We chose this cruise in order to visit countries we may not otherwise have seen and especially to see St Petersburg. This was our first cruise and we enjoyed it. The ship was impressive with a range of places to eat and drink, well appointed cabins and courteous staff. We do not go in for the kind of entertainment on offer on cruises but enjoyed a couple of interesting talks and went to the Limelight club one night. Service there was poor and Clare Sweeney not to our taste but others seemed to enjoy it. We chose freedom dining and were allocated the Meridian restaurant where we were able to have a table for two whenever we wanted one. Food there was generally good. We also ate at the Epicurean but for us the stand out culinary delight was at Sindhu which was first class in every respect.

Our only major disappointment was with the food provided on the Simply St Petersburg excursion. The cost was clearly pared to the bone and the food was revolting. The tour itself however was excellent with a well informed guide who took us to some fabulous places. We particularly enjoyed Stockholm, Oslo and Bruges as well. Tallinn was interesting but we were a bit rushed by the guide. Could have done with longer in the town itself.

We felt the black tie evenings to be a bit archaic and irrelevant but went along with it. Overall we really enjoyed ourselves and felt it was generally good value for money and a great experience.