Willey1981

We loved Mariner!! Amazing crew members (props to Dennis our stateroom attendant and Lovinia and Rafe in the main dining room!) The Royal promenade was so much fun! Delicious food, lots of selection in the windjammer, with tons of activities! Highly recommended for families!

Just got back from our 2nd cruise with Empress! We absolutely love this ship! The crew is amazing! We were lucky enough to get Perminas as your waiter and he treated us like royalty! The shows were great, the food was very good, the room was perfect for the two of us... it was a wonderful vacation!

Our first cruise we took was on Empress in May. Since we were newbies, we didn’t have anything to compare Empress to, which is a good thing I think!! Here are our pros and cons! Pros: staff was incredible!! Very attentive, friendly, helpful! We felt like celebrities onboard! Even though the ship is considered small, we never felt it. Lots to do during the day, plenty of chairs to sit and soak up the sun or to sit down and grab a bite to eat, fun activities onboard too. Food was good and I enjoyed the variety. I have dietary restrictions and the staff made it a point to make sure I had enough to eat! We also had some great friendly people at our table! Cons: During the day, the pool (only 1) was full of ‘drunken 20somethings’.. we avoided the pool during the day. At night the pool was empty. We bought the drink package (soda one) and the only way to fill your cup is to go to a bar and have them do it. This was a minor inconvenience but if you have tweens or teens and do not want them exposed to alcohol, this may be a turn off... One last con for us was regarding excursions. We booked ours online before leaving and noticed the selection was minimal. On the ship, there were many more options. I’m not sure why that is... but it was kind of upsetting... All in all our first time cruising was awesome! We suggest this ship for those who don’t have huge expectations and for those wanting to relax and not worry about overcrowding. Can’t wait to go back on Empress!