After watching the tv show cruising with Jane McDonald, we decided to give it a try, as she had an amazing time. The boat was amazing clean modern well kept, the food was fantastic breakfast, lunch and dinner great choice of food. the service was great, polite friendly so well mannered nothing too much trouble very attentive . A lot of the trips where included, the guided tours where very informative, gave in site and place to visit, the guides where all local and very knowledgable. Very relaxing when cruising to out next destination Ideal for complete relaxation on board, we used the pool and sun deck On board services where great something for every one, the high light was being invited on the last night to join the captains table for dinner We defiantly recommend and would use emerald again would look to go on another emerald cruise at a different location Read Less

We’ve sailed with p & o on several occasions now, and I choose P & O because I loved the attentiveness of staff, the cabin cleanliness and the quality of the entertainment. Unfortunately, for us, it didn’t match to our expectations. Our room was spotless, as was the whole ship. The attentiveness of staff was very lacking. We could go int9 a bar and not be served for over half an hour. If we went to the bar to request a drink, we were told to sit down and someone would come and take our order. Mostly, they didn’t. The entertainment was disappointing too. On previous P & O Cruises we have always found the theatre shows to be outstanding and so much entertainment on in the Horizon magazine that we have been virtually running from one venue to another time catch the great acts. Sadly, not on this cruise. I’m not sure if it was the fault of the entertainment crew or not but why would you put Whitney House n soundalike in one theatre and Diva’s in the other on the same night?! Again one night with a magician in one place and a mind reader in another?! It didn’t make sense to us. The resident band Pulse, thought they were better than they obviously were. One thing for everyone to bear in mind when booking a cruise to the Norweigan Fjords is that there cannot be any sail away parties on top deck as it’s against Norwegian policies to have music on deck at any of the Norwegian ports. This is something that’s not made aware to you when you book the cruise. Also, you cannot use plastic Britannia flags at a ‘sail on’ anymore and neither do they give them out (because of the harmful effects on the enviroment). We had a sail on party in the Atrium instead but it’s no where near the same. I’m not trying to sway anyone’s mind here, this is just a view of hw we found our cruise. I was shocked how different this cruise was to m last one with Pn& O but I’m not sure entirely what.m Read Less

We went on a Backroads biking cruise, and for this purpose a river cruise was great. The AMAWaterways staff was wonderful - interesting, always willing to help, and just generally very competent. I can't say enough - the staff made the trip. It's a small ship, and they did the best with what they have. The music was great, the facilities were spotless, and they had a decent selection of fitness classes which is nice because the exercise room is pretty minimal (2 people max, bike and treadmill). Logistics were great. The food was very "American" - no local cuisine. That's a shame because the countries traveled on this cruise had fantastic food. That said, it was plentiful and of good quality and fresh, and while a bit on the bland side for my tastes, there were a lot of choices, and the service was great. Having a local option would have been nice. The wine choices were limited but excellent - better than average for a cruise. The exercise guy had a lot of classes, and there were a lot of excursions and walking tours. The top deck has chairs and a bar which is nice for viewing. Read Less

This is my 26th cruise and the first on Emerald Waterways, I did not expect it to be as good as some I have been on, but the whole cruise exceeded my expectations, the ship is beautiful, spotlessly clean with superb staff, I fully recommend Emerald Sky as a truly great value for money cruise From the moment we joined the ship in Vienna, we got a great city tour on the Sunday, Monday we went to Budapest, once again a city tour with a great guide gave us an insight to this lovely city, When we were leaving Budapest, we were all on the top deck enjoying drinks and watching the lights as we sailed down the Danube, Our next stop was Mochas in Hungary where we visited the beautiful walled city of Pecs, it has a beautiful Bassilica and Synagog, We then visited Novi Sad in Serbia and on to Vukovar in Croatia where we were treated to lunch in a local house to taste local food, a lovely warm welcome and great hostility. Our final stop wes Belgrade, a lovely city tour with a guide who could make a living as a comedian, In the afternoon, a visit to the opera house, I would never have believed that one could have such access to behind the scenes, made all the more memorable when we had champaigne and two beautiful singers sang four arias from popular operas and stayed and talked to everybody, the display of costumes was fantastic, A trip to remember! Lar Sheeran Read Less

My 10-days with AMAWaterways in Prague and on the AmaDante were totally wonderful. The suite was extremely comfortable, the food and beverages were exceptional, the staff was incredibly thorough and attentive while remaining almost invisible, and the excursions were well organized and varied. I met so many delightful people and saw incredible historic sites, while enjoying wine and beer tastings, and hikes and exercise. Our tour director provided activities for all levels of ability, and I was glad this included “active” options. Just spending time on the sun deck or in my stateroom with the floor to ceiling windows was great, too. This was officially a “wine cruise” and we had an onboard winemaker who guided us through tastings of the wines from the different regions through which we traveled as well as providing samples from his winery. Combined with the four- course dinners and the other meals (breakfast, late risers parties, lunch, tea, tapas, and late night snacks), it was a true “foodie” delight. I’m already looking forward to the next cruise with AmaWaterways. Read Less

