Pride of Panama
Marella Discovery 2 Cruise Review
Contributor Level:
Third Mate
Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Reviews: 2
Helpful Votes: 126
New Horizons
Sail date: January 28, 2020
Ship: Marella Discovery 2
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 4 years ago
Review summary
Enjoyment of this 2 week cruise was sadly spoiled during the first week by my having an accident caused by lack of attention to passenger safety.Embarkation
Smooth & Timely
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We took breakfast and afternoon te in Islands restaurant. Lots of choice and Buffett style. The scones and clotted cream were delicious. We are in the main dining on most evenings. The food, wine and service were very good. We ate in the Italian area of the main restaurant. Good menu.
We ate in The Surf & Turf speciality restaurant twice. The food and service were good but the air conditioning was so cold on both occasions that it spoilt our enjoyment of the visit for us and our fellow diners. Despite requests to adjust it nothing was done about it. Considering that we paid an extra price for this facility we didn’t think it was justified on either occasion.
Onboard Activities
We didn’t participate in any of the on board activities but this’d that did seemed to be having a great time.
Entertainment
We enjoyed the I d’iDisk entertainers in the various bars around the ship and the shows in the Broadway Lounge. Something for everyone.
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
The service received from the housekeeping, bar and catering staff was excellent. Always a cheerful smile and friendly comment.
Ship Quality
The ship in my opinion is generally OK but looking a bit tired and in need of some upgrading in the cabins (carpets and bed frames). Shower curtains are very old fashioned nowadays. Nothing worse than a wet shower curtain clinging to you to get your day off to a good start! Some public areas such as the poolside bars, need bringing into the 21st century.
Cabin / Stateroom
The (outside) cabin 3078 was clean
at all times (apart from the window) and fairly comfortable. However, it is tired looking and a little old fashioned. The long mirror was crazed in places. There was no fridge. The flex on the hairdryer was too short and the on switch had to be depressed constantly whilst using it. Not good if you have arthritis! The carpets are in need of a steam clean at worst and renewing at best. The overall use of cabin is space was good. We appreciate fresh water available on this deck and the kettle, milk and tea/coffee.
Ports of call
Enjoyed our day in Montego Bay during our back to back cruise. We took the “High Tea at Good Hope Estate” tour with TUI. The coach was pretty dire (old and missing some seat belts etc) but the driver, guide and place were very good. The grounds are delightful and the afternoon tea lived up to our expectations.
Thumbs Up
1
We went ashore on our own and took one of the many buses to Royal Oalms Beach resort where we add a nice lunch and relaxing beach day.
We pre booked a classic car for 3 hours with Havana Classic Car Tours. They were excellent and took us from the terminal building all over Havana explaining all the sights. We were even treated to a Mojito at the National Hotels famous bar. In the evening we took another car to the Tropicana for dinner and the show. I really enjoyed this despite the fact that I was nursing some huge bruises and heavily sedated after my fall on the ship!
We did the Cozumel Highlights Tour arranged by TUI on our Marella cruise. An OK trip with some interesting information but rather too much to take in. Good guide. Poor coach.
We took the “Costa Rica by Rail and Canal” trip organised by TUI. Good coach transport, interesting guide. Enjoyed seeing howler monkeys, spider monkeys, sloths, baby crocodile and butterflies.
Disembarkation
When embarking during a stop in Havana I slipped and fell on the gangway. The metal gangway was very steep indeed. The day was dry and warm. Some crew members had been washing some overhead balconies and water from this activity had landed onto the gangway making it slippery. This caused me to skid and fall, cutting and badly bruising my left hand and left elbow. The crew immediately closed the gangway to other passengers and later put down mats to prevent further risk to passengers. I received medical treatment. The painful bruises are still healing two weeks later. In my opinion this cleaning job should never have been allowed to happen in an area where it caused risk to passengers embarking and disembarking the ship. The gangway itself was extremely steep which exacerbated the problem. TUI have been advised of thus incident.