We arrived in Venice 1 day earlier which was a good thing as our luggage arrived 1 day late. On the Saturday before the cruise we went to P.Roma at approximately 12pm and it was rather chaotic - plenty of buses and people. We could have followed other cruisers dragging their luggage over the bridge towards the port terminal but we opted for the People Mover (1 Euro for 1 way) that takes you to the entrance of the port. We dropped off our luggage and followed the directions towards the check in terminal. Everything was well signposted and although there were a lot of people at that time, we did not wait in long queues and we were on the ship within a few minutes. We had a leisurely buffet lunch at the Great Outdoors and by 2pm our cabins were ready. I have no idea at what time the luggage arrived because when we got to the cabin after the sail away from Venice, it was already there. We had an inside cabin on Deck 5 - no complaints about the cabin itself. No noise, very well designed with plenty of packing space and a nice bathroom. The bed and linen were of good quality and we enjoyed the towel animals a lot!

PORTS: We took only 1 NCL excursion in Split: River rafting on Cetina River. Everything was very well organised and it was great fun, but be prepared that it is +- 3 hours of rowing and you have to be in a reasonably good physical condition. We were very tired but enjoyed the scenery and a nice lunch which was included in the price. After arriving back at the port, we still had time to wander around the beachfront before catching the tender back to the ship. In Corfu, we walked around the old town and along the beachfront. It was a rainy day, so in our case it was probably a good idea not to explore the island but we have heard that the scenery on the island is amazing. We had our share of bad luck because we could not stop at Santorini due to very rough seas and strong winds. We were obviously very dissappointed but the Captain was very apologetic and explained the situation very well. Our safety was their main concern and none of the other cruise ships were able to stop there either. We went straight to Mykonos which we loved. The narrow streets and white buildings are charming. It is quite a walk, but we went to Ornos Beach - a beautiful sandy beach with comfy chairs and umbrellas. The last stop was in Iraklion. We walked to the bus station across the port and went to Knossos Palace by bus. If you are into history, you will enjoy this but we are glad we did not spend more money on an excursion.

ENTERTAINMENT: We loved Valerie & Ilia (acrobats) as well as World Beat. There is so much to do on the ship that we did not watch all the shows. The Game shows were hilarious while we also enjoyed the themed parties in the Spinnaker lounge. There is really something for everyone and if you don't feel like anything that is also fine! Gary, the cruise director was great. Read more