We booked this cruise for my father's 75th birthday. Eight of us attended including my two year old son. While most of us were relatively new to cruising, we were excited to share my parents love of the open seas so we joined in with open minds.

Things were grim from the start - the overall boarding experience felt more like a funeral service than a joyful cruise! No one even smiled at us much less welcomed us onboard for a from and delightful experience: The ticket agents, the people that directed the traffic, the security guards and even the crew on board all performed their duties perfunctory and with no apparent happiness.

And with only a few exceptions, the solemn attitude extended to the crew onboard as well. The wait staff was the notable exception that seemed to try, and a few of them were genuinely lovely, but for the most part, the rest of the crew and staff we encountered (from our cabin steward, to the people that made the fancy coffee, to most of the cocktail servers) seemed resigned to be there. Read more