We chose this mini cruise for the Easter Weekend and were keen to visit Hamburg. The time spent in Hamburg was great and we were looking forward to a leisurely trip back to Southampton. Embarkation was a joke 2.5 hours of total chaos with no apparent management in attendance. Having cruised many times we know that we would be required to attend the mandatory drill, however there were no instructions as to when this would be. We went out for a drink at 8pm, then 5 minutes later there was an announcement to say that any passengers who had not attended the earlier drill had to go the theatre immediately and you were not permitted to take your drink with you! We therefore lost our drinks!

The drill in the Theatre was a total joke, people arrived wearing their life jackets and blowing their whistles all though the demonstration, again there were no officers or managers to be seen.

On our late arrival in the restaurant due to the drill, we were presented with the menu, which can only be described as limited. I ordered the Minestrone soup and grilled chicken, followed by the cheese board. The soup was OK, however what followed was hard to believe. The grilled chicken dish was a butterfly chicken breast and some frozen chips that had been thrown on the plate. I asked if there were any vegetables and was informed that this is how the grilled chicken was served. The waitress then got some broccoli and cauliflower for me. I then attempted to eat the chicken, however I couldn't cut into it it was that tough. The cheeseboard that followed was just tasteless processed cheese. The head waiter came over at the end of the meal to apologise and said that they were low on stock as they had come across from Brazil, strange when the ship had come in from Southampton? He promised that the menu and food would be better the next night, which it was. Thankfully the Pizzeria was very good! Read more