Rooms are like prison cells. Bathroom is tiny you literally can’t move in it. For a ship of this capacity the swimming pool is the size of a bath. The outdated rules of no shorts gets boring especially when men are allowed to dinner in scruffy Adidas trainers. Not only are you woken up early with the annoying, pointless announcements but the ship is a dictatorship. Never cruised before and because we booked through a 3rd party we weren’t informed of the dinner attire rules, we was reprimanded for not booking direct with p&o but p&o still accepted the booking and happily took our money via 3rd party. Avoid this ship. It’s tired and lacking any character or luxury. You can hear every noise the cabin next door/ above makes also. Drawers constantly being pulled in and out. Entertainment was dated and not much for children in fact the only child’s disco that was organised what set at the same time of the black tie event so nobody showed up. When eating at the buffet you practically had to beg the waiters to take your drinks order otherwise they just avoid you. I went and asked one to order a drink and he told me to go to the bar. Many of the wait staff are arrogant and unhelpful. Would never cruise again and would advise anyone considering it to avoid the Oceana. Ports were efficient and no problems going through just don’t forget crew card. Upon disembarking you have to provide your crew card of which this was taken off of us when we checked out at reception. As stated before we have never cruised and as no information was given to us as they assume every passenger has done many cruises it caused a confusion and delayed us getting off the boat as we no longer had our cards. Then the man started shouting over me aggressively when I was pointing out that reception staff should not have taken my card if I needed it to disembark and leave the cruise. Read Less

I chose this cruise to celebrate a significant birthday. I wanted Luxury and I wanted to see a bit of France without me driving there. A river cruise was the obvious choice and Scenic because I had cruised with them before and knew I would get the level of service and luxury I expected. I booked the holiday direct with Scenic It is very easy call them pick a date and an airport and they will organise everything A driver picked us up at home took us to the airport , we flew out on time . A driver in Bordeaux was waiting to take us to the ship where a cool glass of champagne was waiting. It was a very relaxing way to start the cruise. The cabin was very nice compact. Plenty storage/cupboard space . We had a young lady Marietta who looked after our room and was very pleasant. The food; the self service breakfast and lunch was very good. Different selection every day and plenty to eat. Dinner was table service and was usually several small courses allowing you to sample many types of food. There were two other tables where you were invited to dine.at least once during your stay. They were of the same standard just a slightly different menu and wine pairing. Dress code; it shoes as relaxed although they did have to evenings of cocktails with the captain. A few people did dress in evening suit and bow ties. Most were smart casual in shirts with or without a tie and flannels. Ladies were smart casual. Entertainment; was provided most nights and varied from a disco to a classical quartet. Bar staff were all lovely and we could ask them to prepare our drinks to suit our personal tastes. Measures were in 40cl which I found a bit strong. Excursions; We visited several chateaus which are wine growers and not always a castle We also visited some small towns and a citadel at Braye this was my favourite place. The guide was very good and brought the place to life for me with his explanations. St Emilion was my favourite town with it's monolithic church. Most of the excursion were accompanied by an excellent guide Barbara . She was very enthusiastic about the region it's wines and history. We tried to make sure we were on her coach as she made the trip fun. This is an adult only holiday and to be fair geared for older adults as there is nothing child or teenage friendly on board except the grannies on holiday. It suited me as I fall into the older adult category . Disembarkation; We had to vacate out rooms by 8.30am and breakfast was served from 6.00 to 8.30. We then had a long wait in the lounge as our flights were at 17.00 and the airport was 40min drive. We were given a light buffet lunch at midday and we could have tea,coffee wine ect while we were on board. With this in mind I would rather have had a silly time in the morning flight rather than hanging about. We arrived at the airport in plenty time and again hanging about with your luggage till the gate opened. It was not a nice airport to fly from but it was the best option for this cruise. Read Less

This was our second cruise with P and O, the first being last year on Britannia, which was disappointing. We have cruised with different companies previously so do have some idea of expectations! We returned from a cruise to Norway on Ventura yesterday we were disappointed to find that there was a lack of activities during the cruise. The tables in some of the bars and on the tables on deck 15 were not cleaned after use. There didn't seem to be enough staff to serve guests in any of the bars and we were not the only ones who failed to be served in the exchange or on deck 15. Some staff we found to be rude. This was not what we expected. We ate in the restaurant and in the Glass house. The Glass house was excellent, it is a shame that the same can not be said for the main restaurant, we were either rushed through courses and left with the menu for desserts for a cknsiderable period, on some occasions we were asked if we wanted cheese and coffee and others not and felt that although we were asked, we shouldnt have said yes we wanted both, there didnt seem any consistency within the restaurants Read Less

