For those that would be concerned about getting on and off the ship with so many passengers vying for vital places in the variety of lines - it not could not be easier or faster. The huge airline hanger sized building accommodated everyone in sections depending on how many cruises you had been on. The suite guests had a small cordoned off area with comfy seats and coffee, just close enough for the diamond plus guests to chunter away about how much they had given the company for the same style of chair as the first time cruisers. Although to be fair, not one of the 6,000 or so guests would have been kept away from their buffet lunch for too long. As for getting off at the end - I used the self disembarkation process which saw me in a taxi within 15 minutes.

First impressions of the ship, after what seemed like a full day of exploration were simple - it is quite simply the best cruise ship in the world. All of the public areas were either classy, or suitably gimmicky to satisfy anyone's needs. But the real winner was the undeniable fact that it simply has more on it and more to do on it. What will probably surprise some will be the negatives that I will have to attach to that statement. So much so, that I should re-iterate first - this is the best cruise ship in the world.

Living accommodation - our standard balcony room on the 6th floor seemed tiny, but it may have been an optical illusion because the couch appeared bigger than any I have seen before, but the bathroom smaller. The bathroom layout was acceptable, but it is really the smallest space any mathematician could come up with that a human could fit into. The closet was cramped in by the bed, but as an amateur contortionist I was able to reach anything in there with the help of a neatly constructed coat hanger grabber. Sadly the safe was clearly too small to fit in the diamond ring I promised to buy DW in St Thomas. The balcony was, as usual, large enough to host the Philharmonic Orchestra on. So big in fact that we wished we had brought our cat along to swing it around. There was a room highlight though - the flat screen TV had all the interaction you could ever dream necessary. It will become the industry standard, shortly followed by the Internet equipment that is so difficult to use you can't help but part with money before you have worked out how to use it. Read more