We chose this cruise for the itinerary. We did private party excursions at most of the stops. We very seldom will take the overpriced cruise line excursions. Most of the stops were places that we had not been.
Yes, the rooms were small, but it's a small ship. We liked the size of the ship. This was our first time on the "R" class. We were in a concierge class veranda. We liked the location on the 7th floor. It was very quiet.
The one area where we were most disappointed was with the two specialty restaurants. Some items at Red Ginger were fabulous, others not so much. At Tuscano it was service issues that ruined the meal. We were looking forward to the Olive Oil cart and the explanation of the different oils and vinegar. Instead the server served whichever olive oil she felt like serving with a splash of balsamic. No explanation or perhaps asking if you might like butter instead. Still waiting for my hot butter to go with my lobster. In summary, we felt the specialty restaurants were lacking in their attention to detail. In fact we cancelled our other reservations with them. That being said, we never had a bad meal in the main dining room Service was excellent. So, when I mark the "Very Good" for food, I am talking about the MDR.
Small rooms and very small bathrooms. We had more than enough drawer space. Nice having the balcony. The bed was very comfortable.
We flew in the afternoon before boarding. Stayed at the Arc La Rambla. The room was small, but very quiet which we appreciated. It is walking distance to where you pick up the bus to the ship. Very convenient and easy to do.
We took the Free Walking tour. It gave us a nice overview of the area. We did not take the additional of the castle as we did that the last time we were there.
Took the tram to La Laguna. If you go, bring small bills for the tram tickets. Nice area to walk around.
Made the mistake of taking the HOHO bus tour. As usual most of the audio you could not hear. Also, the bus route did not seem to follow the audio. Gave an overview of the city. I would not recommend taking the HOHO. There is a beautiful shopping mall right next to the port. Also, the aquarium is walking distance to the ship.
We took an independent tour that took us to Murcia and then a walking tour of Cartagena. If I were to do it over again, I would just stay in Cartagena. There is plenty to see and experience.