What an amazing experience overall with very little to fault! Embarkation was swift, we used CP Parking and had priority boarding through our suite booking. It took us less than 20 minutes from arrival at the dock in our car to stepping on board the ship - couldn't have been any easier! Once on board we did find that there was no assistance/help for those new to cruising to know where we should go or what to do! I felt this was the one element of the cruise that was a little bit of a let down. Safe to say we walked aimlessly around for a while before working out where to go. All meals and food were fantastic. We had a mix of breakfasts at the Epicurian, the waterside buffet, the bay tree restaurant and on our balcony. All were wonderful. Lunches were taken at the waterside buffet or the poolside grill / pizzeria. Good choice and plenty available. We had select dining at the 6.30pm slot in the bay tree restaurant where we had the same table for 4 by the window each night. Our waiters Wilson and Suresh were exceptional and brilliant with the children showing them new drawings and tricks each night and serving up the odd extra chocolate treats! Ports visited: Stavenger - we did our own thing here and just took a long walk around the different areas of the town, plenty to see and keep the children busy Olden - amazing sail down the fjord - simply stunning. In Olden we did the beautiful Stryn exursion which was a lovely coach drive through the mountains stopping off at various points for photographs etc. It also included a stop at the national park centre for traditional pancakes, tea and a chance for the children to play at the small beach by the lake. definately our stand out day. Alesund - we did our own thing in the morning climbing the 416 steps to the viewpoint high above the town. Stunning views but be aware it costs once you get up there to enter the viewpoint area with the cafe/toilets etc. In the afternoon we did the exursion to the Atlantic Sea Park - much nicer than the sea life centres in the Uk, but we did find that the 3 hours allocated was a little long - we were done in 2 hours and had to wait for the coach to return. Bergen - biggest port of call and very busy with numerous cruise ships all in dock at the same time. Again we did our own thing and took in the sights of the old shopping quarter the park and lake and the fish/traditional food market. Both children attended the Reef childrens' clubs in the evening - surfers and scubas and had an amazing time, meeting lots of new friends onboard. this enabled us to have time in the evening to relax and take in some of the entertainment on offer. The Beatles experience were fantastic as was the Astonishing magic show. Spice Girls tribute and comedian also good fun! We felt the cleanliness of the ship and attentiveness of staff was excellent throughout. Read Less

As first family crew chose p and o. Buffet food was average and bland especially at dinner time.Very difficult to find a table at buy times. Staff in buffet restaurant not particularly friendly. Believe other worked. Restaurants included in price Cinnamon and Saffron. Had lovely food and very good service. We paid for food one night in the glasshouse (tapas) that was amazing. Beach house food which you had to pay extra for was average. My food had a hair in it yuk. Put me off. Our steward was excellent very friendly. Most of the other staff were not very smiley and seemed disinterested. Reception staff not very friendly or smiley either. Swimming pools were good but sometimes full of screaming kids. Entertainment was good. We3 - vocal group were amazing. Adele impersonator very good. Metropolis bar was very classy with good views and a guy playing piano. I used the gym. It’s very good with up to date equipment and nice views into the sea. Overall good. But customer service standards could be better. Maybe staff not getting tips anymore is having an affect. We are thinking of trying another cruise company next time to get a better standard of customer service and friendlessness. Read Less

First the good points of our cruise. We feel there has been a big improvement in the quality and variation of the food on Britannia, we cruised with P & O twice last year on Azura & Ventura and without doubt the food this time was improved. It was of good quality and varied even in the Buffett. The Buffett area is also a much better design than on other P & O ships which are too ‘tight’ and get very crowded. The entertainment was very good and there were some good deck parties. Our ‘restricted’ balcony G408 was not really restricted and neither was G410, G412, G414, G416 these rooms fall between a large gap between the lifeboats yet they are lower priced due to a very slight restriction. We could see straight out and sideways With nothing directly in our view. If you want a bargain balcony then these are the ones to go for. Our room was nice and a decent size. We didn’t have the drinks package because it is just to expensive but the drinks purchased separately are of a very reasonable price. Now for the negatives. As I say we booked a midship balcony room on deck 8 but the balcony is the smallest we have ever seen. You cannot sit straight looking out to sea they are that small. The ship in parts is very poorly designed. The stairs in midships only go up to deck 7? So unless you walk to either end of the ship you cannot walk up or down from midships from deck 8 and upwards. It’s just bonkers. The lifts are also small. On deck 17 at the aft is what I can only describe as a large bath, it is supposed to be a plunge pool but it’s just too small with vast amount of wasted deck either side. We never used it because it was always full. This pool should fill the width of the deck. The ‘sunset bar’ at the aft is lovely but they play background music that is so quiet it may as well not be on. The reason given for this was because guests in the suites below complain?? We and others asked for the music to be raised to a very reasonable level, not loud, until at least 11.30 but it was refused. It takes away a lot of the ambience of the bar. Towards the front of the ship is the ‘Serenity pool’ for adults only but the bar stops serving at 6pm?? So there is not an adult only bar on outside decks after 6pm. On deck 16 in the centre of the ship is the Lido pools, a great family area but above this on deck 17 looking down on the Lido the ship is crying out for a bar just like on Ventura or Azura. A couple of entertainment planning issues we had and that other guests complained about were that the ‘Crystal bar/room’ was just not used to anywhere near it’s capacity. It was almost predominantly used for old style dancing and apart from a few times was always only a quarter full. This is fine if like Ventura and Azura there are two live music bars to chose from but there isn’t so most people only have the choose of the ‘Live lounge’. In respects of the ‘Live lounge’ there was no thought given to the fact that most passengers see the last but one night as a party night and with that in mind many of us turned up to party and dance the night away only for the party to be flattened by a poor comedian who came on at 23.45hrs when lots of guests were dancing. The problem then was that there is no where else to go to dance or party. The service we received was also very patchy and on the whole was below standard. We had done nine cruise before this one with four being P & O ships so we know what to expect but I’m afraid the smiles, interaction, attention to detail has gone from many of the waiters, waitresses on deck and within the restaurants with the exception of the ‘Glasshouse’ for some reason. Without doubt they work hard and we are very chatty, polite people who love having a laugh and it must be hard doing their work day in day out but that’s what we pay our money for. It may seem like it just us morning but there were lots of other passengers who noticed this. One last moan and something to be aware of and it will probably be the same on most ships is that if you go on a cruise in school holidays be ready to expect uncontrolled children approx 8 to 16 running around throughout the ship at all times especially in the corridors. We watched many parents just let their kids do this without a word being said. A constant ‘thump, thump, thump’ was heard. We have had our own children and now have grandchildren but we would never let ours be totally out of control like a lot of what we saw were even in the ‘Glasshouse’ whilst we ate some were running around our table whilst their parents drank oblivious to everything. We wouldn’t go on this ship again although in spite of everything we had a great cruise because the food was good, we met lots of great new friends and the weather was great. Something to ponder though is that someone probably got paid thousands of pounds to design this ship yet there seems to have been some glaring mistakes. Read Less

