We chose this cruise due to the destinations offered and we immediately disappointed when we weren't able to stop at our first port due to a 7-hour late departure due to wind at Southampton. My question about this is why didn't the captain dock aft end first, like the other 4 cruise ships in the harbor who were all able to leave on time? The afternoon wind was well reported and a known issue.
The second problem was the Horizon Buffet. We like casual dining but were quite disappointed in the quality of the food as the week progressed. Powdered eggs, frozen hashbrown patties, rubbery fried eggs from sitting under the heat lamp way too long are NOT my idea of quality food. The lack of variety was another issue. They served virtually the same menu every day of the week. Also, they frequently closed half of the buffet which caused us to have to sit out by the pool which reduced our enjoyment. We did enjoy dinner in the larger dining rooms. The food was well prepared and flavorful. All of the main dining rooms serve off of the same menu.
There were a limited number of excursions available. The excursions we took went to interesting places, but most of the stops were too rushed and crowded to enjoy. When they say photo stop, plan on spending most of the time walking to and from the site, with a few brief moments to snap a shot or two if you can get them through the crowds since all of the buses seem to arrive and depart at the same time. One of our tour guides said the tour we took was designed to be 8 hours but was condensed into 4.5.
The room was clean and comfortable. The bathroom was in need of some repair. There was grout missing near the sink. The cabin had plenty of closet room.
Our steward was very attentive and personable.
photo stops at 2 of the castles were so short that we didn't have time for more than a few quick snap-shots, no time to enjoy and explore the surroundings.
Like we found with the other bus tours on this cruise, there is not enough time at any of the stops to really enjoy all of the surroundings.
The photo opportunity would be enhanced if they had stopped at the bottom of the ski jump. They let us off at the visitor center half way up.
5 or 6 buses arrived at Vigeland Sculpture park all at the same time which left us herded through in a crowd of people, all getting in each other's way and making it impossible to get good photos and unable to really explore the artwork.