Itinerary is what motivated us to take this cruise. The idea of free shore excursions was also a minor factor. The ship was beautiful. The furniture throughout the public rooms was comfortable and attractive. I wish they would have put the same into the suites. I was told that the smaller cabins had one comfortable chair in them. The shore excursions were handled poorly. Everyone was to meet in the theater them walk down a deck or two, depending upon the location of the gang plank, as a mob. Many people would simply avoid meeting and take one of the elevators to the disembarkation deck and blend in with the mob. A few times we had people returning to the ship while a mob was disembarking which created gridlock as you had a narrow exit and limited areas to stage people. No one from the ship was ever around to supervise or guide people. Returning to the ship was a nightmare a few times with people lined up the length of the ship trying to return. The bottle neck was the security section once you got onto the ship. The staff did their best but this was constantly the worst embarking experience ever. The food was very good to excellent. The service was hit or miss. The most of the staff had excellent friendly attitudes and were very helpful. Almost all of the included shore excursions were simply bus rides. The guides, in most cases, were knowledgeable and nice. So, you have mediocre bus rides coupled with poorly planned disembarkation and embarking which did not make your day pleasant. Even with all the negatives I can recommend this ship and cruise line for those who are not avid cruisers which have experienced luxury at sea. One suggestion I would give you if you tour the Baltic is visit the Vasa museum in Stockholm.