Having cruised only on Discovery, we decided to try Discovery 2 and we are very glad we did! We flew from Manchester to Malaga and arrived slightly late. We had the usual queueing to check in which did nothing to raise our flagging spirits! As a result our first evening was rather brief... check-in, bar, safely drill, food and bed! Islands Restaurant was very busy and rather chaotic but this was understandable given the late and large influx of passengers. We spent our second day in Gibraltar before sailing on to the delightful Funchal in Madeira. All the itinerary ran on time and we enjoyed every stop. We did our own thing in every destination using public transport or local tour companies. Our cabin (deck 3 inside) was clean and tidy with a super, powerful shower. Our cabin steward dealt with all our concerns and made us feel really welcome. We dined mainly in 47°, and a few times in Islands and Gallery 47. The food was excellent.. great quality, good choice of menus and brilliant service. Islands was great for lunches... we selected our food and took it outside to eat in the verandah area next to the ice cream machine! The entertainment was the biggest plus for us. Jasmine and Adam, the professional dance couple, were excellent. They took excellent dance classes every day and hosted social dance sessions almost every evening! Great teachers, very friendly and very patient... their performances in the Broadway Show Lounge were breathtaking! The Broadway Shows were superb. The entertainment team were tireless and talented and a joy to watch. Manuel and Tom, on piano and guitar respectively, provided excellent entertainment throughout the evenings in the Atrium and Live lounge. We loved this ship, its crew and its sheer good value for money! Read Less

Fantastic cruise... yes it is an older ship, but it is small enough to make great friends and see them again...the food was fantastic...the service and friendliness of the crew out of this world and the entertainment crew led by Katy fantastic and very professional. Plenty of room for all of your clothes in the cabins we were on deck 6 cabin 202 facing the bow,large double bed. We have been on many different cruise lines and the value for money with Marella cruises cannot be beaten anywhere to date. This was an adult only cruise and would never recommend this cruise for children. Once you have paid your money you never have to pay for anything else unless you wish to upgrade,the cruise gives you 6 days at sea to relax crossing the Atlantic which we love rather than having to rush ashore every day. we hope to go again on the return journey in march hope to see our great friends that we met on board last trip again. Read Less

this was good value for money! The cabin was excellent - the shower one of the best The staff were hardworking but far too few in number. This caused disjointed service in the dining room and bars. There was a lot of queuing for the buffets. Portions were relatively small - "oatcakes" with smoked …. was one oatcake. The surf and turf restaurant which was an extra charge was excellent. We opted for the premium drink package so we could get canned tonic but this was not available every where on the ship and then only after discussion. There was a good stock of whisky in the Gin and Whisky bar but the whisky was served with chlorinated water. Bottled water was chargeable! What a waste of malt whisky! It was an adult only ship but showed children's films such as Toy Story. The choice of wine was both limited and baffling with different wines available in different restaurants at different times. The cocktails were premixed and highly sweet with no fresh lime juice on the boat. On the whole they were very poor with the exception of Expresso Martinis in the coffee port which were excellent. The shows and entertainment in general was very loud without being good quality sound. The dancers were very good. We didn't pay much and saw new places in comfort. Read Less

First time cruisers and we had a fantastic time. The staff were amazing so polite and very friendly . We ate in the Market place all the time as I had been in hospital 2weeks before and in there I could just eat what I wanted. There was plenty of choice as I am a fussy eater I couldn't complain at all . The entertainment was excellent from the shows in the Broadway lounge (there was only one that I wasn't keen on) but the rest was superb. Danny Lisa and Derek with the Irish/Scootish set was brilliant as was Derek and the Vibes rock set. The pianists were great to. All in all a lot of talent . The sunbeds were all taken by 8 in the morning some people out at 5.30 in the morning putting their towels out made me laugh. Our cabin 1024 was superb lovely bathroom with a large shower bed was extremely comfortable and the balcony was lovely with a table and chairs . All in all a fabulous time was had . Read Less

From start to finish Great cruise .the flight out was on time although with about four planes arriving at Palma at the same time there was some delay at the check in but hay ho the sun was shining the weather for the time of the year was very good with only the occasional shower.although there were more sea days on this cruise we still found plenty to do we dined mainly in the orian for both breakfast and evening dinner where we found a really good selection on the menu at lunch time we ate in sirensthe staff on the dream are excellent especially in the orian restaurant.special thanks to mary-ann.ema.cristan and bikas for the service they gave us.the entertainment was great both in the Broadway and madusa where Philip was a star turn.many times on the dream before but not the last.keep up the good work and see you soon Read Less

