Having been on 40 plus cruises each costing between $900 and $1700 dollars for seven days, I thought how good can this cruise that we got for $169 for four days (plus $50.00 spending per cabin) be? But since we are almost local (San Diego to Long Beach) I thought "what the heck". We'll give it a try. Boy, ! it really surprised and delighted us!

First off you must understand that the ship is older (1995) and doesn't have the huge selection of balcony cabins. However, it is very clean and very well maintained.We (my husband and I) had the lowest of the cabin classes -- inside upper and lower. But since we seldom spend much time in the cabin unless we have a balcony the price saving was great. Embarkation was easy, but finding the correct pier at Long Beach was a little tricky. Not clearly marked. Follow the signs to the Queen Mary. No plastic soft drinks...only cans. We did take a 1.5 lt. wine and had no problem. On arrival at our cabin they gave us two 1.5 lt. waters at no charge.

The food was the biggest surprise. The lido was a little iffy, but the main dining room was very good. The have breakfast there every morning (not just sea days like most ships) and on our one sea-day they had a very nice brunch. Lunch was usually in the lido or at Guy's Burgers or the Mexican restaurant by the pool. Dinners were EXCELLENT. I think they compared to any of the ships I have been on. Soups, both hot and cold were amazing. No lobster, but everything else was top shelf.We had anytime dining and seldom had to wait more than 10 min. Also they tried to seat us with the same waiters each evening. We had room service for coffee every morning and it was prompt and correct. Read more