UK Reviews of the Week by nain and taid, peteukmcr & sands8kc!

Every Thursday, we'll randomly select three cruise reviews to feature here! Plus, we'll send each member a Cruise Critic logo item. We hope they enjoy it!

Marco Polo Amazon, Caribbean and Azores 2014 by nain and taid

Having read the glowing reviews on Marco Polo's Amazon 6 week cruise, I thought I should redress the balance. We have cruised for the last 12 years on various ships, large and small, expensive and cheap, and in all weathers. Never have we experienced a trip like our 42 night Amazon, Caribbean and Azores cruise on Marco Polo. We had read the reviews before we booked, and were fully aware of the ship's shortcomings. There was no launderette! The ship was old with no balconies. The bath towels were small and very thin. There was no port lecturer, so no help for the independents. Other lecturers were rostered, but were of a very poor quality. To have an "expert" turning his back to his audience and reading his notes from the screen muttering to himself, does not inspire confidence in the veracity of his lecture or his preparation. Yes! The show lounge was basic.All that was acceptable. But to have only song/dance entertainment for all 42 nights, except for 1 comedy night, 2 magic nights and the odd (very odd!) film, was monotonous, to say the least.The show team were very good and did their best, some of the singing was excellent, but to show G rated films or children's animated ones (Rapunzel - really?) left many passengers yawning. Continue reading... Amazon, Caribbean and Azores 2014

Brilliance of the Seas Brilliance revisited - short 5 night sailing from Tampa by peteukmcr

Background – we travelled from Manchester, UK departing on Saturday, 22nd Feb flying with Virgin Atlantic direct to Orlando. Check in & Boarding One of the easiest and best we’ve experienced (expect for Allure which is on another level). Ship Brilliance is well maintained and there is plenty of space for everyone, even on sea days. OK space maybe at a premium on sea days around the main pool and especially in the Solarium, but there are plenty of empty sunbeds in other quieter areas. A good variety of venues, with a lot of emphasis on the Centrum with the aerial shows that take place there. New venues like Vintages were fairly quiet but with great staff. Similarly the Colony Club was very quiet unless planned activities were taking place there. Continue reading... Brilliance revisited - short 5 night sailing from Tampa

MSC Armonia Few frills, few faults by sands8kc

After reading some of the reviews, our expectations were not that high but thought that, for what we were paying, it would be a cheap break. As we were already in Tenerife, we were not part of a large group so Check In was extremely efficient and quick, but unfortunately, no one told us that there was a shuttle to get to the ship, so we had quite a walk along the dockside. We were on board at about 12.30 and were pleasantly surprised that our cabin was ready for us. It had been made up with a double bed, not with 2 singles as asked for, but this was quickly rectified and made the cabin much more spacious. There was so much storage space and although the shower was quite small, the water was always very hot. It was all extremely clean, so no complaints there. The staff didn't seem quite so well trained as with other cruise companies, stood around talking to each other quite a lot, but plates were always cleared quickly in the buffet. Continue reading... Few frills, few faults.

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