PART ONE - Horrendous Our holiday got off to a terrible start. I had booked to go away with my mother and a few of her [elderly] friends. We booked early and chose our cabins so that we were all together and conveniently located to the facilities we planned to enjoy. However, a few weeks before we were due to travel, one of our cabins was pulled and we were told we were going to be placed 3 floors higher and at the opposite end of the ship. This was a big problem for us as we had all planned to convene on each others balconies to enjoy afternoon teas and coffee; also, to enjoy pre-dinner drinks. I complained to customer services who did their best to get our original cabin back but to no avail. Their 'allocation team' would not budge and neither would they locate our friends near to our new cabin. We were all gutted, as separating the group prevented us from popping in and out of each others cabins and enjoying the usual camaraderie. As a compromise, they managed to find us another cabin on the same floor but still this was a trek and left us isolated. To make up for it, we were given 50 euros onboard credit and Prosecco on arrival and although this did little to make things better, it was a gesture we appreciated. That was, until we boarded the ship and discovered our newly-allocated cabin 9084. For anyone allocated this cabin, please note that even though it is classed as a Bella Balcony cabin, IT HAS NO VIEW WHATSOEVER UNLESS YOU ARE STANDING UP!!! When sat on the chairs provided all you can see is solid white metal. All the saving up to pay extra for a balcony on which we could relax and enjoy the views out to sea, was therefore wasted. The disappointment and upset was beyond words. It was bad enough being parted from our friends but to be denied the benefits of our balcony too was just the final straw. We demanded a proper balcony cabin or to be refunded the cost. Unfortunately, this was not something the cruise staff could sort out as - any claim would have to be handled by UK admin staff - and there was no other cabins available to move us to! All we could do was wait to see if anyone with a balcony cabin failed to show up at the next port and we could then have theirs. As suggested, we waited. We had embarked on a Sunday afternoon and waited until Monday evening to see if there was any change. Still nothing but we were told to check again another 24 hours later, after the next lot of passengers embarked. We did so but by this time, and having lived out of our suitcase for 2 days, we had given up hope. At this point, we all felt our holiday had been ruined. It had put a complete dampener on it, especially as my mum was so upset she had burst into tears and said she just wanted to go home. She was totally unsettled and could not bear having to rummage in her case every time she wanted something. We therefore decided to unpack and resigned ourselves to the isolation and having no balcony/view. Ironically, we then received a telephone call in our cabin from reception. They had found us a cabin - not near to our friends, but it had a glass fronted balcony so at least we had a view! Of course, we then had to repack everything in order to move and it was a real pain, but considered worth it as we still had a number of days left. It took us a while but eventually we got settled and our holiday finally began!!! PART TWO - fantastic With only one or two exceptions, the staff on this ship simply could not do enough. They worked extremely hard to ensure passengers had a good time and the atmosphere onboard was a party one. Our waiter was exceptional and nothing was too much trouble. We did not see much of the cabin steward but our room was always neat and tidy when we returned. As for the food, it was much better than the last MSC cruise we went on. The menu choices were varied and appetising and portion sizes were also reasonable. The buffet restaurants (Inca and Maya) were always far too busy to be an enjoyable experience so we chose to eat breakfast and lunch in the restaurant or ice-cream parlour instead. However, the choices there were very limited and in the ice-cream parlour/coffee shop we had to pay for our drinks but still it was the best option for us. To prevent the main buffets from being so busy it would have been better jf the coffee shop and Il Cappuccino lounge offered a greater selection of sandwiches or snacks - together with free tea/coffee/water (as in the main dining areas.) This would have evened things out so that certain areas were less crowded at any one time. In relation to the excursions offered by MSC, these were not so good. I realise that they rely on outside companies to provide the service and they merely act as agent. Nevertheless, they need to take on board the feedback and get some of these companies to change how they do things. There were a LOT of complaints and the exclusion staff had to take the flak. We did the Casablanca/Rabat tour and had looked forward to it more than all the others we took but it was a terrible tour and a complete waste of a day's holiday. Our tour guide was rude, disinterested, ill-informed and was incentivised only by taking us to venues where it was clear he earned a commission. On a 10 hour tour, he refused to let us stop for a coffee break (apart from the 1 hour lunch stop) and when a number of us asked about visiting a bazaar/souk, he said there was no time and took us instead to what can only be described as a 'junk souvenir shop' in a back street. The next such stop was at an argan oil factory in Rabat where we all had to sit through a boring presentation lasting about half an hour. We were all then handed a basket to purchase their products and take them to the till. Needless to say, there were very few takers and most people on the tour were furious - especially as we had been denied any free time to explore either Casablanca or Rabat again due to 'lack of time. When we reported back to reception the next day we were met by many others queuing there for the same reason and some were on other buses also part of the same trip. It was a disaster and I felt sorry for MSC as it was really down to the tour operator. Where MSC did excel was the entertainment. All our party are avid cruisers and we agreed unanimously that this ship offered the best entertainment we have ever had. The theatre shows were second to none and were astoundingly good - standing ovations nearly every night. The shows varied from musical performances, serious style opera, comedy, circus style acrobatics (within theatrical setting), to drama and plain fun evenings. The variety and standard of performance was absolutely incredible and I'm worried we are seriously spoilt for the future! Whoever the theatre production company is they deserve recognition and commendation for first-class entertainment. So, all in all, a bad experience at the outset only turned round by the attitude and professionalism of Paula from customer services and the staff on board. They saved our holiday from complete disaster, meaning we lost only part and not the whole of it. I had already booked another cruise with MSC (2021) and had planned to cancel but they turned this fiasco around so I've given them a reprieve. Read Less

We chose a repositioning itinerary that took us from Malta to Malaga, stopping in Sardinia, the Balearics, and along the Spanish Coast. Previous cruises had set our expectations. Star Clipper is a small line with three small ships that use sail frequently. Frequent stops in European ports insured that the food stocks were excellent. As a repositioning cruise, the opportunities for water sports were limited, perhaps as a consequence the average age of the passengers was a bit higher. Weather was an issue on our two sea days with 4 to 5 meter swells and winds gusting to 40. (Force 7). The crew handled the conditions well and maintained service and safety. The key to enjoying Star Clipper is to understand and cherish the scale and limitations of a 300 foot sailing vessel. Sailing into and out of historical ports, feeling the motion of the sea, and finding entertainment in your fellow passengers are features of the experience. The Cruise Director, Yuri and Musician Melchor maintained a steady stream of amusements. The hotel staff was cheerful and unobtrusive. The menus were varied and preparation and presentation were excellent. For this voyage we were dockside in every port. We used excursions in every port as we didn't know the areas. We arrived in Valetta a week early and loved Malta! Really could have been there longer. Malta has something to appeal to almost every variety of tourist. Caligiari was a bit bland, but the sea front ruins excellent. All three of the Balearics were fine, varied and attractive. Cartegena was a pleasant surprise. A lot of new archeology finds and a revitalized downtown will make this much better known and more visited. Motril is really only a way to get close to Grenada and run up the canyon to see the Alhambra. Worth it for the path up and Grenada. Malaga in late October was uncrowded and pretty. Read Less

