Could not cope with my dietary needs. Poor overall.

No issues. Quick and well organised.

I am lactose and dairy free due to a digestive condition. It was impossible to get suitable food for breakfast in the main restaurants. They told me to preorder - then lost my order. Another time they served me scrambled egg, then removed it as I was about to eat it as it contained milk and butter. I had to ask for soya milk, which took half an hour to arrive, so my tea went cold. I gave up and went to the buffet where the selection was limited. No gluten free toast in the buffet, no yogurt and they frequently ran out of soya milk. No dairy free milk provided in the tea and coffee making area.  The main restaurant could not do afternoon tea for me, despite advising me that they would keep something aside. The buffet did have gluten free scones, but you had to ask for them.  The evening restaurant service was much better, as the waiter was fantastic, very attentive and I could pre-order. They were also able to provide a range of desserts (not just sorbet!) Overall, service was very slow for breakfast in the main restaurants. They took over half an hour to bring orders, and could not cook eggs as requested (I ordered one well done - it came with a runny white). Tea and coffee was often lukewarm when served and toast was cold. Items were forgotten for all of my group. Evenings were better, but service was slow (particularly for drinks) and they seemed very understaffed. The quality of the food was excellent, but the choice was very limited and uninspired with some repeats.  Buffet selection was limited and the layout was chaotic. No trays were available, they kept running out of items and there were long queues to serve your own tea and coffee. Not sure why they only had one machine open a time, when there were two. They also kept running out of cutlery and crockery or certain teas (i.e. decaff). Hot food was repetitive and uninspired. On the last two days of the cruise, there was no soup at all. The salad buffet was the same every day with limited choices and bitter cucumber. Towards the end of the cruise, they had run out of fresh tomatoes for the hot breakfast, they then served tinned which I have not experienced since primary school. There were no vegetarian sausages. I could not find any ketchup or brown sauce. Overall, the buffet was a nightmare. Fruit salad was the same recipe everywhere on the, every day and for every meal - just a few bits of watermelon, with a grape and two pieces of pineapple. Very boring.  Tables were often left dirty in the buffet with the previous occupants' napkins and cutlery. I had to clear the table myself a few times.  The Epicurean was excellent with high quality food and attentive service, but you have to pay extra. The Sindhu was too quiet. Food was tasty, apart from my mum's korma which was tasteless. You have to pay extra for this restaurant.  There were no sandwiches or wraps in the cafe (or buffet) which I find handy if you miss lunch etc.  Poor cocktail selection which was and the same every day and at all bars on the ship. The 'Cocktail of the Day' was often already on the menu. Decent prices i.e. 6.95 for a cocktail. Presentation was poor - just a chunk of pineapple, no umbrella or stirrer. More cost cutting. Slow Service. Many wines on the wine menu for the main restaurant were not available. They would not keep half finished bottles for you, so you had to take them back to your room. Ice buckets were not provided for chilled and sparking wines.  Juice was watered down in the buffet and main restaurants. Yet more cost cutting.  There was a limited range of speciality teas, a few herbal teas, some Earl Grey and the decaff kept running out. No English Breakfast or other strong morning tea. Otherwise it was PG Tips everywhere which is too weak tasting for me. No sweeteners provided in the main restaurant or cabins (cost cutting?) You had to pay for decent coffee.  

There was only one pool table and one table tennis table for the whole ship. The selection of activities was poor. The library had a good selection of books, but was very small with no relaxing area for reading or games, and there were no games anyway. The daily newsletter kept running out. Probably more cost cutting! I normally love quizzes. Tried the quiz in Brodies but did not go back as quizmaster spent a lot of time sharing boring anecdotes about herself. A lot of the programmed activities were actually glorified sales pitches ie the art talks. Gym - Decent selection of cardio machines, but many were out of order. No staff monitoring the gym. No yoga mats - but they miraculously appeared for the paid classes. They were available last time I sailed on the Azura.

Mainly Butlins-style from the onboard hosts. Singers in the bars and Brodie's were terrible and out of tune. Main theatre did not do proper shows, just selections of Motown hits etc. There was a good magician one night and a half decent guitar player on another, but the rest was woeful.  Film selection on the sea screen was poor. Mainly for kids/teens (there were few on board as it was term time) and often old or obscure. Timings were weird as they didn't allow you to see the whole film if you ate at the set dining times.

Aside from a excellent waiter and helpful steward, service was polite but slow and a bit grudging.

Clean common areas, except for the buffet where dirty plates were left. I had to clear tables myself a few times. Lots of leaked water of the pool deck which was not mopped up. Dangerous, particular given the older clientele. Poorly laid out with minimal signage. Very difficult to find your way around - others commented on this too. At least one lift was always out of order, and most did not go right to the top. Generally the ship looked tired and in need of a refit, with signs of wear and tear. Deck 7 was nice and relaxing but constant noise on the main outer deck with pools.

I had a deluxe balcony cabin. It was a good size with a nice balcony and loungers with footrests and a coffee table. Overall, the decor and fittings were very tired and in need of replacement, with very dated brown decor and dingy black and white pictures. Bathroom had good storage. Good hot and powerful shower. Walk-in dressing area was good with plenty of hanging space, but there was the risk of someone hitting you with the bathroom door as it opened outwards into this area. Cabin steward was great and kept it clean and tidy.

Very good. They collected the suitcases from outside your cabin and put it on the plane for you. Mine didn't go missing (!)