I traveled with Hurtigruten on the Midnotsol to Antarctica. It was such a wonderful experience, I couldn't wait to travel with them again. This time to the Arctic. I booked this trip 18 months in advance. It took 3 days of travel to reach the ship and the trip cost more than my first house but it didn't matter. I wanted to go to the Arctic and have a chance to see the Eastern Greenland National Park--the least visited national park in the world. Imagine my disappointment when, after only one stop in the park, the Captain informed us that because Hurtigruten did not arrange for a pilot to be on board, we would not be able to make any additional landings in the park and would instead spend 2 full days at sea to arrive at the nearest point a pilot could be acquired. We were able to see polar bears--that was a plus--but saw no walruses, very few seals, no puffins, and some whales but when a pod of narwhals appeared off the bow one morning, no announcement was made so I missed them. The dining room was another disappointment. The food selection was VERY limited and nothing was ever hot. During our first lunch on board, no wait staff ever checked on our table. We were totally on our own while three staff hovered around one person at another table. My companion was so upset by this that she asked to speak to the manager. When she expressed our displeasure, the manager apologized and offered a beverage although we were already through with our meal. After that, we had obviously been identified as trouble-makers and were assigned to a very charming waiter who helped to make the service for the rest of our trip delightful. I have traveled with a lot of companies to nearly 100 countries, but to say I feel totally cheated by this trip is putting it VERY mildly. Read Less

Our first cruise of any type - ocean cruises have never appealed to me - but this trip ticked all the boxes for places I wanted to visit, with the added bonus of a private performance in Vienna by Strictly stars Anton Du Beke and Erin Boag, and a dance masterclass/Q&As on board with them the next day. Ship facilities top notch and staff/service an absolute joy. All thoroughly professional yet relaxed and friendly. We particularly loved the glass and mirrors decor which made the ship feel so light and airy. An apparent improvement this year was the introduction of an events manager, so that aside from the two nights where excellent local musicians came aboard to perform, there was always some evening enterainment provided, such as "Battleships/scategories","Family Fortunes," 70s/80s disco night, etc. He also provided an excellent cabaret as a singer himself one night. There was the occasional film night and aquarobics in the pool. Special mention to our Tour Manager, Nina who was a delight - efficient, and very open and friendly. Food: Evening meals were a 4 course nouvelle cuisine menu with a meat/fish/vegetarian option, or you could chose from 3 set menu options each night (steak, chichen breast etc). These were all very tasty, albeit low on the potato side of things! and on the 2 Captain's welcome/farewell nights there was also a palette cleanser sorbet course. Breakfast was a sumptuous spread of everything you could possibly want, with a chef cooking eggs/omelettes live to order. Lunch usually consisted of 2 "hot" dishes, sometimes cooked live, 2 soups, salads, etc, cheeseboard, cakes/desserts. You could also order a main course from the daily menu. Would have to say the hot dishes didn't stay very hot in the warmers, but it would have helped if the plates were warmed as well! Would have appreciated soup spoons as the one-size dessert spoons I felt were too big for the deep sided bowls. Wine, draught beer and soft drinks all included at lunch and evening meal. But bottled cider and beer were charged for. Loved the Vienna concert and performance by Anton and Erin. Our only slight disappointment was that the Active PLUS cycle ride option the next day, which we really wanted to do actually coincided with the Masterclass onboard so we had a tough choice to make. Would have liked to have been able to do both! Port and shore excusions were well organized and very enjoyable, with "gentle" options for those less mobile. Would have to say that if you want to see more of the embarkation location (in our case, Budapest) it would be best to arrive a day earlier. We boarded at 2pm the day we arrived and only got one morning to see the city before the ship sailed at 1pm for Bratislava. At the other end of the trip, Nuremburg, we were fortunate in that our transfer to Munich was not until 2pm so we were able to make our own way into the city for the morning (by taxi) and spend a few hours there before returning to the ship for lunch. Other passengers had morning transfers so saw nothing of the final destination as the ship docks some 15-20 mins drive from the city! The only other nuisance was that we were transferred to Munich airport 6 hourse before our flight, and were therefore lumbered with our luggage for 4 hours before the bag-drop opened. Read Less