Warning signs started when we borded and we couldn't find the life jackets in the wardrobe. Later on our steward found them stuffed way under the bed where you couldn't see them without a flashlight. We had smooth sailing aross the Atlantic. Problem occured upon reaching Puerto Rico. US Customs was understaffed and it took us over 2 hours standing in line to make it to our excursion. Customs wanted everyone including the crew to come off the ship before they would let anyone back on. It was a gong show including fist fights among angry passengers when they opeded the gate at 6 pm to let people back on. Zero organization from the staff to keep it from looking like a cattle drive. Entertainment on the ship was very hit and miss. Fantastic singer in the atrium every night. Shows in the theatre had a bit too much opera content for some tastes but other shows were entertaining. Never got a hot meal in the dining room in the evening. The french onion soup was guaranteed to be hot. Mains were lukewarm at best. Breakfast in the dining room sometimes took well over an hour. We understood this was an international clientele aboard, but the maitre'd would usually seat you with anyone and it usually wound up being with people you had no common language with. Its very awkward to be sitting across from a couple you can't communicate with and doesn't enhance the meal for either pair. One day we went to the specialty pizza joint and ordered a pizza with sausage on it for which we paid around $19. It arrived with cut up hot dog weiners on it! Never seen such a cheap ingredient on a pizza before. Ship is beautiful. Huge amount of wasted spaces devoted to the spa area and then the gym is tiny. Never a bike or treadmill free. Shower with glass doors in the cabin was a nice touch. For a 19 day repositioning cruise we would have expected a couple of trivia quizzes per day but there was never more than one per day. You really had a sense that the entertainment staff would rather be doing anything else than entertaining us. Read Less

This was an Amazing Cruise! We booked directly with Norwegian, had transportation included, they picked us up at the airport and brought us to the port. Loved all the Ports of call and we lucked out and had perfect weather. Highly recommend the Norwegian Spirit, staff are very good and friendly. Our 1st time sailing with Norwegian and each port was good, just a few hiccups, tendering in Cannes but we made it to port after a couple hours delay. Best destination was Greece, so beautiful there, food was great and people are friendly. A must is also the Amalfi Coast in Naples, hired a local taxi and he drove us to the Amalfi Coast, Sorrento and Pompeii. Loved that our 2 teenagers were with us and they loved the cruise too! Embarkation and Disembarkation was smooth, they gave you a colour ticket and when your colour was called, it was your time to leave. Ship is old but clean, they will be refurbishing in early January 2020 and ready to set sail in February 2020 and hope one day to sail on it again. Definitely give Norwegian a try and a Mediterranean cruise is a must for all families. Read Less

Where to start: First, we have sailed nineteen times and experienced an array of American AND European cruise products from RCCL, Princess, Costa, P&O, NCL, Holland America etc. The experiences of these diverse products have collectively informed my opinion of our MSC experience. MSC is NOT for the American market share rather, this European line is clearly after the sustainability of the European market share. American products by and large, do not charge a consistently high price for the cruise and then, charge clients for water while on board. Yes... MSC does this. Not even Costa does this. We paid over 3k for our cruise (similar and consistent to what we have paid for with other products like RCCL, Costa, Princess etc.) but while on board the MSC product we were charged for water.... we were amazed, perplexed and terribly disappointed. Its also important to note -what MSC USA sold us was not what we experienced onboard. When we pointed out the discrepancies on board we were told to take it up with MSC USA when we got home. We did, they did nothing to satisfy or settle our issue. We purchased the Fantastica experience, were told drink packages were included - then they somehow were not included. When we argued they were - we were told we had to buy a drink package which we did for our two children (non alcoholic package) and 1 adult alcoholic package. Only to get on board and be told we shouldn't have done that in fact it was included in our package and when we asked to have the initial prepaid packages we purchased refunded they said - sorry it wasn't included... The only thing which we felt was consistent was the inconsistency between what was sold and what we expected to what we actually experienced onboard. Other things we felt were important to note. The excursions - expensive but of little to no substance; again, representing to us an imbalance between what we paid for and what we actually experienced. We purchased several excursions through MSC - and quickly spent MORE TIME transiting to the excursions than we actually did enjoying the place we were visiting. This happend to us in both Arles France and Portofino. In Arles, we spent 3 hours on a bus to experience the town for only an hour. While in Portofino, same things - we paid a fortune to go to Portofino and spent three hours transiting there only to spend an hour IN Portofino... Very little value for money. Similarly, MSC twice docked at a port which they charged a fee to go from the Port facility to the town.... We were left shaking our heads and again, having the experience of other lines, this was an anomaly we felt was important to note for others who are considering this line. The ship itself was clean, comparatively clean to other lines and with cabins which were much larger than the typical stateroom found on other lines. That was about the only two bonuses on this line. Our experience of the ship was in one word -- exhausting. Terribly overcrowded and with clearly overwhelmed staff who continually treated us with discourtesy and disregard. The staff appeared as exhausted of the overcrowded conditions as we were. This was consistent from the bar staff to the dinning staff -- totally overwhelmed and continually discourteous and seemed exhausted..... The common centers on the ship were jammed daily elbow to elbow with people and loud music - wasn't a quiet spot on the ship to be found... ever. The smoking is an experience not commonly found with American products, on European lines - smoking is everywhere and something we found terribly intrusive and distasteful. Imagine placing the ONLY soft serve ice cream station for kids on the ship in the smoking section of the ship... kids actually have to endure cigarette smoke while waiting for their ice cream (which was eventually closed down due to being broken). This careless disregard for children - alone, made us not want to return to this product... ever. We have sailed many ships (19 cruises to date) and several of those other European products. First time we were ever on a ship and product we couldn't wait to leave... first time. The cost of this product comparatively is similar to other lines - RCCL, Princess Holland America - but what you get for your money is wholly inconsistent and as a result, we could not in good conscience recommend this product, especially for families. While MSC is trying desperately to break into the American marketshare, we believe this is going to be extremely difficult as people with experiences such as ours, share our impressions with others. This was an honest and unbiased account of our experience. We hope it is taken seriously so the product may be improved for others going forward. For us, we will not use or recommend this product in the future. Read Less

