On the whole this was a perfectly acceptable ship and line but there are some things of which potential cruisers should be aware: This was an Italian cruise line out of Italy so English speaking folks were in the minority--not much of a problem as the crew members speak so many different languages.

Though the water is perfectly fine to drink from the tap they will not give it to you at meals (except for one small glass at breakfast only). You will have to buy ALL beverages including water, soda, wine, coffee and tea in the restaurants. In the cafeteria, which is only open certain hours, they have a water dispenser with juice-glass-sized cups. US and Canadian guests get vouchers for 1 L bottle per cabin per day, which is not much when divided among 2 or 3 people. However, no one objected when I purchased a bottle of wine and some Diet Coke on shore and brought it back to the room, or walked into the restaurant with a re-filled liter bottle of water.

I have never seen so many children on a cruise ship. They weren't badly behaved, but it seemed at least 1/3 of the guests were under 18, so be prepared for crying babies at dinnertime. Too many to be occupied by a children's program. Forget the children's pool, which is a wading pool the diameter of a small jacuzzi, and no adult's-only pool. We also had a family that always returned from some late program about 11:30 and had no problem with their children running and shouting up and down the hall every single night. Read more