What a great experience we had sailing from Budapest to Nuremberg on the Emerald Dawn. It was our first cruise of any kind. We went with another couple and also made some friends along the way. What did I like so much? - We arrived in Budapest a day early. We called to see if we could drop our bags early on the day of embarking, so we could enjoy the whole day in Budapest until dinner. They were accommodating and welcomed us so warmly when we arrived. FYI - the docking spot is close to a subway stop! Recommend the Szechenyi Baths. As the boat stayed in Budapest overnight, we walked up Buda Hill behind the boat (20 min walk uphill) for stunning views of Budepest at night! - Choices/options each day for activities. We like to be active and adventurous and we appreciated the option to go on a hike or bike, or do our own thing at each stop. The guided tours we did do were also well worth the time! Favourite days? Bratsilava and bike trip from Dürnstein to Melk! - Very comfortable rooms, that are well appointed and organized. We were on the bottom floor. Although it would have been nice to be able to open the window for fresh air, we never missed out on views. I was worried about noise, but other than the unavoidable noises like going into locks, we heard little from our room and slept very well on the very comfortable bed! - Many lovely spots to enjoy the boat - large sun deck, lovely patio on the bow near the bar, beautiful restaurant with views from every table, and a very comfortable lounge! And you could always get lovely coffee drinks, tea and cold water. - Favorite spot? The pool with views at the stern, with coffee/tea machine. Great morning spot! - Crew was exceptional! Captain inspired confidence in his ability to navigate the waterways, the room was always well cleaned at respectful times, the dining room staff was attentive, professional and fun! - The food was excellent! And so well planned...loved the flexibility of breakfast (early and late breakfast option), buffet lunch, and the evening meal was always beautiful! Tea time was nice if you missed lunch staying longer in town! - And what made the trip run so smoothly was Nina, our amazing cruise director! She was very kind, enthusiastic, organized, kept things on time, and was so responsive to everyone’s different wishes! Much gratitude for a wonderful trip Emerald Dawn! Read Less

I booked thru a tour company. Had never heard of this cruise line until then, this was an absolute amazing cruise. The ship is spotless, all the crew is very helpful and friendly. The food was amazing. The excursions were very good. Did not have to pay extra for most of them. At lunch and dinner you could have all the wine or beer you wanted to drink. They had a sip and sail every night with other drinks you could have. Our dining room girl Ayu was amazing. We tried to sit in her area every day for our three meals. It was nice to try the different ethnic foods. It was so much nicer than the bigger cruise lines. Only 164 passengers. It was easy to get off and on for the excursions. Used the pool one evening, it was very warm and relaxing. I would recommend this cruise to anyone, but not a cruise for children. Read Less

This cruise had been on our bucket list for quite a while so we were finally going to experience it. After spending 3 fabulous days in Paris, we chose to add this extension along with a 3 day extension at the end of the cruise to Prague, we got on the "fast" train which was to take us to Amsterdam to board our ship. The train broke down & we were given numerous different excuses as to why & even our tour guide from Scenic couldn't get a straight answer. What a great start to a cruise down the river. As a result we were 3hrs late arriving to the ship which put our plans for exploring Amsterdam out the window. Our ship Cruise Director did make us feel very welcome though when we did eventually arrive. We were on the Scenic Opal ship. Our cabin was very spacious & had all the amenities that we needed. We had a balcony suite. Very, very limited entertainment on board. Aprox 1hr maybe every 3 days. Only one dinning room every evening to go to & you had to dress appropriately. Nil activities to do whilst sailing down the river. As the ship had to pass under some low bridges during the trip the sun deck was unavailable for 5 days for the passengers. This meant we were stuck inside all this time when the ship was sailing. This was never mentioned to us that this was going to occur when we booked the trip. When we eventually reached a port there was very limited time on shore. Aprox 3-4 hrs for shore excursions. Not enough time at all. Too much time is spent sailing down the river with nothing to do on the ship. On a couple of our elective tours we were not informed until we were at that particular palace/church etc that we couldn't take photos inside. This was not mentioned to us when we booked the cruise or by the Tour Director on the ship. If it had we may have made a different choice beforehand. The service on the ship was terrific. The bar, cabin, stewards & butlers were all fantastic. The ship was clean at all times. We had room service a couple of times & it was very prompt, nicely presented & tasted delicious. There needs to be another option if you don't wish to go to the dining room for the evening meal though & there isn't one on this ship. We would not do another river cruise again due to the slowness of the cruise down the river, lack of entertainment/activities on board, lack of dining facilities, shortness of time at ports & too much time spent on the ship doing nothing, unavailability of using the sun deck. What we saw when we finally got on land was amazing & definitely needed more time to see more. For the amount of money we spent on this cruise we would have been better off using it for an ocean cruise & got more value for money. Very disappointed with the cruise in general but very happy with the things we actually got to see. Read Less

Our first river cruise; wife and I, and 2 grown girls wanted to see some of Europe and thought a river cruise was a good way to do it. Booked 1 of 2 suites for ourselves and I standard balcony room for kids. I booked with Viking because told "the best" and seemed to have good overall reviews. Expensive. Booked the airfare with Viking travel; excellent value and flexibility (started with a few days in London). Arrived in Budapest; Viking reps met us, and took us to ship. Included with the suite was a private car; gave us a van, which was ok since we had girls with us and they then came with us instead of bus. When checking into room, was told the "hotel manager" would take us to room (part of the "suite" deal). Manager was from previous cruise and begrudgingly took us and showed us room, all the time talking about how he was supposed to be on vacation now. Not a good start. Began with some excursions in Budapest; including a food tasting. That night my wife and I became ill, we assumed from the food, and stayed in the next morning. I attempted a walking tour in Bratislava that afternoon, became ill and passed out/hitting my head. Ended up in ER, but was OK. The guide was able to contact ship and advise my wife; they put her in a taxi to Hospital. We were basically on our own from that point; understand there are no doctors on board unless they are cruising with you! Fortunately there were very nice people on board who helped us out. Made it back to ship, not much from staff other than please fill out an accident report. Ship itself was clean and pretty nice. It seemed there may have been nicer ships on the river, but Viking seemed to be on the better side. Our suite was roomy and nice, but its in the very rear of ship and is noisy when moving. Cleaning staff excellent and very nice! Food was usually good; did return a few plates, with food overdone. Everyone eats meals at same time, so I can understand would be hard to serve that much at the same time. You don'd have much privacy at meals, tables seat at least 6. There is an optional spot upstairs however very limited seating as they only have 1 server there, so first come first serve, and was a popular option. Would be nice if they allowed mover service there. Waiters very nice, however some have limited English- not a big deal however some cruisers had difficulty communicating. Excursions were OK; we noticed later that many people did self-tour which I would have preferred, as I don't need all the details the guides sometimes over explain; sometimes I feel to fill the time. They want you to book early; however they always had space and were trying to get more people on them, so don't feel pressured to advance book. Towns very picturesque! Enjoyed walking around. Upon departure, they again supposed to take us in private car to Munich airport. They tried to put us and they people in other suite on 1 large bus by ourselves, because "the bus has to go to the airport anyway, so just go on the bus." The other suite complained enough to get a private car; we at this point didn't care so went on the bus (by ourselves); our kids had already left on another bus. That was unacceptable; we paid a lot for the suite that included the car. Overall, the managing staff on the ship mediocre at best. The working staff very nice and helpful. I would not do a Viking cruise again; the value not there. Read Less

