If you ask anyone onboard why they booked this cruise, it was always "the perks offered". The perks made for a less stressful cruise, with not having to check the account information, to see if we were still within budget. from time to time. We tried the usual bars. Ensemble...too noisy to carry on a conversation, Martini....over the top activities and noise, Passport...out of the way, but still busy,....the new World Class Bar....not that impressive. Used to be the Molecular Bar. (took us a couple of cruises to appreciate it, and then it was gone). I have to agree with teltrainer's take on this cruise. He was spot on with his take about the May sailing clientele, noise, and crowds.

Dining: We were in Aqua Class so I will spend more time on that experience. Dining in Blu is a wonderful experience. Slower paced eating, and less hectic because it's a smaller dining venue than the Main Dining room. The portions are smaller and healthy dining is suggested. (you can always order as much as you would like to eat). They are also open for breakfast, so after a couple of days dining there, everyone knows your name...like "Cheers". The Sommelier figures out which guests like wine or a cocktail with dinner, and works with you to figure out what would go best with what you are ordering.

We were so happy with Blu that we did not go to any specialty restaurants this cruise. Read more