We have sailed Azamara a number of times and really enjoy the on-board experience. This itinerary attracted us because of the variation in cultures and climate. The embarkation was very smooth and we were quickly processed. . Because of an upgrade, we were staying in a Club Continent Suite as opposed to our usual Veranda 2. We really enjoyed the extra space, but did not utilize all the perks associated with the Suite. One of the perks was complimentary dining in the Specialty Restaurants, a choice we made for four of the 14 nights. For other dinners, of course, we ate in Discoveries (the main dining room), and on the Patio. Most breakfasts we frequented Windows, the buffet area. We were very pleased with the food in all the venues, especially the attention paid to certain food intolerances that limit some of our choices. One of the attractions for us on Azamara is the friendly and attentive service on board..From the room stewards to the waiting staff in the dining areas, this cruise was no exception. The friendliness is true of most officers as well. Although not noted for entertainment, in this case Azamara provided some of the best we have enjoyed. From The Azamazing Evening to more casual events, we found a lot to enjoy. Hard to pick out a port that was more enjoyable than the others. Because of our travelling through four countries, each port provided some interesting contrasts. As we sailed further North the weather cooled and rain became a sometime occurrence. That added to the variety of experiences on this itinerary. We participated in only two shore excursions. The trip to see Bayeux and its famous tapestry was well worth the cost. The walking tour of Cadiz was good but not amazing. In both cases we were travelling in relatively small groups. Most of the ports were quite accessible for those who wanted to explore on their own, and Azamara provided free shuttles where needed and appropriate. As part of that service, usually there was a guide at the drop-off points with maps and helpful suggestions. After sailing up the Thames the previous day, disembarkation at Greenwich was a little more complicated than at most ports. But the staff on the ships had it well under control, and there was a surplus of attendants on shore to assure that you made your connection with taxis for the airport, for travel home, or for extended stays in London. For the reasons above, out of 18 cruises this was one of our favourites. Although the itinerary is not one of the common ones offered, we think others should give it serious consideration. Read Less

Because I'm a cruisey and it is the newest ship. The Retreat lounge was ok and I liked the idea that food was once again served in this lounge. I never made it to the Captain's Club. Our group, all in suites, liked to finish the evening at the Martini Bar - that's really so neat. The bar every so often is allowed to "mix martinis" showing their talents - every hour, I think. They were very tasty and the living room concept was comfortable. We went to the workout room and was impressed with all of the equipment and never had to wait for a machine. The hallways were a little cold at times but happily able to completely regulate room temperature with a digital unit. Raw on 5 was my favorite dining experience because the fillet Mignon was just to die for. We loved Le Petit Chef and would do it again - the Primecut (I think was the name - the steak house) served lamb, veal and wonderful cuts of aged fillet. Our friends brought Caymus and we were able to serve that to dine. All in all it was a great trip, my only comment is that the ship is new, staff has to grow to understand the steps of serving in this new configuration. They'll get there - they always do. This was our 41st cruise. Read Less

Overall loved the ship!. Is it my favourite Celebrity ship?: Probably BUT they do need to deal with some of the fixable points below (most of which have already been mentioned by other people. We will be back (and soon!) Celebrity Edge pros and cons Pros Good use of public space. Everything seems spacious. Ocean view not frantic and lots of table space even on notorious busy days like Embarkation and long port days return. Good use of every inch. Guest relations, future cruise etc all very open plan. No desk between you and staff Love all the hidden places that you only discover after a few days. Love the Eden space. All the different levels Staff very attentive and friendly. Food standards seem higher than other celebrity ships in all areas. Love the panini etc at Eden for lunch. Like the split 4 main dining rooms. Never seems to look really mobbed. Always got a seat at times we wanted. Hosts very helpful. Cafe del bacio much bigger area now and is good place to chill at any time. Lots of sun lounger space and seems to have lots of shaded areas (apart from maybe the top deck). Fabulous massive pool. Never is full because of the space. Magic carpet quite nice for few drinks but (see later for cons). Good viewing area if in port. All the stair areas, lobbies etc much more space. More lifts than normal and bigger. Love the running ,walking track. So much more interesting than normal circuit idea as goes all over ship and over more than one deck. Love the theatre. Great shape and the IT is well used as part of the show. Shows were very professional. Jacuzzis much bigger and better placed. Eden restaurant very interesting experience. Fabulous food CONS Magic carpet looks hideous. Seems pretty useless unless in warmer and calmer ports as the windproofing is non existent. First three days of our cruise wasn’t really used at all. Cabanas which are supposed to give seclusion and views out to sea useless as everyone walks right past them all day AND magic carpet is 95% of the day right across from them so view obstructed! I never once saw them used in 10 days. Found the garden area nice but mostly unusable again due to lack of wind or shade protection. Unless in port and in very warm climates not really used apart from for films during the day. Don’t like the total ‘class’ split now. Suites guests are now totally cut off from normal passengers during the day and for meals. Miss the panoramic lounge viewing at the front which is now suite guests only. Even though Celebrity are obviously wanting to attract younger clientele, they (like most other lines) insist on the same music Mix of 50s and 60s. Ie beetles, Elvis etc. Some more modern please although ive now heard that the music was changed to older stuff because of complaints ! Read Less

