We were very interested in seeing both the North/South Islands and specifically Milford Sound. In fact we were one of the 25 passengers who booked the ship's excursion to get off the ship for thee days/2 nights and rejoin the ship in Port Chalmers so that we could really experience Fiordland National Park and Queenstown. This was the main purpose of choosing this cruise. Due to rough seas on the West coast, this was cancelled. A huge disappointment. To make it worse, the Captain came on the speaker system for no more than a minute to say that we would be skipping this port. [Found out later that skipping this port is not uncommon.] No detail information, no empathy expressed. This lack of communication from the captain was typical of him throughout the cruise. Other reviews have also commented on the lack of the other Officers presence, especially the Hotel Director. We agree.

We had 5 full days at sea with lack of supplies. [eg. Bartenders were hiding supplies from each other, spoiled lettuce, no fresh berries at breakfast.]

Overall service in the restaurants were mediocre. Poor training. Except for the waitress, Anjde, table 50, in the Compass restaurant who was excellent. Read more