A relaxing cruise but the food needs to improve.
Freedom dining should be available to all passengers not just to those who pay select fare. When you're on the Liguarian tier, it's disappointing to only be able to access the buffet when allocated e0.30 pm club dining which is too late. Requested a change but refused.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Embarkation was quick. We've priority boarding due to our P&O tier level so entered the terminal, checked in, went straight through security and were on the ship 10 minutes later.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Lido Grill
4 out of 5
The burgers, hotdogs and pizza were the best food on the ship. Always cooked to order and hot.
Horizon Buffet
2 out of 5
Food very repetitive and there was a lack of choice. Vegetables to accompany meat or fish dishes were frozen and the same, swede, sprouts or parsnips. Vegetarian options limited ie grilled aubergine is not a main meal. Desserts were the same for 5 consecutive days at both lunch and dinner. Salad bar appalling. Trays were not replenished when empty. Portion sizes very small too.
Champion's
2 out of 5
It was always busy in here to the extent it felt claustrophobic and it was difficult to find a seat especially if sports were on the TV. Lack of staff didn't help the waiting time to order a drink either.
Sindhu
5 out of 5
We tried the tiffin lunch at Sindu and had 3 dishes for £5.95. The food was gorgeous, freshly cooked and full of flavour.
Room Service
5 out of 5
We always have room service for breakfast to save the mad rush in the buffet or MDR. Our food arrived at the selected time, the order was always correct and delivered daily by a very cheerful steward.
Onboard Activities
1 out of 5
The same old activities aimed at the older passengers. Nothing has changed in the last decade.
Riviera Bar
3 out of 5
A good variety of drinks available but as seems to be the norm these days, a lack of staff to take orders. It was always quicker to order directly from the bar.
Entertainment
1 out of 5
The same theatre shows, quizzes, music nights etc which haven't changed in the last 10 years.
Anderson's bar
4 out of 5
The staff were friendly but service slow. We drank in here on a few occasions but there's a lack of staff so my husband often went up to the bar to order. Strict on dress code as passengers were asked to leave or change clothing after 6 pm if wearing shorts and flip flop style sandals even on casual nights.
Service and Staff
2 out of 5
All the staff were overworked and some didn't look happy or even smile. Really sad to witness.
We only saw our cabin steward twice, both times on the first day when he checked we'd watched the safety video and then to bring us some soap which was missing in the bathroom.
Ship Quality
2 out of 5
The ship is looking its age but maintenance is always being done. The wooden railings, door frames and stools around the bars were being freshly varnished during our cruise which did make it quite noisy and odorous at times.
The ship was clean though and we regularly saw staff wiping handrails, tables and suchlike.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
We paid a bit extra and had a deluxe balcony which felt more like a mini suite size wise. There was plenty of storage space and we enjoyed sitting on the larger balcony.
Sadly, the floor in the bathroom was collapsing in the middle of the area so dberybtie you washed your hands at the sink rgc or stepped in/out of the bath, you sank 2 cms into the floor. We reported it but nobody was interested. The flush continuously stopped working and one day we had to use the communal toilets from 13.30 to 23.00 pm. Despite numerous calls to reception, we were told it was low priority. It wouldn't have been too bad but the public toilets were blocked and it was challenging to find a working one especially from deck 10 upwards. Not impressed.
The cabin was kept clean which was the main thing.
Stayed onboard the ship as visited here many times. There's a free shuttle to the nearby seaside resort of Blankenberg from the cruise terminal. The promenade is nice to stroll along or to partake in an icecream or crepe in a local cafe.
It was our first visit to Hamburg and I didn't really like it. It felt like concrete city with too many people and lacked character (aware it was destroyed during WW2 bombings).
We went to Miniature Wunderland which is a model railway exhibition set in the landscape of different countries. It was fantastic with quirky features like water skiing kangaroos and scuba diving cows. The cafe and gift shop were reasonably priced too and the toilets spotless.
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