than met our expectations. The crew was delightful and very attentive. We had a waiter we really enjoyed in the main restaurant and were pleased that we were able to have the same waiter each night we ate in that restaurant. We felt the meals were handled very smoothly, with open seating. The food was excellent in all the food venues.

The shore excursions, both included and additional, varied in quality. We were pleased with our excursions in France and Corsica, particularly. Less satisfying were the Italian excursions. The additional trip to Pisa and Florence did not allow for entry into any of the main sites and the Rome included excursion mainly consisted of drive-by of some of the major places of interest.