The staff made an dream experience for us both and memories to cherish. All events and activities were well organized leaving no worries. Professional and friendly the entire trip. The cruise director was very knowledgeable and thorough with all planning details. The reception staff were patient and accommodating to all requests. The host, servers, provide a carefree environment during relaxation times. From the start to the end of the trip nothing was left out and nothing was left wanting. The enrich and cultural events were detailed and educational. The free time to self explore at each stop allowed an opportunity to shop or explore in greater depth. A good pair of walking shoes are mandatory. By the end of the cruise it was difficult to say goodby to staff and new friends. The food and the chef were exemplary allowing for an incredible culinary experience from all counties travelled during the cruise. Thank you Scenic Read Less

We chose this cruise because of the itinerary. As frequent (Platinum) and long-time cruisers of NCL and other cruise lines, we expected more from our experience. Our balcony cabin was very antiquated, décor in the bathroom looked like something out the '80s. Size not as large as we remembered in past cabins on other NCL ships. Safe located in bottom of closet, very inconvenient. Food in main dining rooms adequate, at best. However, food in specialty restaurants, especially Le Bistro, was very good. Entertainment very good in main theatre and in bars. Tours were mostly good, although lunch served in Invergordon terrible. This was all the good part. Our air travel to and from, arranged by NCL, was a nightmare. Weather delay at the onset, missed connection in Philly and lost luggage. However, this was not the fault of NCL. Towards the end of the cruise, we noticed our return airline tickets were booked for 1 day after the ship was docked at Southhampton. When we inquired at customer service, we were told it was a special rate and not able to be changed. We had no place to stay the night before these return flights and asked for help with booking a hotel in the terminal. We were told they could not help us, we would have to find our own hotel and pay for it. The rep then ushered us over to a computer and said help yourself! So at the end of our London tour, we were dropped off at Heathrow and had to make our own way to the Hilton Hotel, where we had booked a room. During our stay, we attempted to check-in online for our return flights on Virgin Atlantic to JFK, then on to Tampa via Delta. We were unable to do so. The next day at the airport, we were again unable to check-in. At customer service they informed us that we had no flights booked, that our original reservation had been cancelled and refunded!!! What a shock! So there we were, stranded at Heathrow! The Virgin Atlantic staff were very helpful and sympathetic, however, our only choice at that point was to rebook our flights, one-way, and pay for it ourselves to the tune of $4,921.75!! So we got on the flight. Towards the end of that leg of the return trip, 2 Virgin Atlantic crew members informed us we would not make our connection at JFK to Tampa......but they would book us on a flight the next day and put us up at a nearby Radisson Hotel at no cost to us. We finally arrived home back in Tampa on Sunday, 8/4 - exhausted and so disappointed. Read Less

I love to cruise and fortunately do numerous ones each year!! Unfortunately I chose to be on NCL SPIRIT!! Having done three previous ones with NCL my only concern pre cruise was their twenty minute or longer response time to phone calls.( told they'd just hired 100 new staff..WOW!!) But it was a warning in hindsight that NCL does not effectively communicate. Examples 1. Never published use of tenders and or shuttles at most ports 2. To distribute tender tickets at 630 am yet when I arrived then they were out and getting more tickets printed! Asked Cruise Director and she said distributed early. I suggested announcing it and she replied she only does as instructed. 3. Speaking of Cruise Director only job she did was screaming to ask the audience for applauding entertainers. She had a captivate audience to announce port information. Instead there was 2 to 3 lines in the newsletter left each evening. 4. Getting off the ship at each port was problematic. Priority always given to passengers on ship purchased excursions. But that was problematic too as Instead of releasing each tour separately they dismissed everyone at once always creating a bottleneck. For people departing independent announcement made after hundreds already allowed off because staff afraid of a stampede. Poor crowd control which only built over course of Cruise. One day a passenger dared them to stop him from leaving staying "I've been patient everyday only be to be delayed for my tour !!". 5. Port times shortened...example in Kirkwall published as 7 until 1p. In fact because tender port passengers getting off independently couldn't get off until 9am and had to take tender back at 11am. Why??? Later tenders for passengers who bought excursions from NCL!!! I have lovely picture of people waiting. I spoke to a lot of folks regarding port issues. Some thought ports shouldn't allow ships to sail in. I view it as the responsibility of cruise line to let passengers know in information prebooking. Is info in contract which says they can treat passengers anyway they want?? 7. Returning of passport was a nightmare with folks standing in line for upwards of an hour. At some points was one staff member searching for them. I personally witnessed one staff member searching 15 minutes for 2 passports misplaced while one other staff handling remainder of crowd. Several passengers complained to guest services without any change to the process. 8. Beds were sleeping on hard floors!! But we did complain and got foam which helped minimally. 9. Phone issues..wake up calls couldn't be set. 10. At most ports had to pay to actually get to true port you paid to see!!! Charged $15 !!! Only 9ne port Portland had free shuttle provided by town not NCL!! POSITIVES 1. Food fine and plentiful. 2. Dining room staff excellent. 3. Entertainment excellent. Some performers had consistently standing room only. One example was Melvin in Henry's Pub. Sad cruise Director never realized so he could have been relocated to large lounge behind casino which was always empry!! Front desk knew!! As I stated earlier I love to cruise and sad such a great itinerary was overshadowed by poor and or lacking communication. Is it NCL or just management of this ship?! If a cruise Director responds to a suggestion by saying she does only as instructed it's a fundamental problem!! She represent NCL and she's saying the passengers concerns don't matter!! Because of NCL lack of response I'm writing this first public review!! Read Less