We chose this cruise for the ports. We wanted to see a Dubai and Petra. In my opinion, the ship was in pretty good shape. Yes, it needs paint in a few areas, but it is due for a refurbish anyway. I like the M class ships and was very happy with the ship. We could not get excited about the entertainment offerings in the theatre, which I think was because it was a repositioning cruise. We did enjoy the Take 5 band. The food in the main dining room was good, not great, but I had no trouble finding something that I wanted to eat. I was disappointed with the Tuscan Grill. I thought my steak lacked seasoning and could have used a little more attention from the servers. At $45 per person, I will not go back. Princess specialty restaurants, ie Crown Grill, is $29 per person. We did eat at Quine twice - catching it on sale at $30 per person, I felt we got much more attention and a great selection of food. We had 9 sea days, including transiting the Suez Canal, and 5 ports. We did ship excursions in Muscat, Oman and Petra, Jordan. We had scheduled a walking tour in Muscat which was cancelled, and the only other offering was a panoramic tour. It gave us the opportunity to get off the ship, but we were not impressed with Muscat, or the panoramic tour. Our ships tour of Petra was excellent. I only wish we had another day in Petra to explore some more. We rented a car in Katakolon and drove to Olympia. I was disappointed in Olympia. While there is signage by most of the ruins to describe the ancient use, they did not provide a map or brochure to help you organize your visit. Also, there is no parking at the site. You have to find a parking spot in the modern town of Olympia and then walk to the site. We did like the little town of a Katakolon and the people were very friendly. Our cruise also visited Dubai and Athens, where we had arranged private tours. Read Less

First Med cruise and first cruise with Princess. It exceeded our expectations. Everything was perfect. Staff were so nice. Food was fantastic. The activities and shows were all very good. Such nice treatment from all the crew. We met people from all over the world. This cruise had started in Singapore, picked up some more people in Dubai and then Rome, where we got on. 10 days of spoiling from all the crew on Sapphire Princess. The excursions were very good, we took the one to Juno beach. It was fantastic, and they had a speaker on the D-day landings, aboard the ship. The excursion in Portugal to Sintra and Cascais was excellent. It was so beautiful, both places. We really enjoyed Gibraltar and Monaco. The International cafe in the piazza was fantastic. All the restaurants, provided excellent service, everyday. The food was hot, and very good. We ordered Room service every morning and it always arrived promptly. The entertainment was great, and varied. We also tried the two speciality restaurants, the Steak house and Sabatinis. Both were very good. The pizza restaurant was good as well. So many bars, but lots of quiet spaces to find some space. Read Less

Recently returned from ten days on board this ship for Christmas around the Med. This was by far the worse ship and the worse cruise we have ever been on. This was our second MSC cruise and what a total letdown. Firstly I’ll start by saying the ship was at least clean.After that the positives end unfortunately. It’s a very basic ship with extremely limited options in regards to food,drink and entertainment.So if you one of these people that enjoy poor food poor entertainment and very poor service you will love this ship. The buffet is way too small for the size of the ship and most days there are que outside at peak times.They have tried to increase the size of the seating area by offering seats on the deck in a patio heater style seating area.This is ok in summer but not in winter and eating food off plastic plates under patio heaters isn’t my idea of fun.The choice of food at The buffet was “same old” most days and again very basic. The restaurant was a slightly better environment but being forced to sit with people even after asking to be moved three times again isn’t my idea of fun.Food was again poor. Moving onto entertainment (or lack of). There are 5 bars in total with only the Irish pub offering anything in the way of entertainment before 11pm.This consists of an Italian guitar player playing a very limited song book in very limited English.He also has to stop playing every half hour or so because they could “hear him in the theatre “ even though we could never hear the theatre. It all got very frustrating leaving people sat there with no music and zero entertainment. As for the other bars,well the Budda bar was shut most times when we walked through although we did get a drink there one night and they had a guy playing piano for a while. The main bar (Manhattan) is a strange concept. Yoga and stretch classes are the main entertainment every night before dinner. Yes you did read that right!!! The musical duo who were supposed to start at 6pm usually rolled up bout 6.15 and played a couple of iffy Spanish/Italian/French songs.The “main” entertainment then began around 11pm in this bar. Ranging from a few game show things to some music. Our main highlights consisted of seeing how long it took to get served every night in each bar. This ranged from a few mins to 39 mins which was the longest it took.We ended up changing their tile from waiters to sales prevention staff because they would do everything they could NOT to serve you. This leads me onto their “all inclusive” drinks packages. If you buy one before getting on board you are offered to “upgrade” which sounded great because we only had draught beer and wine package we took up their offer.103 euros per person for the ten days.Me being a Strongbow drinker I was happy with that. Unfortunately after day 3 they ran out of Strongbow and by day 5 still had none ( even though we had stops every day bar one) So when I decided to complain feeling I had been short changed the bar manager informed me the ship was at full capacity with Strongbow (all very confusing) still the sales prevention staff kept telling me they had none.Then to my delight I was informed they had draught Strongbow in one bar.What a blatant lie,it was some sort of cider in a box but most certainly NOT Strongbow!!!! I could go on about various other faults and cost cutting areas but I think you get the picture. My advice is avoid this ship even if the price seems quite good ( we made that mistake) Read Less

