I chose this cruise as an alternative to visiting the Pacific again. I stayed in Southampton prior to the cruise taking the NEX bus down from Heathrow T3 for £19. Very easy to do and it took less than 2h.
Embarkation was running smoothly until they had a problem with the gangway and they didn’t board passengers for at least half an hour. Of course, people kept piling into the terminal. They kept announcing for people to sit down but there weren’t any seats left! Eventually they began boarding in priority order…elite first. As I had a non-EU passport, it was taken off me and returned after we left Lisbon on Day 11. A photocopy was sent to my cabin to carry with me while ashore.
I was really pleased with my cabin when I saw the big TV, great for viewing and I also had tea and coffee making facilities which I was not expecting. My kind of room.
I loved the big TV. I also enjoyed looking at the ship location app each day. Great to have tea and coffee making facilities in the room. It should be standard on all ships. The bed was very comfortable, liking sleeping on a cloud. The cabin steward was very helpful and professional. The window was partly obstructed by a lifeboat but plenty of natural light got into the cabin. Plenty of room for one person. As a solo traveler I love the obstructed oceanview rooms when you can get them for a few hundred dollars more than the interior cabins. I like deck 8 so I can use the stairs a lot of the time. However, on some cruises they are a lot more expensive so I just get an interior cabin.