Overall I struggle with rating average or poor. We have cruised before with NCL and changed from Princess to NCL for our cruise around the British Islands as they had less ports with tenders and the service has previously been excellent. Once again, the embarkation and disembarkation were smooth. The ship departed almost 12 hours late with no communication whatsoever. We were finally able to piece together from other passengers that NCL came very close to cancelling the cruise and sending us all back to London. After denying that this delay would not impact our shore excursions, they had to make another announcement owning up to the truth. The staff at the shore excursion desk were doing what they could given the circumstances. Clearer communication from the cruise director would have saved a lot of heartache and waiting in lines. We saw very few happy employees on board the ship in every department. They were putting forward minimal effort. Food on the buffet was not hot; boring; and, tasteless. Service in the sit down restaurants was less than acceptable. Finally with the help of an assistant Matri D, we were able to find a very fun and helpful server who we requested the rest of the cruise. The ship needs a lot of work and is scheduled for upgrading soon. It needs it. Not up to NCL standards at all, and may I add NCL has basically average standards. Thankfully, the lounge acts and shows were very good and the ports of call did not disappoint. We had purchased Cruise Next on our previous cruise with NCL so we are stuck taking one more cruise with NCL. It was hard not to look at the people discussing Cruise Next options and recommend "don't do it". We will be seeking another cruise line. Read Less

We have been on the Spirit before. Actually we have been on 5 NCL ships. However, this time, the Spirit needs to go in for an overhaul, sooner rather than later. If your room was at the back of the ship, the extreme shaking and vibrations from the engine were quite unbelievable. While you were swayed by waves in the other parts of the ship.....we were in a giant mixmaster, complete with rattling and banging of everything in our room when the ship picked up speed. We lost much sleep on this trip. As for the tender ports ...two of them....Hopefully you don't mind taking 2-3 hours to get off the ship. Only people with NCL excursions had no complaints about this. Everything else on the ship is fine, other the odd rude employee which you can get anywhere. But your room is an integral part of the vacation, and NCl should have spoken to all who were complaining and having this experience. DON'T get a room in the back if you have to take this ship. Otherwise, avoid taking it at all. Read Less