MS Koningsdam - A Review I cruised Koningsdam for 24 days from 10/18/2018 to 11/11/2018. She is about 2 years old and appears to be in very good physical condition and is well maintained. That said, Koningsdam is a mixed bag of good, bad and ugly...in this writer's experienced opinion. THE GOOD By all appearances, the ship is being kept very clean. Wear and tear has not yet begun to show too much. Not much rust in sight. The theater (World Stage) is the best in the HAL fleet, and maybe in most fleets. Sight lines are excellent and there is hardly a bad seat in the house. Seating capacity is relatively generous and can fit about a third of the passengers at any one time (close to 800). That said, there were many occasions when the theater was totally filled and people were standing and/or sitting in the aisles (safety hazard?). The hi-tech stage uses a 270 degree computer controlled LCD screen as the backdrop and is the main apparatus of the otherwise sparse set decoration. Lincoln Center Stage is an outstanding plus for HAL. Koningsdam's venue for the very talented quintet is larger than other ships in the fleet and offers comfortable seating. Public seating is excellent and comfortable throughout the ship. The staterooms are a bit smaller on than most of HALs ships, but they are reasonable equipped. Electric and USB plugs are abundant and storage/closet space is good. THE BAD While Koningsdam is new and bright, HAL has done nothing to change the nickel-and-dime operation and product they offer. EVERYTHING they do is designed to get passengers to spend more money. Most of the daily on-board programs offered are for revenue and income production. Venues throughout the ship are too small for the large number of passengers, often filling an hour or more prior to a presentation. The Culinary Arts Center is the showcase venue for America's Test Kitchen, and it is very ill-suited for the purpose...very poor seating and sight angles. They also utilize this room for extra-cost dinning in the evening (much more suitable). The Mariners Program on Koningsdam appears to be treated more as necessary nuisance than as the customer building program it was originally designed to be. There does not appear to be a suitable venue on Koningsdam for a Mariners Reception, so only medallion recipients are invited, no matter how many medallions one has or how many cruise days you've logged. The multi-Star Mariners cocktail party is held in part of the Lido Pool area, while other people are in hot tubs on the other side. It's very clear that HAL management wants to change the demographic of its customers. They are looking for new, free spending blood. Staterooms are noisier than one would expect for a "new" ship. Even in slight seas there is creaking, rattling and banging...especially at night when you are trying to sleep. Fit and finish is not all that it could be. As an example, stateroom have a recessed "frame" for the wall mounted large screen TV. In my stateroom the TV was mounted well out of the center of the frame and lop-sided (one side higher than the other). There is no replay of the excursion or enrichment talks on available on Koningsdam's closed circuit TV system or on stateroom TVs. You can, however, book extra cost dining, spa and excursion options via the interactive TV system. What little "art" there is on the ship is far removed from traditional seafaring art. All is very contemporary and the artwork appears to be photo-shopped pictures. There is NO art in stateroom passageways. Passage fore and aft on public decks 2 and 3 is restricted to one side of the ship, ensuring exposure to every selling station onboard. Traffic flow is poor, especially outside elevator locations where they have planted large modern sculptures (?), creating bottlenecks. The Promenade Deck is quite narrow and there are no deck chairs thereupon. The walking gets very bottlenecked at the stern end of the ship, so if one is walking behind slow walkers or encountering walkers who insist on walking upstream, it slows everyone down. Not important enough to write Congress about...just a mention. THE UGLY Whoever designed the toilets in the staterooms should be fired immediately. One cannot sit "on the throne" straightaway. You have to sit sideways because the glass shower enclosure is in the way, and you can't get your knees to squeeze in...unless you're 2 or 3 years old. Very awkward and uncomfortable. DINING This is a very subjective area and not all tastes are alike. So offering comments about the food and service aboard the Koningsdam is treading on very dangerous ground. That said, HAL has put together a fine group of chefs in what they call the Chef's Counsel, to help Chef Rudy design a dining program for the ship's various venues. They have created offerings that, in their test kitchen, appeal to all the senses. Great food requires great ingredients skillfully assembled by craftsmen who love their work. Unfortunately, the Chef's Counsel is not on board to supervise the final product. HALs logistics program is complex and mainly designed to minimize costs and maximize efficiencies. They do not take advantage of the terrific local products as they cruise from place to place. So freshness of ingredients is sacrificed in favor of program convenience. They claim there are reasons (or excuses) for this, but others seem to be able to take advantage of local fresh product availability. That's all I have to say about this topic. Everyone has to judge for themselves. Read Less

We chose this 2 week cruise to say farewell to the ship. Very sadly we were not able to sail on the very last week which sounds as if it is going some farewell party. This was our seventh cruise on the spirit. The crew are the best like a big happy family who always make you fell welcome. Special mention to our cabin steward Regie and Salem for looking after us do well and the lovely towel animals. Thank you to Harly and Kevin in the compass rose every night they brought smiles to our faces. Thank you to Adrian the maitre d' and Mario and Kent our wine waiters. Yes the ship is a bit tired looking but I would choose her any day over one of the huge ships that are on offer today. I hope Marella don't go too big because there is a market for the smaller ships.we had a great holiday good food, great atmosphere and very friendly staff what more could you ask. Read Less

