My husband and I love to cruise. We chose this cruise because it leaves out of NY and gets us away from the cold for a while. Embarkation went well. Meals in the restaurants were very good. My husband had a problem with one of his meals in the main dining room and we were given a bottle of house wine for our troubles. Housekeeping service was excellent with Renaldo being the best housekeeper we've ever had.

My main problem was with the ships medical center. Unfortunately, I came down with an upper respiratory infection two days into the cruise. I went to the medical center thinking I could just get antibiotics that I knew would work and be on my way. I was told it would be $150 just to see the doctor for the consult. I said ok to that. After that, no other prices were discussed. The doctor said I should have intravenous antibiotics for my upper respiratory infection. Well, they had trouble starting an IV on me 2 times, and as it turned out, I was allergic to the medicine they tried to give me. I ended up having to get a shot of cortisone to counteract the allergic reaction (which I was also charged for). I was told that I had to sign all the papers for consent to treat and billing, but again no prices were discussed. After the doctor gave me the antibiotics I originally asked for I was told that the bill would be sent to my room. They would not discuss cost. You can imagine my horror when the bill did come to my room and the cost was $1,750.00!!!!! I went to the front desk to complain about this ripoff of a bill. I was told they couldn't do anything about it -- and to go contact the doctor first and then the customer service 800 number. I went to the doctor's office and they also said basically there was nothing they could do about the bill --call customer service 800 number.

I think the cost for this medical care was VERY inflated. An emergency room visit wouldn't have been so much. As of this point, the problem has not been resolved. Wish me luck........