My cabin was 9210 which was an aft suite. In this letter I will be detailing my experience onboard your vessel. Just a little background this was our sixth cruise with your company and have had a wonderful time previously. We have cruised on the Getaway, Escape, Jade and Pearl. This was a honeymoon cruise for us and we had invited 2 other couples to cruise with us neither have even been on an NCL cruise before. Upon boarding the ship with great enthusiasm and excitement as we have been planning this trip for well over a year. The ship was delayed departing as it had a mechanical issue and did not depart till 1:30 AM the next morning. That is when things turned sour. In order for the ship to make up time it was cruising at a 22-24 knots according to the information screen. This caused our suite to vibrate uncontrollably with glassware clanging, draws opening and the safe door banging it was like traveling on the New York City subway. Everything started rattling, draws sliding open, safe door clanging, and bathroom items falling into the sink and to the floor. Please note in the pictures provided the vibration is so severe, the bathroom tiles had cracked and vibrated loose leaving it uneven. Monday July 22 upon us going to breakfast we spoke to the Concierge about being up all night and her response was she was going to look into it. Well the day progressed as the speed stayed consistence and at 5PM we went to guest services to speak with the manager, unfortunately the guest services rep had to be asked 4 times before my husband finally said that he was not happy and that he would start yelling if his request was not attended to. Finally, the front end manager came out along with the Concierge. Upon speaking with The supervisor we found out that the vibration problem was a known issue. She had said that vibration tests were done in our Suite and that the vibration occurred around 19 knots. She said that she would send an email to the Miami offices informing them of the issue. The immediate solution was to give us a room on deck 6 closer to the front of the ship with a window. So, on nights that the ship was going over 19 knots I was supposed to pack a bag and sleep in another cabin. We found this extremely inconvenient and ridiculous. We then asked for a schedule of cruising speed so we would have knowledge of sleeping arrangements. Well it was supplied but not exactly accurate we learned after the second sleepless night to add 5-10 knots per numbers supplied. By the third day after falling asleep on the bus rides for our excursions (yes paying a lot and missing a lot) I decided to set up an appointment with the Front-End Manager. Again, we found out that he was also aware of the vibration problem on the ship. By this time, I cannot understand how your company would still take $10,000 for a cabin with known issues and think it is OK. This is stealing money from your customers. So, we paid for a suite that could not be used when the ship was moving, and was offered a cabin with a window. Also, I do not understand why the concierge that did not utter a word to us after the first day. Not any staff member offered us any assistance to transition from one cabin to another as we slept in the other cabin for 6 nights. You would have thought that knowing the problem the staff would have been more accommodating and helpful to try to smooth over all of our discomfort. We then thought upon spending the night in Dublin we could stay in our cabin, the captain said that to prepare for dry dock in January they were going to be weighing the ship at night. The cruise director added that they were doing water testing. Well with the staff knowing the issues of our cabin you would think that someone would have suggested us to sleep in our other cabin. Well let me tell you what they did. The crew filled the ballast with water after moving the ship away from the dock. From 1:00am to 5:30am the crew was revving the engines up and down causing our suite to vibrate violently. I tried calling guest service but that was worthless as no one answered the phone. I find it comical how the entire ship knew the issue with the aft cabins but could not care about the guests occupying them. Later that day we had an appointment with management to hear the response from NCL corporate. They read us the response from corporate and My wife was in tears. After spending over $10,000 for the cruise it was like a slap in the face not only were we sleep deprived, falling asleep on buses to and from excursion locations and totally frustrated as not only did we have 2 other couples traveling with us this was my HONEYMOON that is being totally ruined. I felt that I was not considered a valued guest as with this cruise I was going to be a platinum member which does show the loyalty I had with your company. On top of the vibration issues, I was looking forward to a bath at night before bed. The tub had disgusting mold growing around it, and the staff had to step in and out of the tub to pull shade up or down. We had spent over 10,000 dollars for this cruise for a cabin we picked over a year ago, so we could entertain our friends with cocktails and cheese plates (which were ordered in advance). The vibration and noise did not allow any of this. I am not sure if you or a company representative have seen the condition of this ship but it should have been dry docked long ago. The bathroom tiles are cracked and have uneven surfaces as you could not walk barefoot to the toilet. The furniture was stained and looked dirty. The staff was very passive and inattentive. We heard the same issues from our neighbors, it was like the staff did not want to speak with us for fear of hearing more complaints. The service was not up to par with any other cruises we had taken with your company. Where the ship’s staff and corporate offices had knowledge of all the issues long before we had boarded, especially where vibration testing that had been done, these cabins should have never been sold or occupied. To take a customer’s money in advance and knowingly sell a room that does not allow for quiet enjoyment is stealing the customers money. Read Less

We chose this cruise as a family cruise with my brother's family and my Father so there was 11 of us on the cruise. We have never Cruised the British Isles and thought this would be a great experience for the family. We have cruised with Carnival, Princess and Royal Caribbean in the past multiple times. This was our First Norwegian Cruise and will be our last. We have never been on a cruise where the family didn't want to go the dinning room. We ate in the Window's dinning room and the food and service were not up to standards. Many times we had to ask for water glasses to be filled and then when they went around and the pitcher got empty the never came back to fill the rest of the glasses until we asked them again. This happened multiple nights. The food wasn't up to the standards of the other cruises and half of the family most nights ended up not finding anything they liked on the menu and when up to the buffet or the Blue lagoon to eat. The Entertainment of ship was ok. The singers and dancers were excellent, but the Magician was better suited for small children. My 11 year old was not impressed and all of his tricks were just hidden box tricks. And unfortunately since the Magician is so intricate to the elements show it was as my kids say "cringey". The cruise staff was ok but the cruise director was not very engaging on all the other ships usually the cruise director comes out after the shows and explains what is happening the next day and is very outgoing, this cruise director was not. The Tender process was horrible and unorganized good thing they only tender twice, but one of the Tender's we are only in port for 4 hours and by the time they were done with excursions tendering off the boat people only had 2 hrs in port. When you get off the boat many of the Docks you dock at are working docks so transportation is required to get off the Dock. Usually they have 2 types of buses one that you pay to get to "city Center" which is usually 10-15 dollars or one that is free that just takes you through the dock. The free ones would work if they actually would take you out of the port. The one in Dublin doesn't even get you out of port or to a decent drop of place. Once they drop you off it is about a mile to 2 miles to get to the bus or Tram area. Overall the was a major disappointment for the family and we will not be going on a Norwegian again. Read Less

This was our fourth Scenic cruise and we have to admit it was the best one yet. That's not to say the previous ones weren't excellent, because they were. It was just everything about this particular cruise made it so memorable. As usual, everything on the ship was pristine, the staff were brilliant notably the cruise director Sonja who ensured everything ran smoothly and was a bundle of energy. Restaurant manager Doru who once finding my wife was vegetarian ensured her dietary requirements were more than met! Robert, the chef was a culinary master and special mention to our two main waiters, Cattalin and Eduardo. Our cabin attendant Thomas was first class and our butler Coco always at hand. All in all an excellent experience, enjoyed all the excursions and the company of our fellow passengers who predominantly Australian were great fun and a pleasure to be with. In between the cruise, our transfer both from airport to ship and visa versa went without problem, Thank you Scenic for everything. Read Less