We paid for a cruise on Vantage, a line we have had good experiences on previously. Instead of the Vantage ship we expected, we were greeted with the Variety Voyager on arrival in Poole, our departure point. The ship appeared to be older and was in need of some repairs, some of which were obvious to passengers. The reservation agent offered a cabin on the port side so we would have a good view of the landscape as we cruised. We later learned learned that international shipping law requires vessels to sail 15 miles from the coastline. Within a couple days of sailing, some passengers reported they had brown water in their sinks, toilets and showers. As time on the ship continued, the condition reached most, if not all the cabins. This condition was never fixed in spite of the ship being docked in Ferrol for 3 full days after only 2 days at sea. Passengers were bused to and from destinations that were not included in the itinerary, destinations we specifically wanted to see. Instead we spent about 7 of the 13 days on the bus with nights spent in some very nice hotels. We did get to see some of the scheduled sights but the tour directors had to scramble to find activities for the passengers since we were not in the designated ports of call. Because the bus time was so lengthy we were deprived of the pleasure of the company of fellow passengers stuck in our bus seats. We often arrived at a hotel very close to dinner time (in one case dinner at 8:30) so by the time we finished our meal, it was very close to bedtime. Once again, no time to mingle. While the food on the ship was generally good, breakfast left a great deal to be desired. Lunches were buffet style and offered several options that were acceptable. Entertainment was a disappointment. One song group came in but were busy pedaling (selling) their CDs to the passengers. We found that offensive. The other two nights with entertainment were somewhat enjoyable.. Most land tours were well done but again, with the exception of two days, there was no time to explore on our own. The cabin was comfortable but had limited storage space but had much wasted space with what passed for a desk area. Staff was courteous and willing to help when called on. As time went on, tour directors, having had to struggle to find substitute venues, became a bit short with passenger inquiries. Somehow this was almost acceptable as they had to scramble for alternates due to the bus ride. Yes, there were weather conditions out to sea but not for 5-6 days off and on. We were told the ship would be sailing in an effort to keep up with the bus but that did not seem to happen. Apparently this was a repositioning cruise which are somewhat less expensive but we were never advised of this. All in all, the cruise was largely a bus ride. Had we wanted a bus tour, probably at about half the price, we would have bought that. Again, had there been any indication much of it would be a bus tour, we never would have signed on. We expect some sort of remuneration by Vantage, the cruise company with which we contracted. Read Less

This was a one way fly cruise, 10 nights Southampton to Barcelona. I booked a one way car hire to Southampton, cruise only with Cunard and booked hotel and then flights back to Cardiff. It all worked really well and I would happily do something similar if Cunard reintroduce fly cruises in the future. I booked an extra suitcase on the flight (approx £30) so there was no issue with luggage. Embarkation/Disembarkation Very easy on both occasions, we were a bit early for our 12.30 boarding time and were on board and eating lunch in the Golden Lion by then. We disembarked in Barcelona at 9 am. Food/Dining We had a shared table of 6 on second sitting. Food service was great but our Sommelier was very busy. We got into the habit of ordering wine at lunchtime or the previous evening to make it sure it arrived in time for the food. We found something good on most menus, often more than one. I was a bit worried when I read comments about new menus but overall it was an improvement. We never ordered more than one soup/starter/salad but we never have so that wasn't a problem. We had starters as main courses a couple of times. We enjoyed the light bites at lunchtime in the Chart Room and room service breakfast, the time slots are now 30 minutes which isn't great if you have an early. We made it to the Britannia restaurant for breakfast and lunch on a couple of occasions, always had a table for 2. Entertainment Never a priority for us but we enjoyed a couple of the guests performers, particularly the Comedy String Quartet, it doesn't sound very promising but it was very funny. It was good to see The Royal Court theatre orchestra and Caribbean band Changez playing in the Golden Lion. One of our favourite evenings was the deck party. Cabin We had a metal fronted balcony forward on Deck 4. The cabin itself was fine but there was some noise from the crew pantry opposite. Itinerary We only took one ship's excursion, the others were easy to diy. Santa Margherita was probably the highlight for us. Summary Another great cruise on Cunard. Read Less

We took a our first cruise on Regent in May from Lisbon to London and we were blown away. We have taken Crystal in the past on some 15 cruises, and now we find ourselves remiss for patronizing a good cruise line (Crystal) when there was such a much finer cruise line (Regent) out there. Regent beats Crystal in room quality, service, staff, food, athletic facility, spa, public areas, embarkment, and in a very big way, in excursions. Crystal does have better entertainment, but overall this is a minor item to us. Further, Regent is not as pretentious as Crystal by declaring itself the "best" cruise line, and Regent does not push purchasing photos at every conceivable instance as Crystal always does. And even the passengers on Regent appear to be more polished and polite than those we have encountered on recent Crystal ships. Perhaps Crystal is yesterday's cruise line, but Regent is today's. Special compliments to the Regent's ship management. The attendants for the rooms were almost invisible, yet their job was always complete in a timely manner. Similarly, we were treated excellently by the food mangers in the various restaurants. Our favorite restaurant was Prime with the bone-in ribeye. Every excursion seemed better than the one before! Thank you Regent-job excellently done! Read Less

We had been to Europe before and wanted to see something/places we’d missed. This was a great way to do a lot of things in a short time with no packing/unpacking or transportation. We spent a few days in Barcelona pre-cruise. This served two purposes: it allowed us to catch up on jet-lag (from US) and we had time to visit Barcelona. This was onw of our favorite places! We toured the Sagrada Familia (get tickets ahead of time!) with a guide. She was wonderful and we wouldn’t have understood or experienced it as well without her. We made reservations at Casa Mila for dinner (Gaudi’ designed this residential complex) Dinner included a tour of the complex which was fantastic! He was a genius. It also included a rooftop light show that was spectacular. Cost: $59 pp including dinner. Embarkation was quite simply the easiest, quickest we’d ever experienced! From taxi to walking on the ship: 12 minutes! Royal has this down! Our embarkation time was noon but we arrived at 11:00 a.m. Uncrowded and painless. Cabins open at 1:00, so we went to cafe on deck 8 and had roast beef sandwiches and good salads. Our cabin was booked as a GTY(guarantee) for an ocean view category 6N or above. We always book balconies but would be off the ship every day but one so didn't care on this one. We knew we may not get a room assignment until embarkation. But about 3 days before we left home we received a call from them stating there were no more ocean views available. I wasn’t happy, but they offered a virtual balcony with a refund of one person’s fare! Now virtual balconies are kind of “hoky” . I said I wasn’t sure I would do that even with a refund so they then offered two hundred fifty dollars on board credit along with the refund. I asked if this refund would be in the form of future cruise credit and no it would be a refund on your credit card! I accepted and glad we did. A virtual balcony has a huge window-like screen with a live feed of what’s going on outside. Worth it for a certain price. Our 2nd night we booked Wonderland for dinner. It was unique and delicious. I loved it, my husband thought it was just okay. The presentation was unlike anything we’d ever experienced and definitely worth the up charge. It appears at first as if the servings are small, but there are so many you get a lot of food and will leave full. We booked excursions both on our own and through cruise line. Palma de Mallorca: guys toured Drach Caves and girls toured Cathedral (lovely grounds, beautiful church) and shopped. We stopped at a little outdoor cafe for coffee and listened to an outdoor band...Very pretty island. Marseilles was a tour on our own...We rode the petit train to the Cathedral. The views are spectacular from there. Our next stop was LaSpezia. We decided to forgo Florence as our friends had been there before and it was quite a way from the port. Will go there one day! We opted for a tour of: Rapallo, Santa Margherita and Portofino. It included two boat rides and each place was quaint and quite beautiful. We had a guide and some time to explore on our own too. Next stop: Rome. We love Rome and decided our best course od action was Rome In Limo. This was we could see what we wanted and skip the things we’d done before! Rome In Limo was wonderful. We’d read all the great reviews and now understand why people go with them. We had Max as a tour guide/driver. He was knowledgeable, polite, knew his way around and spoke English very clearly. He showed us things we might have missed on a larger tour. We had a Mercedes minivanfor the 4 of us. So comfortable. He recommended a great place for lunch. Osteria dei Pontefici....great service and food. 20 Euro included wine, appetizers, main course and dessert. We saw Pantheon, Villa Borghese, Trevi Fountain, and the secret tunnel/path from the Vatican the pope used. He had us back in plenty of time. We will use them again! Our last stop was Naples. We booked a tour with cruise line and visited Capri, Sorrento, and Pompeii. Capri was my favorite place we visited! We rode the Funicular up to the top with spectacular views. We walked to some gardens with views that are postcard beautiful. Didn’t want to leave. Sorrento was nice. We had lunch there and not enough time! Lastly we visited Pompeii. What a fantastic tour. Very interesting to see how people lived so very long ago and how well planned their community was! We very much needed the last day to rest. Glad it was an at sea day! This ship is marvelous and we will go on it again for the Caribbean and just enjoy being on the ship!(we’ve been to most ports) our cabin was fine for the Europe trip. Cabi. Steward was Rosli and he did a great job. Attentive and friendly. Service all over the ship was very good. Smiles, helpful, friendly employees. We are in our 60’s and didn’t do some of the things offered (rock climbing, ice skating, laser tag,) but some of us (not me) enjoyed the slides, zip lines and jog track! It was a trip of a lifetime. Loved every minute. If you can, do it!!!!! Read Less

Departure delayed by several hours with passengers waiting in lounges. Ship right out of dry dock but rugs not finished installing. New bedding and rugs plus new larger TV's were only apparent changes. Divers had to inspect underside of boat at first port as the thrusters were creating huge vibrations on ship, delaying departure by several hours. same thing happened at next port. Chairs in Skywalkers Lounge completely worn out and stained but not replaced. No more Happy Hour and drinks at Captain's Club more expensive. Menu offerings below average and not up to past experiences. Daily canapes for elite passengers used to be a plate full, now 4 tiny canapes for 2 persons ! Many people complaining about all kinds of problems like only a trickle of water in cabin, weak air conditioning, etc. Some of the laundry rooms were closed at sailing for maintenance, others had non-functioning or ripped out machines. Token dispensers not available on all floors or out of service. Several rest rooms had non functioning taps with "under maintenance" signs. Waiters did not remove lobster meat from shells like in the past even if asked Baked Alaska parade done at 8:45 p.m. on last day of cruise. Liked this cruise like all cruises but feel this ship was not upgraded properly at dry dock and had an overall feeling, like many other experienced cruisers, that this cruise was not at previous level of Princess excellence. But the staff, as usual is wonderful and makes up somewhat for the bad experiences. Read Less

We chose this cruise for the itinerary and also because we love sailing with Regent. We were not disappointed. The food, service, crew, tours were all top notch. These are highlights: Embarkation went without a glitch and it was fast. Cabin was kept beautifully by our attendants. Food in every restaurant was outstanding. Dino, the executive chef, had great meals and lunches every day. The shore excursions and guides were outstanding. We did the overnight excursion to Luxor and it was excellent. We love the crew and it was nice to reconnect. The entertainment was good too. All in all this was one of our best cruises. The itinerary was awesome. We highly recommend Regent. Once again they did not disappoint. We loved every minute of the cruise and can't find any fault. From embarkation to disembarkation it was perfect. We also did the Regent post cruise tour of Dubai/Abu Dhabi and it was excellent. Very good hotel, guide, and sights. Read Less

it is a very beautiful boat, and the service very good, the very professional direction. if I have to give recommendations I proposed it to everyone the boat a wonder, the cabin with balcony is great, the table for dinner very good, the super professional direction, and super team there are plenty to do, 3 swimming pools, golf, wall climbing, ping pong, casino, games,basketball court...... We're not bored internet, the boy Antoine very polished and elegant. for the first time, we are very happy, it is very big we lose the first two days. the shows were very good just the dancer should be more together, we worked at Iberostar punta cana, and everyone was together 100%. but the singer and the others were perfect, especially the couple for the Tango sa it was very very profetionel. I hope with all my heart and my husband, make a return cruise Read Less